There was no due/expiration date for a decision and Wake is not favored anymore than anyone else is here or certainly not RU....Parker outlined after his RU visit that he would take or plan to take some visits in July before a decision would be made this summer. What makes sense is that a Top 75 player would take all 5 potential visits and still has a likely idea on who the two or three primary contenders are, but reserves the right to take all his visits before making a decision, so this fits the profile. I would be shocked that a kid of this caliber didn't take visits or was pursued by the caliber of programs he has after him.
The questions are always the same or similar to what we saw and heard with Deshawn Freeman....kid is a priority recruit by RU staff, they recruit him consistently and there is an big opportunity to play in a great conference without a crowded lineup. The same "woe is RU" stuff kinda resurfaces as soon as a kid mentions other visits or schools being interested....but as we saw with Freeman, RU was always the strongest suitor that covered all the bases in his recruitment. A need at the position was clear when Etou rumblings of a departure started during the season and immediate minutes and exposure in at worst, the 2nd best conference in America.
Same concept applies here...Wake has a crowded backcourt or 2015 and 2016 kids and although Parker can ultimately decide that Wake is the best fit, RU actually stands in a very good position here. Sanders looms as a big chip and Parker can likely certain land immediate minutes with Sanders for the forseeable future, in a conference that can showcase his skill set.
In RU's case, he is interchangeable to me and can thrive here in transition and play through the ultimately growing pains that underclassmen like Sanders and Parker will go through. Can that happen elsewhere is the question or will other coaching staffs allow that to happen?? How can a kid like Parker develop if a program only wants him to play a few minutes a half, with a crowded backcourt??
After reviewing the enormous NBA free agent signings from yesterday and seeing kids from Eastern Washington get drafted before some kids from Kentucky/Kansas or North Carolina did, leads me to believe that ultimately, you need playing time in college to max out your potential. Some families and AAU coaches still struggle with understanding this concept, but how much you play or don't get to play as an underclassman really determines how strong a look you can have at the next level. I have conversations with parents changing their kids out of AAU programs, because one program wins more than another.....what happens then when you give up starters minutes to be a role player on a better AAU program???
NBA GM's/scouts have been burned badly by watching NCAA tourney games (former Lottery pick Nik Stauskas is the latest example of a player that doesn't do anything else that a team needs to win, but had a handful of great shooting games before leaving Michigan). Stauskas adds zero value on defense, doesn't help with rebounding and requires a Trey Burke type player to thrive on offense. He was essentially traded after one non-descript season by Sacramento because a coach like George Karl has no need for a one dimensional shooter.
On the other hand, if Draymond Green is a 3 to 4 year player/starter, grinder/rebounder/hustler on defense plays multiple positions for 3-4 years at Michigan State and gets drafted in the late 30s or the 2nd round and lands a 5 year/85M contract 3 years out of school, that has to be a signal for kids to understand what GM's are going to look for in college players. At some point, it's no longer going to be the reputation of your college program or career, which isn't guaranteed to translate to the next level. A college star that cannot showcase his skills isn't going to get the proper looks going forward.
Parker and Sanders next level position is to be able to show they can play either guard position, defend, rebound, score in transition and make plays. That may not necessarily translate to RU immediately launching itself to an NCAA team, but you have to have athletic kids capable of playing to do so and start somewhere. And the programs that are clogged with too many recruits ultimately have to sort our minutes to do so.
With the amount of money (over 2.0 Billion likely to be spent over the first 4 to 5 days of Free agency) being tossed around like Halloween candy, I'd be extremely leery of not making sure I had playing time as "highly likely" in Year 1 or Year 2 of my college career, if I possessed NBA caliber athleticism. And the more chances I had to challenge myself against a high caliber schedule, the better.
Having the next level as a selling chip doesn't always equate as the fastest or best way to try and build a program, but RU has to sell this aspect as most programs do in the same situation. Klay Thompson and Steph Curry had NBA caliber potential and pedigree in their parents that played many years in the NBA as well. I've been told by someone in the NBA circles that their success had more to do with their workload they were asked to carry at Washington State and Davidson respectively, than anything else in college.
Kids like Whitehead at Seton Hall, Sanders at RU and potentially Parker at RU, have a unique opportunity to mature in an area/location that can boost the local programs reputations, if they are coachable, can mature and thrive while playing through their mistakes. It's the ultimately goal and I think RU still lands Parker because these factors ultimately are starting to sink in.
The amount of anxiety I'm hearing about from some circles of highly touted Top 25-50 kids in the last 4 to 5 years that barely got drafted OR weren't drafted at all, but landed at some NCAA powers was that scouts "didn't see enough of them" OR "they didn't do enough to convince current coaches that they could do more than one thing on the court". It's an even bigger decision for kids now, the amount of real money now available in the NBA has changed things.
If Iman Shumpert has 2 knee surgeries and isn't a great ball handler, but was asked to guard three different positions at Georgia Tech and has a OK or decent jump shot and gets 4 years & 40M, what can an athletic player like Sanders or Parker get down the road, if they develop their games here??? They certainly project to be as good as a Patrick Beverly, who is athletic and annoying as hell on defense, but has to be likely to land at 4 Years 20-25M.....and he's not a starter.
This free agency period has exploded in a big way....it used to be, just pick a college and you can make probably make as much overseas as you can as a 9th player in a rotation of an NBA team.
In this "new NBA market", you absolutely are making a 40M to 50M decision over the next 8 to 10 years....and you have to actually play lots of minutes in college to have a shot at it. If you pick the school based just on winning tradition, well, good luck to you.