The impact on future star recruiting

[RUich]

Even before the season started, there were plenty of doubters who could not figure out why Harper and Ace would come to a school like Rutgers. Well, if what we are seeing continues, can you imagine what top school recruiters will be telling those stars? "Why would you want to waste your talents on playing on (insert school) and not get to the National Championships?" We will become the "Rutgers effect".
It is going to be interesting to see how Flagg ends up playing at a blue blood.
This may just make the top schools even harder to beat.

 

[RUisB1Gtime]

Stop...A good recruiter for RU will simply say we just put 2 kids in the lottery and they are making millions. We will do the same for you. A good recruiter can sell sand at the beach....There is no way in hell 2 lottery picks is a bad thing for RU no matter how you slice it.

 

[NickRU714]

Stop...A good recruiter for RU will simply say we just put 2 kids in the lottery and they are making millions. We will do the same for you. A good recruiter can sell sand at the beach....There is no way in hell 2 lottery picks is a bad thing for RU no matter how you slice it.

They were Top 5 picks before they got here.
Same with AJ Dybantsa and Utah.
Is Utah going to be the reason he goes Top 5?

The benefit is we can say "Come here and you can do anything you want. You dictate the system. Just take the ball and go. We won't force you into a system if you don't want."

Of course that may not be totally a winning strategy.

But "winning' is less of a priority for elite recruits than people like to think.

 

[BigEastPhil]

A positive of this disappointing season to date :

As bad as we have been, Dylan and Ace have met / exceeded expectations ! They will still be drafted in top 3-5 with a cast of misfit teammates !. Thus Pike and Staff did not detrimentally impact their game and or development etc for the NBA Draft etc !

However the term “ negative recruiting” will be synonymous with Rutgers should the year continue to swoon - which is of great concern for the future

 

[Treaster51]

Stop...A good recruiter for RU will simply say we just put 2 kids in the lottery and they are making millions. We will do the same for you. A good recruiter can sell sand at the beach....There is no way in hell 2 lottery picks is a bad thing for RU no matter how you slice it.

Agree . In all honestly before they got here I’m not sure they were both pegged as top 3… by having no supporting cast we’ve allowed them to put on a show

 

[RUisB1Gtime]

They were Top 5 picks before they got here.
Same with AJ Dybantsa and Utah.
Is Utah going to be the reason he goes Top 5?

The benefit is we can say "Come here and you can do anything you want. You dictate the system. Just take the ball and go. We won't force you into a system if you don't want."

Of course that may not be totally a winning strategy.

But "winning' is less of a priority for elite recruits than people like to think.

Irrelevant. A good recruiter tells prospective 5 stars all the things RU did to get not 1 but 2 kids into the top 5. If you can't capitalize off that. Quit your job.

 

[winfield102]

Looks like they are going to have a fun year before heading to the NBA.

Landing these 2 was an anomaly. Younger brother of RHJ and godson of one of assistant coaches. Barring some other anomaly, we aren't landing any other top 5 players. Would Pike try it again in the future if he had the chance? We aren't a tough out so far this year.

 

[seansherm]

They were Top 5 picks before they got here.
Same with AJ Dybantsa and Utah.
Is Utah going to be the reason he goes Top 5?

The benefit is we can say "Come here and you can do anything you want. You dictate the system. Just take the ball and go. We won't force you into a system if you don't want."

Of course that may not be totally a winning strategy.

But "winning' is less of a priority for elite recruits than people like to think.

BYU

 

[ancienthooper]

Zero impact on future recruiting. Massive overreach. Particularly in today’s world where the most important factor is the size of the check. Which totally blows.

 

[Mr_Twister]

In this revolving door roster era, NIL money drives the bus.

 

[cm_13]

Even before the season started, there were plenty of doubters who could not figure out why Harper and Ace would come to a school like Rutgers. Well, if what we are seeing continues, can you imagine what top school recruiters will be telling those stars? "Why would you want to waste your talents on playing on (insert school) and not get to the National Championships?" We will become the "Rutgers effect".
It is going to be interesting to see how Flagg ends up playing at a blue blood.
This may just make the top schools even harder to beat.

This really isn’t a thing. The elite recruits care about getting to the next level as a high draft pick more than anything else, including competing for a national championship. We will finally have two guys we can point to as proof that you can make it to the league from Rutgers. The only thing that would be used against us would be if Ace and Dylan’s draft stock dipped significantly as a result of them coming here. That isn’t happening.

Don’t know if we ever land a top 5 recruit again (we probably won’t), but it won’t be because of our record this season.

 

[RUisB1Gtime]

The nba draft will be the greatest RU infomercial of all time.. There will be weeks of speculation on the #1 pick. Ace, Dylan or Flagg. RU is going to get a crazy amount of press...

 

[PiscatawayMike]

Dylan or Ace may finally be our Todd Anderson!

(Watch first 15 seconds...)

 

[NickRU714]

This really isn’t a thing. The elite recruits care about getting to the next level as a high draft pick more than anything else, including competing for a national championship. We will finally have two guys we can point to as proof that you can make it to the league from Rutgers. The only thing that would be used against us would be if Ace and Dylan’s draft stock dipped significantly as a result of them coming here. That isn’t happening.

Don’t know if we ever land a top 5 recruit again (we probably won’t), but it won’t be because of our record this season.

This isn't really accurate.
Their draft stock also isn't significantly raising as a result of them coming here.

Nobody is pointing to Rutgers and saying "They can get guys to the NBA. Look at Ace and Dylan."
They were Top 5 picks before stepping on the court.

As I said above - if AJ Dybantsa is the #1 pick in 2026 does that mean BYU can get guys to the NBA? Of course not.

Competing for a national championship is questionable. Again - AJ Dybantsa to BYU. They lost to a #11 seed in the first round. Haven't made it to the 2nd round since 2011.
Ace/Dylan to the 2nd worst Big Ten team (us in 2023-2024).
If winning a college championship was of such high value, those 3 sure didn't value it.

 

[-RUFAN4LIFE-]

Even before the season started, there were plenty of doubters who could not figure out why Harper and Ace would come to a school like Rutgers. Well, if what we are seeing continues, can you imagine what top school recruiters will be telling those stars? "Why would you want to waste your talents on playing on (insert school) and not get to the National Championships?" We will become the "Rutgers effect".
It is going to be interesting to see how Flagg ends up playing at a blue blood.
This may just make the top schools even harder to beat.

Hate to break it to you, Ace and Dylan came to RU because of relationships with B. Knight and Pike, respectively. RU isn't in the league to be recruiting these type of players outside of this situation because NIL isn't there to get them.

 

[S_Janowski]

Honestly Ace doesn’t even seem to be that phased by losing so far.

I can’t say the same for Dylan…he actually seems like he doesn’t like losing…but will literally only be on campus for about 6 months before he heads to prep for the NBA.

OP and many others are blowing this way out of proportion.

 

[NickRU714]

The nba draft will be the greatest RU infomercial of all time.. There will be weeks of speculation on the #1 pick. Ace, Dylan or Flagg. RU is going to get a crazy amount of press...

An infomercial about missing the tournament or even worse the Big Ten Tournament?
I can imagine it would be a lot of "Yes the team stunk but that shouldnt reflect on Ace and Dylan. They did their part."

Separate Ace and Dylan from the team results.

It will really test "all press is good press" for HC Pike.

 

[RUisB1Gtime]

An infomercial about missing the tournament or even worse the Big Ten Tournament?
I can imagine it would be a lot of "Yes the team stunk but that shouldnt reflect on Ace and Dylan. They did their part."

Separate Ace and Dylan from the team results.

It will really test "all press is good press" for HC Pike.

No, the media narrative will be Steve Pikiell did amazing job getting these guys to RU but it's hard to win with Freshman in the Big 10 no matter how talented they are.....

 

[needmorecowbell]

Even before the season started, there were plenty of doubters who could not figure out why Harper and Ace would come to a school like Rutgers. Well, if what we are seeing continues, can you imagine what top school recruiters will be telling those stars? "Why would you want to waste your talents on playing on (insert school) and not get to the National Championships?" We will become the "Rutgers effect".
It is going to be interesting to see how Flagg ends up playing at a blue blood.
This may just make the top schools even harder to beat.

Ace and Dylan are both going to be top scorers in the big ten/country and get drafted somewhere between 1-4. It’s going g to be a great story for future players. These kids want to get to the NBA. Winning in college is not the priority.

 

[Joey Bags]

Ace and Dylan are going HAM on a team of complete misfits. If both busted we would be in way worse shape recruiting head on.

Our issue is going to be convincing top talent that we will provide a supporting cast that can win. Here we’re essentially in a hopeless spot with Pike.

 

[seansherm]

No, the media narrative will be Steve Pikiell did amazing job getting these guys to RU but it's hard to win with Freshman in the Big 10 no matter how talented they are.....

Yeah, because positive press is usually the angle taken

 

[winfield102]

Honestly Ace doesn’t even seem to be that phased by losing so far.

I can’t say the same for Dylan…he actually seems like he doesn’t like losing…but will literally only be on campus for about 6 months before he heads to prep for the NBA.

OP and many others are blowing this way out of proportion.

He's gonna play for Rutgers for 5 months and be gone. He is ultimately a short term rental. Do they even bother doing school work in the spring semester?

The days of a 5 year senior who has put blood, sweat and tears into the program are gone. That's the player that is devastated by losses and their final season not panning out how they envisioned.

I guess fans have to get used to it.

 

[cm_13]

This isn't really accurate.
Their draft stock also isn't significantly raising as a result of them coming here.

Nobody is pointing to Rutgers and saying "They can get guys to the NBA. Look at Ace and Dylan."
They were Top 5 picks before stepping on the court.

As I said above - if AJ Dybantsa is the #1 pick in 2026 does that mean BYU can get guys to the NBA? Of course not.

Competing for a national championship is questionable. Again - AJ Dybantsa to BYU. They lost to a #11 seed in the first round. Haven't made it to the 2nd round since 2011.
Ace/Dylan to the 2nd worst Big Ten team (us in 2023-2024).
If winning a college championship was of such high value, those 3 sure didn't value it.

I’m not arguing that Rutgers is actually helping them get to the NBA in any meaningful way, I’m saying that Rutgers hasn’t had a bridge to the NBA in decades and we will finally have two notable guys in the league next year.

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

A positive of this disappointing season to date :

As bad as we have been, Dylan and Ace have met / exceeded expectations ! They will still be drafted in top 3-5 with a cast of misfit teammates !. Thus Pike and Staff did not detrimentally impact their game and or development etc for the NBA Draft etc !

However the term “ negative recruiting” will be synonymous with Rutgers should the year continue to swoon - which is of great concern for the future

36 minutes hunting for a triple double vs columbia up 35 with a bum knee not withstanding

 

[NickRU714]

Agree . In all honestly before they got here I’m not sure they were both pegged as top 3… by having no supporting cast we’ve allowed them to put on a show

This isn't close to accurate.
Before the season started they (along with Flagg) were well known and already projected top picks.
No matter where they went to college for a couple months, they were already projected as top picks for a long time.
They could have sat out the season and likely would still have been Top 5 picks.

"Some of the projected one-and-done first-rounders look even better than expected this early. BYU's Egor Demin and Texas' Tre Johnson have been obvious standouts, while Cooper Flagg, Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey continue to look like the top picks we've been projecting them to be for the past year .
https://bleacherreport.com/articles...round-predictions-and-pro-comps-after-1-month

 

[Shelby65]

They were Top 5 picks before they got here.
Same with AJ Dybantsa and Utah.
Is Utah going to be the reason he goes Top 5?

The benefit is we can say "Come here and you can do anything you want. You dictate the system. Just take the ball and go. We won't force you into a system if you don't want."

Of course that may not be totally a winning strategy.

But "winning' is less of a priority for elite recruits than people like to think.

Semi-Agree about 1 and done elite recruits, but the next tier who aren’t making NIL fortunes and expect to get a college degree will prefer to get PT and win too.

I say semi in the first group because even the elite will want the NCAA tourney experience and visibility which the Dance provides.

 

[78CollegeAve]

Yeah, remember how people thought that Pikiell making the NCAA the first time in 2021 would, bam, kick RU recruiting up a notch or two with the Class of 2022? Well, Pikiell parlayed that success and PR into a Zero-for-Top 250 class and signed, gulp, Chol, Woolfolk and Simpson. Yeah, that was awesome! So, I don’t think the Dylan/Ace experiment will move the needle much. Expect a steady stream of meh 3-stars and zero Top 100 kids. Deal with it for the next few years.

 

[R1766U]

Stop...A good recruiter for RU will simply say we just put 2 kids in the lottery and they are making millions. We will do the same for you. A good recruiter can sell sand at the beach....There is no way in hell 2 lottery picks is a bad thing for RU no matter how you slice it.

Disagree.

No way as a hs kid I am even visiting Rutgers after having two top three NBA picks and not making the NCAA tournament.

 

[Treaster51]

This isn't close to accurate.
Before the season started they (along with Flagg) were well known and already projected top picks.
No matter where they went to college for a couple months, they were already projected as top picks for a long time.
They could have sat out the season and likely would still have been Top 5 picks.

"Some of the projected one-and-done first-rounders look even better than expected this early. BYU's Egor Demin and Texas' Tre Johnson have been obvious standouts, while Cooper Flagg, Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey continue to look like the top picks we've been projecting them to be for the past year .
https://bleacherreport.com/articles...round-predictions-and-pro-comps-after-1-month

I said top 3. Before the season started Harper was not predicted to be THIS good . He was always going high but I believe he’s played himself safely into the top 3

 

[bethlehemfan]

We had jwill jmike and of ogbole coming back. Dylan and ace are unbelievable but they are freshman. The transfers were what they are. I honestly do not understand the expectations and if you looked at preseason predictions nobody with a clue would understand what people are complaining about. If we somehow make the tournament that’s an unbelievable coaching job.

 

[Mr_Twister]

Disagree.

No way as a hs kid I am even visiting Rutgers after having two top three NBA picks and not making the NCAA tournament.

Given our hoops history, small-time arena, non-prime time games, and traditionally playing a snooze fest OOC schedule, it’s a miracle that Harper and Bailey came. BTW are we doing a home-and-home with Kennesaw State? Does Michigan State surrender two games in East Lansing when Rutgers visits?

 

[Nycrusupporter]

I said top 3. Before the season started Harper was not predicted to be THIS good . He was always going high but I believe he’s played himself safely into the top 3

This is false, he has been in the Top 3 conversation his entire senior year in HS. He was mainly anywhere from 3-6 in Draft projections, and in those where he fell out of the top 3 it was due to either Foreign players or VJ Edgecombe.

 

[Ridge 22]

We had jwill jmike and of ogbole coming back. Dylan and ace are unbelievable but they are freshman. The transfers were what they are. I honestly do not understand the expectations and if you looked at preseason predictions nobody with a clue would understand what people are complaining about. If we somehow make the tournament that’s an unbelievable coaching job.

So no carryover roster to speak of and zero help in player acquisition in the portal. Add in two unicorn talents and you see that as an unbelievable coaching job?

You seem very accepting of anything. Honest question, but what were you saying last year when things fell apart? I hope it wasn't about Ace and Dylan and wait until this year

 

[LotusAggressor]

Calipari's tournament flameouts didn't seem to have any effect on his recruiting. Even though a lot of his teams underachieved, a whole lot of his players wound up in the NBA.

 

[RexMantlepiece]

Honestly Ace doesn’t even seem to be that phased by losing so far.

I can’t say the same for Dylan…he actually seems like he doesn’t like losing…but will literally only be on campus for about 6 months before he heads to prep for the NBA.

OP and many others are blowing this way out of proportion.

It’s the way of the board for some posters.. hit a disappointing period of time in a sport… get very emotional and assume the worse… extrapolate that “worse feeling” into the forever future.

 

[Saint Puppy]

Zero impact on future recruiting. Massive overreach. Particularly in today’s world where the most important factor is the size of the check. Which totally blows.

Let's also not forget because Rutgers does not have anywhere close to a supporting cast that this put more of a spotlight for both, and gave them a bigger stage. I don't think this would have made a difference for Dylan, but Ace would not be the major focal point at a Blue Blood like he is here.

 

[bethlehemfan]

So no carryover roster to speak of and zero help in player acquisition in the portal. Add in two unicorn talents and you see that as an unbelievable coaching job?

You seem very accepting of anything. Honest question, but what were you saying last year when things fell apart? I hope it wasn't about Ace and Dylan and wait until this year

In re to the first question I meant unbelievable given the roster. In re to the question on last year I said before the season started we’d be terrible. This year I thought we would get bullied in the big ten but was hoping for the best. As far as being accepting of anything that’s not the case. I thought every prior coach should be fired. If this year ends bad and pikes doesn’t figure out the roster next year then that would be 3 bad years in a row and it would likely be time for a change. That said things will probably be worse with a different coach as they have been for the prior 35 years or so pre pike.

 

[Ridge 22]

In re to the first question I meant unbelievable given the roster. In re to the question on last year I said before the season started we’d be terrible. This year I thought we would get bullied in the big ten but was hoping for the best. As far as being accepting of anything that’s not the case. I thought every prior coach should be fired. If this year ends bad and pikes doesn’t figure out the roster next year then that would be 3 bad years in a row and it would likely be time for a change. That said things will probably be worse with a different coach as they have been for the prior 35 years or so pre pike.

OK that's an honest and fair response. Disagree with your last sentence though. To Pikes credit, he has built the base. Like we saw with Greg 1.0, it can fall apart quickly with the wrong subsequent choices. But we shouldn't be afraid of that.

 

[bethlehemfan]

OK that's an honest and fair response. Disagree with your last sentence though. To Pikes credit, he has built the base. Like we saw with Greg 1.0, it can fall apart quickly with the wrong subsequent choices. But we shouldn't be afraid of that.

I don’t think there would be a base tbh. To be successful I think we’d need to bring in a proven winner who would be willing to come because they have some baggage. Like a piitino. An up and comer who’s a can’t miss isn’t coming to rutgers imo.

 

[FAT MOON]

First of all, if we don't have money to pay, we aren't getting top players anyway. With the price of top guys continuing to skyrocket (what..8mm for Dybantsa?!?!?) we might not have been able to get Ace and Dylan, even with all the connections, one year later. And lord knows what this looks like in two or three more years.

But assuming we can keep up with the bank needed for top guys. I'm actually not sure what is going on this season would turn a top guy away. Maybe I'm too cynical from being in gyms for years and years, but kids and parents and uncles want to be featured. And so far we are doing everything in our power to let Ace and Dylan SHINE out there. There is no way anyone can say all the 20/30 balls and the triple doubles and the iso ball leading to these crazy highlights game after game is hurting their status. All these scouts care way more about Dylan looking like the best player in Vegas by a mile, or Ace just hitting NBA shot after NBA shot on the road in a hostile environment, than if RU makes the tournie.

I think the bigger question is, is it in Rutgers best interest to go after these types of kids? We shall see, but the early returns are probably not (and for the record I love Ace and Dylan and will always root for them for picking RU no matter what happens rest of season). I mean if we had infinite money, and could surround them with legit veterans, sure. But it's probably better to try and build through recruiting and player retention and use the cash for that route and then try and find one Spencer/Young/Yeboah type of impact transfer every year and then add a role player or two. Keep Grant, Dortch and Lathan, get your frosh class in the building, and then go out and get one impact transfer/roll player and let's go to work.

I just don't think losing 9-10 guys every season will ever work here, unless we find a Mark Cuban to let us go out and win the portal. Good luck with that.