Behind the scenes of Nigel Hayes’ decision
Nigel Hayes waited until the final whistle to make up his mind about whether or not he would remain in the NBA Draft. As of 10:00 am Tuesday morning, Hayes had not yet made a decision and had multiple reasons why he wanted to go and why he wanted to stay. At 10:00 am Tuesday, Hayes met with the Wisconsin coaching staff to go over his week doing workouts for NBA teams and to discuss the feedback the coaching staff received from NBA teams about Hayes and his performance. Following that meeting, Hayes had a conference call to receive more feedback about his performances.
Hayes spent the week all over the country. He was in Boston, Phoenix, Utah, Atlanta and Houston doing workouts for those teams.
At every spot, conversations about Hayes’ position at the next level came up. Hayes described himself as a versatile basketball player who was a 3 if he had to pick one spot. Some teams agreed he was strictly a 3; others agreed that he could play multiple positions.
As for the NBA draft combine, Hayes was happy with his performance in the drills and in the testing portions - as were evaluators I spoke with - but the 5v5 portion of the combine was "too much like AAU and basically for the point guards."
The Wisconsin coaching staff was in constant contact with Hayes throughout the week - providing him with updates they had been hearing, as well as looking for any updates from Hayes himself. Wisconsin players were virtually unaware of Hayes’ intentions and which way he was leaning until he made his decision.
In regards to evaluators I spoke with, virtually all of them thought Hayes made the right decision, with one from a Western Conference team stating that his staff was looking at Hayes very closely with their pick in the second round.
To prepare for next season, Hayes is currently in the midst of a no-carb diet.
*Bronson Koenig is currently in Los Angeles, working out with UCLA point guard Bryce Alford and a training staff.
*Jordan Hill is training in San Francisco for the second consecutive summer, working intensely on his strength and conditioning.
*It may sound crazy to some, but NBA teams are starting to look closely at Ethan Happ. One member of a front office told me "we love him." Depending on how Happ's 2016-17 season goes, he may find himself in a position to attend the draft combine next May to simply go through the process.
-Zack Miller
Thoughts from Chicago
I had a chance to get down to the Chicago Classic on Saturday to see new Wisconsin commit Nathan Reuvers, as well as 2019 forward Matthew Hurt, who holds an early offer from the Badgers.
Starting with Reuvers, I was only able to see one full game because the 6-foot-10, 200-pound standout from D1 Minnesota went down in his second contest with an ankle injury, which did not appear to be serious.
In my first time seeing him live, Reuvers was actually better than I anticipated. I thought he was more athletic than advertised and is very mobile and “bouncy” for his size. He struggled a bit defending quicker athletes but he certainly isn’t slow-footed. Reuvers’ biggest hurdle with be adding the necessary weight and strength to compete against Big Ten post players, but there’s no reason to think he can’t accomplish that with another year of high school ball and a year or two in the Wisconsin strength program.
As far as his strengths, Reuvers is an excellent outside shooter, particularly in the “pick and pop” he ran with speedy point guard McKinley Wright. Reuvers appears to have a favorite spot on the three-point stripe, a few feet to the right of the top of the key. The lasting impression, though, is just how ideal of a fit he is for Greg Gard and the Badgers. There may not be a player in the 2017 class who fits exactly what Wisconsin is looking for in its “bigs.”
This was also my first time watching Hurt and I certainly wasn’t disappointed. Playing up two age groups, the sophomore-to-be more than held his own against older competition. He’s essentially Reuvers with more explosiveness and a much higher ceiling. I certainly expect him to be a top 25 prospect in the 2019 class with the likes of Duke, North Carolina and Kansas either offering or showing very strong interest.
Badgers sitting at the top for Houston
In one of the more impressive feats so far in the 2017 class, Wisconsin has managed to stay at the top for 2017 linebacker James Houston. And this is with a handful of other visits under his belt.
"I’ve pretty much made my top 15 and I plan to release that very soon," Houston told Rivals.com. "Wisconsin and Florida are tied at the top for me."
The coaching staff has made it known that the three-star prospect is the top remaining target in the current cycle and Houston and his camp, we’re told, have felt like a priority from Day 1 since picking up an offer (the first in his recruitment). Members from the staff watched American Heritage’s spring scrimmage on May 24.
From a source, Wisconsin is still doing everything it can to try and get Houston on campus in June for an unofficial visit in hopes of wrapping up his recruitment. However, we’re hearing that he will definitely be in Madison again, but more than likely it will be for an official visit this fall.
There’s still a very long way to go but the Badgers, according to a source, feel like Houston is there’s to lose at this point. Members of the staff are also building a strong relationship with his mother, which has also helped UW position itself well in Houston’s recruitment.
A look at running back
Of the three news offers at running back -- Jonathan Taylor, Kennedy Brooks and Devan Barrett -- we’re told to keep a close eye on Taylor, a current Rutgers commit. We don’t expect a flip to happen in the near future, but the staff feels confident they can get the job done during an official visit.
From Taylor’s camp, we’re hearing the three-star prospect is intrigued by UW’s success with running backs from New Jersey. He looks at Corey Clement as someone he could compare favorably to at the next level, we’re told. Additionally, we’re told that Taylor is looking for a top academic school, another reason why Wisconsin is intriguing. A handful of Ivy League schools are also involved in his recruitment.
It’s still early, but it’s my belief that Taylor will be UW’s one and only running back in the current cycle.
Odds and ends
*It’s early, but keep an eye on 2018 quarterback Jack Tuttle. The standout the California will continue to add to his scholarship list, but we’re hearing his connection to Cade Green, as well as Paul Chryst’s reputation with quarterbacks, will keep the Badgers in serious contention throughout his recruitment.
*Wisconsin commit Jake Ferguson was recently invited to The Opening finals on July 5-10 in Beaverton, Ore.
*There has been a lot of chatter in regards to Brevin Pritzl and his health status heading into next year. From the sources we spoke with, no one indicated that Pritzl is expected to be limited this fall and into the winter.
*Virginia transfer Tre Harbison, according to a source, is no longer an option moving forward. The staff felt they liked prospects in the 2017 class and decided to pursue them instead of adding another transfer at tailback.
*And in case you missed it, some exclusive footage of Cade Green’s spring game:
Nigel Hayes waited until the final whistle to make up his mind about whether or not he would remain in the NBA Draft. As of 10:00 am Tuesday morning, Hayes had not yet made a decision and had multiple reasons why he wanted to go and why he wanted to stay. At 10:00 am Tuesday, Hayes met with the Wisconsin coaching staff to go over his week doing workouts for NBA teams and to discuss the feedback the coaching staff received from NBA teams about Hayes and his performance. Following that meeting, Hayes had a conference call to receive more feedback about his performances.
Hayes spent the week all over the country. He was in Boston, Phoenix, Utah, Atlanta and Houston doing workouts for those teams.
At every spot, conversations about Hayes’ position at the next level came up. Hayes described himself as a versatile basketball player who was a 3 if he had to pick one spot. Some teams agreed he was strictly a 3; others agreed that he could play multiple positions.
As for the NBA draft combine, Hayes was happy with his performance in the drills and in the testing portions - as were evaluators I spoke with - but the 5v5 portion of the combine was "too much like AAU and basically for the point guards."
The Wisconsin coaching staff was in constant contact with Hayes throughout the week - providing him with updates they had been hearing, as well as looking for any updates from Hayes himself. Wisconsin players were virtually unaware of Hayes’ intentions and which way he was leaning until he made his decision.
In regards to evaluators I spoke with, virtually all of them thought Hayes made the right decision, with one from a Western Conference team stating that his staff was looking at Hayes very closely with their pick in the second round.
To prepare for next season, Hayes is currently in the midst of a no-carb diet.
*Bronson Koenig is currently in Los Angeles, working out with UCLA point guard Bryce Alford and a training staff.
*Jordan Hill is training in San Francisco for the second consecutive summer, working intensely on his strength and conditioning.
*It may sound crazy to some, but NBA teams are starting to look closely at Ethan Happ. One member of a front office told me "we love him." Depending on how Happ's 2016-17 season goes, he may find himself in a position to attend the draft combine next May to simply go through the process.
-Zack Miller
Thoughts from Chicago
I had a chance to get down to the Chicago Classic on Saturday to see new Wisconsin commit Nathan Reuvers, as well as 2019 forward Matthew Hurt, who holds an early offer from the Badgers.
Starting with Reuvers, I was only able to see one full game because the 6-foot-10, 200-pound standout from D1 Minnesota went down in his second contest with an ankle injury, which did not appear to be serious.
In my first time seeing him live, Reuvers was actually better than I anticipated. I thought he was more athletic than advertised and is very mobile and “bouncy” for his size. He struggled a bit defending quicker athletes but he certainly isn’t slow-footed. Reuvers’ biggest hurdle with be adding the necessary weight and strength to compete against Big Ten post players, but there’s no reason to think he can’t accomplish that with another year of high school ball and a year or two in the Wisconsin strength program.
As far as his strengths, Reuvers is an excellent outside shooter, particularly in the “pick and pop” he ran with speedy point guard McKinley Wright. Reuvers appears to have a favorite spot on the three-point stripe, a few feet to the right of the top of the key. The lasting impression, though, is just how ideal of a fit he is for Greg Gard and the Badgers. There may not be a player in the 2017 class who fits exactly what Wisconsin is looking for in its “bigs.”
This was also my first time watching Hurt and I certainly wasn’t disappointed. Playing up two age groups, the sophomore-to-be more than held his own against older competition. He’s essentially Reuvers with more explosiveness and a much higher ceiling. I certainly expect him to be a top 25 prospect in the 2019 class with the likes of Duke, North Carolina and Kansas either offering or showing very strong interest.
Badgers sitting at the top for Houston
In one of the more impressive feats so far in the 2017 class, Wisconsin has managed to stay at the top for 2017 linebacker James Houston. And this is with a handful of other visits under his belt.
"I’ve pretty much made my top 15 and I plan to release that very soon," Houston told Rivals.com. "Wisconsin and Florida are tied at the top for me."
The coaching staff has made it known that the three-star prospect is the top remaining target in the current cycle and Houston and his camp, we’re told, have felt like a priority from Day 1 since picking up an offer (the first in his recruitment). Members from the staff watched American Heritage’s spring scrimmage on May 24.
From a source, Wisconsin is still doing everything it can to try and get Houston on campus in June for an unofficial visit in hopes of wrapping up his recruitment. However, we’re hearing that he will definitely be in Madison again, but more than likely it will be for an official visit this fall.
There’s still a very long way to go but the Badgers, according to a source, feel like Houston is there’s to lose at this point. Members of the staff are also building a strong relationship with his mother, which has also helped UW position itself well in Houston’s recruitment.
A look at running back
Of the three news offers at running back -- Jonathan Taylor, Kennedy Brooks and Devan Barrett -- we’re told to keep a close eye on Taylor, a current Rutgers commit. We don’t expect a flip to happen in the near future, but the staff feels confident they can get the job done during an official visit.
From Taylor’s camp, we’re hearing the three-star prospect is intrigued by UW’s success with running backs from New Jersey. He looks at Corey Clement as someone he could compare favorably to at the next level, we’re told. Additionally, we’re told that Taylor is looking for a top academic school, another reason why Wisconsin is intriguing. A handful of Ivy League schools are also involved in his recruitment.
It’s still early, but it’s my belief that Taylor will be UW’s one and only running back in the current cycle.
Odds and ends
*It’s early, but keep an eye on 2018 quarterback Jack Tuttle. The standout the California will continue to add to his scholarship list, but we’re hearing his connection to Cade Green, as well as Paul Chryst’s reputation with quarterbacks, will keep the Badgers in serious contention throughout his recruitment.
*Wisconsin commit Jake Ferguson was recently invited to The Opening finals on July 5-10 in Beaverton, Ore.
*There has been a lot of chatter in regards to Brevin Pritzl and his health status heading into next year. From the sources we spoke with, no one indicated that Pritzl is expected to be limited this fall and into the winter.
*Virginia transfer Tre Harbison, according to a source, is no longer an option moving forward. The staff felt they liked prospects in the 2017 class and decided to pursue them instead of adding another transfer at tailback.
*And in case you missed it, some exclusive footage of Cade Green’s spring game:
