What just happened?

[PE8983]

"What if they were?"

If MU was all over him to get his app in, and he didn't do it, then maybe he had 2nd thoughts about coming, or decided he didn't want to go to prep school.  

If Forster's and PhillyCoach's versions are real, then something else is still going down since a prep school destination for a recruit has been known for a while.

[martyconlonontherun]

If you don't want to rush to judgements, why are you?

I'm willing to get others opinion, but I don't see a way it could be a positive for MU. That's why I'm asking others and open-minded about it.

[Brewtown Andy]

Even then I'm not sure that is grounds for release. It would make it better but still probably just an excuse. Is there a deadline on this app? I'm sure he would have got it in by the deadline. He's going to be a freshmen in college, of course he is waiting for the last minute.

Hell, by waiting until January to commit to MU, he was already behind the application/admissions curve.

http://www.marquette.edu/student/ugrad/admissionoverview.shtml

Marquette has a formal application deadline of December 1.

[NavinRJohnson]

You know, what the hell? I just looked at that Milwaukee Pro-Am thread, and saw PhillyCoach's comments. Could we get real for a minute? Every other MU player is on that list, but DJ Newbill supposedly never heard of it, until PhillyCaoch saw it posted here? Then he comes back with....

"talked to dj and he wants to play. Wants to know what site does he need to go on to sign up for the pro am"

People are taking this nameless faceless internet poster at his word, and claiming this thing doesn't pass the smell test from MU's perspective. Good Grief.

BTW, I'm not sure if Philly Coach just happened to go out of his way to mention anywhere in the last couple days (more than once) that DJ was going to be at MU on July 7th just before the Jamil Wilson news became public. Interesting coincidence.

Get a grip people.

[martyconlonontherun]

Do we have any history on when late signings usually turn in apps? Is this highly unusually for late recruits to not apply until the summer?

[OhioGoldenEagle]

You know, what the hell? I just looked at that Milwaukee Pro-Am thread, and saw PhillyCoach's comments. Could we get real for a minute? Every other MU player is on that list, but DJ Newbill supposedly never heard of it, until PhillyCaoch saw it posted here? Then he comes back with....

"talked to dj and he wants to play. Wants to know what site does he need to go on to sign up for the pro am"

People are taking this nameless faceless internet poster at his word, and claiming this thing doesn't pass the smell test from MU's perspective. Good Grief.

Get a grip people.

Bingo!  Could be his 14 year old brother for all we know.  (Not that I know he has a 14 year old brother....just sayin)

[martyconlonontherun]

You know, what the hell? I just looked at that Milwaukee Pro-Am thread, and saw PhillyCoach's comments. Could we get real for a minute? Every other MU player is on that list, but DJ Newbill supposedly never heard of it, until PhillyCaoch saw it posted here? Then he comes back with....

"talked to dj and he wants to play. Wants to know what site does he need to go on to sign up for the pro am"

People are taking this nameless faceless internet poster at his word, and claiming this thing doesn't pass the smell test from MU's perspective. Good Grief.
Get a grip people.

It's not just Newbil, there just a lot of reasons why this doesn't come out squeaky clean. At the very best, Buzz recruited a guy late and then the guy is replaced by an incoming transfer within 12 hours of him opening his recruitment. Even if this is prearranged, it's 1.) another guy that Buzz recruited that wasn't good enough to play on the team, 2.) was a guy who couldn't get eligible, or 3.) a guy we lost due to transferring.
I just don't see any good reason for a recruit to leave.

[Brewtown Andy]

Do we have any history on when late signings usually turn in apps? Is this highly unusually for late recruits to not apply until the summer?

For what it's worth, there doesn't seem to be any problem with Crowder & Gardner.  Gardner's even signed up for the Pro-Am.

[Litehouse]

Bingo!  Could be his 14 year old brother for all we know.  (Not that I know he has a 14 year old brother....just sayin)

Even if the coach is who he says he is, that doesn't mean he's been in the loop on everything.

[NavinRJohnson]

I just don't see any good reason for a recruit to leave.

So, what specifically is the bad in this situation?

Just reading this board I can tell you in a general sense with a high degree of certainty what probably happened here...Wilson expressed an interest in transferring to MU, and I suspect Buzz and staff had an inkling from the very beginning for whatever specific reason that Newbill would not ultimately end up here. The Wilson development, forced decision time, and that decision was Newbill not coming to MU, opening the door for Jamil Wilson.

Had Wilson not entered the picture, Newbill maybe would have enrolled at MU, maybe would have gone to prep school, maybe would have done something entirely different. There are plenty of players recruited by MU who would love to come here, but can't because scholarships are offered to better players. The fact that this happened in late June, doesn't change the numbers game. It is perhaps unfortunate for Newbill, but I think it is incredibly naive to think that he and his actions or situation, whatever they may have been, did not somehow play a role in this.

[martyconlonontherun]

There are plenty of players recruited by MU who would love to come here, but can't because scholarships are offered to better players. The fact that this happened in late June, doesn't change the numbers game.

How many of these other recruits signed LOI?

[bilsu]

From a public relations stand point it would have been much better to cut the ties before a transfer shows up. Would not change the fact that it stinks in the first place, but if Newbill was out the same time Mbao was out then it would not have looked like either one was dropped, because we would have had an open scholarship at that point.

[StillAWarrior]

Bingo!  Could be his 14 year old brother for all we know.  (Not that I know he has a 14 year old brother....just sayin)

But I think Brad Forster spoke with Stan Laws (the person PhillyCoach claims to be) and heard the same story.  Brad has interviewed Laws in the past and knows him.  So, even if you don't think PhillyCoach is legit, the same information is coming from Stan Laws who is legit.

I'm not saying that they are providing both sides of the story or that their information is accurate.  You can doubt that he's telling the truth of you want, but it seems pretty clear that he is who he says he is.

I am hoping to hear another side of the story soon.  The version we have heard thus far is troubling and I'm really hoping that there is a logical explanation.  I'm happy that Jamil is coming because I think he's a good player and will bring a lot to the program.  I just hope we didn't screw DJ to make room.

[ZiggysFryBoy]

Who's brad forester?

[4everwarriors]

Could your brother from a different mother.

[MUCam]

The marvelous part of this entire thread is that I have comrades in the fight against teal. I used to feel so alone. I hated teal, but was so scared to come out and say it. Now I feel empowered. I am kicking teal to curb. Teal is pathetic.

In other news, I am proud to say that I have recently employed magenta as my color of choice in demonstrating sarcasm.

[martyconlonontherun]

The marvelous part of this entire thread is that I have comrades in the fight against teal. I used to feel so alone. I hated teal, but was so scared to come out and say it. Now I feel empowered. I am kicking teal to curb. Teal is pathetic.

In other news, I am proud to say that I have recently employed magenta as my color of choice in demonstrating sarcasm.

Is this suppose to be in teal?

[Pakuni]

The marvelous part of this entire thread is that I have comrades in the fight against teal. I used to feel so alone. I hated teal, but was so scared to come out and say it. Now I feel empowered. I am kicking teal to curb. Teal is pathetic.

In other news, I am proud to say that I have recently employed magenta as my color of choice in demonstrating sarcasm.

I'm with you all the way.

[mu_hilltopper]

Gentlemen:  Phillycoach is exactly who he says he is.

[NavinRJohnson]

Gentlemen:  Phillycoach is exactly who he says he is.

That's great, but in no way does that mean everyone should be accepting his version of things as gospel.

[TJ]

That's great, but in no way does that mean everyone should be accepting his version of things as gospel.

So, back to the question raised to your post earlier... how many other recruits that "would love to come here, but can't because scholarships are offered to better players" sign a legally binding (for the player at least) letter of intent to come here and then can't because scholarships are offered to better players?

[GOO]

It seems odd that a coach in the know is asking about the pro-am league, asking about if Buzz is going to have an elite camp, etc, on this board.  If he is so connected and in the loop, why is he asking questions like this on this board?  It doesn't add up.  
And he lost his coaching job, during the season, because the administrator was jealous of him?  Please....
Something isn't right, but the wrong may not be coming from MU's side.   I will wait a couple of weeks or more until we have more info.  Buzz has said all along that someone was going prep.  Maybe it became official now and that is hard to swallow.  But somehow I think someone on DJ's side knew this was going on as a possibility.  Okay, I'll wait now for some more info before deciding on this....

[NavinRJohnson]

So, back to the question raised to your post earlier... how many other recruits that "would love to come here, but can't because scholarships are offered to better players" sign a legally binding (for the player at least) letter of intent to come here and then can't because scholarships are offered to better players?

Again, you are willing to jump to the conclusion that a better player wanting to come to MU is the only factor that led to this. Do you know that? Do you know that Newbill wasn't already on thin ice for some reason before Wilson was given the option/decided to transfer to MU? Do you know that he wasn't made aware of this possibility before he signed the LOI? If so, let's hear it. To conclude otherwise, is necessarily to assume that Buzz and staff were dishonest with him or simply don't value honoring commitments. Whatever evidence there is to support this would be useful in convincing me.

Maymon had obvious issues that led to his dismissal, and it obviously became pretty evident that Yous and Roseborro simply weren't going to be good enough to play in the Big East. Why is a coach being honest about these situations viewed as a bad thing?

[TJ]

Again, you are willing to jump to the conclusion that a better player wanting to come to MU is the only factor that led to this. Do you know that? Do you know that Newbill wasn't already on thin ice for some reason before Wilson was given the option/decided to transfer to MU? Do you know that he wasn't made aware of this possibility before he signed the LOI? If so, let's hear it. To conclude otherwise, is necessarily to assume that Buzz and staff were dishonest with him or simply don't value honoring commitments. Whatever evidence there is to support this would be useful in convincing me.

Maymon had obvious issues that led to his dismissal, and it obviously became pretty evident that Yous and Roseborro simply weren't going to be good enough to play in the Big East. Why is a coach being honest about these situations viewed as a bad thing?

I'm just quoting you... you said "There are plenty of players recruited by MU who would love to come here, but can't because scholarships are offered to better players."  That is a misleading statement, as 99.99% of those recruits you refer to have not had a formal agreement with the school and a signed LOI.  My first post was not jumping to conclusions; it was asking you to clarify that misleading statement.  I should have phrased it better I guess.

As to the other reasons you offered, "simply not good enough to play in the Big East" is not an acceptable reason for me before the guy even gets to school.  And if that is the reason, there are now 3 kids in the last two recruiting classes that Buzz has signed and then changed his mind on - is that not evidence of a trend and a problem to you?  Moreover, if a LOI is going to be legally binding for the player, why in the world is the player not offered the same protections back?  We agreed to give him a spot at MU when he signed; without a mutual agreement,we shouldn't be able to back out just because we no longer feel he's good enough.  (And since you mentioned it, I don't think just telling a kid as he's signing that we might want out is acceptable either.)

I don't know what happened here.  I know it looks bad so far, but I agree that all the facts aren't out.  Unfortunately, none of the possible reasons for the release that have been speculated here make me think positively about MU, just varying degrees of poor judgement.

[MUHoopsfan6]

As a huge Buzz fan and MU season ticket holder for over 20 years I will wait until the official word comes and we get the other side of this story.  For the moment though, this sure sounds disappointing.  I don't really know Buzz but I have met him a few times and listened to him talk many times about the way he treats people.  From everything I have heard from Coach Buzz this would seem to be totally out of character.  If it turns out that we really burned this kid just to get another player, I will actually be a bit heartbroken.