Welcome Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk!
So now we know part of the reason Bill Self was in Portland during the Nike Hoop Summit!
"Obviously, this is great news for us," Self said. "He is 16 years old and will turn 17 in June, but his skill level, knowledge and aptitude for the game are way beyond his years. I think that he will be an immediate impact guy. He is a guy that can play all three positions on the perimeter. At 6-8, he can play point, play the No. 2 (guard) or the No. 3 (guard). He allows us to be more versatile next year and certainly, there would be few people that would shoot it better than him."
Mykhailiuk shined while representing the Ukraine at the 2013 U16 European Championship, being named to the All-Tournament Team after averaging 25.2 points per game and eight rebounds. According to NBADraft.net, the young sharpshooter shows a mix of athleticism, skills and feel for the game that is extremely rare to see in a European player.
Self, who became aware of the Ukrainian talent three months ago, credited his development through his club team – the Cherkasy Mavpy – to be one of the most appealing factors in KU's recruitment, citing that Mykhailiuk will begin his college career very skilled, drilled and prepared.
"We got a lot better today," Self continued. "He's not here yet and he won't come until the fall because he's going to stay back and play with his national team this summer, which we strongly encourage. He's a young man who will be so exciting to watch his growth because of his age, his intellect and his 'want to.' This guy really wants to be a player and really wants to do it here in the States."
The son of mother, Inna, a high school biology teacher and father, Iurri, a college history professor, Mykhailiuk has taken English classes for much of his life and will come to Kansas this fall with a fairly strong grasp of the language.
"I liked everything," Mykhailiuk said. "From the history, the strength program and especially the coaches – everything. It's Kansas. KU has players every year. Coach Self has had so many players go to the NBA. That's an important thing.”
…"Who knows what will end up happening with Andrew (Wiggins) and Joel (Embiid), but right now the consensus is that they will be two of the top-three players taken in the NBA Draft," Self said. "How do you replace guys like that? The answer is you don't. The way you try, though, is to go out and sign Cliff, Kelly, Devonte and now you add Sviatoslav to the mix. This could arguably be one of the very best recruiting classes that we've had. I think of last year's class and I think of the class with Brandon (Rush), Mario (Chalmers) and Julian (Wright) – this class definitely rivals that."
KUAD
Mykhailiuk is a 6-foot-6 shooting guard who plays for Cherkassy and is just 16 years old. He will turn 17 in June, and is expected to attend Kansas for two seasons. Jonathan Givony of Draft Express said Mykhailiuk never signed a pro contract and should have no eligibility issues.
…One NBA scout who saw Mykhailiuk recently compared him to potential lottery pick and former Michigan swingman Nik Stauskas.
"He's a shooter with athleticism that can dribble and pass," the scout told CBSSports.com.
The scout also said Mykhailiuk would be ranked in the top 10 in both the high school classes of 2015 and 2016. He will be at least 18 months younger than many of the freshman entering college this year.
Mykhailiuk averaged 25.2 points and 8.0 rebounds at the 2013 U16 European Championships and also played in the Hoop Summit in April.
CBS
He appeared in the Nike Hoop Summit and was among the youngest players ever to compete in that event. He reportedly performed well in practices but did not make a significant impact in the game itself, scoring two points in 13 minutes and missing all three of his long-range shots. But DraftExpress, which scouted him at the Hoop Summit and the Albert Schweitzer Tournament in Germany last month, considered him a talented shooter with good mechanics and calls him a “terrific prospect.”
Sporting News
До слова, чемпіонат України у різних вікових групах Михайлюк вигравав 6 разів! У минулому сезоні Святослав був наймолодшим гравцем Суперліги, який виходив у стартовому складі.
Translation per google:
By the way, the championship of Ukraine in different age groups Mikhailyuk won 6 times! Last season Svyatoslav was the youngest player in Super League, which came out in the starting lineup.
Link
The tip arrived in the Kansas basketball office in the early spring, a mysterious name with a nearly unpronounceable arrangement of 20 letters.
Svia-to-slav Myk-hai-liuk?
He was a 16-year-old from Ukraine, and a rising prospect in European basketball circles. And to most everybody on the KU basketball staff, the kid was a nobody.
Before that day in March, Kansas assistant coach Kurtis Townsend had never heard his name, nor did he know that the 16-year-old was nearly finished with high school in his hometown of Cherkasy, Ukraine; or that, more important, the teenager was increasingly intrigued with playing college basketball in the United States.
All Townsend knew was that he trusted where the tip originated, and he felt like doing some homework. So he opened a web browser on his computer and searched for the name:
Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk, shooting guard, Ukraine.
“I watched clips on him,” Townsend said. “I was like: ‘Wow, this kid is unbelievable. … No, really, this kid is ridiculously talented.’ ”
Just like that, the race to land the young Ukrainian was on. The recruitment of Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk — his name is pronounced SVEE-at-is-slov mi-KHAI-luk — would last just two months and be nothing like a normal college basketball recruitment story. It would include two countries; a fortuitous meeting in Portland, Ore.; a family of Ukrainian educators who understand the value of college; and the unexpected influence of a beloved former Jayhawk.
KC Star
I think I got more retweets on the Mykhailiuk scoop than any NBA draft news I've ever reported. Kansas basketball fans sure love their team.
@DraftExpress
Gotta think the addition of Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk makes KU's recruiting class No. 1 or No. 2 in the country.
@JasonKingBR
Had multiple NBA scouts that saw Sviatoslav Myhailiuk at Nike Hoop Summit tell me he'd be an elite five-star recruit if he was in US.
@EvanDaniels
I don't anticipate Mykhailiuk having any eligibility issues. He never signed a pro contract and his club is 100% supporting this move.
@DraftExpress
We got a new member of the jayhawk family?
@HumbleKid11
Show the bro (edited: fake twitter acct) some love he's coming to KU !! #kubball
@im_dat_kid_dtae (Svi is on IG @SWYAT10_)
Our new friend from the Ukraine prefers to be called “Svi” pronounced “Svee." Full pronunciation: Sviat-is-slov Meh-kai-luke
@KUHoops
Jayhawk Nation: introducing the 2014 Kansas basketball recruiting class. #itsjustdifferent #tradition… instagram.com/p/oRfkRZAHYu/
@Coachjhoward
“If he were in the United States,” Fraschilla told me Tuesday, “he’d be one of the 10 best prospects in the Class of 2015.”
…“He’s a 6’6” combo guard. He’s not a pure point—but he can play the point. He’s a dead-eye shooter who is tough as nails. It’d be like signing a really good player from Detroit or Pittsburgh or Chicago. He’s a competitor.”
…One of the highlights of Mykhailiuk’s visit with Self, a source said, was watching footage of former Jayhawks center Sasha Kaun on a Kansas highlight reel. Kaun is from Russia, which neighbors Ukraine.
“Clips of Mario Chalmers and Darrell Arthur and Ben McLemore didn’t move him at all,” the source said. “He has no idea who those guys are. But when Sasha Kaun popped up on the screen, the whole family went crazy.”
Jason King
Height of Mykhailiuk is destined to be a mystery. One Euro evaluator tells me he's def 6-6; KU staffer says he was over 6-7 on the visit.
@rustindodd
nbadraft.net on Svi
draftexpress on Svi
No one is questioning his skill. Some are questioning whether he'll be ready to really be a star as a freshman because of his age. One assistant who recruited Mykhailiuk told Bleacher Report that he believes Mykhailiuk will eventually be a top-10 pick in the NBA draft.
In other words, Mykhailiuk is one of the best freshman prospects in the country and will eventually—if not this season—make a big impact at Kansas. He's a huge addition to any recruiting class. And that means it's time to reevaluate the 2014 recruiting rankings and consider the possibility that Bill Self, not John Calipari, is the best salesman going in college basketball right now.
This is the second straight year that Self has landed the best player on the market heading into the summer. Last year, that piece (Andrew Wiggins) was the go-to guy from the moment he stepped on campus.
Wiggins is the gift that keeps on giving. The power of the Canadian wing goes beyond the results from his one year on campus. Those on-court results were not entirely what was expected. It was expected that a team with Wiggins would make it past the round of 32. But his legacy as a Jayhawk is ongoing.
This class was definitely impacted by Wiggins. He made Kansas the "it" school. And it's only going to be more and more hip to be a Jayhawk with time.
Next month, Wiggins and Joel Embiid could go one-two in the NBA draft. If Wiggins and Embiid both become stars in the league, the pull to Kansas gets stronger.
…Even if Mykhailiuk is a year away from playing at a high level, it wouldn't much matter. Self's roster for this coming year was already complete. He has three point guards to choose from and then every other position will be set. Alexander and Perry Ellis will start inside. Kelly Oubre and Wayne Selden will start on the wing.
That's four McDonald's All-Americans in the starting lineup with plenty of options coming off the bench that includes a shooter who projects to be the Euro version of Nik Stauskas.
On paper, that's a national title contender. And in the recruiting world, if Mykhailiuk becomes a star, that could be as powerful for Self overseas as Wiggins has been stateside.
Not only is Bill Self the hottest recruiter out there right now, he's gone global.
CJ Moore
Thank you Sasha!
Mykhailiuk was in Charlottesville during the early part of the week after taking a visit to Lawrence, Kansas, over the weekend.
Tony Bennett and his staff were among the first coaches to become aware of Mykhailiuk and actually visited him in Ukraine.
Other schools became familiar with Mykhailiuk when he was added to the World Select Team for the Nike Hoop Summit in April in Portland, Oregon. At 16, he was the youngest player ever selected.
It was unclear if Mykhailiuk would come to college in the United States or choose to remain in Europe, where players can play professionally at an earlier age.
He becomes the second prospect to pick Kansas over UVa this spring. Earlier, guard Devonte Graham from Brewster Academy picked the Jayhawks over UVa and North Carolina State.
The addition of Thompson, who will be a sophomore when he becomes eligible in 2015-2016, puts the Cavaliers at the 13-scholarship Division I men’s basketball limit. Darion Atkins will be the only scholarship senior on next year’s team.
Only one of UVa’s scholarship players, sophomore guard London Perrantes, is under 6-foot-5.
Link
They haven't even seen anything yet..... Just watch
@JoelEmbiid
Enjoyed my chat about the #NBADraft with @Rickafox yesterday! Watch it here:
@22wiggins
VIDEO: Wiggins Off the Court Chat with Rick Fox
ESPN’s Chad Ford, citing sources, reports the Cavaliers are, at least right now, leaning toward selecting Kansas freshman Andrew Wiggins with the No. 1 pick. “My sources in Cleveland indicate Wiggins is the likelier choice at this early stage,” Ford writes. “They feel he has the most long-term potential, helps them defensively right out of the gate and can replace Dion Waiters in the starting lineup while adding character to the team.” Wiggins, Kansas center Joel Embiid and Duke forward Jabari Parker are the consensus top three prospects in the 2014 draft class. Australia’s Dante Exum is another player who could be selected with a top-three pick, but the Cavaliers don’t need to address the point guard position because of Kyrie Irving’s emergence as a superstar. Wiggins projects to be a small forward capable of averaging 20-plus points per game, along with elite one-on-one defense after he fully develops. He’s drawn comparisons to Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant. Whoever the Cavaliers choose first overall, their fans are hoping that he makes a stronger impact as a rookie than Anthony Bennett did this past season. Bennett was taken with the top pick in the 2013 draft and averaged just 4.2 points and 3.0 rebounds for the Cavaliers. It was one of the worst rookie seasons in league history.
Link
Within an hour of Tuesday’s NBA draft lottery, pro basketball experts across the country began posting updated versions of their mock drafts. The majority of them predicted Cleveland would select Kansas’ Andrew Wiggins with the No. 1 overall pick.
Wiggins certainly wouldn’t be a bad choice.
But I’d take Joel Embiid.
And I wouldn’t even hesitate.
I attended 14 Kansas games last season and have interviewed each player extensively in one-on-one situations. Embiid impresses me more for a variety of reasons.
I can’t recall a 7-footer in the last decade who can match Embiid’s footwork, soft hands, gait and shooting touch—not to mention his shot-blocking ability, which improved dramatically throughout the season. And I realize this has been said countless times, but he has only been playing basketball for three years. He’s just getting started.
I honestly believe he’ll be a perennial All-Star.
Jason King
Bovada lists Wiggins as better than an even money favorite to be the first player of the board.
2014 NBA Draft — Who will be selected #1 Overall?
Andrew Wiggins: 2/3
Joel Embiid: 8/5
Jabari Parker: 5/1
Field: 15/1
Link
Milwaukee had the league's worst record last season and a 25 percent chance of winning Tuesday's lottery. Instead, the first selection went to the Cleveland Cavaliers, whose odds were just 1.7 percent.
The solace for the Bucks is that they'll still have a chance to draft Jabari Parker, Andrew Wiggins or Joel Embiid.
"Those guys all have a chance to be, I think, stars of this league, be All-Stars in this league, and are guys that you can build with and build a championship franchise," general manager John Hammond said Wednesday.
…"I think to a certain extent there probably is a little less pressure on a second pick and maybe could be better for the player in the short term and long run and maybe better for us," Hammond said.
Link
Transferring Kansas guard Andrew White III is wide open in his recruitment and is hearing from a ton of schools.
“I’ve been hearing the most from University of Maryland, Richmond, Notre Dame, Nebraska, Wake Forest, Miami and Florida State,” he told SNY.tv Wednesday evening.
“I’m going to get with my family soon and start figuring out how I should handle my visits, so I don’t have an exact timetable on it. At this point I’m still open to any offers.”
Zags Blog
“Pay Heed. The game you love began here. Respect those who came before you. Make their legacy your own. Because destiny favors the dedicated. And rings don’t replace work. In this game you don’t get what you want. You get what you earn. We are Kansas. Together we rise. Rock Chalk Jayhawk!
Big 12 / College News
Your move, Cyclones: Kansas latest to sign foreign teen
They're taking this college basketball free agency thing way beyond the border these days.
Out of control?
Certainly out of the country, that's for sure.
Less than a week after Greek Georgios Tsalmpouris signed a national letter of intent with Iowa State, Kansas countered Wednesday with a commitment from Ukrainian Sviatoskav Mykhailiuk.
Whose foreigner will have the most impact next season?
I'll catch ya later on that one.
A 6-foot-8 forward, Mykhailiuk will be eligible in the fall — and he doesn't turn 17 until next month. He averaged 24 points and five rebounds for his junior team in Cherkassy, and according to NBAdraft.net, compares to Manu Ginobili of the San Antonio Spurs.
Like Tsalmpouris, Mykhailiuk will spend the summer playing for his country's national team before heading to college.
International players come to America for many reasons, including sometimes to find better lives — as an escape from poverty and/or violence.
That wasn't the case, however, with the recent Internationals at Kansas and Iowa State. Both said in published stories they wanted their NBA paths to include facing some of the best college teams in the country.
And ...
How would you like to be John Walters or his broadcasting buddy, Eric Heft?
Or even Hilton Coliseum announcer Gary Wade when the Cyclones and Jayhawks play?
"Basket by ... that guy."
They don't even have the luxury of shortening Tsalmpouris to just George.
"The more Georges' the better," established Cyclones star Georges Niang said in a text message. "I'm glad to have him on board, and I'm looking forward to playing alongside him when we get to campus."
By George. Or Georges. (Or Georgios.)
Des Moines Register
Since Juwan Staten made his announcement to stay in school on March 31, two of WVU’s top three scorers have left the program, undoubtedly raising eyebrows among the Mountaineer faithful.
Sophomore guard Eron Harris could’ve been one of the most talented shooting guards in the Big 12 next season. He followed up his promising freshman year by averaging 17.2 points per game on 44 percent shooting while starting in all 33 games.
On May 7, Harris finally received permission to be released from the program so he could attend school closer to his hometown in Indianapolis, IN. Harris’ choice of schools has reportedly been narrowed down to Purdue, Michigan State, Michigan and Auburn.
Two days after he was released, guard Terry Henderson also requested a transfer release from the school. Henderson was third in scoring on the team, averaging 11.7 points and 2.9 rebounds per game in his sophomore season. He was arguably the team’s best and efficient shooter.
Then, on May 10, it was announced forward Remi Dibo would likely leave the program to play professionally in his native country of France. Dibo and coach Bob Huggins will reportedly talk about Dibo’s future plans, but according to the coach, he’s set to leave.
"I have not talked to him," Huggins said. "But, he has told one of our assistants that he is returning to France to play professionally."
Dibo transferred to West Virginia from Casper College after the 2013 season. Despite limitations on defense and rebounding, Dibo averaged 7.1 points per game last season off the bench.
Transferring schools isn’t something unfamiliar in Morgantown. Last season, Huggins lost Jabarie Hinds, Aaron Brown and Volodymyr Gerun to transfers and kicked Aaron Murray off the team for detrimental conduct. Murray averaged 21.6 points per game at Texas Southern last season.
Since the team’s Final Four appearance in 2010, Huggins has lost 13 of his 23 recruits.
It’s also worth noting Huggins inherited his Final Four roster from the previous coach, John Beilein, as the key players on that team were mostly comprised of seniors.
Daily Athenaeum
Kansas State athletic director John Currie attempted to help Leticia Romero gain a conditional release from her basketball scholarship, but his efforts will not be enough.
The university issued a statement Wednesday night that made its stance on Romero’s ongoing transfer battle clear: Because a K-State appeals committee denied Romero’s request for a release last month, she will not be able to obtain one. The ruling of the committee is “final and binding.”
“There is no university procedure to reexamine one of those decisions,” read the statement, which was written by K-State vice president for communications and marketing Jeffery Morris. “Thus, the university process concludes with the Appeals Committee's decision. Also, the final and binding nature of these decisions does not allow for them to be overturned by university administrators.”
Without a scholarship release, Romero can still enroll at another school, but she won’t be eligible for an athletic scholarship for a year.
Wichita Eagle
The NCAA is instituting some new academic policies beginning in 2016.
Student-athletes who enter a Division I school “on or after August 1, 2016” will not be eligible to play if their grade point average is below 2.3 when they graduate from high school. Additionally, a student-athlete must complete ten of their 16 “core courses” before the seventh semester of their senior year. If they do not meet these requirements, the student-athlete will take an “academic redshirt”
Of course, athletes must also continue to meet the minimum 2.0 GPA while attaining the sliding scale requirement for SAT and ACT scores, but when the GPA falls between 2.0 and 2.3, the academic redshirt comes into play.
Yahoo
April 9: NBA Undergraduate Advisory Committee Application Deadline
April 14: NBA Undergraduate Advisory Committee Response Deadline
April 15: NCAA Early Entry “Withdrawal” Deadline
April 27: NBA Draft Early Entry Eligibility Deadline (11:59 pm ET)
May 2: NBA Draft Early Entry Candidates Released – Underclassmen Contact Permitted
May 14-18: NBA Draft Combine (Chicago)
May 20: NBA Draft Lottery
June 16: NBA Draft Early Entry Withdrawal Deadline (5:00 pm ET)
June 26: 2014 NBA Draft
draftexpress.com: Testing the NBA Draft Waters in 2014
Recruiting
maxpreps.com image
Pegging the top player in high school basketball's 2015 class is a matter of taste.
A fan of high-scoring guards? Three-time Mississippi state champ and USA Basketball gold medalist Malik Newman is your guy.
Partial to dynamic forwards? Australian import Ben Simmons is the pick.
…Newman is coming off a big weekend in Hampton, Virginia, where he took the floor with the Jackson Tigers in Nike's Elite Youth Basketball League. He topped the 30-point mark in three of four games – including a 36-point outburst against fellow elite 2015 guard Luke Kennard and the King James Shooting Stars.
"He's a Monta Ellis, Gilbert Arenas-type scoring guard," Pangos All-American Camp director and grassroots guru Dinos Trigonis said. "When he gets it going he is really tough to stop."
Max Preps
adidas Uprising Spring/Summer Events
2014 Spring/Summer AAU and camp schedule (compiled by CBS Sports)
NBC College basketball fan’s guide to current grassroots basketball scene
WITH THE ADOPTION OF RWG-14-1, the legislation governing all-star games was eliminated. Consequently there is no longer a two game limit for prospects, so in this scenario it would be permissible for Slam to participate in all three games.
This piece of legislation is effective August 1, 2013, so it will apply to all prospects that enroll at your institution on or after that date.
http://dailycomplianceitem.wordpress.com/2013/04/23/daily-compliance-item-42313-14-6-all-star-games/
Recruiting Calendar
My Late Night in the Phog videos, KU Alumni games videos, 2011-12 Border War videos, Legends of the Phog videos, KC Prep Invitational, & Jayhawk Invitational Videos and more now on YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/user/kcjcjhawk
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