Patrick Spencer
- Thread starter Donatello Cat
- Start date
Really good at lacrosse and he has apparently planned for a few years to try to play a year of hoops after he finished his lax career. Articles said he he might be able to contribute at high mid major level. So with 3 rides to give, sure, it can't hurt. Will he give the Cats as much as Jordan Ash, who knows.
He sounds like a great athlete and we have spots to fill. He is deferring a professional lacrosse career to do this. Better then an empty seat at this point.
This is a really interesting story. I think ANYTHING he gives us is gravy. I also think anyone who says they know what to expect would be lying. Going to be fun to see how this plays out.
I just hope that if he gets guarded tough in practice that he doesn't lay out the defender with an elbow.
Seriously, it's great that NU has him for practice and potentially games. He'll earn whatever he gets.
https://www.uslaxmagazine.com/college/men/pat-spencer-to-play-college-basketball-at-northwestern
Averaged 14 points as a senior in high school.......
Averaged 14 points as a senior in high school.......
Jim Brown was a good lacrosse player. Wonder if he can hoop and has some interest?
Rest of stat line was impressive as well. Is he going to be a walk on or is he a scholarship player? Likely he would have had an opportunity out of HS but if he was a scholarship lacrosse player, they might have frowned on him even getting very involved in pickup games. Even if they allowed it, different level of competition. Physically he will have advanced but his game is likely behind his HS game
For every question about whether someone who hasn’t played competitive basketball in five years could survive the Big Ten, I think of us losing a night game to a Syracuse team with Greg Paulus at QB. But Paulus also won a state championship in football and his Wikipedia claims Notre Dame offered him.
He's continued playing semi-competitive basketball during lacrosse seasons since high school.
This is a "why not?" take of one of the better handful of lacrosse players in the nation that has some clear athleticism. Otherwise the scholarship is just open.
Thanks for the update, but what is semi competitive? And does this mean, you think or know that he will be on scholarship?
From a more general basketball-themed article on that same site: "For the past four years, the 6-foot-3, 190-pound Spencer has played in the Annapolis Summer Basketball League. After earning All-Metro honors at Boys’ Latin in 2015, he went on to win the summer league’s Most Valuable Player award in 2017."
Full article here: https://www.uslaxmagazine.com/colle...rdcourt-hopes-are-real-hes-all-in-on-lacrosse
Don't know for sure, but would imagine he'll be on scholarship.
Patrick Spencer = Otto Graham
Another sport athlete and top of his field, entering our BB program.
Something wonderful is going to happen.
Another sport athlete and top of his field, entering our BB program.
Something wonderful is going to happen.
Chris Collins may reference Duke soccer/hoopster Jay Heaps, whom I believe
overlapped CCC for 1 year (1996). Heaps was college soccer phenom who also
played 3 years for Mike K.
overlapped CCC for 1 year (1996). Heaps was college soccer phenom who also
played 3 years for Mike K.
Except he was drafted #7 and not #1 despite winning player of year which suggests to me that he’s not a freak athlete for Lax. But that between the legs dunk was eye-opening! Maybe he’ll bring a winning attitude and toughness to the team as well.
My coworker's daughter plays lacrosse for Loyola and knows Spencer well. Apparently he's more than your average walk on. I would expect some decent minutes, some contribution to the stat-line, but playing B1G hoops is a jump over summer league. My coworker told me Spencer has aspirations to play pro hoops in Europe. If he's that good it would put him on par with some of our previous higher end talent.
Hey, what do you know, my first post! He might also have dropped because teams knew he was considering playing basketball.
He can probably be physical in practice and we will need bodies to toughen up our young players. He will not get many minutes but should fill the Hall/ Malnati role which is important.
I’d think if he’s passing up being the number one player drafted in major league lacrosse he’d expect to be more than just a practice body.
He has evidently decided against playing professional lacrosse. There are now 2 leagues-the long established MLL and the new PLL, with the latter having some big money behind it.
There were very low MLL salaries, primitive travel arrangements and the league depended on the players' love for the game to survive.
The PLL supposedly has better financing with salaries that dwarf the MLL. Two leagues cannot survive.
My son was MLL Rookie of the year, later an All-Star and retired after 3 years. Lacrosse is a physical game but the MLL took it to a new level-getting brutalized by a 6'4" defenseman wielding a 6' stick leaves a lasting impression- my son's back still looks like he was tortured..
The only players that have made it financially in lacrosse have equipment contracts or run summer lacrosse camps
Spencer was an elite lacrosse player, let's hope he can play BB
There were very low MLL salaries, primitive travel arrangements and the league depended on the players' love for the game to survive.
The PLL supposedly has better financing with salaries that dwarf the MLL. Two leagues cannot survive.
My son was MLL Rookie of the year, later an All-Star and retired after 3 years. Lacrosse is a physical game but the MLL took it to a new level-getting brutalized by a 6'4" defenseman wielding a 6' stick leaves a lasting impression- my son's back still looks like he was tortured..
The only players that have made it financially in lacrosse have equipment contracts or run summer lacrosse camps
Spencer was an elite lacrosse player, let's hope he can play BB
Surely is. He won't have to learn toughness.
Sorry to hear about your son's experience with the ape.
I was being a bit sarcastic with the Zion comparison. He was the first overall pick for the PLL though. I think mindset can't be over looked. A young team would really benefit from bringing in a proven winner.
I wonder if he will slum it and play with our club LAX team. Would have been great to have him two sport it had we had a men's LAX program.
Also wouldn’t be possible for him to compete at a varsity level in lacrosse because he’s already used his eligibility.
I rate this as equivalent to the unranked Belgian player that llinois just signed sight unseen to fill one of its two (and possibly three) open schollies. Either CC and Brad Underwood know something that everyone else doesn't, or else both of these are major crapshoots...
He could play club lacrosse though. There is no eligibility restriction I don't think.