You really think Zion wouldn't have been Zion or gotten the exposure he had, had he decided to go anywhere else? If he wasn't #1, he was #2. RJ Barrett was supposed to be a more complete player, but Zion's freakishness was unlike anything anyone had seen especially as soon as he arrived on campus. And you're ignorant if you think Ja Morant could get to the notoriety that he did at MTSU, and Zion wouldn't have gotten it faster at NU.
Question about Max Christie and Baldwin Jr.?
- Thread starter Medill90
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You really think Zion wouldn't have been Zion or gotten the exposure he had, had he decided to go anywhere else? If he wasn't #1, he was #2. RJ Barrett was supposed to be a more complete player, but Zion's freakishness was unlike anything anyone had seen especially as soon as he arrived on campus. And you're ignorant if you think Ja Morant could get to the notoriety that he did at MTSU, and Zion wouldn't have gotten it faster at NU.
I would be shocked if a top 5, obvious one-and-done ever picked Northwestern for so many reasons -- you actually have to go class at NU, lousy fan support and game-day environment, haven't had a player drafted since Esch, blah, blah, blah. But never say never. Mark Aguirre happened for DePaul.
not certain...but thought Corzine and Garland were drafted a year prior to Aguirre going to DePaul. That Corzine team w Ponsetto and Randy Ramsay at pg was terriffic.
No, Morant would have been a much, much bigger deal a lot faster at UNC, Duke, KU, anywhere else. Think back to Steph Curry and how he didn't gain the attention he deserved until the tournament. That was the first time a lot of people had seen him play. Same for Morant.
These guys would benefit from publicity at NU, but the exposure is so much greater at Duke, KU, any of the basketball powerhouses and it shouldn't have to be said.
A "household name?" Let's test your argument.
August of 2018, a year ago, Zion was not the consensus #1 pick on any notable NBA mock draft websites. He was a lottery pick but behind Barrett almost everywhere and behind even Reddish on some scouting sites.
Was Cam Reddish a "household name?" Zion was behind Reddish on some sites. How could Zion have been a "household name" but behind guys who weren't? Unless you're saying the average American also knew Reddish?
Going back to his HS recruitment, Rivals had four guys ahead of him, 247 had SIX guys ahead of him. ESPN favored Barrett. None of these sites had Zion as the #1 incoming player. But he was already a "household name?"
He wasn't the top name anywhere a year ago. Being among the top 5 incoming frosh doesn't equate to being a '"household name."
Refresh my memory — how much did major networks cover LSU when Ben Simmons was there? He was a top prospect at a not-top school (though considerably less interesting to watch than ZION). I feel like LSU got on tv more than they did the prior or subsequent years, but nothing on the order of Duke’s seemingly twice-weekly ESPN schedule.
It would be crazy for a one-and-done to choose NU over a blueblood, I think, though I’d welcome it enthusiastically.
(It’s worth recognizing here that THT was a one-and-done — mid-2nd variety — and NU was close, right?)
It would be crazy for a one-and-done to choose NU over a blueblood, I think, though I’d welcome it enthusiastically.
(It’s worth recognizing here that THT was a one-and-done — mid-2nd variety — and NU was close, right?)
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Zion has been twitter famous since he was in 7th grade. I do agree he probably would have gotten way more publicity from ESPN at duke than anywhere else. Although come tourney time pub would be about the same.
Yeah exactly... he wasn't the #1 rated recruit before the Duke season started (that was Barrett), but he was definitely the #1 most talked about person because of the viral videos and stuff - his absurd leaping and dunking ability. Once he started playing at Duke then it also became clear that the rest of his game was pretty darned good, including defense.
I'm fairly certain Zion would have been "found" in short order regardless of where he went to school, though at the margin he got more exposure at Duke than he would've at NU.
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He went from social media phenom and being labeled as an amazing athlete to Lebron and Tebow level of hype and popularity, thanks to ESPN and Duke.
DePaul had four players from the 1977-78 team who were eventually drafted -- Corzine (a first-round pick), and Ponsetto in 1978, Garland in 1979 and Clyde Bradshaw, who was just a freshman on that DePaul team, in 1981, I believe. DePaul was actually a very solid program when Aguirre made his decision to go there. Those Corzine-Ponsetto teams were a lot of fun to watch, and they had their "own TV network" with WGN as one of the few "superstations" available nationwide at that time. (Remember ESPN didn't come along until 1979).
So what you're saying is that Barrett and Reddish were consensus to picks and their stock dropped while at Duke? I hope Baldwin and Christie know about this.
Puke, "household name" does not mean "best player". I don't care what he was ranked as a high schooler, he was a spectacular athlete whom the whole universe was recruiting. If he had come to NU, the circus would've followed him to Evanston, guaranteed. He didn't need Duke to become the Zion phenomenon. It didn't hurt but he would've been a sensation anywhere.
You're comparing Northwestern basketball to LSU basketball? LSU has a way better basketball tradition than we do. Either you guys are historically ignorant on a scale that I find hard to fathom or you're such homers that you think our basketball program is just hunky dory.
You're drop dead wrong. Zion Williamson was not a household name a year ago. What ignorance on this board. You like to argue but you are devoid of facts and evidence.
You’re pretty bad at reading if you think I think NU hoops is ‘hunky dory’. My point is simply that NU would be on tv more if a top five showed up, but NU wouldn’t be on tv more than top tier programs. A top five cognizant is his own brand (and they all are, of course) would be making an unwise choice to choose NU over a blueblood program. But I welcome them to make that unwise choice!
Here’s Zion getting national publicity on a major general interest sports website in February of 2017, as a high school sophomore (? - my math says he was a junior, but whatev). Perhaps you only watch network tv and listen to local sports talk radio — you seem out of touch — but Zion was the most well-known high school player in a decade (since Oden, I think) when he showed up at Duke.
https://deadspin.com/high-school-phenom-zion-williamson-dunked-the-living-he-1791897793
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Hey Puke, unless you lived without the internet or social media for the past 3-4 years, Zion was indeed a household name. One does not have to be the top-ranked recruit in order to be a household name, as you stated in previous posts. You are wrong. Get over it.
I think the problem here might be in the use of the term "household name", which is a term that originated from the idea of being known in almost all households. While Zion was definitely an internet sensation prior to Duke and had a big social media following, I wouldn't push that to calling him a "household name". There aren't many athletes that are household names because most athletes don't cut across all demographics in that way. Zion might have gotten there after his shoe blew up against UNC, but I don't think he was there in HS. Just my $.02.