What was NU's alltime best bball recruiting class?
- Thread starter Rebel_
- Start date
They were good players, but they also were probably among the all time highest in games played because there are more games now then there were decades ago. Esch was far better than both. We've also had tons of guys with comparable or more talent who ended up transferring: Rex Walters, Geno Carlisle (2x PAC-10 scoring leader when PAC was great), Ed McCants (Hon Mention AA). I think the actual talent BC brought in is underestimated because people know he didn't like recruiting and he got guys who were international or unheralded. I think the combo of getting more talent than people give him credit for and maximizing that talent is why he made 4 consecutive NITs and got us on the edge of tourney a couple times. There were multiple times where the NU curse seemed to intervene with a post-season bid: VV injury, Coble departure etc... I am happy we have CC, so this is not a CC vs BC thread by any means!
All good points.
But was Esch really "far better" than Shurna? Senior year, Esch was first team all big 10 and second team All-American. Senior year, Shurna was first team all big 10 and honorable mention All-American.
Yes, Esch played in the NBA but you can't teach height and he was a 7 footer. Shurna was an outstanding college player and don't forget he actually is Northwestern's all-time leader in blocks as well.
But was Esch really "far better" than Shurna? Senior year, Esch was first team all big 10 and second team All-American. Senior year, Shurna was first team all big 10 and honorable mention All-American.
Yes, Esch played in the NBA but you can't teach height and he was a 7 footer. Shurna was an outstanding college player and don't forget he actually is Northwestern's all-time leader in blocks as well.
Yes. Eschmeyer has his season with Wink, Newman and Lepore. Also, ib his senior year, it was VERY obvious there were different rules for fouls against Esch than the rest of the league.
Shurna had Crawford. Then, they also had several players who were the general equivalent Wink, Newman and Lepore.
However, the best player HAS to be McKinney. I never saw him play, but that's a lot of points without a 3-pt line.
To this point:
Career games played
Eschmeyer: 112
Shurna: 130
Crawford: 143
If he kept up his career scoring average, EE would be our all-time leading scorer if he played as many games as Shurna.
Billy was a great Big Ten player. I saw Don Adams play in the NBA and he had a creditable pro career —8 seasons and averaged about 8 points a game. Billy played 9 seasons and also averaged about 8 ppg. No other NU alum comes close to those two when it comes to NBA production. But that doesn’t mean guys like Shurna and Esch weren’t great Big Ten players. They certainly were.
I watched both Esch and Shurna. Esch was much better. He would routinely get triple teamed and still find ways to score. He was a legitimate All American.
Esch's injury out of high school is my biggest what if regarding NU men's hoops.
What if he were able to play right away? Would Byrdsong's first team have gone to the NCAA instead of the NIT? That team had so many close Big Ten losses after starting 9-0.
What if he were able to play right away? Would Byrdsong's first team have gone to the NCAA instead of the NIT? That team had so many close Big Ten losses after starting 9-0.
Excuse me for repeating this. Our friend, the incredibly-rock-solid source, told me Esch was dominating Rankin in practices that year.
The other Byrdsong-Esch "what if": If Geno and Esch play together, that's an NCAA team.
Another big What If regarding NU hoops is when Coble suffered his Lisfranc injury. That team was primed to make the NCAA tournament.
I heard the same thing back then, and thought of it when I saw Esch and Rankin standing next to each other at the pep rally in Salt Lake City before our first-ever NCAA tournament game.
Not yet. Let’s see what they accomplish at the end of their time at NU. The 3 starters so far may have more to do with the lack of talent on the team when they arrived than their own skills.