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Shane Larkin still in limbo, but UM coach Jim Larranaga likes 'Canes coming back
April 2, 2013|By Michael Casagrande, Sun Sentinel
CORAL GABLES — With Miami's NCAA Tournament loss still raw, coach Jim Larranaga got started on next season.
So, at midnight Friday after falling to Marquette, Larranaga met with Shane Larkin and his family in the Washington, D.C., team hotel. For two hours they talked about his future and the options regarding the NBA draft.
There's still no verdict, though the son of baseball Hall of Famer Barry Larkin is using all available resources. He submitted paperwork to an official NBA advisory committee of draft potential.
The second-team All-American is just one piece, albeit a large one, of the group with eligibility remaining in Coral Gables. Coming off the program-defining 29-7 season and a Sweet 16 berth, five of the top six scorers — nearly 70 percent of the points — graduate.
Larranaga isn't panicking, though. In a 45-minute interview with the Sun Sentinel on Tuesday afternoon, the ACC coach of the year painted a more positive picture of his third Hurricanes team. They'll have five scholarships available after signing two in the fall and all options are on the table.
Without naming names due to NCAA restrictions, Larranaga said the program is looking at Division I underclassmen transfers, fifth-year seniors looking at graduate schools as well as junior college and high school seniors. He spent most of Friday on the phone with recruits after returning from the disappointing 71-61 loss to Marquette.
"We feel very, very good about where we are in the recruiting process right now," Larranaga said. "And the recruiting process, for us, probably won't end for us until August. We'll still be looking for guys even in the summer time. We didn't get Shane Larkin until three days before school started."
Larranaga also has big plans for the players coming back.
Sharpshooting Rion Brown (6.4 points per game) will ease into the starting lineup, along with returning senior Garrius Adams. Larranaga said he saw huge improvements in Adams while sitting out last season with a medical redshirt. Assigned to mimic the nation's leading scorer Erick Green in practice, Larranaga remembers All-ACC defenders Larkin and Durand Scott's inability to stop Adams.
Then there's Tonye Jekeri. The 7-footer improved quite a bit in his freshman season, only his third in organized basketball. Larranaga expects him to gain 20 pounds of muscle after playing at 227 pounds and scoring 1.4 points a game last season.
"Tonye Jekeri, in my estimation, is going to be the best big man in Miami history before he's done," Larranaga said. "By the end of the year, he was our best defensive post player, and offensively he's raw but learning, but because of his great work ethic, I think you'll see an entirely different player next year. Entirely."
Both incoming freshmen who already signed could also have an immediate impact. DeAndre Burnett, who is already stopping by campus to shoot hoops, was a scoring machine in high school and prep school. He averaged 36.2 points a game at Carol City before starring at Massanutten Military Academy in Virginia.
Davon Reed, a 6-6 forward, comes from Princeton, N.J., as a four-star prospect. He's an intelligent player Larranaga compares to Trey McKinney Jones and Brown.
"Oh yeah," Larranaga said. "They'll both play."
But the biggest questions surround Larkin. He has until April 16 to make his decision, with the deadline for the NBA draft advisory board's projection coming a day earlier. They'll give a general projection of draft position, but it'll come without full knowledge of which other underclassmen are declaring.
Jay Larranaga, the coach's son, is an assistant coach with the Boston Celtics. He's able to help, but Larkin ultimately will make the decision. Back on March 13, Larkin told the Sun Sentinel he planned to return, but later said a decision would come after the season.
"The kid is a great player and he's a great kid and he's very smart," Larranaga said. "Whatever he has to do, whether he's here at Miami or in the NBA, he's going to figure out a way to help his team win."
April 2, 2013|By Michael Casagrande, Sun Sentinel
CORAL GABLES — With Miami's NCAA Tournament loss still raw, coach Jim Larranaga got started on next season.
So, at midnight Friday after falling to Marquette, Larranaga met with Shane Larkin and his family in the Washington, D.C., team hotel. For two hours they talked about his future and the options regarding the NBA draft.
There's still no verdict, though the son of baseball Hall of Famer Barry Larkin is using all available resources. He submitted paperwork to an official NBA advisory committee of draft potential.
The second-team All-American is just one piece, albeit a large one, of the group with eligibility remaining in Coral Gables. Coming off the program-defining 29-7 season and a Sweet 16 berth, five of the top six scorers — nearly 70 percent of the points — graduate.
Larranaga isn't panicking, though. In a 45-minute interview with the Sun Sentinel on Tuesday afternoon, the ACC coach of the year painted a more positive picture of his third Hurricanes team. They'll have five scholarships available after signing two in the fall and all options are on the table.
Without naming names due to NCAA restrictions, Larranaga said the program is looking at Division I underclassmen transfers, fifth-year seniors looking at graduate schools as well as junior college and high school seniors. He spent most of Friday on the phone with recruits after returning from the disappointing 71-61 loss to Marquette.
"We feel very, very good about where we are in the recruiting process right now," Larranaga said. "And the recruiting process, for us, probably won't end for us until August. We'll still be looking for guys even in the summer time. We didn't get Shane Larkin until three days before school started."
Larranaga also has big plans for the players coming back.
Sharpshooting Rion Brown (6.4 points per game) will ease into the starting lineup, along with returning senior Garrius Adams. Larranaga said he saw huge improvements in Adams while sitting out last season with a medical redshirt. Assigned to mimic the nation's leading scorer Erick Green in practice, Larranaga remembers All-ACC defenders Larkin and Durand Scott's inability to stop Adams.
Then there's Tonye Jekeri. The 7-footer improved quite a bit in his freshman season, only his third in organized basketball. Larranaga expects him to gain 20 pounds of muscle after playing at 227 pounds and scoring 1.4 points a game last season.
"Tonye Jekeri, in my estimation, is going to be the best big man in Miami history before he's done," Larranaga said. "By the end of the year, he was our best defensive post player, and offensively he's raw but learning, but because of his great work ethic, I think you'll see an entirely different player next year. Entirely."
Both incoming freshmen who already signed could also have an immediate impact. DeAndre Burnett, who is already stopping by campus to shoot hoops, was a scoring machine in high school and prep school. He averaged 36.2 points a game at Carol City before starring at Massanutten Military Academy in Virginia.
Davon Reed, a 6-6 forward, comes from Princeton, N.J., as a four-star prospect. He's an intelligent player Larranaga compares to Trey McKinney Jones and Brown.
"Oh yeah," Larranaga said. "They'll both play."
But the biggest questions surround Larkin. He has until April 16 to make his decision, with the deadline for the NBA draft advisory board's projection coming a day earlier. They'll give a general projection of draft position, but it'll come without full knowledge of which other underclassmen are declaring.
Jay Larranaga, the coach's son, is an assistant coach with the Boston Celtics. He's able to help, but Larkin ultimately will make the decision. Back on March 13, Larkin told the Sun Sentinel he planned to return, but later said a decision would come after the season.
"The kid is a great player and he's a great kid and he's very smart," Larranaga said. "Whatever he has to do, whether he's here at Miami or in the NBA, he's going to figure out a way to help his team win."
