Adam Zagoria of SNY spoke with Scottie Reynolds recently about his status regarding the draft. You can check it out here .
Some highlights include:
- Reynolds plans to make a decision about his status either this week or next week.
- An Eastern Conference scout says if Reynolds is drafted, it will be in the second round.
- Reynolds has already worked out for Houston, Memphis, Minnesota and Washington. He has workouts scheduled with Philadelphia, New York and New Jersey. The workout with New Jersey will be in front of ten teams.
-David Cassilo
All of these are courtesy of draftexpress.com:
Height w/0 Shoes: 6’7″ – 16th overall (He is listed on villanova.com as 6’8″)
Height w/ Shoes: 6’8.25″ – 15th overall
Weight: 227 pounds – 15th overall (He is listed on villanova.com at 230)
Wingspan: 6’11″ – 19th overall
Standing Reach: 8’10.5″ – 11th overall
-David Cassilo
Here’s the report on Cunningham from nbadraft.net:
“Worked out with the bigmen which was surprising considering he has transitioned into more of a SF and will need to play there at the NBA level. However some of the drills were the same with all the bigs shooting 3 pointers. He drained one three.”
It’s no surprise to me that Cunningham would want to show scouts he can play PF as well as SF. His lack of 3-point shooting will hurt his stock if he tries to market himself as purely a SF. With the success of undersized post players like Jason Maxiell and Glen Davis, I think Cunningham could play minutes there at the NBA level.
-David Cassilo
VILLANOVA, Pa. – In response to reports linking his name to the Philadelphia 76ers vacant head coaching position, Villanova’s Jay Wright said today that although he met with the team’s president and general manager Ed Stefanski last week, he requested that his name be removed from consideration for the position.
“Last week, Ed reached out to me to see if I would be willing to speak to him about the Sixers’ coaching position,” stated Wright. “He is a longtime friend of mine whom I have great respect for and is someone I talk to often. We had a lively conversation about the vision Ed has for the Sixers organization. As a lifelong Sixers fan, I was honored to be part of the process.
“Following our meeting, I called Ed to thank him and requested that he remove me from consideration. I love Villanova and it is where I want to be. I am grateful to the Sixers for including me in the process. There is a lot to look forward to for Sixer fans like me with the young talent they have put together and the leadership of Ed Stefanski.”
- This hasn’t been the first time we’ve heard Wright’s name in connection with the 76ers, and it may not be the last, but with what Villanova accomplished last season coupled with the great recruiting class coming in, it did not make too much sense for Wright to leave. Although he did not take it this time, from what Wright said it seemed as though the 76ers job may be one of the few jobs that he would actually consider leaving Villanova for – just not now.
-David Cassilo
The NBA will hold its pre-draft combine from May 27-29 in Chicago, and Villanova’s Dante Cunningham will be one of the 52 players in attendance. The group typically includes all potential first round picks, and it is rare that college players not invited do wind up in the first round of the draft.
Scottie Reynolds, the other Wildcat in the draft, was not invited to the combine. This would increase the likelihood that he will be returning for his senior season.
The group of 52 players includes 12 players from the Big East: Connecticut’s Jeff Adrien, AJ Price and Hasheem Thabeet, Pittsburgh’s DeJuan Blair and Sam Young, Louisville’s Earl Clark and Terrence Williams, Syracuse’s Jonny Flynn, Notre Dame’s Luke Harangody, Marquette’s Jerel McNeal, Georgetown’s DaJuan Summers and Villanova’s Cunningham.
-David Cassilo
With recruiting nearly finished and pre-draft workouts still not upon us, this is perhaps the slowest time for college basketball of the entire season. Naturally, Villanova basketball is no exception, however some notes of interest have surfaced over the last 10 days:
- Former Villanova guard and current New Mexico assistant head coach Chris Walker seems to be the frontrunner to replace Pat Chambers at Villanova next season. Walker graduated from Villanova in 1992. Since 1992 he has been heavily involved in coaching, making stops at Loyola Marymount, Vanderbilt, Pepperdine, Villanova, UMass and New Mexico. He has significant ties to Texas recruiting, which would open up another avenue for the Wildcats.
- Corey Fisher will be a part of the United States team in the World University Games that will take place in Serbia this July. Incoming freshman Maalik Wayns will attempt to make the U-19 FIBA World Championship team for the United States in June.
- The field is set for the Puerto Rico Tip-Off next season. Aside from Villanova, the tournament will also feature Boston University (led by Pat Chambers), Dayton, George Mason, Georgia Tech, Indiana, Kansas State and Ole Miss. Villanova should be the favorites and will most likely meet either Dayton or Georgia Tech if they advanced to the finals.
- Early predictions have Villanova and West Virginia as the class of the Big East this season. If Scottie Reynolds returns, expect the Wildcats to be the preseason pick to win the league.
- Kentucky has surpassed Villanova as the top recruiting class according to Rivals.com. The recent additions of DeMarcus Cousins and Eric Bledsoe have pushed Kentucky to the top. According to Adam Zagoria of SNY, Kentucky may also land #1 recruit PG John Wall, who is deciding between Kentucky and Miami.
- Kyle Lowry has been a key part of the Houston Rockets run in the playoffs. He has served as the backup point guard to Aaron Brooks, but has logged at least 15 minutes in all but one game this postseason. He is averaging 5.5 points per game for the Rockets this postseason.
- David Cassilo
With final exams in full swing, the senior class of Dwayne Anderson, Shane Clark, Dante Cunningham and Frank Tchuisi, have just a few days left as student athletes. Their success has been well documented, and among other things, they will be remembered for the Final Four run and for being the winningest class in school history.
However, that second accomplishment may be gone sooner than you think. The current senior class will leave school with 102 wins. Both the junior class and sophomore class have legitimate chances of surpassing that record.
The junior class of Jason Colenda, Reggie Redding and Scottie Reynolds currently has a total of 74 wins (22 in each of the first two years, and 30 last season). That leaves them 28 wins shy of the record entering their final season. It would most likely take at least a run to the Sweet 16 next season for these three Wildcats to approach the record.
It is the sophomore class of Corey Fisher, Antonio Pena and Corey Stokes, that looks like it may leave school as the new winningest class in school history. Currently these three players have 52 wins, meaning that they must average 25 wins over the next two seasons to tie the current seniors. With the amount of talent still on the roster and the talent coming in next year, 25 wins a season is a very reasonable expectation.
So let’s take the time to properly appreciate these current seniors because in just a few years their record may be broken.
-David Cassilo
