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Post by GBPhoenix1 on May 1, 2014 7:25:32 GMT -6
I did see him when he was on campus visiting and from what I can find online he hasn't committed elsewhere yet. I think he would be a very interesting prospect especially at this point in the recruiting cycle. The school he visited the week before GB seems to be recruiting other big men based on what I can read on their forum.
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Post by stillaphoenixphan on May 1, 2014 9:10:57 GMT -6
I did see him when he was on campus visiting and from what I can find online he hasn't committed elsewhere yet. I think he would be a very interesting prospect especially at this point in the recruiting cycle. The school he visited the week before GB seems to be recruiting other big men based on what I can read on their forum. I think he would be a good addition. I just checked the Big Ten school and they don't have a open offer. I think their website said they were looking for a SF or SG with last scholarship so maybe we will get him. Also from what I can see the HL team that was recruiting him doesn't have any more scholarships open? |
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Post by shooting the J on May 4, 2014 11:34:21 GMT -6
Green Bay has received a commitment from JuCo center Henry Uwadiae. The 6'11" Nigerian recently asked for his release from his LOI to Marshall after a coaching change there. He was committed to Wichita St out of HS, but didn't qualify because of incomplete transcripts.
He has 3 years to play after redshirting at Kirkwood as a freshman. He's an athletic pure center that was expected to be a major player this year but came down with mono just before the season started and ended up playing a minor role.
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Post by stillaphoenixphan on May 4, 2014 13:29:58 GMT -6
Should be a nice pickup at 6'11" and 225+ pounds. It sounds like Mono really hurt him last year and we should be happy. WTG Phoenix Coaching staff. Info said before he came to the US he was a volleyball player so defense and rebounding should be his strong points.
If he turns into a load around the basket that sure will help Mays and McKinnie getting open for mid-range jump shots their SR. year. It will take some pressure off of Lowe who still will get plenty of minutes and Jordan can play G or F. Sure could make GB hard to defend against. They can go big or small and create plenty of problems for the other teams.
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Post by thetulsawarrior on May 4, 2014 16:19:01 GMT -6
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Post by thetulsawarrior on May 4, 2014 21:35:53 GMT -6
Doing a little research online it's clear Uwadiae is a developmental player who is relatively new to basketball. He just started playing when he was 16. He had stops at Findley Prep in Nevada and a prep school in North Carolina. Wichita State signed him but getting educational paperwork from Nigeria was a problem. The Shockers parked him at Kirkwood for development. Coaching changes at the JUCO and Wichita State taking recruiting to another level meant Uwadiae got lost in the shuffle. It was clear from the get go that he needed time to put on weight and develop as a player. A JUCO redshirt year seemed like a good idea and so after that he was on track last fall to see game action. Uwadiae signed a NLI with Marshall University. His final year at Kirkwood was torpedoed when he came down with mono and pneumonia. He played a little but his stats were almost invisible. Marshall's coach was fired in March and the new coach skeptical of the Nigerian's future released Uwadiae from his letter of intent. (note: Marshall had a another African player, 7-2 Yousoupha Mbao who was a complete bust and the memory of that may have colored Uwadiae's chances with the Thundering Herd.)
So what kind of player and student is Green Bay getting? My guess -- with three years of eligibility left it's clear he has his academics in order. Wichita State and Marshall are not schools that generally take a flyer on a player even if he is 6-11. What everyone involved in recruiting him has seen is potential. He will need time. You will not see Alec Brown percentage 3 point shooting. Eventually you may see AC blocking numbers and the biggest physical presence GB has ever had in the paint.
For now fans have an intriguing recruit. It will probably take a year or two to see if the potential will translate into something more. In the 2014-15 season some solid minutes would be a blessing. After the graduate of Greg Mays and Alonzo McKinnie I'm sure the Nix coaching staff is hoping Uwadiae is ready to show that he is an "A" plus basketball student.
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Post by stillaphoenixphan on May 4, 2014 21:45:06 GMT -6
Doing a little research online it's clear Uwadiae is a developmental player who is relatively new to basketball. He just started playing when he was 16. He had stops at Findley Prep in Nevada and a prep school in North Carolina. Wichita State signed him but getting educational paperwork from Nigeria was a problem. The Shockers parked him at Kirkwood for development. Coaching changes at the JUCO and Wichita State taking recruiting to another level meant Uwadiae got lost in the shuffle. It was clear from the get go that he needed time to put on weight and develop as a player. A JUCO redshirt year seemed like a good idea and so after that he was on track last fall to see game action. Uwadiae signed a NLI with Marshall University. His final year at Kirkwood was torpedoed when he came down with mono and pneumonia. He played a little but his stats were almost invisible. Marshall's coach was fired in March and the new coach skeptical of the Nigerian's future released Uwadiae from his letter of intent. (note: Marshall had a another African player, 7-2 Yousoupha Mbao who was a complete bust and the memory of that may have colored Uwadiae's chances with the Thundering Herd.) So what kind of player and student is Green Bay getting? My guess -- with three years of eligibility left it's clear he has his academics in order. Wichita State and Marshall are not schools that generally take a flyer on a player even if he is 6-11. What everyone involved in recruiting him has seen is potential. He will need time. You will not see Alec Brown percentage 3 point shooting. Eventually you may see AC blocking numbers and the biggest physical presence GB has ever had in the paint. For now fans have an intriguing recruit. It will probably take a year or two to see if the potential will translate into something more. In the 2014-15 season some solid minutes would be a blessing. After the graduate of Greg Mays and Alonzo McKinnie I'm sure the Nix coaching staff is hoping Uwadiae is ready to show that he is an "A" plus basketball student. Well put, he needs time and it sounds like he's very coachable. 2015-2016 hopefully we'll see results. I also read that he runs the floor very well which goes with GB's game. |
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Post by shooting the J on May 5, 2014 5:58:41 GMT -6
Uwadiae's stats per game were extremely modest, but if you extrapolate them to 28 minutes per game, you see he's a rebounding and shot-blocking force.
Hopefully he can get enrolled for summer school, because GB needs to get his development underway so he can get ready for game action in 14-15.
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Post by shooting the J on May 5, 2014 6:10:43 GMT -6
Doing a little research online it's clear Uwadiae is a developmental player who is relatively new to basketball. He just started playing when he was 16. He had stops at Findley Prep in Nevada and a prep school in North Carolina. Wichita State signed him but getting educational paperwork from Nigeria was a problem. The Shockers parked him at Kirkwood for development. Coaching changes at the JUCO and Wichita State taking recruiting to another level meant Uwadiae got lost in the shuffle. It was clear from the get go that he needed time to put on weight and develop as a player. A JUCO redshirt year seemed like a good idea and so after that he was on track last fall to see game action. Uwadiae signed a NLI with Marshall University. His final year at Kirkwood was torpedoed when he came down with mono and pneumonia. He played a little but his stats were almost invisible. Marshall's coach was fired in March and the new coach skeptical of the Nigerian's future released Uwadiae from his letter of intent. (note: Marshall had a another African player, 7-2 Yousoupha Mbao who was a complete bust and the memory of that may have colored Uwadiae's chances with the Thundering Herd.) So what kind of player and student is Green Bay getting? My guess -- with three years of eligibility left it's clear he has his academics in order. Wichita State and Marshall are not schools that generally take a flyer on a player even if he is 6-11. What everyone involved in recruiting him has seen is potential. He will need time. You will not see Alec Brown percentage 3 point shooting. Eventually you may see AC blocking numbers and the biggest physical presence GB has ever had in the paint. For now fans have an intriguing recruit. It will probably take a year or two to see if the potential will translate into something more. In the 2014-15 season some solid minutes would be a blessing. After the graduate of Greg Mays and Alonzo McKinnie I'm sure the Nix coaching staff is hoping Uwadiae is ready to show that he is an "A" plus basketball student. I thought I read that the new Marshall coaching staff wanted to keep Uwadiae, it was Henry who asked for the release. Also, Uwadiae was graded an 85 by ESPN during his senior year at Evilyn Mack Prep School. |
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Post by thetulsawarrior on May 5, 2014 6:52:33 GMT -6
The Marshall coaching situation was a mess. I was referring to the fan base on the desire to keep Henry in the fold. You might remember Yousoupha Mbao, the former Marshall player. He was at Marquette for a year. I saw him on campus back in those days Milwaukee days. He was a 7-2 player who was extremely skinny who knew nothing about the game but was recruited based on his size. Marshall fans had high hopes for him and were greatly disappointed. Those fans saw Uwadiae in the same light, fair or unfair, so when he parted ways with Marshall the consensus was no big deal. I hope it is a "big deal."
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Post by thetulsawarrior on May 5, 2014 17:22:08 GMT -6
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Post by shooting the J on May 5, 2014 19:01:48 GMT -6
My favorite part was hearing of his terradactyl-like armspan. That has to be the largest in program history. |
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Post by stillaphoenixphan on May 6, 2014 8:53:23 GMT -6
My favorite part was hearing of his terradactyl-like armspan. That has to be the largest in program history. Yes wing span helps a lot. He is a project that shows a large upside and can help sooner than I thought. Nice to hear what he thinks. I had seen the ESPN 85 score showed his skills. Wichata St. signing him is the type of program we want to be compared to. Lucky for us his school records were screwed up sorry for him that it happened. Kirkwood JC is a place that wichata St. sends their projects and academic ineligible recruits to. Some have referred to it as a feeder system, so they have really upped the ante for College Basketball. In his case it wasn't either but incomplete HS transcripts so he had to prove his College eligability. |
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Post by thetulsawarrior on May 6, 2014 9:52:30 GMT -6
It appears language my be an issue. His English is still a work in progress and that may present some challenges for the coaches. Changing subjects a bit. Coach Kowalczyk did some good thing for the program that he never got full credit for -- that said Wardle and staff have improved recruiting dramatically.
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Post by can opener man on May 6, 2014 18:50:42 GMT -6
from what i saw on verbalcommits.com the video of him being interviewed. Yes there is an accent, but I dont think there is a communication barrier. sometimes when learning a second and third language, it is easier to understand what someone else is saying, than speaking the language itself.
I like the attitude tho, refers to himself as a mean bull who doesn't back down. Thats the type of guy Green Bay needs inside. Offensively, get put backs, and learn how to move in space and get the ball with clear paths to the hoop. Plus defensively, rebound, block shots and back down to no one. If he has a good work ethic, he will be fun to watch.
Remember what the guy from Eastern Michigan did to us ? I think Henry could bring that.
kolwalczyk is the one who brought us back to a respectable level, where we could compete with the top teams in the conference. Just needed wardell to push us over the hump. Kowalczyk, just didn't recruit the chicago area in green bay, almost non existent. Recruiting Chicago basically can bring conference championships to Green Bay.
I wonder how his lateral movement is, if he can guard out on the perimeter when he needs to, off screens or post players who can hit the three.
Lateral movement off the screen, could be huge for his defensive game. Been hearing how athletic he is.
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