For those of us obsessed enough to both have been there and remember it, the Darius Silinski days of Cats' Pause are legendary. For those who were not privy to the memory, when Scott Rigot first arrived at UK, there was some buzz that he had the Cats in on a recruitment (or not) of a mystery Lithuanian center, to the point where some folks' "sources" had a signed LOI on the desk of the Athletics Department Offices.
Of course, while Silinski turned out to be a real person, it was never proven whether (a) he was the center in question, (b) he was actually considering coming to the states and specifically to Kentucky, or (c) that Scott Rigot could actually recruit anyone to anywhere.
Fast forward to this afternoon and it's like Silinski's ghost has reappeared in Internet form.
Several Kentucky fan sites, most notably a site new to me, Kentucky Ink and the TCP message boards, are all abuzz over the possibility of a new foreign youngster who may or may not be a shoo-in for the final 2007 scholarship.
Now, regular readers have seen my thoughts on posting rumors as fact, but let's be reasonable here. There's nothing else to talk about! (Other than Donovan, and frankly, I'm over it)
Now we will talk about why these rumors are so useless!
After posting earlier based on Internet reports that UK was on the path of someone who may be UK's Manu Ginobili or may be a completely random phenomenon created solely by the echo chamber of Kentucky fan obsession, the very "sources" that pushed the story towards Matias Nocedal, a 16-year-old point guard from Argentina who is generally regarded as one of the top five basketball talents under 18 in that talent rich country and who is said to be a smooth ballhandler and shooter reminding some of his fellow countryman Ginobili or Wizards superstar Gilbert Arenas, that rumor has been struck down by the same people.
So we're back to square one ... sort of. According to "sourced" posters, the PG in question could be awaiting only a positive SAT test to be eligible for NCAA play in the fall.
Now, let's be clear, I continue to give ZERO credence to this theory/rumor, so don't shoot the messenger if none of this comes to pass. However, it's interesting to think about the possibility of any NBA caliber point guard added to our current roster. So rumor has it that this mystery player would be likely a one-and-done type player, though folks expecting the moon need look no further than Christian Drejer to see how such hype can not only fail to deliver, but can ultimately hurt a young player.
A few anonymous posters have hinted that Coach Gillispie's interest in this kid comes via the AAU circuit, which the new UK head man has been hitting hard since joining the fray. Names like Samardo Samuels and Dexter Strickland are also being bandied about in reference to Nocedal, with hints that an AAU coach or rep is tied to all three.
But before anyone starts going all ape about this, a much likelier scenario is that Jai Lucas (premium) decides to opt out of his LOI with Florida and join Patrick Patterson in Blue and White. And since that is not exactly likely, maybe not even yet possible, you see where anything with Nocedal stands.
Also unclear is the status of South American PG's test scores (if there really are any) and any potential pro deal signed. Given the nature of the NCAA on pro eligibility issues, and UK's academic and NCAA compliance officials, serious hurdles would seem to await before any foreign hoopster would grace the Rupp Arena floor.
Still, on a slow Friday in June, with the baseball team done, the football team off and the Cincinnati Reds working hard on 5th place in the Central, there's nothing wrong with a little daydreaming.
Update [2007-6-1 19:28:10 by JL Blue]:
Chip Cosby has the scoop on Lucas' decision process post-Donovan...
Update [2007-6-2 2:8:33 by JL Blue]:
Have edited the post after those same sources who claimed Nodecal was the guy in question shrugged off the fact that NOW they don't think he's the guy. Good stuff, and this is why we ignore rumors, right?