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Seton Hall Makes Surprise 2011 Addition

In this day in age, surprises in college basketball recruiting occur in the space between slim and none. With that said, the signing of Taft (CA) center Kevin Johnson to Seton Hall yesterday ranks as a huge shock. The popular belief was that the Top 100 big man would end up at a JUCO or prep school, and it would be hard to find a recruiting analyst that expected Johnson to end up in New Jersey.

Johnson is a thick framed big man, at around 230 pounds, and has a nice touch around the hoop. Big men weren’t exactly abundant in the 2011 class, and Johnson is certainly a true center.

He’s not a great athlete, but is a large imposing presence that the Pirates will be able to go to war with in the Big East. In the spirit of saving the best for last, Johnson is the highest-regarded player in the seven member 2011 class at Seton Hall. If his conditioning is up to par, and his agility is sufficient, Johnson is a tremendous get for Seton Hall, out of left field.

Cal Strikes in 2012

While some schools are scrambling to fill their roster for the 2011-2012 season, California struck in the 2012 class, taking a verbal commitment from 6′-9″ forward Kaileb Rodriguez of ThunderRidge (CO). Rodriguez is a nice athlete, and the first known Golden Bears commitment in the 2012 class. He reportedly had offers from Nevada and San Francisco, prior to making the call for California. Rodriguez is a prospect with his better days ahead of him, as he has the physical gifts to turn out as a nice player.

The last player with Colorado ties at Cal is guard Jorge Gutierrez, and if Rodriguez has anywhere near the career that Gutierrez had, Cal fans will be pleased with the pickup. Rodriguez will need to get physically stronger to compete at in the Pac-12, but is a nice lengthy athlete with some bounce. Rodriguez is part of an unusually good 2012 class in Colorado, with fellow big men Josh Scott and Wesley Gordon already committed to Colorado.

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