Hoops Guys

Sherron Collins Update (10/19/05)

Ryan Christie recently spoke to Chicago (IL) Crane High School Basketball Coach Anthony Longstreet about class of 2006 point guard prospect Sherron Collins. Collins, considered by Rivals.com to be the #31 prospect in the class of 2006, recently pledged his services to Kansas University. Kansas Head Coach Bill Self, who got into the Collins recruitment relatively late compared to Illinois and Iowa, secured a commitment from Collins following the dynamic guard’s weekend trip for Midnight Madness.

“This stuff has just been mind-boggling,” said Coach Longstreet, about the constant press coverage of Collins’ commitment. “From both sides, the Kansas side, the Illinois side, my phone is ringing off the hook.”

Despite having recruited him the longest, Illinois and Iowa lost out after Collins’ first trip to visit the Lawrence, Kansas campus.

“It really wasn’t Kansas versus Illinois,” Coach Longstreet mentioned. “I know Sherron liked Illinois. He was probably leaning to Illinois before he visited Kansas. But the visit for Midnight Madness just absolutely blew him away.”

Collins had previously visited Iowa and Illinois unofficially, but his only official visit was to Kansas.

“The players convinced him to go there,” noted Coach Longstreet. “They embraced him the minute he walked in the door. Mario Chalmers was the first guy that came up to Sherron and he gave him a big hug right away.”

Longstreet continued, “Sherron interacted with the Kansas fans after the scrimmage, and that was just an unbelievable experience. They were in the lobby afterward and they were taking pictures, videotaping him, he was signing autographs. He’s never seen anything like that and he was overwhelmed with how great the fans were.”

Longstreet then pointed to the recruits that Self has recently brought in as a factor in Collins’ decision.

“I mean, the kid had a bunch of McDonald’s All-Americans telling him they want him to go there and play with them. That has a pretty big effect on a 17-year old kid.”

Longstreet mentioned that, despite reports that Collins might officially visit Iowa and Illinois in October, it didn’t make sense following the Kansas visit.

“Stringing people along, that’s not the right thing to do,” said Coach Longstreet. “Up until he visited, he had no idea what Kansas was all about. And then he just fell in love with it. The fans, the tradition, the players on the team, all of those things were totally new to him.”

Longstreet was then asked how Collins felt about playing in Self’s high-low offense, as opposed to the motion offense that Bruce Weber’s Illini used.
“I don’t think Sherron even looked at the system,” Longstreet noted. “Kansas could have been playing a triangle offense, throw the ball around the perimeter 100 times, it doesn’t matter. He looked at the chemistry he had with the players, those guys made him feel loved and they wanted him a part of that team.”

The Crane coach suggested that Illinois did everything it could to secure Collins’ commitment.

“They did a fine job recruiting Sherron, they really did,” said Longstreet. “Dee Brown, Luther Head, Deron Williams, Sherron talked to all those guys and is tight with them. They did all they could do. But when he visited Kansas, it was just a totally different feeling. It’s like falling in love with a woman. You can’t help the feelings that you have for her, you can’t explain it, that’s what is was like for Sherron and Kansas.”

When it was mentioned that there are rumors and articles being written that suggest he played an overly influential role in his point guard’s recruitment, Longstreet turned defiant.

“I love the University of Illinois. I’ve lived here all my life. I’m going to have to live in Illinois after Sherron goes to college. That stuff is just crazy, who’s saying that,” Longstreet asked. “Before he went to Kansas, all Sherron knew was Illinois and Iowa. Those were the only schools he had seen. And it was like a totally different experience when he went to Kansas.”

Longstreet specifically refuted a recent blog by Illini beat writer Mark Tupper that stated a “silent verbal” commitment may have been given by Collins to the Illinois coaching staff earlier this year.

“I never heard Sherron tell the Illinois coaches that he was going there,” Longstreet said. “Who’s Mark Tupper? I can tell you that I never heard Sherron say that stuff. He may have said that he liked Illinois, and he did, but he never said ‘I’m going to Illinois.’ That never came out of his mouth.”

Tupper, who co-authored a book with Illinois Head Coach Bruce Weber this summer highlighting the Illini’s run to the 2005 national title game, stirred up a great deal of controversy with his recent blog.

“Is this the first time a kid has changed his mind when he was wowed by something? This is a 17-year old we’re talking about. What exactly does Mark Tupper know about relationships? I’m telling you, it’s like falling in love. Is Mark Tupper an expert on analyzing love and human relationships? If so, tell him I’d like to see his credentials,” Longstreet stated.

Longstreet then answered questions relating to allegations of impropriety in Collins’ recruitment that would enrich the Crane head coach. These rumors gained steam followed by publication of Tupper’s blog.

“It’s part of the territory, I guess, hearing stuff like this,” said Longstreet. “I know that I didn’t do anything wrong. I can’t help it if somebody falls in love with a school outside of Illinois. That’s not my problem. If somebody tries to tarnish my reputation like this, it could blow up in their face. I’ve never been accused of trying to get kids to transfer in from other schools, I’ve never been accused of tampering with kids and trying to get them in my program. I don’t have a bad name in Chicago, people around the Public League know that. I tell you what, you go tell Mark Tupper that if he thinks I’m getting paid, get the proof, produce the cancelled check.”

Longstreet stated that he took a difficult call from Weber after Collins made his decision.

“Coach Weber called the other night, either Sunday or Monday to check in,” Longstreet stated. “He was pretty upset with the news. That’s certainly understandable. He didn’t hang up or anything, but he let me know he was upset. It was probably a reaction like the one he had when Jonathan Scheyer chose Duke. It’s not like Illinois is losing these guys to Minnesota or Purdue. These are great programs the kids are choosing. Bruce and I talked about things and he told me he’d see me later.”

Longstreet also played phone tag on Tuesday with Illini assistant Tracy Webster. Despite a seemingly cordial end to the Collins recruitment, it appears that Longstreet will not be making a scheduled appearance in Champaign-Urbana for an upcoming coaches’ clinic.

“No, I probably won’t go down there for that,” said Longstreet. “The season’s coming up and I need to have some work done on my knee. I need to do that and have some time off to recover before the season, so probably won’t go to that event.”