Basketball Recruiting, No Time to Panic

A health Devon Moore could be JMU's top "recruit".

Years ago I was on an airplane when some old guy behind me started wheezing. Badly. It got ugly, they did the whole “Is there a doctor on the plane?” thing, one thing led to another, and before I knew it I had a doctor squeezed into the row behind me, feeling around the old guy’s throat while yelling at the flight attendant to find him a ball point pen immediately. That was the exact moment it hit me that I was about to witness some bloody and disgusting ball point pen tracheotomy at 35,000 feet by Dr. MacGyver behind me. So I did what anyone would do. I leaned  WAY back in my seat to avoid the pending blood splatter and braced myself for the awful mess I was about to witness. I remember this next part like it was yesterday. The doctor took the pen from the flight attendant, slowly removed his other hand from the man’s neck, took a deep breath and…calmly wrote down some instructions for the flight attendant who strutted to the back of the plane and returned with a first aid kit and some medicine. True story.

I’m forced to remind myself of that episode, whenever I take a look at JMU basketball this off-season. There really is no need to panic. Sure, lack of depth killed this team last season. Then the Dukes graduated one starter and saw Darren White and Alvin Beard exit stage right. None of those players are irreplaceable. Unless of course JMU doesn’t actually replace them at all. And as of right now, JMU has 3 scholarships to fill. And it’s May.

So, yeah there is a lot riding on Devon Moore and Andre Semenov coming back healthy. I love both players and think JMU will contend in the CAA if both guys stay healthy. That’s a huge if. The last time Todd and I talked to Coach Brady (Ed. note – Technically speaking it was the only time), he couldn’t even tell us if Semenov would be back at full strength. He was extremely excited about the recruits he’s bringing in though. Two guys in particular, Kentucky high school star Chad Jackson, and transfer AJ Davis have me excited as well. Plus, the Dukes are also still in the running for Ayhoro Phillips. Sure, he’s got some legal trouble, but we have it on good authority (seriously, JMUSB has crazy sources) that he’s a solid kid who just made some bad decisions. As far as the never-ending Rayshawn Goins saga? I’d be happy to see him in purple and gold, but ready to move forward without him.

So maybe there are a few holes left to fill. That’s fine. I’ve learned my lesson about jumping the gun. It’s time to sit back, relax, and let Coach Brady do his job.