Gonzaga Basketball Recruiting: 'Mark Few Hit This One Out Of The Park'

As expected, Gary Bell, Kevin Pangos, Ryan Spangler, and Kyle Dranginis all signed National Letters of Intent today committing to Gonzaga University.

Zach Bell of the Slipper Still Fits provides a breakdown.

Gonzaga expected to ink major 2011 class on Wednesday - The Slipper Still Fits
Mark Few has been building momentum with this class since nearly a year ago when he snagged the verbal commitment of Kyle Dranginis, an under the radar guard from Idaho. Few and the staff continued their momentum all the way through last month when they seemingly capped off the class with Kevin Pangos, a pure point guard with big expectations from Canada.

While Gonzaga's class is loaded with talent, the guy that has created the most buzz is Gary Bell Jr. Bell, aside from being an elite guard prospect with numerous BCS offers, chose Gonzaga over a number of Pac-10 suitors.

Head over to the Slipper Still Fits for continued updates and insights on Gonzaga's recruiting class.

Slipper Still Fits Breaks Down Kevin Pangos To Gonzaga Commitment

Zach Bell of SB Nation’s Slipper Still Fits does a nice job of breaking down the Kevin Pangos to Gonzaga commitment, shedding some insight on Mark Few’s class of 2011 Canadian point guard recruit.

Unlike a Manny Arop or Kelly Olynyk; Kevin Pangos never seemed to fly under the radar. The first time I had heard of Kevin he was already being compared to Steve Nash. The hype has not ceased yet and I don’t expect it to now that Pangos is a Gonzaga Bulldog. Don’t get me wrong, the 6’2’’ point guard has done his fair share to earn such praise. From averaging 15 points a game in the recent FIBA U-17 games and being named the top point guard in the tournament to becoming the youngest Canadian to ever compete in a senior men’s international game; Kevin seems to fit the bill in terms of a big time point guard.

For all intents and purposes, Kevin Pangos appears to fit the phrase “pure point guard” to perfection. I’ve probably read 20 articles regarding Pangos over the past hour to try and cram as much information in my head as possible. When I think about all these articles, there is definitely a few common themes/descriptions regarding Kevin. The first one is: leader, floor general, and extremely high basketball IQ.

Pangos Feels Gonzaga Is A 'Great Fit'

Jim Meehan of the Spokesman-Review in Spokane caught up for a few moments with Gonzaga's most recent verbal commit, Kevin Pangos, who elaborated on his decision to go with the Zags:

"Really it was just the (GU) coaching staff, they've been great with me," Pangos said. "I felt it was a great fit for me academically and athletically. I feel like they can make me the best I can be as a player. They came up and visited me about a year ago and from there they've been really serious and stayed in touch. Virginia never formally offered, but it was getting pretty serious."

Scouting reports on Pangos are few and far in between, but Draftexpress.com scouted him at the FIBA U-17 championships, where Pangos was Canada's starting point guard:

The clear-cut leader and go-to guy on this Canadian national team, Kevin Pangos had a strong outing in Hamburg and only added to his already impressive resume. Not exceptionally athletic (but likely more physically gifted than we initially gave him credit for), Pangos has good size for a point guard to go along with excellent footwork and a terrific basketball IQ.

The gist of the rest of the report? He sounds like your typical Gonzaga guard -- which is great news for the Bulldogs.

Report: Canadian Guard Kevin Pangos Commits To Gonzaga

Well, Mark Few sure seems to like his Canadians.

The Gonzaga coach reportedly has picked up another commitment from north of the border, as FlagrantFouls.com editor Nolan Shulman announced via Twitter that point guard Kevin Pangos has picked the Bulldogs:

Flagrant Fouls is based out of Canada and runs a Canadian scouting service for coaches in addition to its Web content. The report hasn't been confirmed by anyone else.

UPDATE: Jim Meehan of the Spokesman-Review newspaper in Spokane is confirming the report.

Ryan Spangler Commits To Gonzaga

Gonzaga head coach Mark Few picked up his third commit for the class of 2011 this weekend when Oklahoma forward Ryan Spangler picked the Zags while on his official visit. Spangler joins Kentridge’s Gary Bell and Idaho’s Kyle Dranginis in the Zags recruiting class.

The 6’8 power forward chose Gonzaga over offers from Colorado and Tulsa. While he’s under the radar, Gonzaga SB Nation blog The Slipper Still Fits thinks he fits the “classic Gonzaga mold”.

From what we have gathered about Ryan, he seems to be made in that “classic Zag” mold. He might not always be the best player on the court but he is rarely outworked by his opposition. Averaging somewhere around 26 points and 18 boards a game, it is obvious that Ryan has a tremendous skill set and we have heard that his athletic ability is seriously underrated. Not only can he hit the mid-range jumper in space, but he can also put it on the deck and get to the rim.

The Zags are at the scholarship limit for the class of 2011 but may still add another player due to the expected departure of Elias Harris. Harris, who had a standout season, will likely head for the NBA draft following the season.

For more on Spangler, check out The Slipper Still Fits’ interview with him.

For more on Gonzaga basketball, check out SB Nation’s The Slipper Still Fits.

VIDEO: Kyle Wiltjer Picks Kentucky

Here's a video of Kyle Wiltjer announcing his commitment to the University of Kentucky during halftime of Saturday's Boost Mobile Elite 24 showcase game in California.

Kyle Wiltjer Picks Kentucky: In His Own Words

Kentucky commit Kyle Wiltjer did an interview with Tim Brown of OregonLive.com in which he explains his commitment to John Calipari and the Wildcats.

Wiltjer says he talked with current Wildcat Terrence Jones, is looking forward to playing coach John Calipari and hopes that Kentucky will help him reach his goal of playing basketball professionally.

Click here for the audio.

Kyle Wiltjer Reaction: John Calipari Snags Another Northwest Recruit

The Northwest has long been a hotbed for up-and-coming talent on the AAU circuit. Players such as Jamal Crawford, Nate Robinson, Jason Terry and more all came up through the local systems before moving on to the NBA. With the Sonics moving to Oklahoma City, the young talent in the Northwest is in focus, and the nation is taking notice.

Kyle Wiltjer became the latest recruit to make it big on the national scene, and because of it, Kentucky head coach John Calipari came calling. Wiltjer, ranked as the 32nd-best prospect in the class of 2011, had a who’s who of national and local programs on his recruitment list. In the end, Calipari came through with an offer and lured the Portland star to Lexington.

Kentucky SB Nation blog A Sea Of Blue breaks it down.

Needless to say, Fans of schools in the states of Washington and Oregon have been dismayed at the sudden movement of their talent to Lexington. With Tony Wroten still out there uncommitted, there is at least a technical possibility of yet another highly-ranked Great Northwest recruit playing for the Blue and White. That would be a staggeringly successful invasion of an under appreciated and talent-rich region of America.

With Calipari luring Enes Kanter for Washington’s grasp, the ire of the Washington faithful was aimed directly at the Kentucky coach. On the heels of that, Kentucky snagged Terrence Jones after a public commitment to Washington. You could even go back to Terrence Williams (Rainier Beach H.S.) and Peyton Siva (Franklin H.S.), who each left Seattle to play for Rick Pitino at Louisville.

With the talent in the Northwest high, national programs continue to swoop in and pick through the top-ranked recruits the Seattle and Portland areas have to offer. Keeping the homegrown players close to home has become a tougher task, as the rest of the country catches up to what we already know: the Northwest is a hotbed for recruits.

The battles for Northwest recruits aren't over with Wiltjer. Highly touted Seattle prepster Tony Wroten Jr. is all over the national radar, holding offers from nearly every major school in the country. It may come down to Washington and Kentucky again, with Lorenzo Romar and John Calipari squaring off again. There's no doubt Calipari will be keeping a close eye on the Northwest, looking to snatch some of the top talent away from the area colleges.

Kyle Wiltjer Picks Kentucky

It's official: Class of 2011 power forward Kyle Wiltjer announced at halftime of tonight's Boost Mobile Elite 24 game on ESPN U that he will commit to the University of Kentucky and head coach John Calipari. "I just wanna let Coach Calipari know I'm gonna play for the Wildcats," Wiltjer said. 

The news comes as a surprise because Wiltjer had reportedly not visited Kentucky's campus and had been seen as a Gonzaga target. 

SB Nation's The Slipper Still Fits first linked Wiltjer to Kentucky earlier Saturday.

Sources tell The Slipper Still Fits that prized 2011 power forward Kyle Wiltjer has made his decision and he will take his game to Lexington and play for John Calipari and the Kentucky Wildcats. 

That was tough to write.

Wiltjer's commitment to Kentucky was further confirmed by CBS's Gary Parrish on Twitter.

Wiltjer is the state of Oregon's top class of 2011 high school basketball player and has won back-to-back 6A state titles with Portland's Jesuit High School. He has been called the most skilled power forward in the country and is a versatile offensive player who should make a serious impact on the next level.

Wiltjer joins a loaded class of 2011 Kentucky group that already included Anthony Davis, Marquis Teague and Mike Gilchrist. It is widely regarded as the nation's top recruiting class.

For a full rundown of Kyle Wiltjer's recruitment decision, click here.

For everything Gonzaga basketball, head over to SB Nation's The Slipper Still Fits.

Conflicting Reports Emerging On Kyle Wiltjer's College Choice

ESPNU reported on twitter earlier that Kyle Wiltjer was expected to commit to John Calipari and the Kentucky Wildcats. A few hours later, the tweet reporting this information has been deleted and two nationally known reporters are questioning the ESPNU report.

Upon hearing that Wiltjer was expected to commit to Kentucky, Scout.com national recruiting analyst Evan Daniels said he was "perplexed" and later clarified why.

Daniels wasn't the only one questioning it, either. Courier-Journal writer Jody Demling spoke to Wiltjer a few days ago and was under the impression he was taking it slow.

At this point there's no telling why ESPNU -- the network hosting the Elite 24 game -- deleted the tweet.

Here's the exact text printed on ESPN's "On The Trail Insider" website as of 4:20PM Pacific.

Kyle Wiltjer (Portland, Ore./Jesuit) will be deciding between Kentucky, Wake Forest, Cal, Gonzaga and Texas at halftime of the Boost Mobile Elite 24 event which airs live on ESPNU at 7:30 pm EDT.

Wiltjer is the No. 5-rated power forward and No. 32 overall prospect in the ESPNU 100.

He was also heavily recruited by Kansas and Georgia Tech.

Paul Biancardi will provide analysis of Wiltjer's decision on ESPNU shortly after the 6-foot-9 prospect makes his commitment public.

Given this information, we don't know if Wiltjer will commit to the Wildcats tonight, but we should find out more in the next hour as Wiltjer takes the court on ESPNU.

Gonzaga Fans React To Kyle Wiltjer's Reported Commitment To Kentucky

Though his commitment is not official — and won’t be until sometime after 4:30 PM today — Gonzaga fans are reacting to the news that Kyle Wiltjer has pledged his commitment to John Calipari and the Kentucky Wildcats. Though it obviously stings to lose a prized recruit, Zags fans are taking it in stride, moving on to the next big name in the class of 2011.

Over at The Slipper Still Fits, Zach Bell does a great job of summing it up.

Wiltjer, along with Gary Bell, was Gonzaga’s #1 target for the class and is someone Mark Few and co. invested a lot of time in. For the past few months, we have thought that the leaders from Kyle were Gonzaga, Cal, and Kansas. This all changed when Kentucky got seriously involved and they recently had come through with an offer that was too much for Wiltjer to resist.

Whether you agree or disagree with Kyle’s choice, we wish him nothing but the best with Kentucky. It’s a tremendous opportunity for him.

Gonzaga still holds verbal commitments from Gary Bell Jr. and Kyle Dranginis, while targeting high caliber players in Kevin Pangos and Antwan Space. Mark Few and the Gonzaga coaching staff will no doubt be working hard to fill the rest of the 2011 recruiting class with players that best fit Gonzaga’s needs.

Stay tuned to see if the reports are correct and Wiltjer does pick Kentucky tonight on ESPNU.

For more on Gonzaga basketball, visit SBNation’s The Slipper Still Fits.

Report: Kyle Wiltjer Expected To Pick Kentucky

Gonzaga recruit, and Northwest high school star, Kyle Wiltjer is expected to choose Kentucky tonight in a live announcement on ESPNU. The talented Portland power forward had narrowed his list to five, with Gonzaga among the favorites to land him.

ESPNU, the network hosting his announcement, broke the news on Twitter.

As usual, anything can happen until he actually announces tonight. If true, it's a tough loss for Gonzaga, who considered Wiltjer the prize of the 2011 class.

For more on Gonzaga basketball, check out SBNation blog The Slipper Still Fits.

Is Portland's Kyle Wiltjer The Most Skilled Power Forward In The Class Of 2011?

ESPN ranks Jesuit (OR) High School’s Kyle Wiltjer as its No. 32 prospect in the class of 2011 and ranks him a 96 on a scale of 1-100. Really, they can’t stop raving about him.

May be the most skilled power forward in the class. He can score from anywhere on the floor and is a match up nightmare. He can pass and handle the ball as well. Needs to attempt to improve his foot speed and quickness and add strength but this young man can flat out make plays on the offensive end of the floor against anyone in the high school ranks. We consider him a cross between Keith Van Horn and Kevin McHale.

ESPN also really highlights what we feel is the strongest aspect of Wiltjer’s game, his versatility with the ball in his hands.

Wiltjer’s back to the basket footwork, moves and touch are a thing of beauty. He can also knock the three in transition by running the floor, trailing or from a pick and pop situation. He understands the value of ball fakes to move the defense and he works for low post position after he screens and seals his defender. Wiltjer is an excellent passer as well out of the post and under pressure on the perimeter.

It’s still a little unclear how Wiltjer will translate to the professional level, where he will be at a significant deficit when it comes to athleticism and quickness. But he’s tailor-made for the college game and is the type of player and person who could make a serious four-year impact on a program.

For everything Gonzaga basketball, head over to SB Nation’s The Slipper Still Fits.

Kyle Wiltjer Watch: Where Will He Commit?

Kyle Wiltjer is, without question, the state of Oregon's top Class of 2011 basketball prospect.  A power forward at the high school level, Wiltjer excels facing the basket and sports a crafty offensive game.  He can put the ball on the back to get his own shot, step out and shoot from the mid-range and find open teammates with excellent vision and passing skills for a big man.  Blessed with great basketball intelligence and court awareness, Wiltjer stands to be an impact player on the next level.

Wiltjer is a proven level on the high school level, having won back-to-back state OSAA 6A state championships, and on the AAU level, where he played for the Drew Gooden Soldiers.  Wiltjer has also played for Canada during various international youth tournaments owing to his father Greg's Canadian citizenship.

Currently, Scout.com ranks Kyle Wiltjer as a 5 star prospect, the country's fifth-best power forward. Wiltjer is Scout.com's No. 19 overall prospect in the Class of 2011.

When it comes to Oregon preps basketball, nobody does it better than Oregonlive.com's Tim Brown.  Here's an interview Brown did with Wiltjer following the 2010 Nike Global Challenge.

There are disputing reports about who Wiltjer is and is not considering for his college destination. At least three Pacific Northwest teams are said to be in the running, according to Oregonlive.com's Aaron Fentress: Gonzaga, Oregon and Washington.  Another list has only Gonzaga in the mix locally.

One thing is clear: whoever lands Kyle Wiltjer on Saturday will be adding a difference-maker in 2011 and beyond.

For everything Gonzaga basketball, head over to SB Nation's The Slipper Still Fits.

Report: Gonzaga Recruit Kyle Wiltjer To Announce College Decision Tomorrow On ESPNU

Gonzaga recruit Kyle Wiltjer has decided to end his recruitment, announcing his college decision live on ESPNU Saturday night during the Boost Mobile Elite 24 game. Wiltjer has narrowed it down to Gonzaga, Cal, Kansas, Kentucky, Georgia Tech, Wake Forest, and Texas. It’s unknown where he’s leaning, but he’s poised to make a decision in front of a national audience tomorrow night.

Gonzaga blog The Slipper Still Fits is excited about Wiltjer’s impending announcement.

Regardless of classification, position, or anything else, Wiltjer has blown up more than any other recruit in the country this summer. He’s flashed unreal versatility and has dramatically improved his post play. He’d be a remarkable get for the Zags.

There’s no doubt Wiltjer would add to a class that’s already looking great for Mark Few. The Zags will find out with the rest of the world where Wiltjer plans to sign live on ESPNU.

For more on Wiltjer and Gonzaga basketball, check out SBNation blog The Slipper Still Fits.

Gonzaga Basketball Recruiting: Mark Few Off To A Hot Start

Gonzaga head coach Mark Few has been tirelessly recruiting this offseason and his hard work is paying off. With 2011 recruits Gary Bell and Greg Dranginis already lined up, the Zags are looking to round out the class in style.

After Dranginis landed on the Zags' radar during the summer before his junior year, Few kept an eye on him before offering a scholarship in late 2009. The Gatorade Idaho Basketball State Player of the Year may not be a big name, but it looks like the Zags found a gem in Dranginis.

It might just be me but this kid sends me a big Grant Gibbs vibe.  Big guard that has room to add weight, not overly athletic but he makes up for it with his smarts.  Like Gibbs, Dranginis is a winner.  He's won a state title and did it in dramatic fashion as he Skyview had to play four overtime periods in the state tournament.  He's a solid passer, a decent rebounder, and his size allows him to score in a number of ways whether it is down in the low post or from deep.

Gary Bell Jr., regarded as the second best prospect in Washington, became the Bulldogs' second commit in April, choosing Gonzaga over Washington, USC, UCLA, and California. Gonzaga SBN blog The Slipper Still Fits has been tracking the versatile shooting guard from Kentridge High School and are excited about Bell lacing it up at The Kennel in 2011.

As a fan, I find myself infatuated with Gary Bell because of his ability to adapt to any role.  On his Kentridge High School team, Gary is the primary offensive weapon and scorer (case in point the 55 point game this past season).  On his AAU team, he plays with Tony Wroten...and their aren't two basketballs.  While he has scored well this summer, you won't see him get huge write-ups because he's more of an offensive facilitator.  At the Top 100 camp, he was paired on a team with top ten point guard Myck Kabongo and, although he began the camp slowly, he scored 13 points in one of his last games and obviously impressed many scouts in attendance.  Another great part of Gary's game is that second to last sentence of the quoted piece:  "Plays hard on both ends".  That doesn't happen too much on the summer circuit!

With two scholarships filled, coach Mark Few isn't done yet. Portland power forward Kyle Wiltjer, Canadian point guard Kevin Pangos, and Texas forward Antwan Space are all in the mix for Gonzaga's two remaining scholarships. With all the talented prospects considering the Zags, the 2011 class is shaping up to be a big one for Few.

We haven't beat around the bush here about how special the 2011 class could be.  The best part about the class is that it seems to be looking more promising as the weeks progress.  It was about a year ago we posted this article about our hopes for the 2011 class.  I would say that any Gonzaga fan has to feel pretty good about where we are in terms of that plan.

Gonzaga fans have reason to be excited. If the Zags can reel in Wiltjer and one of the remaining two, the 2011 class could be the cornerstone in Gonzaga's continued success.

For everything Gonzaga Basketball, check out SBNation blog The Slipper Still Fits.