SETON HALL RECRUITING UPDATE

Verbal Commitment Alert: Kashif Pratt, (G) Rice HS (NYC)

Bobby Gonzalez lands his first recruit for Seton Hall in Kashif Pratt, a player Gonzalez was recruiting while at Manhattan: Gonzalez, SHU Land NYC Star Swingman.

2006-2007 Projected Roster
Seniors: Grant Billmeier (C), Jamar Nutter (G), Mani Messy (F), Stan Gaines (F), Carl Marshall (G)
Juniors: Brian Laing (G/F), Marcus Cousin (BF/C), Mike Pilgrim (F)
Sophomores: John Garcia (BF/C), David Palmer (BF), Paul Gause (G)
Freshmen: Kashif Pratt (G)


Previous Seton Hall recruiting reports: Sept 1, 2005 Report, August 18th report, July 5 Report, Aug 15 and July 24 Round-Up.

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Bobby Gonzalez has been on the job less than a week and already nabbed his first recruit as NYC G Kashif Pratt from Rice HS has made a verbal pledge to the Pirate program. Pratt is expected to make his commitment official by signing a letter of intent sometime next week.

Pratt is a defensive-minded guard who did a little bit of everything for the high-profile Rice Raiders, playing with Louisville-commit Edgar Sosa and UConn-commit Curtis Kelly. Pratt is a solid ball-handler that has a little more size than the smallish guards that comprise much of the Seton Hall roster and is a very solid late-period recruit. Over the course of the last year, Big East programs such as West Virginia and Pittsburgh followed Pratt's progress and local schools like Manhattan and Iona made him a priority recruit. Getting stronger for the Big East and improving the range and consistency of his perimeter jumper will be the priority areas of improvement for Pratt at Seton Hall. If he can improve in those areas adding to his already strong defensive skills and NYC swagger, he will be a very solid player for the Pirates.

Anytime a new coach comes in there is bound to be some turnover. Gonzalez did receive some good news this week as Paul Gause and Brian Laing both indicated they will return. Losing seniors Kelly Whitney and Donald Copeland to graduation, Laing and Gause are important sources of potential offense to help ease their lose. However, David Palmer and Marcus Cousin are unsure if they will return, potentially opening a couple more scholarships. Seton Hall had thought they secured a potential starting point guard when they received a commitment from Malcolm Grant late last summer, but Grant never signed a letter of intent and opted to commit to Villanova instead. With the graduation of Copeland, point guard is a position that Gonzalez needs to fill aggressively and the biggest prize out there is St. Benedict's Eugene Harvey, who is also a priority late target for Cincinnati and Rutgers in the Big East as well as others around the country.

Gonzalez also would be wise to follow the happenings at North Carolina State who signed New Jersey natives Dennis Horner and Dan Werner in the fall as well as NYC's Larry Davis. Also on their roster are Gavin Grant and Brandon Costner. It is not unthinkable that a couple of those guys could look to return closer to home and Seton Hall could be a logical option. With the Pirate's need for scoring on the wing, they would definitely be interested in all of them.

With the graduation of Whitney and the possible transfer of Cousin and John Garcia still battling injuries, the Hall will also likely be looking for some help upfront, especially an athletic big forward to fit in the Gonzalez style (not exactly the strengths of Grant Billmeier or Garcia). At this point in time, the prospects available for immediate help are very minimal. Gonzalez could be better served concentrating his efforts on the 2007 class and making his mark then. It should be a very busy summer for the new SHU staff.