Providence signed another big man from IMG Academy on Wednesday who's numbers were similar to Andrew davis there. An article on Scout.com had some quotes from the IMG coach about their players and program which may be relevant to Andrew Davis.
Here is the article, but it requires a subscription-
http://providence.scout.com/2/971176.html
Here is what it says about the kid Providence signed, 6-9 230 pound
Alexandre Gavrilovic-
After visiting the campus on Monday,
Alexandre Gavrilovic committed to the Friars and signed his letter of intent on Wednesday.
"Alexandre will be a strong addition to our program," Davis said. "He has a combination of size, skill and intelligence. Alexandre can hit jump shots as well as mix it up on the boards.???
A strong 6??™9 1/2, 230 pound forward/center from Strasbourg, France, Gavrilovic had been in the United States at IMG Academy since September, when he decided to take a prep year.
During the season, IMG played 67 games, including contests against strong junior college teams in Florida and some of the best prep competition in the country.
???We play almost a pro season,??? IMG coach Dan Barto told ScoutFriars.com. ???That??™s why our kids don??™t have a problem with the physicality of the college game. We??™ve had 55 players earn D1 scholarships over the past nine years and a number of our players are going that route this year.???
???Scoring and rebounding numbers really have no meaning for us. We don??™t keep track. I told Pat Skerry (who was lead recruiter on Gavrilovic), if Alex had played on a traditional high school team, he??™d have averaged 22 and 15, but we have 22 players, we sometimes split our squads and sometimes he only played half a game, so its not really fair to talk about numbers,??? said Barto.
???Alex is a block-to-block face-up four man who can play the center spot defensively,??? Barto continued. ???He can score, he can block the ball and he??™ll get to the free throw line. He??™s a smart, disciplined, crafty player. He??™s actually better over his right shoulder with his left hand. He loves the low right block, back to the basket, going to his left. His ability to step out to three point range and shoot will help Providence.???
Like any European, Gavrilovic needs to improve in some areas. ???He??™s a young 18, turned 18 during the season,??? said Barto. ???He has a lot of room to grow athletically and add strength. He won??™t be dunking on everyone but he will score. He has trouble with quick finishes and guarding smaller players and needs to improve on the defensive boards. But he never played AAU ball, was never ranked anywhere, and he??™s hungry. He had no distractions this season and could focus on just becoming a better player because we didn??™t worry about recruiting until March.???
???Some of the schools that came after him were
Oregon State,
Wake Forest, Central Florida,
Colorado, James Madison and Iona, but I really like coach Davis and Skerry. They??™re genuine and not hustlers. We almost sent
John Riek to Providence last year and we pushed for him to go there but it didn??™t work out,??? Barto said.
Gavrilovic, who grew up in Strasbourg, France and has a Serbian father, will play for the French Under-20 National Team this summer and won??™t arrive at Providence until August, but the young frontcourt prospect will add needed height and bulk to the Friars frontcourt and his addition was welcome news on an otherwise difficult day for Friar fans.