Vladimir Brodziansky

[Marcus]

First impression of this kid? Not thrilled that he has already played a season at the CC level, but he's still young, so not a huge problem. Definitely needs some work on his mechanics, a bit gangly and awkward. Also, he didn't always use the right finishing move, but seemed to get away with it because of the competition.

I liked the fact that he actually went to the rim and threw it down, but he still seemed a bit finessed on his dunks. Would like to see a bit more forcefulness. All in all, you really can't worry too much about players that are underweight or overweight. That's why this program has Travis Knight. Helping players physically development and gain some comfort, in terms of coordination and technical ability, is not easy...but one of the great things this program offers that many don't.Can shoot, high post, low post, has a nice touch around the rim, and even drove a little. I like his post-to-fade away move. A bit Nowitzki-esque. If the program is offering this kid, I trust it. Granted, we have 4 schollies, but still. We are beyond bringing in clunkers. I wonder if this is RS-type of project, or a trial-by-fire kind of situation?

Kind of reminds me of Kelly's highschool tapes. Kelly was so extreamly skinny, had some nice skills but was just really the epitome of gangly and awkward when he got to GU. I like his skill set, I am all for a red shirt with
Travis to work on strength and balance.

[TexasZagFan]

@MDABE80 That is what I thought one of my trusted sources told me at first. I went back to them and later found out there was some miscommunication. They thought Wiltjer was leaving for sure. The problem was that I could not verify what my source said with other sources. I thought I could trust them since they never let me down before. I mean, they told me Karnowski was staying a week ago. I quickly learned that I need to do some fact-checking and have multiple sources tell me something before I go with it. With all of the feedback I got, I hope to learn from this mistake. I sincerely apologize for not using appropriate journalistic methods before I broke the initial tweet about Wiltjer. I led people in the wrong direction, and it is something I still regret. I am sorry it caused such a commotion.

Per Donald Trump, "you're fired!" Lol J/K

[Mr Vulture]

Why would this be an issue? He still has 4yrs to play 3yrs. That's more than you are going to get from a Senior transfer or JC/Undergrad transfer is most cases.

First impression of this kid? Not thrilled that he has already played a season at the CC level, but he's still young, so not a huge problem. Definitely needs some work on his mechanics, a bit gangly and awkward. Also, he didn't always use the right finishing move, but seemed to get away with it because of the competition.

I liked the fact that he actually went to the rim and threw it down, but he still seemed a bit finessed on his dunks. Would like to see a bit more forcefulness. All in all, you really can't worry too much about players that are underweight or overweight. That's why this program has Travis Knight. Helping players physically development and gain some comfort, in terms of coordination and technical ability, is not easy...but one of the great things this program offers that many don't.

Can shoot, high post, low post, has a nice touch around the rim, and even drove a little. I like his post-to-fade away move. A bit Nowitzki-esque. If the program is offering this kid, I trust it. Granted, we have 4 schollies, but still. We are beyond bringing in clunkers. I wonder if this is RS-type of project, or a trial-by-fire kind of situation?

Why can't he just be a guy that contributes solid minutes off the bench..there is value to that. Not every recruit has to become an All American...good lord!

The problem is I have trouble seeing him as a four on an elite 8 team, and I don't see him as a three. At this point it's just an offer and as fans we don't know all the various strings that make the GU web of recruiting interesting and (historically) successful.

[Coach Crazy]

Kind of reminds me of Kelly's highschool tapes. Kelly was so extreamly skinny, had some nice skills but was just really the epitome of gangly and awkward when he got to GU. I like his skill set, I am all for a red shirt with
Travis to work on strength and balance.

Obviously, this is just one video, and you can't really do much more than evaluate within the context of the video. I wish there was more tape, but he was at a CC that probably wasn't doing personalized highlight reels. Also, they have to continue building and maintaining that European pipeline. Nolan Narain isn't a sure thing, but we were in the mix early enough that an Edwards/Collins/Narain front is a strong possibility, at this point. Brodziansky is a very well-mitigated risk in that scenario.

[Zagdawg]

Looked for some stats---2013-2014 played in the U-20 B European Championships for Slovakia in 8 games averaged 20 mins 11.5 pts and 5.4 boards --shot 75% from the line and 60% from the floor
2012-2013 Euro Qualifier 8 games 35 mins averaged 13 points and 11.5 boards with 3 blocks

[cjm720]

Looked for some stats---2013-2014 played in the U-20 B European Championships for Slovakia in 8 games averaged 20 mins 11.5 pts and 5.4 boards --shot 75% from the line and 60% from the floor
2012-2013 Euro Qualifier 8 games 35 mins averaged 13 points and 11.5 boards with 3 blocks

I wonder if he was just under the radar or if he had bad grades or some other academic qualification issue, thus CC?

Can't have too many bigs...

[Angelo Roncalli]

I wonder if he was just under the radar or if he had bad grades or some other academic qualification issue, thus CC?

Can't have too many bigs...

My guess, and it's just a guess (but premised on the fact he is now listed as a qualifier), is that the NCAA clearinghouse did not give approval to his academics in time for him to begin a school year on scholarship at a D1 school, hence the JC route.

[thespywhozaggedme]

Is it just me, or does it appear that the video is from his HS years in Slovakia? I think he's at least a year older and has had a year of strengthening against JC players since then. I liked his propensity to get to the rim and throw it down, & he has a nice fall-away jumper. Reminded me of a young Micah Downs. I'd take one of those.

Canary Islands; it's one of, if not the top international prep basketball academies in the world

[Reborn]

Don't forget JP Bautista.....

Regarding the kid/player we're talking about. The starting point is that this kid can shoot. Not everyone can, and few can shoot the fall away jumper like he can. Wait until he redshirts a year and see who he becomes.....

[JohnOGU]

Obviously Kyle Wiltjer is a stud, but I would compare this kid to a poor man's Kyle Wiltjer. That's not a criticism, either. While his shooting probably isn't up to par, at that stage in his career, his back to the basket game is probably better than Kyle's was (at that stage). I don't mind the offer.

[scrooner]

IRA!

Okay, maybe not the best example, but it was fun to watch him dunk.

[Bouldin4Prez]

Not sure if anyone else thought of this when they saw the guy but I immediately jumped to Frank Kaminsky. Frank Kaminsky played 7 minutes his freshman year and 10 minutes his sophomore year. His senior year? He wins national player of the year. I'm obviously not saying this guy is going to be a national player of the year but there is value in developmental players. The fact that he can shoot is a plus that many people never learn. Below is Kaminsky in high school, pretty similar frames.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LPTPyGRRbW8

[MDABE80]

He looks good from the video. Needs some development. He won't be the only one coming our way.

[Zippyzaggy]

Stew Morrill
Bill Dunlap (Hon. Mention All-American)
Lorenzo Rollins
Kyle Dixon
Abdullahi Kuso

All pretty good players who came the JC route.

Our "list" of successful JC transfers for Gonzaga would not be complete w/out a shout-out to Marquise Carter, who was named WCC newcomer of the year, as well as MVP of the WCC Tourney. He was asked during his last year to sort of back up Bell and Pangos, helping to set them up as the future cornerstone of our back-court, while being asked to take a back seat for himself. He did his job admirably.

[Zagdawg]

Agree