Evaldas Zabas - PG - NEDA - Toronto, Canada

  • 37 replies
  • 12216 views
Evaldas Zabas - PG - NEDA - Toronto, Canada
« on: January 21, 2008, 03:39:52 PM »
www.johnnyjungle.com/Recruiting

You've all been waiting for this guy so lets hear what you think about him...
« Last Edit: April 21, 2008, 11:24:40 AM by JJ »
Follow Johnny Jungle on Twitter at @Johnny_Jungle

Stool

  • *
  • 19
Re: Revealed Mystery Man
« Reply #1 on: January 21, 2008, 03:44:32 PM »
www.johnnyjungle.com/Recruiting

You've all been waiting for this guy so lets hear what you think about him...

Thank you for finally breaking the news.

Im now even more embarassed to be a St. John's fan.

Re: Revealed Mystery Man
« Reply #2 on: January 21, 2008, 03:47:26 PM »
let the bashing begin ;D....just saw this update on some Canadian site...if he truly rivals Devoe Joseph we may have something here.

"NEDA senior guard Evaldas Zabas wrote his SAT in late November and is finishing off some academic work at St. Mary's H. S. in Hamilton. He has interest from about fifteen Division one programs including St. John's, Marshall, Northeastern and Central Connecticut State. More schools will get involved through the winter. Zabas is a senior who easily rivals Devoe Joseph as a pure scorer and will have lots of choices for his services come the spring signing period."



http://www.thehoop-la.com/Thomas2Dec172007.php
When you're a kid from New York and you do it in New York, that lasts forever!

Re: Revealed Mystery Man
« Reply #3 on: January 21, 2008, 03:54:40 PM »
can't say we don't have a chance, considering the other mid major schools we're competing with.

Re: Revealed Mystery Man
« Reply #4 on: January 21, 2008, 03:58:35 PM »
no one is claiming this guy as the savior of the program but he is a pretty good player who has been relatively under the radar. What I am more interested in is do you guys think he can be a valuable asset to this team?
Follow Johnny Jungle on Twitter at @Johnny_Jungle

Re: Revealed Mystery Man
« Reply #5 on: January 21, 2008, 04:09:59 PM »
if he can shoot he can help us...if he can create his own shot he can help us a lot...
When you're a kid from New York and you do it in New York, that lasts forever!

Re: Revealed Mystery Man
« Reply #6 on: January 21, 2008, 08:21:13 PM »
i havent seen him play so i wont comment but i will speak to some coaches who maybe have
"When excuses become your reason for losing then it is time to find the nearest mirror." -Mike Dunlap

peter

  • *****
  • 3551
    • Rumble in the Garden
Re: Revealed Mystery Man
« Reply #7 on: January 22, 2008, 12:01:22 PM »
are you going to have an interview with him too?  i'd like to hear more about and/or from this guy.  i like the idea of going to other places for the talent, actually; the concept that st john's should just be working on keeping the local talent home is a bit silly-- then we fight with the big dogs and at the end of the day we're getting scraps.  and incomplete scraps at that.  st john's needs to build up in talent and the usual routes aren't doling out big dividends.

plus, i'm hoping that playing in Lithuania means that, like all the other Eastern Euro players and Lithuanians in particular, he has some sens of how to handle the ball and pass.

Here's a note on him (http://www.thehoop-la.com/ThomasDec132005.php)

St. Michael's high school guard Evaldas Zabas 6'1" is a terrific player to watch because he has outstanding skills and reads the game so well. He is an offensive force and can only get better. He looks like he could play Division I in the right program but will have to develop more quickness or go to a school where they run him off screens in a sophisticated half court offense.

Oh.  Sophisticated offense?  I hope our offense passes as "sophisticated" in Canada.

and here's a message board comparing Zabas to Devoe Joseph:

http://hooptowngta.proboards1.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=general&thread=1166486713&page=1#1166565184

Re: Revealed Mystery Man
« Reply #8 on: January 22, 2008, 01:49:47 PM »
thehoop-la is link is from december 2005.

The same guy raves about him again in 2006

Evaldas Zabas, the St. Michael's College shooting star has been putting up great numbers this year in the face of special defenses and opponents best defenders. Basketball purists in the city love this kid because he is a throwback player. Lots of the ballers in this city get by on pure athletic ability and never develop their other skills. Evaldas, who is only 6'1", can barely dunk but has great dribbling skills, a couple of signature moves and is a deadly outside shooter. He reads defenses very well and is relentless attacking the basket. He reminds me of former Tillsonburg H. S. and York University star David Coulthard, who was one of the great high school scorers of the late 70's when the game outside the city was played below the rim. Zabas will be very successful south of the border because of his great offensive skills and strong work ethic. The kid is simply a treat to watch on the floor."

Now I've been told he has elevated his game above the rim now and can be seen dunking it all over the place. He is an interesting prospect mostly doubted all his career but keeps performing and performing even better. They don't play with bigger lower rims in Canada so he's putting in about 30 a night is something special for a guy who is only 6'1. We're not talking about 6'6-6'7 guy who is dominating on smaller players.

http://www.thespec.com/Sports/Local%20Sports/article/297449

You can read here about his team upsetting a 16-0 team by beating them by 10 led by EZ. This article is from just last month. Also a Rutgers recruit Marvell Waithe played on the opposing side. Zabas drained 5 three pointers and scored a team high 25 points.

"On numerous occasions at Toronto St. Mike's, Zabas scored 40 or more points in a game. He made immediate impact against TAPS in the first minute, draining back-to-back three-pointers and blocking an opponent's shot."
Follow Johnny Jungle on Twitter at @Johnny_Jungle

peter

  • *****
  • 3551
    • Rumble in the Garden
Re: Revealed Mystery Man
« Reply #9 on: January 22, 2008, 02:06:34 PM »
If he has a handle, he's welcome to come on through.  If he gets his grades in order.  But if his defense is bad, we'll never see him on the court...

do you know if St. John's has offered him?

Re: Revealed Mystery Man
« Reply #10 on: January 22, 2008, 02:12:08 PM »
I don't believe they have offered him yet. Why offer a player who isn't cleared to play yet. If he gets cleared I'd expect us to jump all over him.
Follow Johnny Jungle on Twitter at @Johnny_Jungle

Re: Revealed Mystery Man
« Reply #11 on: January 22, 2008, 06:59:57 PM »
If he can play the point, sign him up.  We have nobody else to backup Malik.

Re: Revealed Mystery Man
« Reply #12 on: January 22, 2008, 07:05:20 PM »
its one thing to be able to create your shot against very mediocre canadian basketball players but its quite another to do it against big east competition.  oh, and for those that say "he created his shot against devoe joseph" thats because hes 2 inches shorter than joseph and joseph is really a 2-guard so who knows if they even matched up.
"When excuses become your reason for losing then it is time to find the nearest mirror." -Mike Dunlap

Re: Revealed Mystery Man
« Reply #13 on: January 22, 2008, 07:27:32 PM »
When Devoe and Evaldas matched up last season they were both playing SG position however I'm not sure they defended each other or not.

How do you suggest being 2 inches shorter helped EZ get off his own shot against Joseph? Usually from playing and watching basketball when a player is being defended by a taller player it usually hinders getting their own shot off not help it. We aren't exactly talking about Devin Harris being defended by Yao Ming either.
Follow Johnny Jungle on Twitter at @Johnny_Jungle

Randomhero423

Re: Revealed Mystery Man
« Reply #14 on: January 22, 2008, 08:00:05 PM »
any PG is better then no PG...

Re: Revealed Mystery Man
« Reply #15 on: January 22, 2008, 11:06:20 PM »
its one thing to be able to create your shot against very mediocre canadian basketball players but its quite another to do it against big east competition.  oh, and for those that say "he created his shot against devoe joseph" thats because hes 2 inches shorter than joseph and joseph is really a 2-guard so who knows if they even matched up.

St. John's plays in the Big East so obviously I meant create his own shot in the Big East.  And just because he plays in Canada doesn't mean he sucks...Devoe is the real deal...Kris Joseph is good enough for Cuse...and Waithe is good enough for your beloved Mr. Hill.  Of course I have never seen him play so maybe he does suck :P

And I agree with JJ...please elaborate on the whole Devoe Joseph comment ???  2 inches shorter???  WTF are you talking about???  Can't wait to hear this explanation ;D
When you're a kid from New York and you do it in New York, that lasts forever!

Re: Revealed Mystery Man
« Reply #16 on: January 22, 2008, 11:45:23 PM »
its one thing to be able to create your shot against very mediocre canadian basketball players but its quite another to do it against big east competition.  oh, and for those that say "he created his shot against devoe joseph" thats because hes 2 inches shorter than joseph and joseph is really a 2-guard so who knows if they even matched up.

 
St. John's plays in the Big East so obviously I meant create his own shot in the Big East.  And just because he plays in Canada doesn't mean he sucks...Devoe is the real deal...Kris Joseph is good enough for Cuse...and Waithe is good enough for your beloved Mr. Hill.  Of course I have never seen him play so maybe he does suck :P

And I agree with JJ...please elaborate on the whole Devoe Joseph comment ???  2 inches shorter???  WTF are you talking about???  Can't wait to hear this explanation ;D

ive seen kris joseph play, ive seen devoe joseph play.  devoe is not very quick AT ALL so that is why i mentioned his height because he would have a tough time guarding a quicker guard (i saw an average 6' two-guard drop 30 on joseph this fall).  i looked  this kid up and it doesnt seem like he plays AAU ball so who knows how he does against good comp on a regular basis. 

to give you a picture of how bad canadian basketball is:  a few years ago, pickering hs (the #1 team in canada) came in and played an average molloy hs team (probably the 5th best team in the chsaa that year) in the big apple basketball challenge.  molloy beat them by 30 or 40.  i also saw josephs team twice in the fall play 1 good and 1 a little above average aau team from the northeast and they lost both those games as well (grassroots canada is supposed to be the top au team in that country).
"When excuses become your reason for losing then it is time to find the nearest mirror." -Mike Dunlap

Re: Revealed Mystery Man
« Reply #17 on: January 22, 2008, 11:51:04 PM »
Now I'm not claiming this kid as the messiah but whatever level of competition you play has nothing to do with whether you can put the ball in the hoop. Sure you can argue uncontested shots vs contested shots and thats a fine argument however he can shoot and he can dribble which is something we can't say for the majority of our team.
Follow Johnny Jungle on Twitter at @Johnny_Jungle

Re: Revealed Mystery Man
« Reply #18 on: February 14, 2008, 03:41:34 PM »
any updates on this guy?
When you're a kid from New York and you do it in New York, that lasts forever!

Re: Revealed Mystery Man
« Reply #19 on: February 14, 2008, 03:44:38 PM »
I've been putting in calls to sports writers up in Canada and a few people I know but I get nothing in return. I still speculate his grades are the cause of us not offering him a scholarship yet.
Follow Johnny Jungle on Twitter at @Johnny_Jungle