NU staff ready to hit the ground running on recruiting front
New Nebraska assistant coach Matt Abdelmassih is known as a recruiter. One of the best in the country, to be exact.
So when the question was asked if retooling Nebraska’s roster on the recruiting front was the top priority for NU head coach Fred Hoiberg, Abdelmassih’s grin and knowing nod said it all.
“I would say, confidently, yes,” the 34-year-old native of Brooklyn, N.Y., said.
The Huskers are facing a major roster overhaul this offseason, as they lose four of their five starters and their top bench option from the beginning of last season. Seniors James Palmer Jr., Glynn Watson, Isaac Copeland, and Tanner Borchardt have departed, and junior-to-be Thomas Allen announced he would transfer from the program on Tuesday.
That leaves forward Isaiah Roby as the only returning player who averaged more than 13 minutes per game in 2019-20. Of course, there’s no guarantee that even he will be back next year as he mulls a possible early jump to the NBA.
So it’s easy to see why Hoiberg, Abdelmassih, and the soon-to-be-hired other two full-time assistants are wasting no time getting to work on the recruiting front.
“There’s a lot of work to do,” Hoiberg said. “I hit the road (Wednesday). We’re going to get in the plane and we’re going to go out and see some kids and get this thing moving right away. And we lose a lot. There’s a lot of really good players that are graduating from this institution, and we’ve got a lot to replace.”
Hoiberg has already made some headway in re-recruiting the three signed players in Nebraska’s 2019 class – Jervay Green, Akol Arop, and Mika Adams-Woods. He said keeping that trio on board would be an important first step in the Year 1 rebuild.
“I have had really good conversations with the three guys,” Hoiberg said. “That is going to be a big thing this week, getting out and seeing those guys and talking to them and hopefully securing their commitments. I understand, it is tough when a (coaching) change is made, and they all have great questions for me. The important thing now is to get in front of them and to start building a relationship where they’re comfortable with us and with our current staff.”
But with three open scholarships now left to fill for 2019, the coaches’ immediate to-do list goes well beyond just keeping the remaining roster intact.
Abdelmassih said the next month would be “vital” for filling out the lineup for next season and beyond, and there’s already been plenty of headway made in that regard. The Huskers already plan on hosting five to six official visitors for the football spring game on April 13.
During the first 2019 live evaluation period on April 26-28, most of the staff is expected to stay primarily around Lincoln in an effort to host even more visitors and continue to manage and develop the current roster.
“I feel like I haven’t slept in the last 24 hours, so I feel like it’s already started,” Abdelmassih said. “That doesn’t stop. I only know one speed… It’s going to be an exciting April. We have a lot of work to do. For me, I don’t know if I want to say the word ‘fortunate,’ but I’ve gone through two rebuilds at Iowa State and St. John’s, and I know what it’s like that first month. I guess I’ll embrace it.”
Some of the biggest perceived hurdles facing Nebraska’s basketball program – accurate or not – are the inherent recruiting disadvantages with its lack of tradition, geographical difficulties, and limited in-state prospect numbers.
None of that matters much to Abdelmassih, who said NU has the head coach, facilities, and resources to compete with most any team in the country.
“Well, I heard the same thing when we got to Iowa State…” Abdelmassih said. “Very similar situations. I can speak on just my past; it doesn’t matter where the kids are at. Whether it’s East Coast, West Coast, Midwest, South – we’re going to be able to get kids. I’ve always felt that. I’ve been fortunate enough to cross paths that do trust me, and I feel confident we’ll be able to hit the ground running and assemble the best roster possible.”