Official: Allen and Raimo sign with Hawai’i
The official signings of two more recruits for the University of Hawai’i basketball team were announced on Tuesday.
Noah Allen, a transfer from UCLA, and Zigmars Raimo, a member of Latvia’s national team, will be joining the Warriors for the 2016-17 season.
Here is the announcement from hawaiiathletics.com …
HONOLULU – The University of Hawai‘i men’s basketball team inked two more to its 2016-17 recruiting class with the signing of UCLA transfer Noah Allen and Latvian National Team member Zigmars Raimo, head coach Eran Ganot announced.
Allen and Raimo join guards Drew Buggs, Leland Green, and Matthew Owies for the upcoming season, as the Rainbow Warriors must replace four starters from last season’s record-breaking squad.
Allen, a 6-foot-7 wing, played three seasons at UCLA and was a member of two NCAA Sweet Sixteen teams. The Pacific Grove, Calif., native played in 71 career games for the Bruins with totals of 84 points (1.2 ppg), 88 rebounds (1.2 rpg), 44 assists, 10 steals, and an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.7. The 2014-15 season was Allen’s most productive in Westwood with career-high averages of 1.3 points, 1.8 rebounds and 11.4 minutes played per game.
A four-year varsity letterwinner at Palma High School in California, Allen was an all-state performer during his senior year in which he averaged 18 points and 14 rebounds per game. Allen is a graduate transfer who majored in political science at UCLA and will have one year of eligibility at UH.
“We are very excited to be adding a great player, and committed student to our program,” Ganot said. “Noah is a high character person with a great work ethic. We feel that his versatility as a player is his biggest strength – he can defend, rebound, pass, and score. He is committed to getting better and is very excited to be joining our program.”
Raimo, a 6-foot-7 forward, has been a fixture with Latvia’s youth national program having competed for both the U16 and U18 teams. During last year’s FIBA U18 European Championship in Volos, Greece, Raimo led his team in rebounds and steals and had the third-highest offensive rebound average (3.7) and fifth-most steals (2.3) among all players in the tournament. He finished the tourney with three double-doubles and averaged 9.9 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 3.3 assists per game.
As a member of the VEF Riga club team, considered the best in Latvia, Raimo helped his team to the Euroleague Adidas Next Generation Tournament finals, where he was the team-leader in rebounds, second in assists and third in scoring. In addition, this past weekend Raimo helped his club win the Latvian U19 Championship. In his first game, he recorded 17 points, 12 rebounds, and six assists and in the finals, posted another double-double with 10 points and 12 boards.
“Zigmars is a leader and brings a wealth of international experience to our program,” Ganot said. “He has played at the highest level in Europe and for one of the most respected clubs in Latvia – VEF Riga. He brings great versatility to our program with the ability to pass, defend and rebound from different positions.”
2016-17 Signees
Name, Pos., Ht., Hometown (Last School)
Noah Allen, G/F, 6-7, Pacific Grove, Calif. (UCLA)
Drew Buggs, G, 6-2, Long Beach, Calif. (Long Beach Poly HS)
Leland Green, G, 6-3, Redondo Beach, Calif. (Redondo Union HS)
Matthew Owies, G, 6-0, Melbourne, Australia (St. Kevin’s College)
Zigmars Raimo, F, 6-7, Madonas, Latvia (VEF Skola)
Great to finally add some forwards to the recruiting class! look forward to seeing these guys on the court.
I see Drew Buggs posted a mixtape on youtube, looks pretty athletic with a good all around game, you can see him playing in some games with a knee brace.
Here’s the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3F240XrkVC0
Excited for the future of this program
Glad they now have 10 able-bodied players, enough for practice.
Glad to see two more players sign on the dotted line. Allen is intriguing since he was highly recruited out of HS but didn’t play too many minutes. Maybe given an opportunity he can be a major contributor. Raimo is undersized but he has a ton of international experience which should give him an edge.
A 7-0 or so player from Sweden may be visiting soon, per another board and we lost a front court player from Spain to a Pac-12 school.
Excerpt from article about Gibson two days ago. What do you think the odds are of UH landing him ?
————————————————————–
“Any of my friends would tell you I am the most competitive that you can get,” Johnson said. “As a competitor, you want to play the best. The ACC is the best, and that would be a lot of fun.”
Johnson officially visited Hawaii in late April. The Rainbows reached the NCAA Tournament in March, but aren’t eligible for the postseason next year. The beach life is a different alternative for Johnson to consider.
“For me, I have to find the right fit for me and where I’ll be happiest,” Johnson said. “It will be about what will best provide me with opportunities after college, including a professional career overseas.”
https://ncstate.n.rivals.com/news/gibson-johnson-looking-for-best-fit
NBA Combine TV Schedule Date ..Channel..Time (ET)
Thursday, May 12… ESPN2 .. .3 – 7 p.m.
Friday, May 13 .. . ESPN2… 3 – 7 p.m.
Saturday, May 14 … NBA TV …1 – 4 p.m.
Sunday, May 15 . ..NBA TV . ..9 p.m. – midnight
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2639279-nba-combine-2016-list-of-participants-schedule-and-players-to-watch
Aloha means goodbye:
” Isaac Fleming @Ballaslife410 21h ago
I’m officially done with my sophomore year thank you Hawaii for everything I’ll truly miss this place #Ohana “
As far as Gibson goes, it’s hard to say how much playing time he will get whereever he goes, but if that aspect works out, Hawaii may well be the place for him. And in addition, we will be post season ready the following year. That may not be such a big deal. Lot’s of teams miss the dance. Playing time has been a factor, the bigger factor actually, and for many recent players. You want to recruit the best, but not so many as to present PT problems. And there are those intangibles that some guys pick up if given enough PT. Some do, some don’t, some just think they do, but no one thinks there isn’t that chance. PT can be the determining factor.