After seeing Tyler Wideman play at both Spiece and the adidas May Classic, the best way I can sort of describe him is, "He is what he is."
Usually with high school freshmen, their 'up-side' is what has to be taken into account above all else, but in the Lake Central big man, he seems to be as close to a finished product - I'm certainly not saying he is - as you'll find for a player of his age group.
Wideman is gigantic right now, probably 6-foot-7, 240 pounds, but it remains to be seen how much bigger he'll get, considering he's been about the same size for some time now, apparently.
Skills-wise, Wideman has some to him; he's shown nice touch around the basket and the ability to hit a turnaround out of the post and has done some good things facing the basket.
But again, he is what he is: A big, physical, imposing presence in the paint who's going to occupy a good deal of space, get his share of rebounds and make everyone around him a better rebounder just because of his presence.
Offensively, he's a consummate back-to-the-basket player whose big body and good hands make him difficult to handle in the post. In AAU at least, he's been able to get position near the rim and wall off defenders enough to make entry passes simple. That won't be as easy in college, obviously. But that's a long way off.
As a post scorer, he's shown an advanced array of moves and has been able to finish around the basket with both hands and draw a ton of contact. He's a guy who's going to get fouled a lot, same way Travis Carroll did at the same stage of his career, because of his ability to combine post moves and get defenders into positions where all they can do is foul. Wideman's shown some surprising quickness in the post.
Wideman doesn't have great bounce or leaping ability to him. It's just not what he is, but that could conceivably improve some in time as he improves his conditioning and gets past for good this ankle or foot injury that's slowed him down.
But he's big enough and savvy enough to play very effectively below the rim, both as an offensive player, rebounder and defender.
I could see there being split opinion on Wideman in projecting him at the next level, just because he's so physically advanced right now and seemingly relatively limited in terms of growth potential.
But evaluating the fit as much as the player, Wideman's physicality and style of play alone are going to make him a player somewhere. He's probably not going to be 6-foot-10, but there have been guys like him who've thrived at the college level nonetheless in recent years.
There's something to be said for a player knowing what he is and being that player as best he can. I don't think you're going to see Wideman trying to be a full-court ball-handler or three-point shooter any time soon.
Again, "fit" is the key term here. Wideman looks like a young player who can really thrive as a "dirty work" guy when surrounded by skill. That's not to say he can't be a scorer, because he's productive down low, but in terms of post defense and rebounding, he looks like he can be a nice complementary guy.
Looking at it from Purdue's perspective and its projected roster moving forward, one thing missing right now is kind of that physicality down low. Wideman could be an 'element' or mentality recruit, bringing a dimension the Boilermakers wouldn't otherwise have, just like the athleticism of Donnie Hale and Jacob Lawson should fill a void this season.
The two players of size committed for the 2012 and 2013 classes as of right now - Jay Simpson and Derek Willis - are defined more by their skill.
When you look at recruits, you always have to consider A) how good they're going to be and B) how they will fit. That's especially difficult when you're recruiting players four years out.
But in some cases, like Wideman's, if they're already good enough (or at least you have to reason to believe they will be with normal progress) and what they're projected to bring to the table fits your needs, the decision to offer makes sense.
Usually with high school freshmen, their 'up-side' is what has to be taken into account above all else, but in the Lake Central big man, he seems to be as close to a finished product - I'm certainly not saying he is - as you'll find for a player of his age group.
Wideman is gigantic right now, probably 6-foot-7, 240 pounds, but it remains to be seen how much bigger he'll get, considering he's been about the same size for some time now, apparently.
Skills-wise, Wideman has some to him; he's shown nice touch around the basket and the ability to hit a turnaround out of the post and has done some good things facing the basket.
But again, he is what he is: A big, physical, imposing presence in the paint who's going to occupy a good deal of space, get his share of rebounds and make everyone around him a better rebounder just because of his presence.
Offensively, he's a consummate back-to-the-basket player whose big body and good hands make him difficult to handle in the post. In AAU at least, he's been able to get position near the rim and wall off defenders enough to make entry passes simple. That won't be as easy in college, obviously. But that's a long way off.
As a post scorer, he's shown an advanced array of moves and has been able to finish around the basket with both hands and draw a ton of contact. He's a guy who's going to get fouled a lot, same way Travis Carroll did at the same stage of his career, because of his ability to combine post moves and get defenders into positions where all they can do is foul. Wideman's shown some surprising quickness in the post.
Wideman doesn't have great bounce or leaping ability to him. It's just not what he is, but that could conceivably improve some in time as he improves his conditioning and gets past for good this ankle or foot injury that's slowed him down.
But he's big enough and savvy enough to play very effectively below the rim, both as an offensive player, rebounder and defender.
I could see there being split opinion on Wideman in projecting him at the next level, just because he's so physically advanced right now and seemingly relatively limited in terms of growth potential.
But evaluating the fit as much as the player, Wideman's physicality and style of play alone are going to make him a player somewhere. He's probably not going to be 6-foot-10, but there have been guys like him who've thrived at the college level nonetheless in recent years.
There's something to be said for a player knowing what he is and being that player as best he can. I don't think you're going to see Wideman trying to be a full-court ball-handler or three-point shooter any time soon.
Again, "fit" is the key term here. Wideman looks like a young player who can really thrive as a "dirty work" guy when surrounded by skill. That's not to say he can't be a scorer, because he's productive down low, but in terms of post defense and rebounding, he looks like he can be a nice complementary guy.
Looking at it from Purdue's perspective and its projected roster moving forward, one thing missing right now is kind of that physicality down low. Wideman could be an 'element' or mentality recruit, bringing a dimension the Boilermakers wouldn't otherwise have, just like the athleticism of Donnie Hale and Jacob Lawson should fill a void this season.
The two players of size committed for the 2012 and 2013 classes as of right now - Jay Simpson and Derek Willis - are defined more by their skill.
When you look at recruits, you always have to consider A) how good they're going to be and B) how they will fit. That's especially difficult when you're recruiting players four years out.
But in some cases, like Wideman's, if they're already good enough (or at least you have to reason to believe they will be with normal progress) and what they're projected to bring to the table fits your needs, the decision to offer makes sense.
