JJ Thomas!!!

[WinningCuresAll]

What a player this young man is turning in to!!! Can anyone fill me in on how recruiting went with him? Was he being recruited by a lot of schools, or was he a sleeper? Not many schools in the country that wouldn't want him now. We are lucky to have him!!!

[RaginDave]

_ What a player this young man is turning in to!!! Can anyone fill me in on how recruiting went with him? Was he being recruited by a lot of schools, or was he a sleeper? Not many schools in the country that wouldn't want him now. We are lucky to have him!!! _

We are lucky to have him, here is a link to the Scout page in reference to JJ. He was considered a tweener, by some. Could not figure if he would play G or F.

http://louisiana.scout.com/a.z?s=345...=1&nid=3836873

He was signed by Stephen F Austin originally, but was released from his NLI and we were lucky to get him as you said.

[Turbine]

_ What a player this young man is turning in to!!! Can anyone fill me in on how recruiting went with him? Was he being recruited by a lot of schools, or was he a sleeper? Not many schools in the country that wouldn't want him now. We are lucky to have him!!! _

I spoke with J.J.'s high school coach today. Louisiana Tech, McNeese State and UNO were recruiting him before he signed with Stephen F. Austin. Few schools knew about his release from SFA, so he didn't get a lot of attention. He wanted to stay close to home, and UL was the perfect fit.

[playincajun]

He is a dominate 4. Unfortunately he has to hold down the 5 for us sometimes and when other teams have a 6'8 agile big man he strggles. He has great awareness of the ball coming off the boards making him excel even undersized rebounding. JJ knows how to use his body and creates havok for other bigs often times getting them in foul trouble. He and Andrews joke about being the new Stockton/Malone. The guys are a nice team now took a minute but glad my Srs came back to us. Great job guys!!

[Parrott]

After J.J. got a release from Stephen F. Austin, Rutgers wanted him to attend prep school for a year. That was his likely option before landing with the Cajuns right before the fall semester started.

[wcd35]

_ He is a dominate 4. Unfortunately he has to hold down the 5 for us sometimes and when other teams have a 6'8 agile big man he strggles. He has great awareness of the ball coming off the boards making him excel even undersized rebounding. JJ knows how to use his body and creates havok for other bigs often times getting them in foul trouble. He and Andrews joke about being the new Stockton/Malone. The guys are a nice team now took a minute but glad my Srs came back to us. Great job guys!! _

There was a really good example of him using his size on Saturday in the 2nd half. He pulled a board down about 10 ft from the rim off a good bounce and as soon as he caught it, he drove straight to the basket hard and fast. Defender couldnt get set near fast enough and he drew a foul and finished. Just a really powerful move in the paint

[Cajunsmike]

_ _

After JJ decided he did not want to go to SFA, he took an unofficial visit here one week before the fall semester started. MBhamalu did the same. They both decided to come on board rather quickly. It did not cost us a dime to get either one of our freshman. Pretty sweet deal wasn't it.

[Turbine]

_ After JJ decided he did not want to go to SFA, he took an unofficial visit here one week before the fall semester started. MBhamalu did the same. They both decided to come on board rather quickly. It did not cost us a dime to get either one of our freshman. Pretty sweet deal wasn't it. _

One of the sweetest on record, and doesn't cause cavities.

[Boomer]

_ He is a dominate 4. Unfortunately he has to hold down the 5 for us sometimes and when other teams have a 6'8 agile big man he strggles. He has great awareness of the ball coming off the boards making him excel even undersized rebounding. JJ knows how to use his body and creates havok for other bigs often times getting them in foul trouble. He and Andrews joke about being the new Stockton/Malone. The guys are a nice team now took a minute but glad my Srs came back to us. Great job guys!! _

I say he is a 3---especially when he hits the 3 from outside---If his 3 pointer comes around and he can get a pull up jumper he will be unstoppable---We all know what he does on drives to the basket and the tremendous body control he has!!!!

[playincajun]

Shooting does need to improve but so would his on and off ball defense. His strength is in his power defending in the paint and crashing the boards.

[leeman]

He's definitely due for SBC POW honors.. He really deserved it after that USA game.

[zephyr]

JJ has the best interior moves on this team by far and some of the best that I've noticed certainly in the SBC. His footwork and balance he has on his moves allow him to play bigger than he is and score underneath. He has better range on his jumper than I remember as Parrott had mentioned he was working on his outside game upon arriving. I'm still in disbelief that he's only averaging a little over 10 points a game with the streak he's been on but I'd have to vote for him as the freshman of the year if this team continues its surge. Getting Bureau back to where he is playing like he can is a big help but the chemistry seems to be with this team and they are playing with a lot of confidence. This tough road stretch coming up will show us some things for sure.