Nov. 10, 2010
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By John Denton
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com)- UCF men's basketball coach Donnie Jones looks at recruiting as adding building blocks that will form the foundation and ultimately allow his program to soar to new heights.
With his first full recruiting class starting to take shape, Jones added three players to UCF's bright future on Wednesday when Rod Days, Wayne Martin and Kasey Wilson signed their National Letter of Intents on the first day of college basketball's early signing period.
Jones, who took over as head coach at UCF in late March, looked at the early singings as a big step in the right direction for the Knights. Now, he is hoping that a strong season will help the Knights clean up with more high-profile signees in the future.
``We're building, and like we say, it's like putting bricks in the wall every day,'' said Jones, whose Knights open the season at home Friday night against West Florida. ``It's part of our foundation. We're trying to improve the guys that we have here now and adding these guys that we're bringing in. We're changing to a whole different mindset where we're expecting to win. That's what we have to continue to sell to our team every day.''
Jones' missions in recruiting have been to add more athleticism, toughness and versatility. His Knights will play an up-tempo style of basketball this season, pushing the pace and trapping defensively all over the floor. Rather than have athletes defined by position, Jones prefers them to be ``basketball players'' with complete and diverse games.
Days (6-6, 195), Martin (6-7, 205) and Wilson (6-6, 205) should be instant impact players for the Knights next season. All were ranked as three-star recruits by ESPN.com and Rivals.com and bring different things to the table. Days and Wilson were considered the 40th and 52nd best small forwards in the country by ESPN, while Martin was ranked 43rd as a power forward.
Jones has been following Davis, a native of Weston, for three years and he was impressed with the progress that he's made as a wing player. Davis chose the Knights over Wake Forest, Maryland, Michigan, Arizona State and Richmond.
``We think he can play (shooting guard/small forward) and he brings athleticism and speed to our program,'' Jones said. ``He was a slasher early on, but he's gotten better as a shooter and he had a terrific summer shooting the ball. He brings instant impact for us and somebody who will be great in our system.''
A lack of athleticism is a concern on this season's Knights squad and Martin should be able to address that need next season when he gets on campus. The Jacksonville native was courted by Memphis, Miami, Colorado, Ole Miss and Arkansas before ultimately picking the Knights.
``Wayne's very versatile and he gives us that athlete that we've been looking for,'' Jones said. "He really plays above the rim and he's a runner and a competitor. He has incredible upside.''
Some have compared Wilson, a native of North Port, Fla., to former North Carolina All-American Tyler Hansbrough because of his grittiness and surprising athleticism. He decommitted from Virginia Commonwealth during the summer and verbally committed to UCF in August.
``He can play small forward, he's versatile and can play a couple of different spots,'' Jones said. ``He's skilled, athletic and tough. He can rebound the ball and in our pace he'll be a good addition.''
Jones said his ties in the Sunshine State from when he was an assistant coach at Florida under Billy Donovan have proven very beneficial in recruiting. He has said that he's recruiting many of the same high-profile players as Florida, Florida State and Miami, and he's even run into Donovan several times on the recruiting trail. Jones is confident that with a good season and getting recruits onto campus to see UCF's dazzling facilities that the Knights will fare well in luring some top players to Orlando.
``It's been really good so far. We've gotten out and we've tried to get people back here on campus. We've tried to sell what we're doing and how we're playing,'' Jones said. ``We haven't played a game yet, so no one has seen us play. We've done all of this work already without having played. And once people see how we're going to play and what we're going to do, it can really help our recruiting.
``And obviously winning helps and hopefully we can get off to a great start, get (recruits) in here and have a great atmosphere and it will help us,'' Jones continued. ``We want to have an impact around the state of Florida, but also get out there nationally and bring people in to see what a great place we have here.''
John Denton's Knights Insider appears on UCFathletics.com several times a week. E-mail John at jdenton@athletics.ucf.edu.