John Calipari's sweet spot is recruiting. He just landed another big fish.
While we wait to see if Arkansas basketball can grab another key piece in the transfer portal, John Calipari is out there doing what he does best. Cal is a high school recruiter. He loves it. It shows. Human beings generally put the most effort and concentration into the things they love the most. Calipari enjoys the recruiting process, and it has given the Hogs a new five-star prospect.
College basketball insider Adam Zagoria, at his website Zagsblog, has more on new Arkansas recruit Miikka Muurinen:
"The 6-foot-8 prodigy chose the Razorbacks over Duke, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, North Carolina and NC State.
“'I like Coach Cal,' he told ZAGSBLOG in January at the Hoophall Classic after a fall visit to the SEC school. 'Good place. Good facilities. Obviously, you know, Coach Cal has a great legacy. He helped AD (Anthony Davis) and KAT (Karl-Anthony Towns) go into the league. I think he can help me go into the league after one year.'
"After playing at Sunrise Christian Academy (KS) and Arizona Compass Prep (AZ) to begin his high school career, Muurinen returned to Europe to play for Partizan Belgrade in Serbia this season, averaging 4.1 points and 2.9 rebounds per game.
"Muurinen’s mother, Jenni Laaksonen, played for North Carolina and for the Finland women’s national team, and some thought he would end up at the ACC powerhouse. Former North Carolina coach Hubert Davis, along with Duke’s Jon Scheyer and Kentucky’s Mark Pope, among others, watched him at the Hoophall Classic with Arizona Compass Prep. But the new Carolina staff led by coach Mike Malone have not been in touch with him, sources said.
“'I can see myself as a stretch four who can handle the ball more (at the next level),' Muurinen said at Hoophall.
“'He shoots threes. He puts the ball on the floor, he’s a rim protector as well,' Arizona Compass Prep coach Pete Kaffey said in January. 'Defensively, he’s got to get a little bit better on the perimeter when he’s guarding bigger wings. But he’s a kid that’s coming along really well.'
"NBA executives love his upside. 'That kid is super-talented,' one executive told ZAGSBLOG. 'Massive talent. Crazy as hell.'”
And now a Razorback. If Muurinen really is a one-and-done-caliber player who lives up to the amount of upside some evaluators think he has, Arkansas could indeed take the next step up the ladder in college basketball and make the Final Four, the goal which has eluded this program for more than 30 years.