2017 Introduction: Andrew Platek
Stanford went into the Northeast to sign one of Massachusetts' top prospects (and a star at Northfield Mount Hermon) in the 2015 class in Josh Sharma. The Cardinal will hope to replicate that feat in 2017 with fellow NMH standout Andrew Platek.
The Cardinal's new coaching staff has prioritized Platek since arriving on campus a few months ago.
"Adam Cohen and I go pretty far back, to his Rice and Harvard and Vanderbilt days," said John Carroll, the head coach at Northfield Mount Hermon. "So when he got the job it was pretty quick for him to start talking about Andrew. That was pretty immediate. I happened to be out there a month ago picking up an award in Palo Alto and visited the campus and spent time with the new staff. They were pretty quick to bring up Andrew also."
Stanford's staff has made a strong impression on Carroll.
"Haase and I have exchanged phone calls, and he's great," Carroll said. "He brings a lot of energy to the phone calls. There's a lot of clear understanding of what it means to be at Stanford and the commitment to their full package of recruiting, how they have to have outstanding citizens, great students and outstanding basketball players. That's clearly his message, and that's who he's recruiting. The other guys have been great. I got to see some individual workouts and they're tremendous. So as far as as the basketball staff, I couldn't have higher regard for them as far as their expertise and their knowledge of hoops, and they were really gracious to me during the visit. So I have nothing but great things to say about how they treated me, and they were only probably 10 days on the job at that point. So I think they're terrific. I think they have a real great staff and a great hire in Jerod, for sure."
The Cardinal's coaching staff has emphasized their belief that Platek would be a strong fit for their style in conversations with Platek and Carroll.
"They see Andrew as a multifaceted player," Carroll said. "Obviously he can really shoot the lights out, but he makes great decisions with the ball. He understands what it means to be a shooting threat... he knows what to do when that's being overplayed. So they really appreciate and enjoy his high IQ. I think they're looking for guys who are skilled, who can shoot the ball and are multi-positional, and that's right up Andrew's alley, for sure."
Platek will get a firsthand look at Stanford's staff, the university and campus later this month when he visits The Farm.
"He's going out there in a couple of weeks for an unofficial visit," Carroll said. "It will just be him without his parents. As far as (why) he's looking, it's the same reason Josh was looking at Stanford and the same reason they both came to NMH. We're the best combination of basketball at the high school level, and I know both of them would like to continue that same kind of trend, that same kind of philosophy in college."
Stanford is facing stiff competition in their pursuit of Platek. The guard prospect will visit North Carolina this month and has already taken trips to Indiana, Butler, Miami, Harvard, Yale and Princeton.
Platek has not yet shifted his focus to his allotment of official visits.
"It will depend on these unofficial visits and how he continues to play in July and making his fluid priorities more concrete," Carroll said of Platek's official visit destinations. "So that will take a little bit of time before he figures that out. He really isn't thinking about officials at this point."
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During Carroll's stop by Stanford's campus earlier this spring, he had a chance to watch his former player, Sharma, in workouts. Carroll liked what he saw.
"I think he could play at the highest level," Carroll said of Sharma. "With him, for us it was trying to convince him that he was really special. I think he was the only 7-footer in the country who could run like a deer, jump through the roof, scored really high on the ACT's and took three AP courses as a senior. That truly is a unique person. And I think once he got to Stanford and being around a community of really unique people he understood that he belonged in that environment. And I think he's only gained in confidence. He looks a lot stronger... He's added some great weight over the season. At the individual workout I saw everything was 11 feet or higher. He's playing way above the rim. I think he really advanced his skillset over the last year.
"I was really pleased with what I saw during my visit last month. It was really great."