Jerry Stackhouse is making moves at Vanderbilt while the Memphis Grizzlies still don’t have a head coach. His 2019 recruiting class is headlined by two former NBA greats sons.
Jerry Stackhouse has only been away from the Memphis Grizzlies for a couple of weeks, but he has already been making big moves on the recruiting trail. He has brought in two former high school teammates are also the sons of former NBA greats. They have brought in two three-star recruits in guard Scotty Pippen Jr. and Kenyon Martin Jr.
Neither of them is extremely highly rated, but it still could be a sign of things to come for Vanderbilt. They have the 41st class in the nation and 8th in the SEC with four-star forward Dylan Disu, who is just outside the top-100, being their top-ranked recruit.
Scotty Pippen Jr. is a 6’0″ point guard who has a chance to play a big role in the backcourt next season. Kenyon Martin Jr. is a 6’6″ power forward who has the ability to become a very good collegiate player and with the lack of depth in the frontcourt, he could get a chance to shine early on.
Stackhouse’s ties to the NBA are a big reason he was hired in the first place and it’s already paying big dividends. Pippen and Martin are both ranked outside the top 200 according to 247sports, but they’re the start of what could be something special. If former NBA greats trust Stackhouse with their sons it could lead to top prospects wanting to play for him to help prepare themselves for the pro game.
Kenyon Martin was an exciting player early on in his NBA career, but injuries and other issues kept him from reaching his full potential. In 757 games he averaged 12.3 points and 6.8 rebounds per game with his best season coming in 2003-04 with the New Jersey Nets when he was selected to the all-star team.
Scottie Pippen was a dominant forward during his time with Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls as they won six NBA championships together in the 1990s. He played in 1178 career games averaging 16.1 points, 6.4 rebounds, 5.2 assists, and 2 steals per game.
Jerry Stackhouse was a very good NBA player in his own right as he averaged 16.9 points, 3.3 assists, and 3.2 rebounds per game which included two all-star appearances during his time with the Detroit Pistons. He bounced around the league often in his career as he played for eight different NBA franchises.
Former NBA players are often someone that college recruits would like to play for. They want to put in the work so they can be successful in their basketball careers. The excite these coaches can bring to a program are like no other, just as we’ve seen with Penny Hardaway at Memphis.
The success Hardaway has had in such a short time is unrealistic for Stackhouse to have at Vanderbilt after they had a 9-23 record last season including a winless SEC slate, but what Hardaway has done at Memphis could be something he wants Vanderbilt to become after a couple of seasons.
If Stackhouse can prove that he is able to develop players successfully then that will lead to him landing the top prospects. Building a college team is a process, but he is on the right track to get the Commodores back competing as they should be.