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Grand Canyon University Athletics
Insider: Drew recruits on honesty
3/23/2020 10:11:00 AM | Men's Basketball, Paul Coro, Lopes Insider Blog
GCU coach's recruiting succeeded at Valpo, Vandy
Last in a series on new GCU head coach Bryce Drew. Part I: "The Shot" | Part II: Faith | Part III: Recruiting
Bryce Drew recruited championship teams to Valparaiso, a private university of 4,500 students in a small Indiana town.
He recruited nationally ranked classes to Vanderbilt, a private university in downtown Nashville with extremely high academic standards.
As he begins recruiting work at the helm of Grand Canyon basketball, Drew embraces the process of showing prospects his high-amenity, mid-major program in Phoenix.
"It's building relationships," Drew said of recruiting. "The players are attracted to the university and what it stands for, but also the coaches' personality and if they feel they can thrive in that environment. One of the biggest things we talk about as a staff is honesty. We don't want anyone come to our school and have them feel like their expectations weren't fulfilled. We try to be extremely honest."
Drew's methodology worked as a Valparaiso associate head coach for his father, Homer, an acclaimed recruiter who brought the Crusaders to notoriety. When Drew became head coach at Valpo, his recruiting work produced four regular-season Horizon League champions in five years. That talent evalutation included targeting Alec Peters, who was not rated as a Washington (Ill.) High School player but became a NBA second-round pick and 2017-18 player for the Phoenix Suns.
Upon moving to a Power 5 head coaching job at Vanderbilt, Drew immediately landed a top-50 class nationally even though he began the recruiting process on players after their junior years. His first commitment came within two months in the Phoenix area, where Tempe Corona del Sol's Saben Lee chose Vanderbilt and was this season's top Vanderbilt scorer.
A year later, Drew landed the highest-rated recruiting class in Commodores history with five-star recruits Darius Garland and Simi Shittu. Garland, an Indiana native who attended Drew basketball camps as a boy, had his college career cut to five games by a knee injury but still was drafted fifth overall by the Cleveland Cavaliers last year.
The third player in Drew's 2018 recruiting class, guard Aaron Nesmith, is projected to be a first-round pick in this year's NBA Draft.
"This might turn into the best hire of the offseason," ESP National Recruiting Director Paul Bancardi tweeted upon Drew's hiring at GCU. "Bryce Drew is an excellent coach, evaluator & recruiter. hard to find a nicer person."
Drew's recruiting process changes with rules and culture. Staying relevant with teenagers meant adapting from mail to texting to FaceTime.
"With parents, it's more of a life talk," Drew said. "Basketball is just part of this piece. We want them to have their character grow. We want them to leave here and be Godly men and be great husbands who are equipped for the world while having a great basketball experience. It's not just about the basketball experience but the things that will help them the rest of their lives. We really dig deep to try to impact their lives and help them grow. Because there will be ups and downs in college so, hopefully, we can build relationships that they trust us."
Establishing a family atmosphere has proven attractive to international players, whose parents want that for children who are overseas for months. His older brother, Scott, now leads a top program at Baylor but was at the forefront of European recruiting as a Valparaiso assistant in the 1990s. Bryce also established overseas basketball ties while playing professionally in Spain after a six-year NBA career.
Recruiting relationships continue on campus, where Drew's recruiting promise for off-court development is followed up by bringing in speakers, holding team chapels, team-building activities and community work.
"If we can get the recruits on campus, that will be a big selling point," Drew said. "If they can see the facilities, meet the people on campus and see the vision, that would be a big draw. Every kid growing up envisions playing in front of people who are screaming and yelling and cheering for them, to be able to have a college experience with 7,000 people screaming on your behalf is something you'll take with you for the rest of your life. The Havocs are a big part of drawing recruits to campus."
Follow Paul Coro on Twitter: @paulcoro.
Bryce Drew recruited championship teams to Valparaiso, a private university of 4,500 students in a small Indiana town.
He recruited nationally ranked classes to Vanderbilt, a private university in downtown Nashville with extremely high academic standards.
As he begins recruiting work at the helm of Grand Canyon basketball, Drew embraces the process of showing prospects his high-amenity, mid-major program in Phoenix.
"It's building relationships," Drew said of recruiting. "The players are attracted to the university and what it stands for, but also the coaches' personality and if they feel they can thrive in that environment. One of the biggest things we talk about as a staff is honesty. We don't want anyone come to our school and have them feel like their expectations weren't fulfilled. We try to be extremely honest."
Drew's methodology worked as a Valparaiso associate head coach for his father, Homer, an acclaimed recruiter who brought the Crusaders to notoriety. When Drew became head coach at Valpo, his recruiting work produced four regular-season Horizon League champions in five years. That talent evalutation included targeting Alec Peters, who was not rated as a Washington (Ill.) High School player but became a NBA second-round pick and 2017-18 player for the Phoenix Suns.
Upon moving to a Power 5 head coaching job at Vanderbilt, Drew immediately landed a top-50 class nationally even though he began the recruiting process on players after their junior years. His first commitment came within two months in the Phoenix area, where Tempe Corona del Sol's Saben Lee chose Vanderbilt and was this season's top Vanderbilt scorer.
A year later, Drew landed the highest-rated recruiting class in Commodores history with five-star recruits Darius Garland and Simi Shittu. Garland, an Indiana native who attended Drew basketball camps as a boy, had his college career cut to five games by a knee injury but still was drafted fifth overall by the Cleveland Cavaliers last year.
The third player in Drew's 2018 recruiting class, guard Aaron Nesmith, is projected to be a first-round pick in this year's NBA Draft.
"This might turn into the best hire of the offseason," ESP National Recruiting Director Paul Bancardi tweeted upon Drew's hiring at GCU. "Bryce Drew is an excellent coach, evaluator & recruiter. hard to find a nicer person."
Drew's recruiting process changes with rules and culture. Staying relevant with teenagers meant adapting from mail to texting to FaceTime.
"With parents, it's more of a life talk," Drew said. "Basketball is just part of this piece. We want them to have their character grow. We want them to leave here and be Godly men and be great husbands who are equipped for the world while having a great basketball experience. It's not just about the basketball experience but the things that will help them the rest of their lives. We really dig deep to try to impact their lives and help them grow. Because there will be ups and downs in college so, hopefully, we can build relationships that they trust us."
Establishing a family atmosphere has proven attractive to international players, whose parents want that for children who are overseas for months. His older brother, Scott, now leads a top program at Baylor but was at the forefront of European recruiting as a Valparaiso assistant in the 1990s. Bryce also established overseas basketball ties while playing professionally in Spain after a six-year NBA career.
Recruiting relationships continue on campus, where Drew's recruiting promise for off-court development is followed up by bringing in speakers, holding team chapels, team-building activities and community work.
"If we can get the recruits on campus, that will be a big selling point," Drew said. "If they can see the facilities, meet the people on campus and see the vision, that would be a big draw. Every kid growing up envisions playing in front of people who are screaming and yelling and cheering for them, to be able to have a college experience with 7,000 people screaming on your behalf is something you'll take with you for the rest of your life. The Havocs are a big part of drawing recruits to campus."
Follow Paul Coro on Twitter: @paulcoro.
Midnight Madness 2025
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Thursday, September 04