With his recent decommitment from Michigan State, Caleb Swanigan has become the poster-child for the roller coaster ride that many college coaches have had to deal with when recruiting the 2015 class.
Nonetheless, that hasn’t deterred the likes of Cal, Purdue, and Kentucky for making strong pushes for his commitment, and services next season. What kind of player would they be getting in the 6’9 center?
Read on to find out.
Name: Caleb Swanigan
Height: 6’9
Position: Center
Ranking: Five-star, No. 18 overall
Strengths: Right off the bat, you notice Swanigan’s frame being one to reckon with. He uses his strength and weight to bully defenders towards the rim, and knock would-be post-ups off of the block on the other end. He has embraced his frame and isn’t shy about using it, which is always refreshing to see. While his height can be an issue, he has incredible length. This allows him to get to his spots in the middle of the lane, and score effectively with both hands, using a jump hook. Where his length and mindset are most evident, however, is in the rebounding battles under the basket. He’s a ferocious rebounder, always nabbing the ball at its highest point and remaining strong with it once he comes back down.
Areas to Improve: As effective as he is at using his frame, getting with a nutritional counselor in college is going to be vital for him. There’s simply no way that he could play 25 or more minutes per game at the college level with his current conditioning. Working with that could also improve his athleticism, because as things stand, he’s an average athlete at best.
