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Constitution's Gilbert commits to Minnesota

04/23/2015, 6:30pm EDT
By Dan Newhart

Dan Newhart (@danny_newhart)
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Constitution senior wing Ahmad Gilbert, who originally committed to George Mason in November, is headed to Minnesota.

When former GMU head coach Paul Hewitt was fired on March 16, Gilbert was forced to reevaluate his options. He met with newly-appointed head coach Dave Paulsen on April 3, but that did not seem enough to get Gilbert to stay, as he was granted release from GMU one week later on April 10.  

After his release, Gilbert received interest from a number of schools, including Pittsburgh, Boston College, South Florida and Penn State. He planned to wait until May 21 to make his decision, but quickly changed his mind during a visit to Minnesota.

After that visit on Thursday, Gilbert committed to the Gophers. He liked that the area resembled Philadelphia, and was impressed with the coaching staff’s honesty, specifically that of head coach Richard Pitino.  

“It reminded me a lot of Philly,” Gilbert said. “Everything is within 15 to 20 minutes away, and it was just a good fit. The coaches keep it 100 with you, they don’t lie and they’ll tell you what you don’t want to hear sometimes. That played a big role.”

“[Pitino] is honest, and he’ll always look you dead in the eye,” Gilbert added. “He came down as a head coach and watched me practice, and that meant a lot to me. It seemed like he really wanted me more than the other coaches.”

Pitino, the son of legendary Louisville head coach Rick Pitino, is entering his third season at the helm. He has compiled a 43-28 overall record, and led the team to a title in the NIT tournament in 2014. 

Gilbert just finished off a stellar senior season for the Generals. He was named the Class A Player of the Year in Pennsylvania for a second time, and led his team to a state title. In the team’s 85-53 win in the championship game over Farrell, the 6-foot-7, 190-pound senior poured in 28 points and grabbed 11 rebounds.

Constitution head coach Rob Moore believes performances like that may have been the reason some higher-level Division I programs showed more interest in Gilbert after his de-commitment from GMU.

“The way he played for us this year, he was a steal in the A-10,” Moore said. “When you’re looking at Big 10 schools and schools like Temple, Penn State and South Florida, George Mason becomes the smallest of the group.”

Moore also pointed out the Gophers’ lack of depth at the small forward position. Minnesota returns three forwards: Charles Buggs, Gaston Diedhiou, and Joey King. None of the three are under 6-foot-9, nor do any play the small forward position.

Because of that, Moore believes Gilbert has the chance to step in and have an impact immediately as a freshman. 

“When you look at [Minnesota’s] roster, there are no small forwards on the roster,” Moore said. “So that’s a big, big opportunity for him to step in right away.”

While the lack of depth as his position may seem like an advantage, Gilbert doesn’t look at it that way. He sees it more as an opportunity to compete for the spot, which he knows is not guaranteed to anyone.

“It just makes me want to work harder,” Gilbert said. “The spot is up for grabs, and nowadays a four can play the three or a three can play the four, so nothing is given to anyone.”

Gilbert was the fifth commit of Minnesota's 2015 recruiting class. He joined the likes of Kevin Dorsey and Dupree McBrayer, two four-star guards and three-star recruits Jarvis Johnson and Jonathon Nwankwo. 

Before Gilbert gets to college, Moore believes he can work on some little things to improve his game. He also thinks Gilbert will fit into Minnesota’s system nicely.

“He’s got to work on his handle, creating his own shot and his defense,” Moore said. “But he’s got unlimited range. He went 6-for-12 from beyond the arc in the state title game, and [Minnesota] does a lot of full-court-trap. Sometimes you just know what’s right.” 


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