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May 24, 2001

Jay Gomes
NJHoops.com

Taquan Dean 501
Sitting with Taquan Dean's father, Kevin last week at the NJ state 17 & Under Tournament, watching Taquan play with the Central Jersey Hawks, he casually mentioned how Louisville was interesting since Coach Rick Pitino was hired. Little did I know that a commitment to the Cardinals was less than a week away. Taquan's father Kevin Holmes mentioned how the Conference was on an upswing with Coaches Pitino and Calipari to go along with Huggins at Cincinnati.
When Taquan got a letter from Louisville they called the school to get a gauge of how real the interest was. Speaking with Coach Pitino, Taquan was very impressed and realized the interest was very real. Taquan said that: "Although Coach Pitino had not yet see me play, his Assistant Mick Cronin had seen me a few times, and spoke highly of my game." In addition "Coach Pitino said he checked with about 7 or 8 people he respected and they all had good things to say about me." "I have been a fan of his since the Providence days, I remember seeing him on the sidelines on Classic Sports." "Their pressing style also emphasizes shooters, where my skills are needed."
Others schools considered included: Maryland, Florida St., Florida, Clemson, Seton Hall, Syracuse, and Rutgers. When asked if the coaching changes at Rutgers and Seton Hall affected his decision, and knowing that Danny Hurley of Rutgers had been recruiting him hard for a long time, I was surprised to hear, "Not really, I felt like I wanted to get away."

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