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The Oklahoma men's basketball roster has finally stopped shrinking and started growing. With players transferring out and leaving early to declare for the NBA the program took a substantial hit and was left in a wee bit of disarray. However, true to his word, Jeff Capel has hit the road in search of guys who fit needs within the program and not just warm bodies.
The losses of Willie Warren, Tommy Mason-Griffin and Tiny Gallon overshadowed a 2010 recruiting class of F Cameron Clark, SG T.J. Taylor and F Tyler Neal. Even with some solid commitments the needs were still greater than what the roster could provide. Most notably was the absence of a point guard and depth in the post. Most of those needs were met over the weekend with the addition of three more players.
Juco Forward C.J. Washington (6-7/210) - Earned Juco All-American status at Connors State. Averaged averaged 19.2 points and 12.9 rebounds a game.
Juco Forward Nick Thompson (6-8/240) - Averaged 8.6 points, 4.4 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game at the College of Eastern Utah. Shot 55% from the floor, 39% from three-point range and 69% from the free throw line.
Point Guard Carl Blair (6-2/205) - Blair is a good basketball player who got stuck in a bad situation at New Orleans. The Privateers have suffered financial hardships since Hurricane Katrina and have announced that they're leaving the Sun Belt Conference and dropping to Division III. This essentially makes Blair a college basketball free agent who can transfer out and play immediately.
"Carl is a very good player and we're sorry things didn't work out the way we planned here," New Orleans coach Joe Pasternack told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "I know it's not what he signed up for with everything happening here. I'm happy for him that he's able to get what he wanted, and that's a chance to play for a top-notch program like Oklahoma."
As a freshman last season, Blair averaged 9.2 points and 4.4 rebounds per game. He led the team with 112 assist.