Stock Risers' Jake Weingarten analyzes Lancaster '21 PG Wade Taylor

Key notes from Jake Weingarten interview

• I had a great feeling Wade Taylor‍  was going to commit soon. This is a great pickup for Buzz Williams and Texas A&M. He is a crafty guard, and we've talked about him before on this show. I think he is one of the more underrated players in the country. He's been high on A&M for a very long time, and I know Buzz and company are breathing a sigh of relief knowing this one is out of the way.
   
• Wade Taylor is a guy that everyone in the country sleeps on. I remember in my interview with him; he talked about the loyalty that Buzz and Lyle Wolf showed him. Shortly after Buzz accepted the job, he went to see and recruit Taylor. That spoke to him, and that relationship only grew. You can ask anyone that watches him — whether it be coaches or teammates — and they will tell you he is extremely undervalued and can make an immediate impact from day one. I know this is a guy Buzz coveted, and he and Manny Obaseki‍ are excited to play together.
   
• I talked to Harrison Ingram‍ the other day, and he told me a lot more about him. Wade is a hustle player that is not the biggest guy on the court, but he is a very energized player that is crafty and loves to get his teammates involved. There is so much he can do on the floor, and if you look at a guy like Hassan Diarra‍, I think they complement each other well. I don't think there is any reason why Wade can't be a similar player to Diarra for this team.
   
• I had the chance to see Andre Gordon play last season, and he is just so impressive to watch. You can compare his journey and recruitment a lot to Wade Taylor's. Andre was not very highly recruited. Andre was a freak athlete, and I think he and Wade are different. Andre could lead a team, and I think Wade can feed off him. Wade is going to bring so many intangibles. Buzz ran out of recruiting pitches to him, so they started talking about things away from the sport, and I think that relationship is what ultimately got Wade Taylor to commit to Texas A&M.
   
• Cashius McNeilly is going to impress so many people this year. I was able to watch him practice a few weeks ago, and I saw him put on a shooting display. By the end of it, I was able to see which shots were going in because he wasn't missing. I've seen Hassan Diara play so many times because he lives just ten minutes from me. He plays extremely well up and down the court. He gets down the court on defense and plays fast. One thing about New York City is that it produces dogs that will give you 100 percent anytime they are on the court. 
   
• There's still going to be an adjustment period for Jaxson Robinson, which is to be expected for a guy that enrolls early. He's not expected to come in and be a game-changer from day one.
   
• Looking at this team as a whole, though, and seeing guys like Obaseki and Taylor being factored into that, you have to like what you see. Then you get Kevin Marfo for one year, and he is just going to be a guy that will bring every rebound down. Emmanuel Miller impressed me a lot last year as well, and he's only going to be getting better with time in the system. Having these guys on the floor simultaneously makes them a very underrated team going into the season. 
   
• For me, Buzz has two or three things that make him stand out from the rest. One thing players mention is that he is a player's coach. There are some coaches that players are scared to go talk to outside of practice because there is no relationship there. You want to be able to go up to any coach and be upfront with them. Buzz also knows the Xs and Os better than just about anyone else. He's a guy every player will listen to. Lastly, not every kid desires to play basketball in college, but Buzz makes it fun to go to practice every day. You see everyone down to the assistant coaches getting involved and contributing to the finished product, and it shows. Players just love playing for him.
   
• I think Buzz wants to go after one or two more big names. Ashton Smith‍ is getting close to a decision date right now, and he likes A&M a lot. I think he's a great fit in Buzz's system. I think he is a guy they can end 2020 with, and they would be thrilled to land. Paul Atkinson is another name that's coming out of Yale. He just entered his name in the transfer portal, and A&M may show interest. Smith is a guy I'm confident they could land. He's another guy that is a lot like Wade in how he isn't the highest ranked but ask just about anyone who has seen him play, and they will tell you just how undervalued he is. I can imagine Buzz and his team would be excited to land him.