COLLEGE PARK — COLLEGE PARK - Some college basketball coaches are born recruiters - charming, sociable and quick to embrace the sales pitches that are a necessary component of their jobs.
Maryland's Gary Williams doesn't fit that mold. In his 20 seasons at the school, Williams has built his reputation less on recruiting and more on taking moderately talented players or hidden gems and polishing their skills. He has relied heavily on his assistant coaches to evaluate and recruit, according to a handful of people familiar with Maryland's program, including former assistants.
Williams' system produced results: 11 consecutive NCAA tournament bids and a 2001 Final Four appearance, followed the next season by a national championship. But with Maryland at risk of missing the tournament for the fourth time in five seasons, experts wonder whether the system needs tinkering - and whether the coach needs to be more prominent on the recruiting trail.
Maryland (13-7, 2-4 Atlantic Coast Conference), which hosts Miami tonight, has particularly struggled to attract top-25 players, who often require more attention and pampering than the rest.
Len Elmore, an ESPN commentator, attorney and former Maryland star, said he has little doubt that Williams' approach can still work. He suggested that Williams could find another Juan Dixon, a rugged guard from Baltimore who redshirted his freshman year before becoming a star on the championship team.
But Elmore also said "times have changed."
"A lot of [Williams' players] weren't highly recruited. They just turned out to be pretty darned good players. Gary had success doing it his way," Elmore said.
He continued: "It's a changing time, and this generation now really wants to have the impact of seeing the top man."
Said former Maryland star Tom McMillen: "I think Gary understands he needs to recruit because everybody else is recruiting. I think Gary can be a good recruiter if he sets his mind to it."
McMillen said the successful recruitment of forwards Jordan Williams from Torrington, Conn., and James Padgett from Brooklyn, N.Y., "must be a testament to something on the recruiting side."
Gary Williams announced during his media session yesterday that Jordan Williams, 6 feet 10, was nominated - along with 1,499 others - for the McDonald's All-America team.
The coach didn't respond to written questions yesterday submitted by The Baltimore Sun for this article about high-maintenance recruits and his recruiting profile.
