Arkansas Business

This story is from the archives of ArkansasSports360.com.

Arkansas has hired former Missouri head coach and Arkansas assistant Mike Anderson as its new basketball coach with a press conference to introduce him expected sometime between today and Saturday.

It's almost certain one of Anderson's first duties at Arkansas will be recruiting the signing class that is ranked No. 5 in the nation by Rivals.com, though at least two members of that class appear to be in the fold with Anderson. East Poinsett County 4-star point guard Ky Madden (6-foot-5, 180 pounds) and Little Rock Parkview forward Aaron Ross (6-7, 225) are sticking with Arkansas, according to sources close to the situation, though Madden has yet to confirm that.

It also appears that Florissant (Mo.) McCluer North guard B.J. Young (6-3, 170) may also remain committed to Arkansas. When former coach John Pelphrey was fired, some sources close to Young felt he might ask for a release from his national letter-of-intent and instead attend Missouri where Anderson was the coach. Young is Arkansas' only 5-star recruit in this class and, when combined with Madden in the backcourt, could give Anderson the type of athletic guards needed for the famous "40 Minutes of Hell" that Arkansas used to win its national championship under Nolan Richardson with Anderson as an assistant.

That leaves Jonesboro Westside forward Hunter Mickelson (6-11, 195) and Seagoville (Texas) forward Devonta Abron (6-8, 223). Mickelson was a member of the Arkansas Wings along with Madden and Ross that won the AAU National Championship last summer. Abron is being joined at Arkansas by Seagoville tight end Andrew Peterson, who signed with the Razorbacks in February. In addition, rumors circulated Wednesday night that Anderson would likely retain Rob Evans as an assistant coach on his staff and, if true, that would almost certainly help with Abron, since Evans was his lead recruiter and a large reason for him choosing Arkansas.

Except for Young and Ross, the other recruits have pretty much maintained they have no comment until a coach is officially hired and they have a chance to talk to him. That chance should come soon with Anderson now the new coach.

Showing Momemtum

If Arkansas develops any openings on its roster, it will be interesting to see if Anderson opts to go back on a couple of recruits that he saw play as recent as this past Saturday and was recruiting both for Missouri.

Sikeston (Mo.) Scott County Central power forward Otto Porter (6-8, 195) is rated a 4-star recruit by Rivals.com and is expected to climb higher up the rankings when Rivals releases new ones. Porter led his team to its third straight state title with Anderson in attendance on Saturday. Porter was a heavy lean to the Tigers before Anderson left, with Georgetown and Kansas also trying to get into the mix.

Anderson also went to Kansas to watch Midland (Texas) College shooting guard Guy Landry (6-5, 210) as his team played for the NJCAA National Championship. Landry is known to be considering Missouri, Missouri State, Wichita State, Minnesota, UTEP and Miami.

If either Mickelson or Abron asked for a release, then Porter would seem like a natural fit if Anderson opted to recruit him and if Porter would be willing to consider the Razorbacks.

Having It His Way

While some have expressed doubts the style of basketball that is used by Anderson will work in this day and age, the key to making Anderson's system work is recruiting, just as it is for most systems.