“Hang on to your a**”: Ace Bailey and Dylan Harper’s HC Steve Pikiell get honest advice from veteran Tom Izzo
Tom Izzo has advice for Steve Pikiell for his time around Ace Bailey and Dylan Harper. In his nearly two decades of head coaching career, Pikiell will be coaching his first 5-star players in Bailey and Harper. The McDonald’s All-American duo are top recruits in the nation and are expected to be lottery picks in the 2025 NBA draft.
Now, as Pikiell enters the next chapter of his coaching journey, Michigan State Spartans’ Tom Izzo has honest advice for the Rutgers coach.
"Hang on to your ass, Steve!" he said, as per nj.com. "First of all, I love Steve. He’s great, but it is different. Expectations will be different, pressures will be different, but it’s exciting, too."
Izzo also advised Pikiell and Rutgers' fans to balance their emotions and expectations from Ace Bailey and Dylan Harper. He said:
"There’ll be a learning curve still. If you get the world, God bless you. But I hope those fans don’t expect the world because it’s been difficult for 99% of the freshmen to have an impact if you look at the last five years. Because everybody is trading for fourth and fifth-year guys."
"A 23-year-old is better than 99% of the 18-year-olds, no matter what the deal is. It’s hard to get that concept straight, but I think this will be good for the league and for the fans out there."
According to On3, James Wiseman, Cade Cunningham, Chet Holmgren, Dereck Lively and Isaiah Collier were the top recruits in college basketball in the last five years. Amongst them, the best team run came was a Sweet 16 appearance from Holmgren's Gonzaga and Lively's Duke.
Ace Bailey and Dylan Harper have elevated the level of basketball expectations at Rutgers
Harper and Ace Bailey come to Rutgers during an interesting time, when players, their families and the entire program can benefit from each other. Ever since Steve Pikiell gripped the school in 2016, he has produced promising outcomes.
However, none come close to Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey’s commitment. Not only the excitement and expectations from the fans have skyrocketed but they also give Rutgers a solid chance to do major damage in the Big Ten conference and NCAA tournament.
The fans’ leaning is signified by the presence of 4,000 supporters in Rutgers exhibition against St. John’s, where nearly 20 NBA scouts were also present.
The rise in Rutgers’ basketball culture can be witnessed by the program’s inclusion in preseason rankings, which is only the second time the Scarlet Knights were included in the list in the last 45 years.