Richard Amardi and Gonzaga: A Match Made In Heaven
By Josh Horton
Dec 15, 2012; Seattle, WA, USA; Gonzaga Bulldogs head coach Mark Few during the 1st half against the Kansas State Wildcats at KeyArena. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports
Just a week ago, Richard Amardi was an incoming recruit for Iowa State’s 2013 class. He signed his letter of intent nine month’s ago, and was set out on being a Cyclone very early in the recruiting process. That was the case until Marshall transfer DeAndre Kane decided to spend the rest of his college basketball career in Ames, Iowa. At this point, there was more players than there were scholarships, and to make room for Kane, Cyclone head coach Fred Hoiberg and Iowa State had to release Amardi from his scholarship, leaving him to go through the recruiting process once again.
After missing out on transfers Mike Moser and Josh Davis, Gonzaga is in play for the 6’9″ power forward out of Indian Hills Community College in Ottumwa, Iowa. According to Rivals, Amardi is a three-star prospect. He averaged 8.0 points and 5.2 rebounds per game last season at IHCC. Jeff Eisenberg of Yahoo Sports tweeted earlier this morning that Amardi would be visiting Gonzaga, Oregon, Kansas State, and Arizona State. It would be fair to assume that these four schools are all the main contenders to land Amardi for next season. He only has one season of eligibility left.
Former Iowa State signee Richard Amardi will visit Gonzaga, Oregon, Kansas State and Arizona State starting this weekend, per his JC coach.
— Jeff Eisenberg (@JeffEisenberg) June 12, 2013
Gonzaga’s depth chart in the front court looks something like this at the moment:
PF: Sam Dower- Luke Meikle
C: Przemek Karnowski- Ryan Edwards
The Gonzaga roster features a senior, a sophomore, and two freshmen as posts for next season. Adding a little bit of depth would help out the Zags immensely in 2013-2014.
From what I have seen based on film and what not, Amardi would be a reserve, but would be playing a lot of minutes off the bench. He is very active on the offensive and defensive glass, and has the ability to hit a mid range jump shot. His post game is not very polished, and he would need to work with Gonzaga assistant Donny Daniels to improve in that aspect.
This is certainly a name to look out for in the next few months. It would not hurt the Bulldogs if they were able to pick up another forward for next season, and Amardi is one of the best out there at the moment.