Maynor a shining star for CAA basketball

Eric Maynor leaves Virginia Commonwealth University as the Rams' all-time leader in scoring and assists.

The hope now is that his assists keep on coming for VCU, and the Colonial Athletic Association, in recruiting.

Maynor was Utah's first-round pick (20th overall) in the NBA draft 2½ weeks ago. He was the first CAA player drafted in a decade.

"I'm sure every coach in the league is making reference to it," CAA Commissioner Tom Yeager said. "How long will it last? It will probably last as long as he remains a player in the NBA of some stature. You have a similar thing with [Delaware's] Joe Flacco and [Richmond's] Tim Hightower in the NFL. You know that has energized every kid on the team to sit there and think, 'This can happen.'"

Whether Maynor's status has a significant shelf life in recruiting is something that won't be determined for a couple of years. Since he arrived in April, though, new VCU coach Shaka Smart has been trying to take advantage of the brand name.

Smart calls Maynor "the most recognizable piece of VCU basketball maybe ever." In contacts with recruits, Smart and his staff reference the point guard or direct them to articles.

"We live in a sports culture that's very much what have you done for me lately," Smart said. "Right now . . . it's something that's a hot topic. It's front and center for these kids, on the Internet or on TV. When they're reading about the NBA, one of the top rookies they're going to be reading about is Eric Maynor from VCU.

"I think it's certainly something you want to capitalize on now. The goal is to have other guys down the road be in a similar position and be able to affect winning on a level close to what Eric did and then be able to benefit from that with a professional career."

A mid-major school such as VCU producing an NBA player probably won't make much of a ripple in the recruiting pool. Schools in high-major conferences can point to an assembly line of NBA draft picks. They will continue to replenish their stock of Top 100 recruits because of the inherent advantages of national television exposure, facilities and high-profile coaches.

"Let's be honest," Yeager said. "The guys who develop into NBA guys out of the Colonials, the Missouri Valleys, the Atlantic 10s, the Horizons, really come into their own in college. Does it help to be able to point to Eric Maynor? It sure does. But I think those guys who are thinking, 'If I go there, am I going to get in the NBA?' they're looking at a different set of schools probably."

But could pointing to someone such as Maynor help the Rams and the CAA get more high-caliber players?

Yeager says a confluence of postseason success, the CAA's increased television presence in recent years, coaches, better facilities and NBA picks are more likely to upgrade the conference's recruiting.

"Some relative success brings you greater interest in television," he said. "You get television, you get a little better player. You get a little better player, your professional opportunities start to increase."

George Mason coach Jim Larranaga said VCU probably will be able to exploit the NBA glow "for several years," especially if Rams 6-10 forward Larry Sanders becomes another first-rounder next year.

After a run of draft picks in the 1980s, the CAA went dry after Old Dominion's Cal Bowdler was taken in the first round by Atlanta in 1999.

And yet you can argue that the league has elevated its profile nationally in the past few years, with George Mason making the NCAA Final Four in 2006, Old Dominion making the NIT Final Four in 2006 and VCU knocking off Duke in the 2007 NCAA tournament.

Adding Maynor to those talking points with recruits helps.

"When I was in the Mid-American Conference at Bowling Green, there was a player in the league, at least one, drafted every year," Larranaga said. "I never saw it make a significant difference for those programs for the next year or two. It's more about the ability of the whole league to use the exposure that player was given, like Eric Maynor, to say that if you come and play in the CAA, you can get to the NBA."