Daniel Dingle spent the July live recruiting period playing at big events in front of hundreds of college coaches. He got to know a few of the faces well. The one weekend that month he was home playing in the first annual Lightning Live, he wasn’t expecting to see any familiar faces.
Instead, when Dingle took the court, Temple head coach Fran Dunphy was one of the coaches on hand.
“It really showed me I’m the guy he wanted,” the St. Raymond 6-foot-7 senior forward recalled.
Dingle rewarded Dunphy’s loyalty Tuesday morning, choosing the Owls over Miami, Seton Hall and Auburn.
He took official visits to Temple and Auburn and felt comfortable at both places. Last week, before official varsity practices began at St. Ray’s, he spent a lot of time thinking about his decision.
“I loved Auburn and I loved Temple,” said Dingle, who becomes the third member of Temple’s 2012 recruiting class, joining 6-foot-5 wing Quenton DeCosey from St. Joseph Metuchen (N.J.) and 6-foot-9 forward Devontae Watson of Lincoln Park (Pa.). “Coach [Tony] Barbee [of Auburn] did a great job recruiting me. He came to my school numerous times. They were a family down there. At the end of the day, I had the same kind of relationship with Coach Dunphy and it was closer to home.”
Dingle’s entire family, from his parents Willie and Mattie to older brother, basketball mentor and AAU coach Dana, can attend every home game at the Philadelphia school. Initially, location didn’t play a role, but then Temple got into the picture, recruiting Dingle harder than anyone else.
“I have the chance to get a great education and I have a chance to play in front of my support system and I have a chance to be successful,” he said.
They attended every AAU he played over the summer for the Long Island Lightning, with Dunphy front and center. Dana Dingle told his brother to pay attention to the schools that attended when it came to make a decision.
“He was the No 1 guy probably on their board,” Dana Dingle said. “He was a kid they had to have. He was the most important piece they were recruiting. As a coach and a kid, you can’t discount that. It’s a winning program that’s historic. They’re pretty much knocking on the door of the top 25 every year.”
Dingle said he wasn’t focused on conference level, but the place he could succeed at. Last year alone, for instance, mid-major prospects such as Hofstra’s Charles Jenkins Morehead State’s Kenneth Faried were drafted. Plus, Temple isn’t pigeon-holing the versatile Dingle. He will play some power forward, some small forward, and will get to handle the ball on occasion.
“That really stood out to me, getting the opportunity to do different things,” said Dingle, who averaged 17 points, 12 rebounds and five assists per game in leading the Ravens to the CHSAA Class AA intersectional semifinals last winter.
He also felt at home in Philly with the school’s diversity.
“I felt like I was in The Bronx again,” Dingle said.
One Division I coach familiar with Dingle describes his choice of Temple as a perfect fit and thinks he can be an all-conference player in the A-10 as an upperclassman.
“He’s gonna be a very versatile, inside-out combo forward,” the coach said. “He’s the type of kid that doesn’t have a position, he’s just a basketball player. Everyone says he’s small to play the 4, too slow to play the 3. But he’s a workaholic, he’s a winner. He can stretch the floor, he can shoot it. He’s a very tenacious competitor. He’s skilled where he doesn’t have to average 20 [points] and 10 [rebounds] to make a difference in the game. He does a lot of things that don’t show up in the box score.”
Intangibles, indeed, are a major part of Dingle’s game, along with a relentless work ethic he got from Dana Dingle that was further instilled at St. Ray’s by coach Oliver Antigua.
“I worked my hardest this summer,” he said. “I don’t think I took a day off after the recruiting period, working tremendously on my game, my conditioning, my explosiveness, doing whatever it takes.”
In an ironic twist, that’s how Dunphy landed Dingle.