PHILADELPHIA/EASTERN PENNSYLVANIA/SOUTH JERSEY REPORT
by Allen Rubin, Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor of the HOOP SCOOP
Published March 18, 2003

***Denotes a player who will be or already is a 5th year player once he reaches his 9th semester of high school

Editor's Note:  Rubin's list of the top 642 seniors, 585 juniors, 397 sophomores, 242 freshmen, 79 8th graders, and 38 7th graders can be found by clicking below on Rubin Ranks Em:  The Top Players in Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey.

TOP 5TH YEAR PLAYERS

PHILADELPHIA/EASTERN PENNSYLVANIA/SOUTH JERSEY AREA
by Clark Francis, Editor & Publisher of the HOOP SCOOP 

                    At first glance the junior class in the Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Area is surpringly strong, thanks to the plethora of quality point guards, several transfers, and depth in the class.  However, when it is all said and done, the Class of 2004 may not turn out to be as good as it originally appears.  Believe it or not, 10 of the top 30 juniors in the area have been reclassified academically and, as a result, will be in their 9th semester of high school when school begins next fall.  This is important, because it is the editorial policy of the HOOP SCOOP to rank 5th year players on a separate list, due to the fact they usually are older and have an advantage in terms of maturity both physically and mentally.  Falling into this category are our three of the top four juniors in the area - 5'11 Jr Sean Singletary from Philadelphia (Penn Charter) PA, 6'7 Jr Rob Kurz from Philadelphia (Penn Charter) PA, 6'6 Jr Roosevelt Lee from Philadelphia (Lutheran) PA - and nine the top 23 players in the area - Singletary, Kurz, Lee, 6'8 Jr Dontay Tabbs from Philadelphia (George Washington) PA, 6'2 Jr Jamual Warren from Philadelphia (Lutheran) PA, 6'6 Jr Kevin Thomas from Chester (H.S.) PA, 6'8 Jr Greg Lewis from New Hope (Solesbury Prep) PA, and 6'7 Jr Josh Hudson from Burlington (City) NJ, and 6'8 Jr Joe Johnson from from Sickerville (Timbercreek) NJ.  In other words, the senior class could be decimated next year when we add all of these players to our 5th year list.  Also falling into this category a year ago was 6'3 Mustafa Shakur from Wynnewoods (Friends Central) PA, who currently is the #1 player regardless of class in the Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Area.  And to make sure that this was reflected in our rankings we have added a 5th year list to our report, plus we now include 5th year players on our all-area teams, which includes the top players regardless of class and position.  Also potentially falling into this category could be 6'0 Maureece Rice from Philadelphia (Strawberry Mansion) PA, who is the #2 player in Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Area regardless of class.  But Rice also could surprise everybody and make it academically, enroll at someplace like Coppin State as a Prop 48 casualty, or go the junior college route.  And this trend will likely continue in the future, because 6'6 Soph Shane Clark from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA, who our #1-ranked sophomore, 6'10 Soph Vernon Goodrich from Philadelphia (Lutheran) PA, and 6'1 Soph Tywain McKee from Philadelphia (Furness) PA are already in their third year of high school. 
                    However, one of the things that really gets our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin excited are all of the mid-to-high level point guards, like Singletary, Warren, 5'11 Jr Kyle Lowry from Philadelphia (Dougherty) PA, 6'2 Jr Cedric Jackson from Burlington (Northern Burlington) NJ, 6'2 Jr Antoine Brown from Philadelphia (South Philadelphia) PA, 6'1 Jr Mike Walker from Camp Hill (Trinity) PA, 5'8 Jr Rich Cunningham from Philadelphia (St. John Neumann) PA, 6'2 Jr Chris Shovlin from Wilkes-Barr (Gar) PA, 6'0 Jr Albert Fisher from Pennsauken (H.S.) NJ, and 5'9 Jr Shomari Moore from Camden (H.S.) NJ, in the area.  In other words, 10 of Rubin's top 17 juniors are point guards.  But it's a tough call picking Singletary over Lowry, as not only the best point guard, but as the #1 junior in the area.  As a matter of fact, our Northeast Editor Dave Schultz and Rubin don't see eye-to-eye on this one.  Rubin gives the edge to Singletary, because he's a little better at running a team, getting everybody involved, and more consistent from beyond the arc.  Schultz likes Lowry a little better due to his tenacity, strength, and ability to get to the foul line.  Singletary and Lowry both are also excellent defenders and more than adequate at lighting up the scoreboard from the point guard spot.  Singletary also is an outstanding student, which illustrates that not all players who are destined to go the 5th year route have academic troubles, and a terrific athlete, as is evident by the fact that he's one of the top receivers on the gridiron in the Philadelphia Area.  Jackson has to score a lot of points for his high school team to be successful, but once he gets to a higher level, we think will develop into the prototypical Big East point guard, because he is a great ball handler and passer, has a good feel for the game, and is excellent defensively.  Brown penetrates, dishes, defends, and is probably the best player in the area in terms of running a team.  However, he needs to improve his outside shooting.  Warren, who transferred to Philadelphia (Lutheran Christian) PA, along with Lee, when Milford (Academy) CT closed a couple of months ago, is a combo guard who thrives in an uptempo setting and creates havoc defensively.  But we still have questions about his decision making and outside shooting.  Walker, who comes from one of the best programs in the state, is an outstanding 3-point shooter, plus he's a winner (his team has only lost one game in the last three years) and has the ability to run a team.  Walker also in an outstanding student, as is evident by the fact that he's being recruited by Ivy League schools.  As a matter of fact, we hear there already is a major recruiting battle being waged by  Princeton, Pennsylvania, and Yale for Walker's services.  Cunningham is a money player who makes big shots, plays good defense, and makes his teammates better.  Shovlin is the best player from Wilkes-Barr since former Florida State star Bob Sura, who now plays for the Golden State Warriors.  Not only does Shovlin play for the same high school team as Sura, but he also has a chance to break Sura's all-time career high school scoring record next year.  Fisher is a scoring point guard with the ability to make plays and big shots at crunch time.  Moore, who lived in Memphis, TN a year ago, has moved back to Camden (H.S.) NJ and, as a result, has become the next in a long line of good point guards for the legendary Clarence Turner, who also returned to Camden (H.S.) NJ as the head coach this season. 
                    The other thing that gets Rubin excited is the overabundance of big men in the senior class in the Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Area.  Not only do 6'10 Wayne Marshall from Philadelphia (Martin Luther King) PA, 6'9 Jason Cain from Philadelphia (John Bartram) PA, 6'11 Aaron Gray from Emmaus (H.S.) NJ, 6'10 Roman Narmbaye-Mbainas from Burlington (Life) NJ, and 6'9 Moussa Mbaye from Burlington (Life Center) NJ all rank in the 75-200 range nationally, but 6'8 Boris Meno form Bryn Mawr (Shipley School) PA, 6'6 Mark Zollar from Philadelphia (St. Josephs) PA, 6'10 Cassin Diggs from Williamsport (H.S.) PA, 6'9 Sean McKeon from Phoenixville (H.S.) PA, 6'8 Jordan Ingram from Radnor (Archbishop Carroll) PA, 6'9 Randal Hanke from Pottstown (Hill School) PA, and 6'7 Akeem Washington from Lancaster (McCaskey) PA can all play at the mid-to-low major level.  In other words, in an area that is noted for producing great guards, 12 of the top 32 seniors have the size and ability to attract Division I interest and the good news is that six of them are still available.  Cain is an athletic mobile four-man who is tough on the boards, excellent at scoring around the basket, and good at blocking shots.  However, for Cain to be more than just a good role player at the high Division I level, he needs to get bigger and stronger.  Meno, who originally is from France, also is a mobile four-man who can both post-up and pop-out to 20 feet.  Zollar is an undersized power forward, but that didn't stop this tough hardnosed overachiever from leading his team to the Philadelphia Catholic League Championship and taking home PCL Player-of-the-Year honors.   Diggs is a low post player who uses his body to bang inside and score around the basket.  Hanke is a Johnny-come-lately who has just gotten better-and-better as the year has progressed and Washington is a defender/shot blocker/rebounder who will probably have to go the junior college route.
                    In contrast to the junior and senior classes, which have great point guards and quality size, respectively, the sophomore and freshman classes are top heavy at the wing spots.  An even closer look shows that Clark, 6'3 Soph Noel Wilmore from Philadelphia (Germantown Friends) PA, 6'4 Soph Tristian Crawford from Steelton (Steelton-Highsphire) PA, 6'2 Soph Anthony Farmer from Richland (St. Augustine) NJ, 6'5 Soph  Ryan Ayers form Ft. Washington (Germantown Acacemy) PA, and 6'5 Soph Dave Burton from Philadelphia (St. John Neumann) PA account for six of the 10-ranked players in the sophomore class.  The Class of 2005 also has several inside players in 6'9 Soph Kent Tribbett from Chester (H.S.) PA and 6'7 Soph Brian Grimes from Philadelphia (Germantown Academy) PA and a pair of point guards in 5'10 Soph Paul Gause from Pittsgrove (Arthur P. Schalcik) NJ and 6'0 Soph Tremaine Hawthorne from Steelton (Steelton-Highsphire) PA, all of whom have mid-to-high potential.  But the class lacks depth and, if the rumors are true about Goodrich transferring to from Philadelphia (Lutheran) PA to Virginia Beach (Coastal Christian) VA, then it might be tough to replace both his size and potential.  The top three freshmen - 6'4 Frosh Gerald Henderson from Merion Station (Episcopoal Academy) PA, 6'3 Frosh Wayne Ellington from Birdsboro (Daniel Boone) PA, and 6'3 Frosh Earl Pettis from Philadelphia (St. John Neumann) PA are all multi-dimensional athletes with high basketball IQ's.  As a matter of fact, Henderson's father, Gerald Henderson Sr, was a point guard for the Philadelphia 76ers.  Henderson, who plays the two, three, and four spots, can post-up, but he's better facing the basket, where he can shoot the three, put it on the floor, and make plays.  Ellington can play the one, two, or the three spot, as is evident by the way he passes, shoots, and beats you with his mid-range game.  Pettis is a born scorer who thrives at going to the basket and getting to the foul line.  However, he didn't play on the varsity this year, because he's had to spend extra time getting his academics into order.