HOT RECRUITING INFORMATION  

FOR THE MONTH OF NOVEMBER 2000

Hot Recruiting Information available for previous months June 1998 July 1998 August 1998 September 1998 October 1998 November 1998 December 1998 January 1999 February 1999 March 1999 April 1999 May 1999 June 1999 July 1999 August 1999 September 1999 October 1999 November 1999 December 1999 January 2000 February 2000 March 2000 April 2000 May 2000 June 2000 July 2000 August 2000 September 2000 October 2000 November 2000

Thursday, November 30, 2000

Tonight I will be the guest of All Star Sports Report at 9:00 PM EST in their online chat and if you want to put me on the spot, talk recruiting, or just see what everybody else has to say, I encourage you to be there.   Last night we provided a list of all the big guys who are still available in the Members Section, but today we've been told by Chris Monter, who is the Editor and Publisher of the Monter Draft News, that 7'0 Brandon Heemskerk from Grand Rapids (Christian) MI has signed with Bradley and that has been confirmed by our Michigan Editor Steve Bell.  We also are getting reports that Iowa has gotten an early verbal commitment from 6'7 Jr Greg Brunner from Charles City (H.S.) IA, who is one of four outstanding players in Iowa's excellent junior class.  We were shocked this afternoon by a phone call from Adam Gorney, who is a student a Penn State, but also promises to be one of the bright young stars in our business (I know first hand, because he helped us last summer at the adidas ABCD Camp).  Believe it our not Wisconsin head coach Dick Bennett has announced that he is retiring effective immediately.  This comes on the heels of last night's big win against Maryland.  The word we're getting is that Bennett, who widely regarded as one of the best bench coaches in the business, has health problems and, as a result, just didn't feel like he was up to the task any more.  The first obvious choice for the job is former IU head coach Bob Knight.  And he's available, but a lot of people in Wisconsin might rather have the other top notch Indiana coach who just happens to be Bennett's daughter.  In case you don't know, Kathi Bennett, who previously was the coach at Evansville, is now in her first year as the head women's coach at IU.  The second name that come to mind is Utah head coach Rick Majerus.  He's from Wisconson, all his family still lives in Wisconsin, he's always wanted to coach in the Big-10, and he loves the beer and food that are characteristic of that part of the country.  However, he currently is out with his own health problems until January (he recently had knee surgery and, as a result, Dick Huntsinger is currently coaching the team).  So our guess is that Bennett's son, Tony Bennett, who is currently an assistant coach for the Badgers, will get the job, at least on an interim basis.  Sure it's kind of like when Dean Smith retired and Bill Guthridge got the North Carolina job four years ago, but it doesn't matter.  As a matter of fact, our prediction is that the younger Bennett will sooner or later be made permanent head coach, because he's one of the bright young coaches in the business and he's got a great advisor (his father) to fall back on.  Well, it looks like all our speculation yesterday about who might take over for Bennett was wrong.  Instead, they quickly named assistant Wisconsin assistant coach Brad Soderberg interim head coach. 

I want to clear something up.  Bobby Jacobs, the Executive Director of Slam Dunk to the Beach, has quoted me saying that his tournament will have more McDonald's All-American's than the McDonald's All-American Game will have next March.  Actually that's somewhat of an exaggeration, so let's go down the list.  First, we'll start with big first round match-up between 6’9 Ousmane Cisse from Montgomery (St. Jude) AL and 7’0 Tyson Chandler from Compton (Dominguez) CA, which is being billed as the "War on the Shore," but actually might be the biggest rematch since the Muhammed Ali-Joe Frazer fight in 70's.  Remember, (Cisse destroyed Chandler at the NIKE All-American Camp last summer. Other guaranteed locks to make the McDonald’s All-American Game next March are 5’11 Terrance Ford from Sugar Land (Willowridge) TX, 6’1 Maurice Williams from Jackson (Murrah) MS, 6’6 Josh Childress from Lakewood (Mayfair) TX, and 6’9 Jawad Williams from Lakewood (St. Edward) OH.  Add Duke-bound 6’3 Daniel Ewing from Sugar Land (Willowridge) TX, who ranks #23 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, and we’re talking about seven of the top 23 players in the nation participating at Slam Dunk to the Beach.  And of course, there are Seton Hall-bound 6’5 John Allen from Coatesville (H.S.) PA and 6’2 Melvin Scott from Baltimore (Southern) MD, who ranks among the USA Today’s Pre-Season Top 25 Nationally.  The tournament also features a plethora of great young players.  In the junior class we’re talking about 6’9 Jr Sheldon Williams from Midwest City (H.S.) OK, 6’6 Jr Matt Walsh from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA, 5’10 Jr Elijah Ingram from Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ, 6’5 Carmelo Anthony from Baltimore (Southern) MD, and 6’4 Jr Wayne Arnold from Lilburn (Berkmar) GA.  And we hear the sky is the limit for the 6’11 kid from Eastern Europe - Pero Antic, who showed up this fall at Washington (Archbishop Carroll) DC.  The top sophomores include 6’10 Soph Grant Billmeir from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 7’2 Soph Sagari Allegne from New York (Rice) NY, 5’10 Soph Michael Nardi from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, and 6’3 Soph Dominic Lewis from New York (Rice) NY.  And if that weren’t enough, Jacobs also has lined up 5’10 Frosh Sebastian Telfair from Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY, who ranks as the #1 freshman in the nation by the HOOP SCOOP.  So if you include all the great underclassmen, Slam Dunk to the Beach this year will featured 20 likely future McDonald's All-American's, which is short of the 24 players who will be selected to the McDonald's All-American Team.   But you get the idea....   So now the only question is what will Jacobs do for an encore next year?  I’m glad you asked that question, because he’s already lined up 6'6 Soph LeBron James from Akron (St. Vincent-St. Mary's) OH, who is the consensus #1 sophomore in the nation, 7'0 Soph Jermaine Bell from Rochester (Ben Franklin) NY, 6'2 Jr Gerry McNamara from Scranton (Bishop Hannan) PA, 6'4 Jr J.J. Redick from Roanoke (Cave Springs) VA, 6’3 Jr Bracy Wright from The Colony (H.S.) TX, 6'9 Jr DeAngelo Collins from Inglewood (H.S.) CA, 6'2 Jr Robert Hite from Cincinnati (Winton Woods) OH, 6'7 Soph Omari Isreal from Wheaton (Good Counsel) MD, and 6'7 Jr Mike Burditt from New Orleans (John Ehret) LA.   Plus, he's got Williams, Telfair, Allegne, Billmeir, Nardi, Ingram, Walsh, and Lewis all back for a second consecutive year, as well as the loaded Westchester team from Los Angeles, CA and Potomac (Bullis School) MD.  In other words, Jacobs really may have more McDonald's All-American's than the McDonald's All-American Game in 2001, but the icing on the cake came late last night when Jacobs got a commitment from Los Angeles (Fairfax) CA, which features 6’7 Jr Evan Burns, who ranks as one of the three leading candidates for the top junior in the class nationally, as well as the co-#1 player regardless of class in Southern California, along with Chandler.  

Wednesday, November 29, 2000

We're not even into the month of December and already the number of coaching rumors that are circulating are rampant.  The strongest rumor right now is Boston Celtics head coach Rick Pitino to Indiana, but Kentucky, UCLA, and Michigan are also being prominently mentioned.  If Pitino jumps, we hear that St. John's head coach Mike Jarvis will go hard after the Celtics job.   Remember, he's originally from Boston having coached Patrick Ewing in high school and later was the head coach at Boston University.  And the Boston Celtics job may not be the only big time job that is open next spring.  As a matter of fact, they all might be open, because Boston College head coach Al Skinner, Rhode Island head coach Jerry DeGregorio, Providence head coach Tim Welsh, and Massachusetts head coach James "Bruiser' Flint all could be on the hot seat if they don't win enough games this winter.  Especially noteworthy is UMass' loss the other night to Holy Cross, because this firmly establishes Crusaders head coach Ralph Willard as one of the leading candidates for any job that opens in New England.  Actually, he would have a great shot at either Massachusetts or Providence, because Pitino, who is one of Willard's best friends, will have a lot influence upon who gets hired at both places.  And how about George Washington's Tom Penders to Rhode Island, if DeGregorio doesn't improve dramatically upon last year's 5-25 record, and Quinnipiac head coach Joe DeSantis to Duquesne?  Remember, DeSantis was once an assistant coach at Duquesne.  We've also heard Hofstra head coach Jay Wright's name mentioned with Penn State, but we'd be surprised if that happens.  Instead, we think Wright, former Georgia Tech head coach Bobby Cremins and former Seton Hall head coach P.J. Carlesimo will all go hard after St. John's, if Jarvis leaves for the Celtics. In other parts of the nation, we're hearing that former Indiana head coach Bob Knight may surface at Florida State or Clemson.  But we'd be surprised if Knight landed at Clemson, because current Tigers head coach Larry Shyatt appears to be on the verge of turning that program around in a big way.  We continue to hear Seton Hall head coach Tommy Amaker mentioned for Michigan, which could come open, if the Wolverine lose many more to teams like Oakland.  We also hear that St. Louis head coach Lorenzo Romar is in line for the University of Washington job if Bob Bender doesn't survive long enough to take bare the fruits of their current successful recruiting class and the Tubby Smith rumor to the NBA is still alive and well, especially after Kentucky's slow start (three loses in their first four games).

We may pick up a few more junior college signings, but it would be a major surprise if any of the top high school seniors showed up within the next week or two on somebody's list of commitments.  So now looks like a good time to go down the list and see who is left.  At the top of the list is 6'9 Ousmane Cisse from Montgomery (St. Jude) AL, who ranks #2 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP.   Also still unsigned and/or uncommitted and ranked among our top 25 nationally are 7'0 Tyson Chandler from Compton (Dominguez) CA, 7'0 DeSagana Diop from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'11 David Harrison from Brentwood (Academy) TN, and 6'0 Charles Frederick from Boca Raton (H.S.) FL.   Two more players who rank in the 26-50 range are also still available in 6'9 Terry Licorish from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC and 6'7 Vytas Danelius from Indianapolis (Park Tudor) IN.  And four players - 6'10 Tony Key, who is now at Compton (Centennial) CA, 6'5 Greg Tinch from Albany (Westover) GA, 6'4 Marcus Spears from Baton Rouge (Southern Lab) LA, and 6'9 Brandon Bender from Louisville (Ballard) KY - in the 51-60 range are still on the board.  Then, there is a drop to 6'6 Ali Bierdiel from Gary (Andrean) IN, who is ranked #74 nationally, and another drop to 6'5 Antonio Hudson from Grambling (Lab) LA, who is ranked #95 nationally.  But that's it!  Only 13 players who are ranked among our top 100 nationally are still available.   That's 87% of the top 100 that signed during the early signing period, which proves our point about the recruiting process being speeded up more than ever.  Going a little deeper, three more players - 6'7 Chris Williams from Cedar Hill (H.S.) TX, 6'1 Adam Chiles from Louisville (Ballard) KY, and 6'4 Joshua Chambers from Homestead (Berkshire) FL - ranked among our top 125 nationally are still available.  Next is 6'7 Nick DeWitz from Mesa (Dobson) AZ, who is ranked #126, followed by 6'6 Michael Collins from Commerce (H.S.) GA, 6'4 Vincent Grier from Charlotte (South Mecklenburg) NC, 6'3 Mario Jointer from Jackson (Jim Hill) MS, 6'2 Kahleaf Watson from Dyke (Blue Ridge School) VA, 6'6 Darrio Scott from Lynchburg (Episcopal) VA, 6'8 Nehimiah Ingram from Milledgeville (Baldwin) GA, and 6'5 Kelvin Brown from Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL, all of whom are ranked in the 126-150 range nationally, but who in a normal year would get top 100 consideration.  Yes, the class is that deep!  Also still available among our top 200 are 6'5 Aaron Patterson from Indianapolis (Warren Central) IN, 5'11 Rodney Billups from Denver (George Washington) CO, 6'9 Emeka Okafor from Houston (Bellaire) TX, 6'9 DeMarshay Johnson from Oakland (Tech) CA, 6'3 Alexander Harper from Columbia (Keenan) SC, 6'4 Cody Pearson from Sherman Oaks (Notre Dame) CA, 6'1 Patrick Sparks from Greenville (Muhlenberg North) KY, 6'4 David Teague from Indianapolis (Pike) IN, 6'5 Larry O'Bannon from Louisville (Male) KY, 6'8 Doug Thomas from Inglewood (H.S.) CA, 6'6 Cortez Davis from Ft. Washington (Friendly) MD, and 6'3 Ralfeal Golden from Memphis (Trezevant) TN.  That brings the number of players who are still available that are ranked among our top 200 nationally to 36, which means only about 16.5% of the top 200 players in the Class of 2000 are available upon completion of the Fall Signing Period.  Also very interesting is the fact that there seems to be more and more of a premium on size.  So let's go down the list of power forwards and centers and see who is still available.  Again we start with Cisse, followed by Chandler, Diop, and Harrison.  But let's face it, all these guys already have their list narrowed down and/or they will likely put their name into the NBA draft next spring.  Next are Licorish and Key, but their academic situations are questionable.  So that leaves Bender as the only inside player ranked among the top 100 nationally that somebody might still be able to get involved with and steal during the winter.  Next are Williams, Ingram, and Okafor, all of whom rank in the 100-150 range, but who are good enough to step in and contribute right away at the high Division I level.  So is Patterson, but his lack of height and perimeter skills make him lock for the right mid-major program.  Johnson has the talent, but he's too soft.  So does Thomas, but his grades appear to be a major question mark.  In other words, the pickings appear to be slim.  But not so fast!  Our Michigan Editor Steve Bell surprised us last week on his latest report with his ranking of 7'0 Brandon Heemskerk from Grand Rapids (Christian) MI, who ranks #6 in the senior class in Michigan, 6'10 Nathan Loehrke from Mattawan (H.S.) MI, who ranks #10 in the senior class in Michigan, and 6'10 Justin Ockerman from Garden City (H.S.) MI, who ranks #15 in the senior class in Michigan.  This is important, because these rankings came out after we last revised our national top 200 senior list.  In other words, Heemskerk belongs among our top 125 nationally, while Loehrke should be in the top 150-200 range, and Heemskerk would rank in the 200-300 range.  Also in the same 150-300 range and still available are 6'10 Donald Pierre from Compton (Centennial) CA, 6'6 Tyree Spinner from Fairfax (Paul VI) VA, 6'8 Gavin Ludgood from Clarksville (H.S.) AR, 6'8 Brian Thornton from Louisville (Manual) KY, 6'7 Jamal Nichols from Philadelphia (Ben Franklin) PA, 6'10 Daryl Jacobs from Buffalo (Traditional) NY, 6'7 John Myles from Columbus (East) OH, and 6'8 Wayne Powell from Alexandria (Peabody Magnet) LA.  I'm sure there are others, but either I don't think they're good enough to mention among the top 300 nationally or they are too far below the radar screen to know about yet.  Other ways to go are the prep school and/or junior college route, but junior colleges are not our area of expertise and we won't do a thorough job of researching the prep school players until January or February. 

Tuesday, November 28, 2000

Reggie Tisdale, the Editor & Publisher of Indiana Basketball News, and Jim Kasberg, the Indiana Editor of the HOOP SCOOP, both are confirming what appears to be the earliest verbal commitments ever recorded.  Neither has ever played a high school game, but last night 6'4 Frosh Robert Vaden from Indianapolis (Cathedral) IN, who ranks as the #1 freshman in the state of Indiana, as well as a top five freshman nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, and 5'10 Frosh Desmond Gadis from Indianapolis (Cathedral) IN, who ranks as the #5 freshman in Indiana by Kasberg, both made early verbal commitments to Purdue University.  This comes as no surprise, because there are a lot of connections.  Gadis' uncle Mack Gadis, who graduated from Indianapolis (Pike) IN in 1982, was the starting point guard for Purdue in the mid-1980's.  Gadis' father Dave Gadis, who graduated from Indianapolis (Pike) IN is 1981, was also named to the Indiana All-Star team, but he played his college basketball at SMU.  And it gets even more interesting when you find out that the Gadis' father adopted Vaden three years ago and, as a result, Gadis and Vaden are like brothers.  Unfortunately Vaden had a terrible home life at a younger age while growing up in inner city Indianapolis, IN, but thanks to the Gadis' he now combines his inner city toughness with a middle suburban homelife.  How good is Vaden right now?   A year ago Kasberg had him touted as the best 8th grader he's ever seen.   "Vaden is 6'5 wing forward who at 15 years old is already physically like a man," says Kasberg.  "He also has the skills, leadership, and maturity of a senior in high school.  Cathedral may not have the senior leadership necessary to win the Indiana State Championship, but Vaden may be the first player since Damon Bailey with the maturity beyond his years necessary to get the job done as a   freshman (Bailey led his team to the state final four in the state as a freshman and sophomore and the state championship as a senior)".  How good can Vaden become?  He promises to be the best player Boilermakers head coach Gene Keady has landed at Purdue since Glenn Robinson and, as a result, you can rest assured that Keady, who already ranks #22 on our win list for active college coaches, won't be thinking about retiring any time soon.  As a matter of fact, it just might be poetic justice.  Sure Keady was just as competitive as former Indiana head coach Bob Knight on the sidelines, but off the court Keady has always been a class act.   He's also one of the best coaches in the history of the game, despite the fact that he doesn't have a NCAA Final Four or Championship on his resume'.  However, these two commitments may change that.  Not only will the Purdue coaching staff be able to sell Vaden and Gadis as part of the Boilermakers' bright future during each of the next three years, but it also is huge in terms of perception.  Only the elite programs and/or programs that have great continuity can get players to commit years in advance and/or own their own backyard (i.e Indiana University in the '70s and '80s).  Obviously Vaden is the franchise-like player, but Gadis also is a potential star at the college level.   "Gadis is a pencil thin 6'0 combo guard who can flat out shoot the lights out," says Kasberg.  "But down the road he'll develop into a dangerous point guard, because he's also got great skills and savvy."  No wonder Purdue offered both players earlier this week.  Actually they were just trying to keep up with Notre Dame and Iowa, both of which also recently offered both players scholarships.   The earliest other commitments we can ever remember are 6'9 Soph Kenneth Harris from Hammond (Bishop Noll) IN, who announced for Valparaiso last spring, and Dean Oliver  and Ricky Davis, both of whom committed to Iowa before their sophomore season's seven years ago. 

The headline on the front page of the sports section in the Louisville Courier-Journal this morning read "Laseage sues NCAA over eligibility."  If you will recall, recently the NCAA ruled 7'0 Muhammed Lasege ineligible to play college basketball, because he violated the NCAA rules for amateurism by signing a $9,000 contract with a Russian team in April 1998.  The article says that an attorney, James Milliman, has agreed to take the case pro bono and that a hearing has been scheduled for December 7 at 10:30 AM before Judge James M. Shake. "In his lawsuit, which was filed yesterday in Jefferson Circuit Court, he alleges the NCAA acted 'arbitrarily capriciously, in bad faith and in an unreasonable manner' earlier this month when it declared him permanently ineligible..."  Even more interesting are the facts that a temporary injunction is being sought to allow Lasege to play immediately and that the University of Louisville is not involved in the lawsuit.  Let's say that Judge Shake grants the temporary injunction.  If you're Louisville athletic director Tom Jurich and/or head coach Denny Crum, do you risk letting Lasege play, knowing that if Lasege eventually loses the lawsuit, you run the risk of the NCAA forcing you to forfeit all the games in which Lasege participates in, as well as return any money earned from participation in the NCAA Tournament? The newspaper also says that Milliman cites several recent cases, whereby, athletes have received extra benefits, but retained their eligibility.  They include Michigan's Jamal Crawford, UCLA's Jaron Rush, and LSU's Lester Earl.  However, none of these players signed a professional contract and/or received compensation for food, clothing, and travel, which is why Lasege's situation is a lot different.  Instead, it is very similar to the case a year-and-a-half-ago involving 7'3 Aleksander Radojevic, who had signed with Ohio State, but who had briefly played professionally in Europe.  Radojevic promised his father that he would graduate from college a short time before his father died.  He was also willing to sit out an entire season and return all compensation that he'd received as a pro.   However, just like with Lasege, the NCAA ruled against him.  In otherwords, the precedent is clear and if they rule in favor of Lasege, they would open themselves up to all kinds of legal problems from Radojevic.  Which brings us to the two real points of all this.  First, the NCAA needs to get rid of this stupid rule involving amateurism.  If you a music student or a theater major gets paid for performing on television or in the movies while in high school or college, nobody would say a word.    They would still be able to get a college scholarship and all kinds of other benefits and endorsements that aren't available to student-athletes.  However, the NCAA has a monopoly and their number one concern is perpetuating their control over the member institutions and their student-athletes.  Unfortunately they don't get it, as is evident by the fact that every rule they seem to pass helps speed up the flood of players departing early for the NBA.  In Radojevic's case that's exactly what happened.  But in Lasege's case, he's not good enough to go to the NBA.  And that brings us to our second point.  There is this big misconception that Lasege is the answer to Louisville's current inside needs.  As a matter of fact, the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook said "Lasege draws comparison to Hakeem Olajuwon."  Well, they're both black, they're both tall, and they're both from Africa, but after that, the comparison stop.  In other words, Lasege is product of a great overhype job.  Sure he's 7-feet and he may develop down the road, but his most valuable asset right now is that he's the perfect public relations tool for Crum, who is in the process of going through what may be a tough rebuilding year.   Let's say Louisville only wins a 12 or 15 games this year without Lasege.  It would be easy to convince the fans that his presence alone inside would have been enough to get Louisville 15 to 20 wins and possibily make Louisville an NCAA Tournament team.   However, with Lasege actually in the lineup, that wouldn't sell, because then everybody would know that he's not any better than Haji Turner and Joseph N'Sima, who are only adequate at best inside.  Instead, the answer to Louisville's inside needs is 6'9 Ousmane Cisse from Montgomery (St. Jude) AL, who ranks #2 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP.  If you will recall, the Cardinals have been the heavy favorite for Cisse ever since they signed his older brother Daouda Cisse last spring.  Speaking of Cisse, he had a triple-double last night, he scored 40 points, grabbed 19 rebounds, and rejected a dozen shots.

As you can probably tell I've been working night and day on our college basketball section during much of the last week and I am pleased to report that another major project is finally out of the way.  No, it doesn't have any pictures or a slick cover like most of the pre-season college yearbooks, but I think we provide some very useful information and insight that you won't get anywhere else.  Let's start with our 2000-2001 Pre-Season College Basketball Ranking Comparisons, which reveals a very interesting trend among most the pre-season scribes and rankings.   Everybody seems to have a herd mentality.  This becomes especially evident when we look at nine different pre-season polls - ours, the Associated Press, the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook, the Blue Ribbon Yearbook, USA Today/ESPN, Sports Illustrated, the United States Basketball Writer's Association, ESPN's Dick Vitale Yearbook, and Basketball Times.   With the exception of Basketball Times and the HOOP SCOOP, every one of those polls had Duke and Arizona ranked #1 and/or #2 in the nation.  Like they say, no guts no glory, but it's more than that.  All the pre-season yearbooks seem to look alike.  The pictures and the color are nice, but most are lacking the type of meat and potatoes that the serious basketball is willing to spend cold cash to purchase.   They're often put together by people who apparently know nothing about basketball and in many cases they are already seriously out of date by the time we get them in hand.   The Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook, which I use on a regular basis, is a good example, because they still have Bob Knight listed as the head coach at Indiana.  But that's only minor compared to one pre-season yearbook which had a player who graduated two years ago on its cover.  The Street & Smith Yearbook seems to get worse and worse every year and even the Blue Ribbon Yearbook, which is still the best pre-season magazine available, has dropped their high school section, which was always one of the highlights of the book.  We point all this out, because our willingness to wait until late October to release our Exclusive 2000-2001 Pre-Season Rankings of the Top 40 College Basketball Teams and late November to release our 2000-2001 Pre-Season College All-American Teams gives us a huge advantage.   So does our insight and perspective, which spans a period of 17 years as editor and publisher of the HOOP SCOOP and as a fan most of my life, as is evident by the fact that I've been to every NCAA Final Four since 1973.  As a result, our page that includes NCAA Tournament Information (Past, Present, & Future) provides excellent reference material and I am particularly facinated by the pages we published yesterday and the day before - Career Coaching Records and Ranking by Number of Wins for All Division I Head Coaches and Tracking the Top Division I Head Coaches (Both Active and All Time).

Monday, November 27, 2000

We are now getting reports that 7'0 Chris Charles from Milford (Academy) CT has verbally committed to Seton Hall and we find this particularly interesting, because this might be the perfect fit.  No, Charles isn't ready for prime time in the tough Big East Conference, but he did show signs of becoming more aggressive inside this fall and, as a result, is starting to shed the soft big man tag.  However, he still needs time to get bigger and stronger and continue to develop his offensive post moves.  Assuming that 6'11 Samuel Dalembert doesn't do something stupid, like go hardship after the current season, Charels will get that chance every day in practice a year from against two outstanding big guys in Dalembert and 6'9 Eddie Griffin.  With that in mind, it's funny sometimes how these things turn out.  Instead of getting a defensive stopper in 6'5 Greg Tinch from Albany (Westover) GA, who committed to Seton Hall in late August, but later reneged on the Pirates, it looks like head coach Tommy Amaker now has another shot blocking athlete with a tremendous upside.  And the University of Michigan, which also recently appeared to be close to getting a commitment from Charles, didn't waste their last remaining scholarship on a player who isn't ready to step in and make an immediate impact inside.  With terrific young players, like LaVell Blanchard, Bernard Robinson, Gavin Groninger, Avery Queen, and Maurice Searight already in the program and more help on the way in the current recruiting class with the addition of 6'2 Domminac Ingerson from Santa Barbara and 6'5 JaQuan Hart from Flint (Northern) MI, plus 6'5 Jr Lester Abrams from Pontiac (Northern) MI already verbally committed in next year's recruiting class, the only piece to the puzzle still missing is another big man to complement 7'0 Josh Moore in the trenches.  So with only one scholarship remaining, Charles obviously wasn't the short term answer for the Wolverines.  Sure, the were smart to take a close look, because 7-footers are always intriguing.  However, in the end the smart move for Michigan would be to sign somebody who can make an immediate impact inside a year from now and, if one can't be found, save the scholarship until next year. 

Greg Swaim, the Editor & Publisher of GregSwaim.com, tells us that the inquiry sign is up on 6'5 Antonio Falu from San Jacinto (JC) TX, who recently signed a National Letter-of-Intent with Valparaiso.  Yes, Falu did sign a letter and he did return it that same day via fax to the Valpo basketball office.   However, Swaim tells us that Falu his since changed his mind and, as a result, never mailed the original of the National Letter-of-Intent to Valparaiso.  This is important, because the school has 21 days to turn the hard copy of National Letter-of-Intent into the NCAA.  If that does not happen, it is not binding.  Swaim tells us that faxed letter-of-intent does allow the school and/or the coach to publicly comment on the signing of a player, but eventually it needs to get a hard copy of the letter-of-intent to make it all nice and legal.  Once that happens, if a player decides to transfer, NCAA rules dictate that a player has to sit out one year, if the school releases him, and two years, if the school doesn't release him.  In this case, it appears that Valparaiso doesn't want to give Falu his release, but if they don't have the originally copy of the signed National Letter-of-Intent, it doesn't matter.   Assuming that what Falu is telling Swaim is correct, he would be free to sign with any school in the nation, but he will now have to wait until the beginning of the Spring Signing Period, which is the second Wednesday in April, to do it.  And assuming that this indeed is the story, the two schools that are most likely to get Falu appear to be Oklahoma State and Texsas Christian.  However, with Falu, really anything could happen.   If you will recall, two years ago he teased Louisville for months, as he made former assistant coach Jerry Eaves think he was on the verge of making a verbal commitment to the Cardinals.  Then, he did verbally commit to Alabama, but instead of getting a player, all Crimson Tide head coach Mark Gottfried got was an inquiry by the NCAA.  Later Falu signed with Houston, but failed to make it academically.  Earlier in Falu's career there are reports that he played a year under an assumed name and all this appears to be just be the tip of the iceberg.  In other words, we won't believe anything this guyssays until he shows up in uniform and eligible at a four-year school.  Swaim also tells us that Falu isn't the only player who has faxed National Letter-of-Intents out there that aren't binding.  Apparently 6'5 Antonio Hudson from Grambling (Lab) LA signed and faxed letters-of-intent to five different schools, including LSU and Oklahoma State.  But as it stands now none of the schools have publicly announced Hudson's signing, so currently he is still listed as one of the 13 players who rank among our top 100 nationally who is still listed as unsigned and uncommitted.  As for Falu, we will continue to list him as committed to Valparaiso, until we officially hear otherwise.

The 2000-2001 College Basketball Season offers Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski, Arizona head coach Lute Olson, and Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo a chance to individually and/or collectively rewrite a number of very important records.  Let's start with the list of Active NCAA Final Four Head Coaches.  If Krzyzewski guides Duke to the NCAA Final Four, as expected, it would mark his 9th appearance in the Final Four.  Not only would this keep him in a class by himself, but it also increase his lead among active head coaches ahead of Louisville's Denny Crum, who is second on the list with six Final Four appearances, and Olson, who is tied for third, along with Fresno State's Jerry Tarkanian, on the list with four Final Four appearances.  Izzo is currently tied with Kansas' Roy Williams, Syracuse's Jim Boeheim, and Oklahoma State's Eddie Sutton with two Final Four appearances, but if his Spartans get back to the Final Four for a third straight season, he would move into a tie for 5th on our list of Final Four appearances, along with Arkansas' Nolan Richardson and San Diego State's Steve Fisher.  That would put Izzo in pretty fast company (Krzyzewski, Crum, Olson, Tarkanian, Richardson, and Fisher) among active coaches with the most Final Four appearances, especially when you consider that he's only in his 6th season as a head coach.  Krzyzewski, Olson, and Izzo also all can be found on the list of the Winningest Active Division I Head Coaches by Percentage and 33 wins this season for Olson would move him into a tie with Gene Bartow on the list of the Winningest All Time Division I Head Coaches.  Also an appearance by Arizona in the NCAA Tournament would give Olson 22 consecutive NCAA appearances, which would move him one step closer to Crum, Bob Knight, and Dean Smith, who are the only three coaches ahead of him on the list of Most All Time NCAA Tournament Appearances.  Smith is way out in front on the list of Most All Time NCAA Tournament Wins, but Krzyzewski is now a strong second and Olson is 8th on the list.  Olson also is second on the list for Most All Time Consecutive NCAA Tournaments Appearances with 16.  Krzyzewski is tied for #5 on this list with 11 consecutive appearances, but his streak was broken in 1995.  However, Olson's streak of 16 consecutive years is current.  Everybody knows that John Wooden won 10 NCAA Championships in a dozen years, but only two other head coaches - Adolph Rupp and Bob Knight - have won more than two NCAA Championships.  Krzyzewski has a chance to join them this year, if Duke takes home the championship on Monday, April 2, 2001, in Minneapolis, MN.  And if Arizona or Michigan State wins it all, Olson or Izzo would join an elite group of coaches - Krzyzewski, Crum, Smith, Henry Iba, Ed Jucker, Branch McCracken, and Phil Woolpert, all of whom have each won two NCAA Championships.  A NCAA Championship by Duke would also move Krzyzewski into second on the list of Most All Times Final Four Wins behind Wooden and ahead of Rupp.  Krzyzewski also ranks #3 on the list of Most All Time NCAA Final Four Appearances behind Wooden and Smith.  Olson is tied for 7th on the list of Most All Time NCAA Final Four Appearances, along with Tarkanian, Iba, Rick Pitino, Fred Taylor, Jack Gardner, and Harold Olsen.  All of these charts are available by clicking on Tracking The Top Division I Head Coaches.

Saturday, November 25, 2000, and Sunday, November 26, 2000

Ranking our top 40 pre-season college teams three weeks ago was easy when compared to today's task of deciding upon our pre-season college All-American Teams.  The consensus pre-season College Player-of-the-Year is Duke's 6'8 Shane Battier, but we went with Notre Dame's 6'10 Troy Murphy just to be a little bit different.  Actually we think it's almost too close to call, but down the road we give the edge to Murphy, because he's more capable of putting up prolific numbers and dominating at the highest level.  Also, Murphy doesn't have the tremendous supporting cast that Battier has at Duke.  However, Battier may have the edge off the court, because he's a tremendous person and great student who is frequently compared to Grant Hill.  But that's no knock against Murphy.  As a matter of fact, both are great role models and ambassadors for the game.  In other words, you can't go wrong either way, as both represent much of what is positive about college basketball today.  Rounding out our first team are Maryland's Terence Morris, UCLA's Jason Kapono, and Duke's Jason Williams.  You can get the complete list of eight teams, plus our first and second team all-freshmen teams by clicking on HOOP SCOOP Pre-Season College All-American Teams.   But that's not the only thing we've published today.  We also have made available our annual updated list of the HOOP SCOOP's Exclusive Ranking of Every Current Division I Head Coach Based On Career Wins and the top of the list reads like a Who's Who of the legendary head coaches.  And that's even without Bob Knight, who a year ago ranked #2 on the active most wins list behind Mount Mt. Mary's Jim Phelan.  Now Fresno State's Jerry Tarkanian has moved into the #2 spot, as he edges out Georgia State's Lefty Driesell and New Mexico State's Lou Henson.  Texas Southern's Robert Moreland checks in at #5, followed by four more legends in Louisville's Denny Crum, Oklahoma State's Eddie Sutton, Temple's John Chaney, and Arizona's Lute Olson.  High Point's Jerry Steele is #10 on the list, followed by three more heavy weights in Connecticut's Jim Calhoun, Syracuse's Jim Boeheim, and Duke's Mike Krzyzewski.  Yes, Coach K already ranks #13 on the active win list, but even more incredible is the fact that he has averaged almost 23 wins a season for the last 25 years.  If he continues at that pace for another 14 years, he would move ahead of Dean Smith (879 wins over 36 years) and Adolph Rupp (876 wins over 41 years) as the winningest head coach of all-time.  Krzyzewski may not coach that long, but he won't not need to if he continues to win 25-30 games a year, which is his current pace.   Another head coach who is way ahead of where he should be at this stage in his career is Kansas' Roy Williams.  Can you believe that his 329 wins over 12 years currently ranks him #46 among all active head coaches?   If he continues at his current pace of 27-and-a-half wins a year, Williams would be closing in on Smith's and Rupp's all-time record in about 20 years. 

Thursday, November 23, 2000, and Friday, November 24, 2000

The last several days we've spent a lot of time updating our comprehensive list of recruiting classes for all Division I schools, which you can access by clicking on Commitments.   However, this is still a preliminary list and it won't be finalized for at least another week, because some players who have signed a binding National Letter-of-Intent this fall have slipped through cracks and, as a result, have yet to show up on the our radar screen.  If know of somebody who falls into this category, feel free to call me at 1-(502)-493-0043, fax me me 1-(502) 493-0440, or email me at clark@hoopscooponline.com anytime in the next week.  But you need to do so by next Friday, because that's when I will start finalizing our ranking of the fall recruiting classes and, unlike the Presidential Election, I don't plan on extending the deadline for compiling the results.  Before ranking the top recruiting classes, we assign a rating on a 1-10 scale for each player who has signed with or verbally committed to a particular school. A top five player nationally is worth 10 points, a top 10 player nationally is worth nine points, a player in the 11-40 range nationally is worth eight points, a player in the 41-70 range nationally is worth six points, a player in the 71-100 range nationally is worth four points, a player in the 101-300 range nationally is worth three points, a player in the 301-1000 range nationally is worth two points, and anybody not ranked among the top 1000 gets one point.  Junior college and prep school are factored in as if they were the equivalent of a high school senior.  Sophomores and juniors who have made early commitments also can be found on this list, but they will not be included in our rankings of the top recruiting classes.  With this preliminary list completed we have extended our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To Date to 37 teams, as we find that Louisiana Tech, Baylor, Iowa State, and Purdue all have the 15 points or more necessary to be aded to the list.   We also find that Missouri moves from #6 to #3, because 6'8 Travon Bryant from Pittsfield (Maine Central Institute) ME counts with the current class.  However, he won't count in the final recruiting class rankings next spring, because he is expected to be eligible to play this season with the start of the second semester.  Also already on our list, but making major jumps are Florida International, which appears to have added 6'7 Rafael Luis from Miami (Northwest Christian) FL and LSU with the addition of 6'8 Thomas Davis from Kilgore (JC) TX. 

Wednesday, November 22, 2000

I got several phone calls earlier today from people telling me that this would be the last year that Rick Pitino would be the with the Boston Celtics.  However, I don't think that was the message Pitino was trying to send at a press conference earlier today.  Instead, it appears that he only was trying to motivate his team.  After a loss to the Orlando Magic the last night, he told his players that he will meet with owner Paul Gaston in January and recommend that he hire a new coach at the end of the season, if they didn't provide a better and more consistent effort at the defensive end.  He also pointed out "this is my favorite team I have ever coached, as people.  They're nice guys and we have great chemistry.  So I want them to know right now how important it is that we get this turned around.  But I'm starting to see the danger signs that this won't happen."  He also seemed to rule out the possibility of taking some time off and going into the boardcasting both. "I'm more passionate about coaching than I've even been," said Pitino.  "I'm even more passionate than I was 18 years ago when I was at Boston University.  I still love teaching the game and it's amazing what the pros don't know in terms of fundamentals."  He also went on to mention that he thought the best defensive team in the history of the game was his team, which won the 1996 NCAA Championship at the University of Kentucky.  We continue to hear rumors that Pitino will take the Indiana University job next sprng, but we don't think you can read much of anything into Pitino's future plans right now.   Remember, Pitino's only major flaw is that he's too impulsive.  In other words, even if he'd already decided to take the Indiana job, or any other job for that matter, he'll likely change his mind at least four or five times between now and next spring, as he rides the ups and downs of the current season.  Speaking of the rumor about Pitino becoming the next coach at Indiana, we do have sourses on the inside who tell us there is legitimate interest from both parties.  However, if Indiana really wants Pitino, they had better not mess around too long.  Sure it will take big bucks to lure Pitino back to the college game, but you can bet a number of colleges will be standing in line trying to hire Pitino next spring.  And the University of Kentucky might be right at the top of the list, if Tubby Smith decides to take a NBA job.   Rememeber, first-year Kentucky Athletic Director Larry Ivy is still one of Pitino's best friends and, as a result, if the job opens, he will at least get first right or refusal. 

Tuesday, November 21, 2000

Nobody in the nation covers two states better than Vincent Baldwin and John Stovall, who publish the Michigan and Ohio Prep Spotlight, and Chris Johnson and Steve Bell, who are the Ohio and Michigan Editors of the HOOP SCOOP.  For years now, they have been going head-to-head with their rankings and analysis of basketball in those two states and, as a result, of this friendly, but intense competition, you are the winner.  I also like to think the HOOP SCOOP is the winner, because Johnson is second to none when it comes to gathering information, remembering important details, and providing insight and analysis.  Bell prefers to remain more behind the scenes, but he combines an outstanding writing talent with his tremendous insight and perspective regarding recruiting and the game of basketball.  So with that in mind and the fact that we have a friendly rivalry with Baldwin and Stovall, it seems appropriate to publish our Ohio and Michigan Reports together.  You can get Johnson's report, which includes all-state teams and his commentary on each class in the state, by clicking on Ohio Report.  You can get his rankings, which include his list of the top 120 seniors, top 83 juniors, top 72 sophomores, top 16 freshmen, and top three 8th graders, by clicking on Johnson Ranks 'Em:  The Top Prep Players in Ohio.  You can get Bell's report, which includes his all-state teams and commentary about the best basketball state per capita in the nation, by clicking on Michigan Report.   You also can get his list of the top 100 seniors, top 100 juniors, top 70 sophomores, top 35 freshmen, top dozen 8th graders, top four 7th graders, and top two six graders, by clicking on Bell Ranks 'Em: The Top Prep Players in Michigan.  You also can subscribe to Steve Bell's publication - The Bank, which is exclusively devoted to coverage of high school basketball in the state of Michigan. For more information call 1-(734) 449-5803.

Monday, November 20, 2000

Our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson thinks Louisiana Tech will be one of the biggest sleepers in college basketball this season, but its their future that really has us excited.  Earlier this fall we told you the Bulldogs had landed 6'3 Corey Dean from Ruston (H.S.) LA, 6'2 Bruce Edwards from New Orleans (Carver) LA, 6'2 Michael Wilder from Chipola (JC) FL, and 6'4 Levelle Felton from Chipola (JC) FL and now they've added 6'9 Joe Sykes from Marshalltown (JC) IA.  You remember Sykes!  He was the overrated soft big guy who made an early verbal commitment to the University of Louisville when he was a junior in high school three years ago, but later failed to make it academically and, as a result, went the junior college route.   Well, the word is that he's really improved since high school.  He also plays a lot harder and is a lot more physical at 6'9, 250 lbs..  He visited Kansas State this fall, but turned down taking visits to Tennessee and Nebraska before making it official for Louisiana Tech, which apparently was able to take advantage of the right connections to get Sykes.  Did you know that Sykes lived in Ruston, LA when he was a junior high school?  He also played for Marshalltown Junior College head coach Ryan Swanson, who previously was an assistant coach at Barton County (JC) KS under, you guessed it, current Louisiana Tech assistant coach Steve Forbes.    So assuming that Sykes lives up to the billing, Louisiana Tech should be terrific inside a year from now when they join the Western Athletic Conference.  If you will recall, Louisiana Tech head coach Keith Richard also will have 6'8 Antonio Meeking, who was the Freshman-of-the-Year a year ago in the Sun Belt Conference, and 6'9 Zach Johnson, who sat out last year as a Prop 48 casuality.  And they've also stocked up in the backcourt, which will be necessary, because the Gerrod Henderson, who is leading candidate for Player-of-the-Year honors in the league this year, will graduate after this season.   The best of the bunch is Felton, who has the ability to play point guard, but also puts up prolific numbers.  Wilder, who teams with Felton and 6'6 Janerio Spurlock to form what might be the best backcourt in the junior college ranks, took his game to another level a week ago when he scored 30 points in a head-to-head battle against 6'5 Darmetrius Kilgore from Tyler (JC) TX, who is ranked as the #3 shooting guard by Rick Ball in the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook.  Dean, who is a borderline top 100 high school senior nationally, and Edwards, who was named to the all-tournament at the AAU Super Showcase in Orlando, FL last summer, are both terrific athletes with lots of natural talent and potential. 

Our New England Editor Wayne Simone tells us that 6'7 Ryan Gomes from Waterbury (Wilby) CT, who is currently one of the most under recruited players nationally still available, is making an official visit today to Wichita State.  Gomes will also visit Dayton on November 28th and Providence on the weekend of December 2nd.  Gomes has already improved 100 points on the SAT and, as a result, is very close having the score necesssary to be eligible as a college freshman a year from now.  Simone also tells us that another one of his former players - 6'8 Mike Hayes from Crowley County (JC) KS - is attracting interest from schools like Auburn, LSU, Rutgers, Providence, and Cincinnati.  Our Virginia Editor Tony Squire tells us that Providence, James Madison, Coastal Carolina, and Richmond are all in the hunt for 6'4 Shawn Harris from Ettrick (Matoca) VA.  The list for 6'8 Derek Reid from Richmond (Meadowbrook) VA includes St. Peter's, St. Francis-NY, Coastal Carolina, Richmond, and VCU.  Previously we had reported that George Washington had gotten a commitment from 6'10 Deonte Smith from Petersburg (H.S.) VA, but Squire tells us that he's reneged on the Colonials.  Instead, it looks like Virginia Tech and UNLV are at the top of Smith's list.  Squire also wants us to point out that the dates are set for the Richmond Shoot-out at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, VA, April 14th-15th and Squire's Memorial Day Bash in Richmond, VA, May 25th-27th.  

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Beach Ball Classic in Myrtle Beach, SC and it promises to be second to none, as five teams in the tournament are ranked among the top 12 teams nationally in the Street & Smith Pre-Season Yearbook.  Also in attendance will be six legendary high school coaches in Morgan Wootten of Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, Jack Curran of Briarwood (Archbishop Molloy) NY, Bill Ellerbee of Philadelphia (Simon Gratz) PA, Gary DeCesare of Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, Willie Boston of Albany (Westover) GA, Gary McKnight of Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA.  As a matter of fact, John Rhodes, who is the Executive Director of the Beach Ball Classic, points out this year's field includes the "most recognized group of coaches ever assembled."  The field also features a number of the top players in the nation, including 6'6 Julius Hodge from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'11 Kwame Brown from Brunswick (Glynn Academy) GA, 6'5 Cedric Bozeman from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'11 Jamal Sampson from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'2 Ben Gordon from Mount Vernon (H.S.) NY, 6'9 Brandon Bender from Louisville (Ballard) KY, 6'5 Greg Tinch from Albany (Westover) GA, 6'4 Chris McRae from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'1 Jr Alan Ray from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'10 Jordan Collins from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 6'2 Jr Marshall Strickland from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 6'9 Jr Travis Garrison from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 6'8 Soph Harrison Schaen from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'3 Soph Wesley Washington from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'1 Adam Chiles from Louisville (Ballard) KY, 6'10 Steve Allen from Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL, 6'5 Kelvin Brown from Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL, 5'10 Ricky Phillips from Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL, 6'6 Wendell Gibson from Briarwood (Archbishop Molloy) NY, 6'6 Danny Horace from Cincinnati (Western Hills) OH, 6'5 Darryl Peterson from Cincinnati (Western Hills) OH, 6'6 Pat Carroll from Horsham (Hatboro-Horsham) PA, 6'5 Jr Michael Blackshear from Philadelphia (Simon Gratz) PA, 6'7 Chris Rhodes from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX, 6'3 Stanley Asumnu from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX, and 5'11 Nick D'Antoni from Myrtle Beach (Socastee) SC.  The tournament tips off at the Myrtle Beach Convention Center with Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL versus Philadelphia (Simon Gratz) PA at 3:30 PM, Houston (Westbury Christian) TX versus Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY at 4:45 PM, Briarwood (Archbishop Molloy) NY versus Cincinnati (Western Hills) OH at 6:30 PM, and Brunswick (Glynn Academy) GA versus Myrtle Beach (Socastee) SC at 8:15 PM on Tuesday, December 26th.  Then, the Loser of Game #1 plays the Loser of Game #2 at 1:15 PM on Wednesday, December 27th, followed by Louisville (Ballard) KY versus Albany (Westover) GA at 3:00 PM, Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA versus Myrtle Beach (H.S.) SC at 4:45 PM, Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY versus Horsham (Hatboro-Horsham) PA at 6:30 PM, and Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD versus Latta (H.S.) SC at 8:15 PM.  On Thursday, December 28th, the Consolation Bracket games will be at 10:00 AM, 11:45 AM, and 1:30 PM, followed by Winner's Bracket games at 3:15 PM, 4:45 PM, 6:30 PM, and 8: 15 PM.  And if everything holds true to form in the first round, those winner's bracket game will feature Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL versus Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY, Louisville (Ballard) KY versus Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, Briarwood (Archbishop Molloy) NY versus Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, and Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD versus Brunswick (Glynn Academy) GA.  Next, on Friday, December 29th, games will begin at 11:45 AM, but everybody will have wait until 6:45 PM and 8:15 PM for the two Winner's Bracket Semi-Finals games and it wouldn't surprise us if three New York teams - Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY, Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, and Briarwood (Archbishop Molloy) NY, along with Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, are in the final four.  On the final day, Saturday, December 30th, there will be five games, including a college game between Clemson versus Coastal Carolina at 2:30 PM and the much anticipated championship game at 7:30 PM, which will likely feature Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY versus Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD versus or Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA.  For ticket information call (843) 215-1159, Fax (843) 215-0561, or write 111 Sly Fox Trail, Myrtle Beach, SC 29588.

Saturday, November 18, 2000, and Sunday, November 19, 2000

I got a call Wednesday afternoon from Larry Donald, because he wanted to make arrangements for getting our list of the top recruiting classes from the fall signing by Wednesday, November 22nd, for the next issue of Basketball Times.  He told me that he was looking forward to putting together the next issue during the Thanksgiving Holiday weekend (it's often tough to get anything done during the week in this business because the phone rings all time).  We also talked about our pre-season college rankings (he had Seton Hall ranked #1), the St. John's-Kentucky game, which he'd attended a week ago at Madison Square Garden in New York, and the Presidential election stalemate in Florida.  I wish I also had gotten I chance to tell Donald  how much I thoroughly enjoyed writing for Basketball Times over the years.  As it turns out those are my final memories of one of the true legends in the business.  Donald died Thursday in Pinehurst, NC of an apparent heart attack.  He was 54.  He was honored by the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1998 and was inducted into the U.S. Basketball Writers Association Hall of Fame in 1993.   But even more important, he was a true pioneer in the business.  He was the editor of Basketball Weekly during its heyday in the 70's and in 1980 he bought Basketball Times, which has been in a class by itself for the last 20 years.  Donald wasn't afraid to take on tough issues, (i.e. publishing the Myron Piggie expose', which later led to the book Sole Influence, Basketball, Corporate Greed, and the Corruption of America's Youth by Dan Wetzel and Don Yaeger).  He also was a man of tremendous integrity, fairness, and loyalty, plus he had unique understanding of the business.  As matter of fact, he was one of the first people to really tap into the fascination that fans have with basketball recruiting information. What will happen to Basketball Times is anybody's guess, but that's only a minor detail in the grand scheme of things.  Directly or indirectly Larry Donald has touched all of our lives for a long time.  He was friend, a role model, and somebody with a great love for the game.  Truly this is a tragedy and a time of mourning.  Tomorrow there will be a Memorial Service in Pinehurst, NC at the Village Chapel at 11:00 AM.  Another Memorial Service, which will be followed by the burial, will be held on Wednesday in Grand Rapids, OH (near Toledo, OH) at 11:00 AM.

Last week we gave you a list of school for 6'4 Kevin Gaines, who will be transferring from Michigan upon completion of the current semester.  Well, according to Mitch Mitchell, who was Gaines' coach with the Mad Moves AAU program in Las Vegas, it it official.  Gaines picked the University of Houston over Hofstra, Hawaii, Iowa State, St. John's, Long Beach State, and Fresno State, and Fordham.  The Cougars also signed 6'9 Darrius Brannon from Port Arthur (Lincoln) TX and 6'0 Rick Huckaby from Mexia (H.S.) TX this fall, but when Gaines becomes eligible in the middle of December next year, he will be one of the stars of the team, along with George Williams and Alton Ford.  We're talking about a player who was ranked #11 nationally as a high school senior by the HOOP SCOOP and as a college freshman a year ago at Michigan averaged 11.7 ppg. 3.8 rpg, 4.6 apg, and 1.5 spg.  Gaines also was named the team's best defensive player, as well as the co-MVP, along with LaVell Blanchard.  Mitchell also tells us that Gaines has gotten bigger and stronger, as is evident by the fact that he's gained 20 pounds.  However, the most important thing is that Gaines also appears to be back on track.  "He's focused again," Mitchell.  "Don't worry about.  He'll live up to all the expectations."  And that's a heavy statement, because Gaines is a prolific scorer with great moves, big-time athleticism, and the ability to run the point at 6'4.   His outside shot has also improved.  "It's at least 20% better," says Mitchell.

Friday, November 17, 2000

College coaches and fans alike frequently tell us that the best thing we do is our state-by-state reports and with seven players - 7'0 Tyson Chandler from Compton (Dominguez) CA, 6'5 Josh Childress from Lakewood (Mayfair) CA, 6'7 Dijon Thompson from Redondo Beach (Redondo Union) CA, 6'5 Cedric Bozeman from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'7 Andre Patterson from Los Angeles (Washington) CA, 6'3 Dommanic Ingerson from Santa Barbara, and 6'11 Jamal Sampson from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, who are ranked among the top 30 seniors nationally, there is no doubt that the senior class in California is the best in nation.  With that in mind, our updated California Report, which is being published today exclusively in the Members Section, is one of the most important things we'll publish all year.   It includes our ranking of the top 30 players in the state regardless of  position and class, as well as my comments and observations regarding many of the top players, as well as the senior, junior, and sophomore classes in general.  You will also get the rankings from our West Coast Editor Dinos Trigonis, which includes the top 150 seniors, 120 seniors, 80 sophomores, 20 freshmen, eight 8th graders, and six 7th graders in the state, by clicking on Trigonis Ranks 'Em: The Top Prep Players In California.  Trigonis' top 10 seniors in the state in order include Chandler, Childress, Thompson, Bozeman, Patterson, Ingerson, Sampson, 6'5 Floyd North from San Diego (St. Augustine) CA, 6'6 Jamaal Williams from Corona (Centennial) CA, 6'3 Jason Braxton from Moreno Valley (Canyon Springs) CA.  The top ranked junior in the state is 6'7 Jr Evans Burns from Los Angeles (Fairfax) CA, the top ranked sophomore is 6'8 Soph Harrison Schaen from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, the top ranked freshman is 6'6 Frosh Thomas Herring from Monrovia (H.S.) CA, the top ranked 8th Grader is 5'8 Maurion Henderson from Los Angeles, CA, and the top ranked 7th grader is 5'10 Andre Dunn from Hawthorne, CA.  Editor's Note: Trigonis' ranking are his own and, as a result, they do not correspond exactly with our National Rankings, which can be found by clicking on Top 200 Seniors Nationally. 

The last five players - 6'2 Ryan Sidney from Ann Arbor (Pioneer) MI, 6'7 Andrew Bryant from Denison (H.S.) TX, and 6'1 Ludmil Hadjisotirov from Winchendon (School) MA a year ago and 6'2 Jermaine Watson from Marion (Tabor Academy) MA and 7'1 Kirsten Zoellmer from Hanover, Germany this fall, to sign with Boston College all are expected to help the program.  However, we're not so sure about their latest recruit - 6'6 Craig Smith from Los Angeles (Fairfax) CA, who is ranked #34 in California by Dinos Trigonis.  Still the Boston College coaching staff has a great eye for talent and, as a result, they are in process of building the foundation that will be necessary to win big in the Big East Conference down the road.  We also are getting reports that 6'3 Travis Eisentrout from Berlin (Berlin-Brothers) PA has signed with Liberty.  This is a great move, because Eisentrout had committed earlier this fall to West Virginia, but the Mountaineers appear be on the verge of huge recruiting year and, as a result, they need all the scholarships they can get.  To date West Virginia has signed 6'0 Jonathan Hargett from Ft. Washingoton (National Christian) FL, 6'4 Drew Schifino from North Bridgton (Bridgton Academy) ME, and 6'7 Tyrone Sally from Richmond (Meadowbrook) VA, which puts them in a tie at #22 nationally, along with Ohio State and UNLV, on our of the Top 30 Recruiting Classes To Date.  However, if West Virginia were to get 6'9 Brandon Bender from Louisville (Ballard) KY and 6'10 Tony Key from Compton (Centennial) CA, which won't happen until spring, if it happens at all, the Mountaineers recruiting class would move up to #3 on our list behind Memphis and DePaul and ahead of UCLA.  Speaking of Key, we have confirmed that he has surfaced at Compton (Centennial) CA, but we now believe that USC is the school you have to beat.  As a matter of fact, we hear that USC helped stash Key at Centennial. However, grades are a major question mark with Key, so we suspect that a year or two of junior college and/or prep school will be in his future first.   Getting back to Eisentrout, this was is a great move for him, because he just wasn't good enough to play at West Virginia, as is evident by the fact that we don't rank him among our top 1000 nationally.  The word we get is that West Virginia head coach Gale Catlett called his former assistant Mel Hankinson at Liberty and convinced him to take Eisentrout.

When former University of Kentucky assistant Sean Finney got the Tulane head coaching job in July, he told me that his assistants were going to be young aggressive go-getters who will work their tails off on the recruiting trail.   Well, Finney appears to be true to his word, because that's exactly what his recruiters - Wade O'Connor and Alvin Williamson - have been doing this fall.  As a matter of fact, our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson tells us that 6'6 Jr Leonard Cooke from Old Tappan (H.S.) NJ will be at the Tulane-Nicholls State game tonight while making an unofficial visit to Tulane this weekend.  Speaking of Tulane, 6'2 Ben Benfield signed with the Green Wave earlier this week and now we have confirmed that 6'5 Karl Hollingsworth from Jonesboro (Mt. Zion) GA has followed in his footsteps.  Hollingsworth isn't a great athlete, but he's a great blue collar player with a terrific work ethic, excellent skills, and a terrific upper body, which makes him a great rebounder for his size.   Benfield is a tough hardnosed white kid who can shoot the three, play defense, and go the hole.  As a result, Finney and his staff are off to a  good start, but the key to their future is the fact that they are laying the foundation with the especially strong junior class in Louisiana and the great sophomore class in Mississippi.   As a matter of fact, we hear Tulane already being mentioned with the  two best sophomores in Mississippi - 6'8 Soph Travis Outlaw from Starkville (H.S.) MS and 6'9 Jr Jackie Butler from McComb (H.S.) MS.

Our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson tells us that Penn State has landed 7'0 Jan Jagla, who played at Media (Highland) OH as a sophomore, but returned to finish is high school career in Germany the last two years.   Apparently the Penn State coaches saw Jagla at Five-Star Pitt IV in the all-star game, but at only 220 lbs, he needs to getting bigger and stronger to make a major impact in the Big-10.  Instead, we think the Nittany Lions will get more immediate help out of the other two big men they signed this fall -  6'8 Jason McDougald from Winston-Salem (R.J. Reynolds) NC and 6'10 Kevin Fellows from Meridian (H.S.) ID.  However, like they say, you can't teach 7-feet, which is why Jagla is so intriguing.  Making this recruiting class even more intriguing is the early commitment Penn State got from 6'6 Darren Tielsch from McKees Rocks (Montour) PA.  Johnson also has the scoop on 6'9 Ben Ezi Ndubuisi, who scored 12 points and grabbed eight rebounds in his first junior college game at Southern Idaho (JC) ID last night. 7'0 Uche Okafor added five blocks as Southern Idaho (JC) ID beat Eastern Wyoming (JC) WY, 93-60, in the semi-finals of the K&T Steel Invitational in Twin Falls, ID.  In the other semi-final game Southeastern Iowa (JC) IA beat Howard (JC) TX, 89-71, thanks to a 27 point effort by 6'2 Jabrahn Ike.  However, the big story was the 31 point effort by 6'2 Derrick Tarver for Howard (JC) TX,  who is establishing himself as one of the premier freshmen in the junior college ranks after a two-year lay-off from playing organized basketball.  If you will recall, Tarver's twin-brother, 6'2 Darren Tarver from Wabash Valley (JC) IL, who is the #5 ranked shooting guard by Rick Ball in the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook, has signed with George Mason.

The biggest news of the day involves Alabama's signing of 6'9 Kei Madison from Southern Union (JC) AL, who was ranked as the #1 wing forward in the junior college ranks by Rick Ball in the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook.  We quoted several sources last weekend who thought Alabama was the leader, but the timing of this is especially important for the Crimson Tide, because they have precluded any possibility that Indiana University interim head coach Mike Davis will be able to take advantage of his preexisting relationship with Madison.  If you will recall, Davis signed Madison to a National Letter-of-Intent three years ago at Indiana, but Madison was unable to meet the necessary academic requirements necessary to become eligible by NCAA standards.  So he went to prep school.  Then history repeated itself two years ago, as Madison was academically ineligible again, so Madison went the junior college route.  History may repeat itself with another player who Davis has tremendous ties with in 6'1 Jr Chadd Moore from Huntsville (Lee) AL, who ranks among the top 10 juniors nationally.   Moore has been extremely close to the family for years, but Auburn appears to have the inside track and, as a result, will be extremely tough to beat.  Getting back to Madison's commitment to Alabama, he moves the Crimson Tides' recruiting class up to #11 on our list of the Top 30 Recruiting Classes To Date.  If you will recall, Alabama also has signed 6'3 Earnest Shelton from Memphis (White Station) TN and 6'1 Maurice Williams from Jackson (Murrah) MS.

Thursday, November 16, 2000

Our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson, who reads a number of newspapers around the nation looking for recruiting information, tells us that a lot can change in 24 hours.  If you will recall, yesterday everybody was reporting that Cincinnati had won the battle after all for 6'9 Hiram Fuller from Wabash Valley (JC) IL, who is ranked as the #2 power forward in the junior college ranks by Rick Ball in the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook.   Well, today the Fresno Bee is reporting that Fuller has signed and returned a binding National Letter-of-Intent to Fresno State.  Apparently the reports about Fuller's mother not being willing to co-sign his letter-of-intent for any school except Fresno State were right on the money.  As a matter of fact, like everybody else, Fuller's mother got word yesterday that her son had signed with Cincinnati.   However, unlike a lot of people in this day and age, she was true to her word, as is evident by the fact that she went to the airport, flew to St. Louis, and drove to Mt. Carmel, IL were she met her son at a McDonald's.  Together they signed the National Letter-of-Intent and faxed it to Fresno State.  So it is now official for Fresno State and, as a result, the Bearcats now only have one player in their recruiting class - 6'7 Jason Maxiell from Carrollton (Newman Smith) TX.   Speaking of Cincinnati, wouldn't 6'4 Kevin Gaines, who will be transferring from Michigan upon his completion of the current semester, be a perfect fit for the Bearcats?  Or how about Kentucky, which is still in need of a point guard, as well as prolific scorer?  Another perfect fit would be Florida, because Gaines would thrive in Billy Donovan's uptempo style.  One school Gaines won't be considering is UNLV, because his AAU coach and mentor Mitch Mitchell, who coaches the Mad Moves AAU program and lives in Las Vegas, NV, doesn't see eye-to-eye with current Runnin' Rebels coaching staff and he still has a lot of influence over the Gaines.  Instead, the list Mitchell gave us yesterday included Houston, Hofstra, Hawaii, Iowa State, St. John's, Long Beach State, and Fresno State, and Fordham.  Gaines won't be eligible until December of 2001, but he will have three years to play.

Our International Editor Chris Johnson told us over the weekend that Rhode Island was close to getting commitments from 6'5 Lazare Adingono and 6'9 Olivier Harangar, both from Cameroon.  Well, you can write it down!  However, our comment about about the Rams being done recruiting appears to be wrong, because Adingono and Harangar both are planning on enrolling at Rhode Island and, as a result will be eligible beginning second semester a month from now  Rhode Island head coach Jerry DeGregorio also has landed 7'0 Rudolph Maurcette from Laurinburg (Institute) NC, 6'5 William Gradit from Laurinburg (Institute) NC, and 6'9 Darnell Tyler from Tallahassee (JC) FL and he's hoping to beat Providence, Kansas, State, and St. Bonaventure for 6'9 Hassan Diabi from Monroe (JC) NY.  If that happens, Rhode Island would have one more scholarship to offer next spring.  Johnson also tells us that two weeks ago 6'11 Chris Charles from Milford (Academy) CT eliminated Wisconsin, so they immediately turned their focus onto 6'9 Andreas Helmigk from Klagenfurt, Germany, who has now signed a National Letter-of-Intent with the Badgers.  And in the short term it may turn out for the best, because Helmigk, who is already 21 years old and 230 lbs., is both physical inside and a good enough 3-point shooter to beat you out on the perimeter.  "He's a cross between former Badger Paul Grant and current Badger Andy Kowske," says Johnson.  Johnson also has confirmed that Boston College has gotten its second recruit in 7'1 Kirsten Zoellmer from Hanover, Germany.  Zoellmer, who is a good low post scorer, has good hands and a powerful game inside.  However, he isn't real athletic or quick afoot. 

Wednesday, November 15, 2000

Today is the last day that a player can sign a National Letter-of-Intent during the fall signing period, so it comes as no surprise that 6'9 Isaiah Fox from Santa Monica (Crossroads) CA has signed with Arizona, 6'9 Hiram Fuller from Wabash Valley (JC) IL has made it official for Cincinnati, and 6'2 Ernest Turner from Somerdale (Sterling) NJ picked UNLV over Villanova and Rutgers.  Turner is one of the of the most prolific scorers in the senior class nationally, so he should provide the perfect back court complement to 6'1 Marcus Banks from Dixie (JC) UT, who committed to the Runnin' Rebels earlier this fall. Turner, who ranks #3 in the Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Area by Allen Rubin, as well as #71 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, did not play well last summer at least due in part to the fact that he had very little help on his AAU team.  However, we suspect that he will much better at the next level when he has better players around him and, as a result, won't have to carry the load all by himself.  He'll also get pushed a lot harder day-in and day-out by UNLV head coach Bill Bayno's right hand man Max Good, who is legendary for his tough practices and relentless uptempo style of play.  So will 6'11 Simplece N'Joya from Dobbs Ferry (The Masters) NY, who also committed earlier this fall to the Runnin' Rebels. While none of UNLV's three recruits will be superstars right off the bat, they all have the mental toughness, athleticism, and natural talent that the program needs to make a serious run deep into the NCAA Tournament in another year or two.   We find Fuller's commitment to the University of Cincinnati especially interesting, because his mother earlier had been quoted saying that she won't co-sign the National Letter-of-Intent, if her son picks the Bearcats.  Apparently she wasn't comfortable with head coach Bobby Huggins.  Instead, she was pushing Fresno State, which was the school that stashed Fuller at Wabash Valley in the first place.   Assuming that the Bearcats have overcome this complication, Fuller, who is ranked as the #2 power forward in the Sporting News Pre-Season Basketball Yearbook by Rick Ball, gives the Bearcats their second outstanding inside player in this recruiting class.  If you will recall, earlier this fall they landed 6'7 Jason Maxiell from Carrollton (Newmann Smith) TX, who ranks #25 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP.  As a result, Cincinnati's recruiting class joins UNLV's class on our list of the Top 30 Recruiting Classes To Date.  Currently UNLV's class ranks #21 nationally, tied with both Clemson and Ohio State.   Cincinnnati's class checks in at #27.  Arizona's class moves up to #10 with the addition of 6'9 Isaiah Fox from Santa Monica (Crossroads) CA, who ranks #112 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP.  Obviously Fox isn't as good as 6'11 Rick Rickert from Duluth (East) MN, who reneged on the Wildcats a week ago and then turned around and signed with Minnesota two days ago.  However, Fox is a pretty good consolation prize.  Not only is Fox a terrific blue collar player inside, but he also has the potential to develop into a great player down the road. 

Anybody can and many have started their own web sites and proclaimed themselves to be a "recruiting guru."  However, there are several things that separate us from most of our "so-called" competition.  First, we've survived the test of time - we've been in the business since the summer of 1983.  Second, we offer insight and perspective that you won't find anywhere else.  Sure, our competitors get their share of scoops, but I am told we are second to none in the business for a number of reasons, including our in-depth analysis, insight and perspective, ability to evaluate and rank players, and willingness to tell it like it is.  I guess that's why Dick Weiss of the New York Daily News told me at the NCAA Final Four last March that the HOOP SCOOP Online is the most widely read source of information on a daily basis by the people who count in the business.  As a result, it should come as no surprise that we were correct about the NCAA's ruling today regarding 7'0 Muhamed Lasege, who has been sitting out at the University of Louisville awaiting word regarding his eligibility status since the fall of 1999.  If you will recall, we have maintained ever since Lasege and 6'8 Ben Eze Ndubuisi, who is now in junior college at Southern Idaho (JC) ID, both signed with Louisville in the spring of 1999 that neither would ever play for the Cardinals due to the fact that they had played professionally for a short period of time in Russia prior to coming to Canada and then the United States.   Certainly this was not what the Cardinals coaching staff or Louisville fans wanted to hear, but our credibility was on the line and, as a result, it was important to be right.  All we had to do was look at the NCAA's ruling a-year-and-a-half ago with regards to 7'3 Aleksander Radojevic, who had signed with Ohio State, but who had briefly played professionally in Europe.   Radojevic had promised his father that he would graduate from college before his father died.  So despite his willingness to sit out an entire season, the NCAA ruled against him.  Prior to the Radojevic case, the NCAA had suspended players who had played professionally only for a certain number of games, but the Radojevic ruling established a new precedent and, as a result, a ruling otherwise with Lasege would have opened the NCAA up to possible litigation by Radojevic.  While this is unfortunate for Lasege, it does illustrate many of the things that we mentioned above.  Lasege is an outstanding student and a first class person, but this is not the overwhelming loss that many Louisville fans believe this to be.  Lasege does have the size Louisville needs, but he is a long way away from being good enough to step in and make an impact for the Cardinals this season.  Instead, the player Louisville needs is 6'9 Ousmane Cisse from Montgomery (St. Jude) AL, who had 37 points, 15 rebounds, and 10 assists in his first high school game of the season last night.  Cisse, who is the #2 ranked senior nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, and 6'9 Terry Licorish from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, who hasn't signed, but appears to be close to committing to the Louisville, would give the Cardinals the #1 ranked recruiting class in the nation, as well as put them into serious contention to make a run deep into the NCAA Tournament a year from now.  However, let's say that they strike out with Cisse and Licorish and, instead, get 6'9 Brandon Bender from Louisville (Ballard) KY and 6'8 DeMarshay Johnson from Oakland (Tech) CA both in the spring.   Certainly that would be an improvement over what the Cardinals currently have inside, but.....

Our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson reminds us that Valparaiso University helped set the trend recruiting internationally, as they landed a number of excellent European players, many of whom played important roles on Valparaiso's Sweet 16 NCAA team several years ago. Then, a year ago they turned their focus to Africa when they landed 6'9 Joaquim Gomes from Angola.  And now it looks like they're embarked on yet another new frontier (the Caribbean and South American), because Johnson has confirmed that the Crusaders have signed 6'5 Antonio Falu from San Jacinto (JC) TX, who is a originally from Puerto Rico, and 6'3 Stalin Ortiz from Three Rivers (JC) IA, who is a native of Columbia.  Ortiz, who is averaging 28 ppg and 9 rpg, would rank among the top 100 seniors nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, if he were still in high school, but the real prize is 6'5 Antonio Falu from San Jacinto (JC) TX, who is ranked as the #2 shooting guard by Rick Ball in the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook.  And they aren't done yet recruiting foreign players from the Western Hemisphere, because Valparaiso 6'6 Ali Bierdiel, who ranks #74 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP and is tied as the #1 ranked senior in the state of Indiana, along with 6'7 Vytas Danelius from Indianapolis (Park Tudor) IN and 6'1 Chris Thomas from Indianapolis (Pike) IN, was stashed at Gary (Andrean) IN by the Crusaders.  Gomez and Ortiz alone aren't enough to move Valparaiso onto our list of the Top 30 Recruiting Classes To Date, but the addition of Bierdiel would move them into a tie at #16, along with North Carolina and California.

Who would you rather have 6'10 Steve Allen from Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL or 7'0 Marcus Campbell from Albany (Westover) GA?  This becomes a pertinent question when you find out that Allen signed with Clemson today.  If you will recall, the Tigers got a verbal commitment from Campbell several weeks ago, but then reneged and, instead, signed with Mississippi State.  Allen, who ranks #121 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, is the better player right now, but Campbell, who ranks #165 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, has more potential.  As a result, we think it's a close call, although the deciding factor might be that Allen and 6'9 Sharrod Ford from Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA will likely be the perfect complement for one another.  Allen, who isn't as good  shot blocker as Campbell, but is a better rebounder, has the natural talent, athleticism, and skills necessary to excel in the tough Atlantic Coast Conference.   However,  he hasn't  put the complete package together yet.  Also, he needs to learn to play harder and become more of a killer inside.  In addition to Allen and Ford, Clemson also has landed 6'3 Chey Christie from Biloxi (H.S.) MS, who ranks #37 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, and 6'7 Olu Babalua from Richland (St. Augustine) NJ, who ranks #122 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP.   Collectively they move Clemson's class into a tie, along with N.C. State and Michigan, on our list of the Top 30 Recruiting Classes To Date.  They also move the Tigers class into a tie for second in the ACC, along with N.C. State, behind Virginia and ahead of North Carolina and Georgia Tech, all of whom are ranked among the top 20 recruiting classes. 

Tuesday, November 14, 2000

The high school basketball season is just around the corner and the first important event of the season promises to be the KMOX Shootout at the Savvis Center in St. Louis, MO, December 7th.  The highlight of the day promises to be the last game of the evening at 9:00 PM.  That's when we'll get to see the long awaited matchup between 6'11 Eddy Curry from South Holland (Thornwood) IL and 7'0 Tyson Chandler from Compton (Dominguez) CA, both of whom are candidates for the National Player-of-the-Year honors, as well as likely entries into the NBA draft next spring.  The game at 6:00 PM between Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA and Chicago (Whitney Young) IL also is a must see, because Oak Hill is the consensus #1 ranked team nationally and Whitney Young is listed among everybody's top 20.  As a matter of fact, Whitney Young is hoping to make lightning strike twice.   If you will recall, Chicago (Westinghouse) IL pulled off a major upset by beating Oak Hill in this all-day single-game event a year ago.  Oak Hill features an all-star cast with 7'0 DeSagana Diop, 6'3 Rashaad Carruth, and 6'3 Billy Edelin, while Whitney Young will go to war with 6'4 Ron Howard, 6'0 Chris Hill, and 6'7 Jr Marcus White.   If that weren't enough the 7:30 PM game features 6'8 David Lee from St. Louis (Chaminade) MO, who ranks among our top 10 seniors nationally, versus Centralia (H.S.) IL, which features 6'7 Chris Carter and is widely regarded as the best team from Southern Illinois.  Earlier in the day, it will be Belleville(West) IL versus Hazelwood (Central) IL at 11:45 AM, Pleasant Plains (H.S.) IL versus Columbia (H.S.) IL at 1:45 PM, Mount Zion (H.S.) IL versus Phoenix (St. Mary's) AZ at 2:45 PM, and St. Louis (Beaumont) IL versus Leavenworth (H.S.) KS at 4:30 PM.  Especially noteworthy are 6'10 Channing Frye, 6'1 James Fontenet, and 5'9 Jason Fontenet, all from Phoenix (St. Mary's) AZ, and 6'8 Wayne Simien from Leavenworth (H.S.) KS. 

Rob Matera of the All Star Sports Report tells that 6'8 Greg Johnson from Southern Union (JC) AL has signed a National Letter-of-Intent with Auburn and, as a result, the Tigers recruiting class moves into a tie with UCLA for #3 on our list of the Top 30 Recruiting Classes To Date.  If you recall, earlier this fall Auburn got commitments from 6'5 Dwayne Mitchell from New Orleans (John F. Kennedy) LA and 6'8 Marco Killingsworth from Birmingham (Central Park) AL, plus they also are getting back 6'8 Brandon Robinson from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA. While Robinson will count with Auburn's recruiting class this fall, he may not count next spring, because it appears likely that he will have the necessary score on the SAT to enroll in school in December and, as a result, be eligible to play for Auburn beginning second semester.  Matera also tells us that 6'5 Kelvin Brown from Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL and 6'10 Steve Allen from Ft. Lauderdale (Dillard) FL both will make official visits to Auburn within the immediate future, but the Tigers top priority is 7'0 Uche Okafor from Southern Idaho (JC) ID, who top three now appears to be Auburn, Missouri, and Utah.  Our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson confirms that St. Francis-PA has landed 5'11 Rahsaan Benton from Cleveland (St. Ignatius) OH, Ohio University has signed 6'8 Babo Serge Christian from Indianapolis (Arlington) OH, and Tulane has stolen 6'2 Ben Benfield from River Ridge (John Curtis) LA.

Several people in the Philadelpia area have told me recently that it is almost impossible to get the scoop on our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin.  So it didn't surprise us when Rubin told us that he talked with 6'9 Dwayne Jones from Aston (American Christian) PA earlier tonight and he plans to sign a National Letter-of-Intent with St. Joseph's tomorrow.  However, don't look for a press conference or a lot of hoopla, because Jones is a quiet kid.  As a matter of fact, this might be the closest thing he comes to making an official announcement.  This is a great catch for the Hawks, because Jones has improved dramatically over the last two years, as is evident by the fact that he is ranked as the best shot blocker and best rebounder in the area.   Jones also scores in the low post, runs the court well, and gets more than his share of put backs, but his best days are still ahead of him.  Like St. Joseph's other two signees - 6'4 Delonte West from Greenbelt (Eleanor Roosevelt) MD and 6'6 Pat Carroll from Horsham (Hatboro-Horsham) PA, Jones was one of their prime targets.  Speaking of the players the St. Joseph's coaching staff really wanted, the only player who got away was 6'6 Tamal Forchion from Philadelphia (Roman Catholic) PA, who signed George Washington.  However, Forchion wanted to leave the Philadelphia area, so that really doesn't come as much of a surprise.   In other words, the St. Joseph's coaching staff not only works hard, but, more important, they work smart! 

Monday, November 13, 2000

Last Friday we reported that the Birmingham News had reported that 6'1 Maurice Williams from Jackson (Murrah) MS, who ranks #13 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, had reneged on his commitment to the University of Alabama.  Well, it didn't happen, because he signed with the Crimson Tide yesterday.  Instead, the highest ranked player to verbally commit to one school and then change his mind and pick another school turns out to be 6'11 Rick Rickert from Duluth (East) MN, who ranks #10 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP.   If you will recall, Arizona had been the strong favorite for Rickert since last summer, but apparently in-state pressure got to him in the end.  So did his father, who apparently had a strong desire to see his son stay home.  How big is this for the Golden Gophers?  It's huge, because it moves Minnesota's recruiting class into the #8 spot nationally on our list of the Top 30 Recruiting Classes To Date.  It also gives head coach Dan Monson two outstanding big guys in this recruiting class.  Rickert reminds us in many ways of former Duke All-American Christian Laettner and he has both the talent and the potential to someday be just as good.   Minnesota's other prize recruit - 6'10 Jerry Holman from Minneapolis (JC) MN - is not ranked among this year's top junior college centers by Rick Ball in the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook.  However, he is ranked #3 among last year's junior college centers behind 6'8 Reggie Evans from Coffeyville (JC) KS and 7'0 Ernest Brown from Minneapolis (JC) MN.   Another player who was supposed to have committed last week, but got pressure from his parents to postpone announcing his decision was 6'11 Eddy Curry from South Holland (Thornwood) IL, who ranks #6 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP.   However, Rob Harrington is reporting on PrepStars.com that Curry has signed the National Letter-of-Intent for DePaul.  As a result, we are counting Curry as committed to the Blue Demons, which means their recruiting class moves up to #2 behind Memphis and ahead of UCLA.  But we reserve the right move DePaul back down, if Curry fails to mail the letter to the DePaul basketball office this fall or he decides to put his name into the NBA draft next spring.  We also have moved West Virginia's recruiting class up to #19, because we have gotten confirmation that 6'4 Drew Schifino from North Bridgton (Bridgton Academy) ME, who signed with the Mountaineers last spring, reaffirmed his commitment to West Virginia last week by signing again.  If you wil recall, West Virginia already has gotten commitments from 6'0 Jonathan Hargett from Ft. Washington (National Christian) MD, 6'7 Tyrone Sally from Richmond (Meadowbrook) VA, and 6'3 Travis Eisentrout from Berlin (Berlin-Brothers) PA.  We know that West Virginia head coach Gale Catlett is still actively recruiting 6'9 Brandon Bender from Louisville (Ballard) KY, but we don't expect anything to happen with Bender until spring.  But with Bender, we've learned to expect the unexpected.  If he were to commit to West Virginia tonight, the Mountaineers recruiting class would move up to #5 nationally on our list of the top recruiting classes to date. 

Nobody runs a tournament like Larry McKay, who is the excecutive director the Las Vegas Holiday Prep Classic in Las Vegas, NV, December 18th-21st.  This year the marathon includes a total of 68 teams participating in four different tournaments in four different gyms at two different sites.in a total of 120 games.  And that 120th game, which is scheduled on Thursday, December 21st at 7:00 PM in the Green Valley High School Main Gym, could turn out to be one of the premier matchups of the entire year, if Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, which is ranked pre-season #1 by the USA Today, Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, which is ranked pre-season #5 by the USA Today, both win their first three games.   In addition to Oak Hill, which features 6'3 Rashaad Carruth, 7'0 DeSagana Diop, and 6'3 Billy Edelin, and Mater Dei, which features 6'5 Cedric Bozeman, 6'11 Jamal Sampson, 6'8 Soph Harrison Schean, and 6'3 Wesley Washington, the 16-team field in the Las Vegas Millennium Cup also includes Phoenix (St. Mary's) AZ, Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, Houston (Clear Lake) TX, Las Vegas (Durango) NV, Los Angeles (Fremont) CA, Houston (Christian) TX, San Antonio (Lanier) TX, Modesto (Christian) CA, Baton Rouge (Parkview Baptist) LA, Aurora (Smoky Hill) CO, Myrtle Beach (Socastee) SC, Sylmar (H.S.) CA, Walker (H.S.) LA, and Florence (Wilson) SC.  Oak Hill must face Las Vegas (Durango) NV in the main gym at Durango High School in the opening round Monday, December 18th at 8:20 PM, but we think they still have a much better shot of getting to the title game than Mater Dei, which also appears to be likely in store for a tough semi-final game.  We talking about their potential battle at the Green Valley Main Gym  on Wednesday, December 20th at 5:40 PM against Phoenix (St. Mary's) AZ with 5'9 Jason Fontenet, 6'1 James Fontenet, and 6'10 Channing Frye.    The Las Vegas Gold Cup includes Jacksonville (Arlington County Day) FL, which is one of the best young teams in the state of Florida, as well as Denver (George Washington) CO, New Orleans (Abramson) LA, Las Vegas (Bonanza) NV, Kenner (Bonnabel) LA, Crescenta (Crescenta Valley) CA, Henderson (Green Valley) NV, Killeen (H.S.) TX, Las Vegas (H.S.) NV, San Diego (Lincoln) CA, Mesa (Mountain View) AZ, Hazard (Perry County Central) KY, Philip Pocok-Mississouga (H.S.) ON, Phoenix (South Mountain) AZ, Las Vegas (Valley) NV, and Las Vegas (Western) NV.  The Las Vegas Silver Cup includes Denver (East) CO, Mission Viejo (Capistrano Valley) CA, Las Vegas (Centennial) NV, Las Vegas (Chaparral) NV, Reseda (Cleveland) CA, Las Vegas (Desert Pines) NV, Georgetown (H.S.) TX, Hitchcock (H.S.) TX, Overton (Moapa Valley) NV, Las Vegas (Mojave) NV, Palmer (H.S.) AK, Payson (H.S.) UT, Pittsburgh (Penn Hills) PA, North Las Vegas (Rancho) NV, San Diego (Rancho Bernardo) CA, and Manhasset (St. Mary's) NY.  The Las Vegas Bronzo Cup includes Alameda (H.S.) CA, Henderson (Basic) NV, Anaheim Hills (Canyon) CA, Las Vegas (Cimarron) NV, Magna (Cyprus) UT, Los Angeles (Daniel Murphy) CA, Minden (Douglas) NV, Henderson (Foothill) NV, North Hollywood (Harvard-Westlake) CA, Kailua (Kalaheo) HI, Los Angeles (LACES) CA, Lodi (H.S.) CA, Van Nuys (Montclair Prep) CA, North Hollywood (H.S.) CA, Las Vegas (Palo Verde) NV, San Clemente (H.S.) CA, Las Vegas (Silverado) NV, Valley Center (H.S.) CA, Venice (H.S.) CA, and Mesquite (Virgin Valley) NV.

Saturday, November 11, 2000, and Sunday, November 12, 2000

On Friday the Birmingham News was reporting that 6'1 Maurice Williams from Jackson (Murrah) MS, who ranks #13 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, had reneged on his verbal commitment on Alabama.  And apparently there was something to it, because our Mississippi Editor Lavel Johnson tells us that several newspapers in Mississippi also had reported that Williams' high school coach had been quoted as saying that Williams wasn't going to sign until spring. However, Johnson has now confirmed that Jackson did sign a National Letter-of-Intent for the University of Alabama and, as a result, the Crimson Tide's recruiting class moves back up to #26 on our list of the Top 30 Recruiting Classes To Date. It also looks like Alabama head coach Mark Gottfried, who is widely regarded as one of the best recruiters in the nation, is one the verge of landing 6'9 Kei Madison from Southern Union (JC) AL.  The source on this is the Louisville Courier-Journal, which said yesterday that Madison "is waffling on his commitment to IU and could sign with Alabama instead." The only problem with that is that Madison never committed to Indiana and, as a result, is still listed as available by the HOOP SCOOP.  Sure, Madison has told us that he wanted to play for IU interim head coach Mike Davis, but when Indiana accepted a commitment from 6'1 Donal Perry from McCall (H.S.) LA, the Hoosiers were out of scholarships.  Instead, we thought Madison would likely follow Davis in the spring when he moved onto another coaching job and, if by some chance Davis becomes Indiana's head coach on a permanent basis, they'd work it out later.  And the Courier-Journal even backs this up with a comment from Madison's mother.  "Vera Madison said that the uncertainty of Davis' status coupled with her son's desire to stay close to home has given the Crimson Tide the edge." Madison also confirmed this fact in Tuscaloosa News several days ago when he said he had narrowed his choices to IU and Alabama and Alabama "is ahead right now."  How huge would this be for the Crimson Tide?   Well, Madison is ranked as the #1 wing forward by Rick Ball in the Sporting News Pre-Season Yearbook, although he really is more of power forward right now, as is evident by the fact that he averaged 12 rpg a year ago at Iowa Western (JC) IA.  However, he's not there any longer, because he was kicked off the team for violating team ruels a month ago and, as a result, will enroll, but not play, next semester at Southern Union (JC) AL.  And Madison isn't the only one we haven't taken off the board yet.  We think 6'9 Terry Licorish from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, who ranks #30 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, will eventually make it official for Louisville, but last week he told us that he wasn't planning on signing with Cardinals until he takes visits to several other schools, Memphis, USC, and Michigan State.  So until he sign a National Letter-of-Intent for Louisville, publicly commits, or tells us otherwise, we're listing him as still available.  In other words, his high school coach and/or AAU coach telling people that it probably is going to happen is nice, but it isn't good enough to report as a firm commitment, unless you want to be a sloppy journalist. 

With the addition this fall of 6'2 Carlos Hurt from Alief (Alief-Elsik) TX, who ranks #5 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, the senior class in Kentucky is absolutely loaded.  As a matter of fact, it might just be the best class since the great class of 1979, which featured Dirk Minniefield, Charles Hurt, and Melvin Turpin.   So with that in mind and the high school basketball season just around the corner, now is the perfect time to publish our updated Kentucky Prep Report.  The report, which includes our all-state teams regardless of position and class, as well as commentary about the race for Mr. Basketball in the state, can be gotten by clicking on Kentucky Report.  The actual rankings, which include the top 78 seniors, the top 47 juniors, the top 28 sophomores, the top 16 freshmen, and the top two 8th graders, can be gotten by clicking on Kihnley Ranks 'Em: The Top Prep Players In Kentucky.  Speaking of high school basketball in the state of Kentucky, we've heard earlier today that 6'9 Brandon Bender from Louisville (Ballard) KY, who ranks #2 in the state, as well as #59 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, has signed a National Letter-of-Intent with the University of Colorado.  Well, as of two hours ago, that report was false.  As a matter of fact, Bender now claims that he will sign in the spring.  Actually the smart money indictates that he will wait to see whether Kentucky and/or  Louisville are going to offer.  Another possible scenario for Bender is following 6'0 Jonathan Hargett from Ft. Washington (National Christian) MD, who ranks #8 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, to West Virginia.  Speaking of Hargett, tragedy struck his family on Friday when his brother, Michael Hargett, died at of an apparent heart attack at the age of 29.  Another player who also may eventually end up at West Virginia after another year of prep school and/or two years of junior college is 6'10 Tony Key from Russellville, KY, who has been without a school since Durham (Emmanuel Christian) NC closed last month.  Right now nobody seems to know where Key is, but Bender has reason to believe that Key may surface soon at Compton (Centennial) CA.  Stay tuned!

Our International Editor Chris Johnson tells us that Rhode Island head coach Jerry DeGregorio is making a strong push for  international players, as is evident by the fact that two players originally from France - 7'0 Rudolph Maurcette from Laurinburg (Institute) NC and 6'5 William Gradit from Laurinburg (Institute) NC - both verbally committed to the Rams late last week.  Rhode Island also appears to be close to signing Lazare Adingono and Olivier Harangar, both from Cameroon.  If that happens, four of the five players signed in Rhode Island's recruiting class will be from foreign countries and that might be a record.  It also would mean that the Rams are done recruiting, because 6'9 Darnell Tyler from Tallahassee (JC) FL also recently committed to Rhode Island.  Our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin confirms that Lehigh got an important commitment late last week from 6'6 Kevin Murawinksi from Middletown (South) NJ.  Murawinski is strong inside, but he also shoots well, which means he'll be an excellent complement to 6'8 Eric Heil from Bettendorf (Pleasant Valley) IA, who committed earlier this fall to Mountain Hawks.   We also have confirmed that Houston got 6'9 Darrius Brannon from Port Arthur (Lincoln) TX and 6'0 Rickey Huckaby from Mexia (H.S.) TX and Texas Christian has gotten back two players - 6'11 Brian Carter from Winchendon (School) MA and 6'10 Darius Manciel from Winchendon (School) MA - they signed a year ago, but who had to go the prep school route.  We've also added a number of other players to our ongoing list o