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IN THE HOT RECRUITING INFORMATION SECTION OF THE MEMBERS SECTION THAT YOU WOULDN'T WANT TO MISS
Monday, December 12, 2011
It
promises to be the premier middle school event in the nation and will be the
place were the up-and-coming star of tomorrow can get ahead start on the
future while playing against the top competition in the country. We're
talking about
The HOOP SCOOP All-American Camp,
which is being officially announced today in a variety of different venues.
The camp will be held at HOOPS in Louisville, KY on July 2nd-4th, 2012 and
will feature players in the Class of 2016, Class of 2017, Class of 2018, and
Class of 2019. That's current 5th, 6th, 7th, & 8th Graders, who, at the
time of the camp, will be rising 6th, 7th, 8th, & 9th Graders. The Camp
Executive Director is yours truly (HOOP SCOOP Editor & Publisher
Clark Francis) and I have been the one national scout that has paid
attention to these age groups in recent years. Van Coleman will be
the Camp Operations Director and he has plenty of experience in this
department dating back to the days when he was running the Future Stars
Basketball Camps like a well oiled machine. The Camp Director of
Scouting will be Brick Oettinger, who not only is the guy who
discovered Michael Jordan, but also has been second to none as a
talent evaluator dating back to when he broke into the business in 1977 as a
recruiting analyst and columnist for the ACC Sports Journal. And
this is important, because the three of us have been in this business for a
combined total of over 100 years. We also each have a vote for the
McDonald's All-American Team
and have an incredible amount of insight and perspective with regards to
recruiting, grassroots basketball, and evaluating and ranking players. I
also have lined up three more of my favorite people in the business to help
recruit players and be the head coach for three of the four above mentioned
age groups. We're talking about Rick Lewis, who runs the
North Carolina
Phenom 150 Camp
and now is making a name for himself in the business with his
Phenom Hoop Report;
Rick Bolus, who has been in the business for 33 years with the
Blue Chip Basketball Camp
and for 39 years with the High Potential
Scouting Service;
and Horace Neysmith, who is the co-owner of
AllMetroSports.com,
the head coach of the Atlanta Celtics 15-Under Team, a valuable contributor
to the HOOP SCOOP, and the brains behind all of the
Elite Hoops Showcases
throughout the South. We're also are excited about the fact that our own
Ron Naclerio will be one of the instructors and will provide the campers
with top individual development drills (i.e. ball handling, dribbling,
passing, & shooting). Patrick Stanwood also is on board and his vast
array of contacts in the business and great gift for public relations should
be invaluable. We also have a number of other surprises that we plan to
announce as time goes on. In other words, we're going to take middle school
basketball and getting a head start on the future to a whole new level, as
this promises to be "The Camp to End All
Camps - For the Superstars of Tomorrow."
Obviously the talent level at this camp will be at a very high level and, as
a result, it is by "invitation only." However, we also have made it easy to
apply for an invitation with an application that can be found by going to
our new
HOOP SCOOP All-American Camp
web site. We also want to stress the importance of signing up early, as the
criteria necessary to get an invitation will become much more stringent as
time goes on and spots fill up. And, this too is important, because getting
a head start on the future at a camp like this will provide those in
attendance with a huge advantage as they make the transition from middle
school to enter high school and, soon thereafter, really start the
recruiting process. Van Coleman also adds some important
perspective"
“In my over 30 years of evaluating talent and
20 years of running basketball camps and events, I have found three areas
that can maximize a player’s improvement both individually and as a team
player. These areas are ball handling, shooting and physical development.
These are the areas that we’ll concentrate on at Hoop Scoop All-American
Camp. We will teach players how these skills affect their game, what it
takes to improve, and then provide them with a workout program to continue
that improvement once they leave camp.
Thursday, December 8, 2011
One week from today I will be
flying to Ft. Myers, FL to cover the
State Farm City of Palms
Classic
and, as a result, next Thursday
is the drop dead date on my current project, which is our updated
Ranking of the Top Players Nationally in the Class of 2012.
And, while everybody knows that 6'5 Shabazz Muhammad from Las Vegas
(Bishop Gorman) NV will be the top-ranked player on our list (we've had him
ranked #1 in his class dating all the way back to the end of his freshman
year), it will
probably come as a major surprise to a lot of people that we will be
reshuffling our ranking of the top five players by moving 6'8 Amile
Jefferson from Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA up into the #2 spot, ahead
of 6'8 Kyle Anderson from Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ, 6'8 Tony
Parker from Lithonia (Miller Grove) GA, and 6'4 Marcus Smart from
Flower Mound (Marcus) TX. And, while it really is almost too close to call
between Jefferson and Anderson, we have to give the nod to Jefferson based
on his length, athleticism, and still untapped potential. Speaking of
Jefferson, our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor
Allen Rubin tells us that Jefferson has eliminated Stanford, Temple, and
Maryland and is still trying to decide from among a list of schools that
includes Ohio State, Kentucky, N.C. State, Villanova, and Connecticut.
Rubin also tells us that 6'6 Savon Goodman, who transferred from Bryn
Athyn (Academy of the New Church) PA to Philadelphia (Constitution) PA in an
attempt to put himself into a position where can meet the academic
requirements necessary to be eligible at a four-year Division I college or
university, also still appears to be a long way away from making a college
decision. However, as things stand now, his list includes Kentucky, UCLA,
Pittsburgh, Penn State, Texas Tech, Louisville, Oregon, USC, and Villanova.
We also find it interesting that the two common denominators on both lists
are Kentucky and Villanova. On the other hand, if Goodman was going to stay
home and pick the Wildcats, we don't think he would have reneged on
Villanova the first time around. As for Kentucky, it would not surprise us
one bit if Wildcats head coach John Calipari used his strong Philly
ties to land both Jefferson and Goodman. If you will recall, Calipari
worked for Larry Brown an assistant of the Philadelphia 76ers during
the 1999-2000 season and he's landed some really big fish, including
Dajuan Wagner and Tyreke Evans, from this area over the years.
And, if this does indeed happen, it would be more than enough to ensure
once again that Kentucky, which also already 6'5 Archie Goodwin
from Little Rock (Sylvan Hills) AR, 6'8 Alex Poythress from
Clarksville (Northeast) TN, and 7'1 Willie Cauley from Olathe
(Northwest) KS in the fold, has the #1-ranked recruiting class in the
nation. We also find it interesting that Texas Tech is on Goodman's list.
But this too is easily explained when one remembers that Red Raiders
assistant coach Chris Walker was previously both a player and an
assistant coach at Villanova. Rubin also tells us that 6'3 Ryan
Arcidiacono from Langhorne (Neshaminy) PA has once again been sidelined
with a lower back injury and is expected to have surgery in a couple weeks.
He also is expected to spend six to eight weeks in rehab and likely will
miss the entire season. And this would be too bad, because this
out-of-sight/out-of-mind scenario will probably cause the value of
Arcidiacono's stock to plummet in the national rankings and cost him a spot
on the McDonald's All-American Team. However, for now he is right on
the buddle, as a sneak preview of our Ranking of the Top Players
Nationally in the Class of 2012 shows that he checks in at #24 on this
list, behind 1) 6'5 Shabazz Muhammad from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman)
NV, 2) 6'8 Amile Jefferson from Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA, 3)
6'8 Kyle Anderson from Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ, 4) 6'8 Tony
Parker from Lithonia (Miller Grove) GA, 5) 6'4 Marcus Smart from
Flower Mound (Marcus) TX, 6) 6'9 Dajuan Coleman from Dewitt
(Jamesville-Dewitt) NY, 7) 6'8 Anthony Bennett from Henderson
(Findlay Prep) NV, 8) 6'4 Rodney Purvis from Raleigh (Upper Room
Christian Academy) NC, 9) 5'11 Kevin Ferrell from Indianapolis (Park
Tudor) IN, 10) 6'5 Archie Goodwin from Little Rock (Sylvan Hills) AR,
11) 6'3 Rasheed Sulaimon from Houston (Strake Jesuit) TX, 12) 6'9
Brandon Ashley from Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, 13) 6'6 Savon
Goodman from Philadelphia (Constitution) PA, 14) 6'1 Marcus Paige
from Marion (Linn-Mar) IA, 15) 6'6 Ricardo Gathers from Reserve
(Riverside) LA, 16) 6'9 Jarnell Stokes from Memphis (Southwind) TN,
17) 6'8 Samuel Dekker from Sheboyan (Lutheran) WI, 18) 6'0 Dominic
Artis from Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, 19) 6'9 Cameron Ridley
from Richmond (Ft. Bend Bush) TX, 20) 6'5 Jordan Price from Decatur
(Southwest DeKalb) GA, 21) 6'7 T.J. Warren from Wolfeboro (Brewster
Academy) NH, 22) 5'11 Javan Felix from New Orleans (St. Augustine)
LA, and 23) 6'9 Shaquille Cleare from Houston (The Village) TX. And,
of the seven players on this list (Muhammad, Jefferson, Parker, Bennett,
Goodman, Gathers, and Stokes) that are still available, the next shoe to
drop will likely be Stokes. If you will recall, Stokes is ineligible to
play after transferring last summer from Memphis (Central) TN to Mouth of
Wilson (Oak Hill) VA and then returning home in the fall to Memphis (Southwind)
TN. And this is important, because it looks like Stokes is on track to pass
all of the courses necessary to graduate from high school later this month
and be eligible to enroll into college and beginning playing in early
January. The list of schools still vying for Stokes services currently
includes Memphis, Kentucky, Florida, Connecticut, Tennessee, Arkansas, and
Florida.
Sunday, December 4, 2011
The next big thing on
our schedule is the
State Farm City
of Palms Classic,
which will be held on December 16th-21st in Ft. Myers, FL and this will be
the 15 consecutive year and the 19th of the last 21 years that I will have
attended this event. And this is important, because I do try to go to the
best events and, once again, this year's field is jam packed with great
talent and more than it's share of high level teams. We start with the list
of teams, which includes Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman)
NV, Montverde (Academy) FL, Louisville (Trinity) KY, Lithonia (Miller Grove)
GA, Philadelphia (Constitution) PA, Arlington (Grace Prep) TX, Plano (Prestonwood
Christian) TX, Reserve (Riverside Academy) LA, Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY,
Gladstone (Gill St. Bernard's) NJ, Richmond (Salesian) CA, Cincinnati (Taft)
OH, Pompano Beach (Ely) FL, Lake Wales (H.S.) FL, and Ft. Myers (Bishop
Verot) FL in the regular 16-team field tournament; Wynnewood (Friends
Central) PA, Tilton (School) NH, Wilbraham (Wilbraham-Monson) MA, and Ulm (Urspringschule)
Germany in the four-team Signature Series; and Tallahassee (Godby)
FL, Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL, Miami (Norland) FL, and Cape Coral (Mariner) FL in
a pair of Sunshine Series Games. The tournament will tip-off on
Friday, December 16th, with Reserve (Riverside Academy) LA versus Gladestone
(Gill St. Bernard) NJ at 3:00 PM, followed by another first round game with
Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV versus Pompano Beach (Ely) FL at 4:45 PM, a
Signature Series Game with Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL versus Tallahassee (Godby) FL
at 6:30 PM, and two more first round games with Ft. Myers (Bishop Verot) FL
versus Lake Wales (H.S.) FL at 8:15 PM, and Montverde (Academy) FL versus
Richmond (Salesian) CA at 10:00 PM. The schedule on Saturday, December
17th, will begin with a consolation game (the loser of Game #1 versus the
loser of Game #4 ) at 11:00 AM, followed by two more first round games with
Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY versus Louisville (Trinity) KY at 12:45 PM and
Cincinnati (Taft) OH versus Arlington (Grace Prep) TX at 2:30 PM, a Sunshine
Series Game with Cape Coral (Mariner) FL versus Miami (Norland) FL at 4:15
PM, another first round game with Plano (Prestonwood Christian) TX versus
Philadelphia (Constitution) PA at 6:00 PM, the first quarterfinals game with
Lithonia (Miller Grove) GA versus the winner of Reserve (Riverside Academy)
LA-Gladstone (Gill St. Bernard) NJ at 8:00 PM, and the final first round
game with Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA versus the winner of Ft. Myers (Bishop
Verot) FL-Lake Wales (H.S.) FL at 9:45 PM. Sunday, December 18th, will be
an off-day and, when action resumes on Monday, December 19th, there will be
three consolation games at 9:00 AM, 10:45 AM, and 12:30 AM, followed by a
Signature Series Game with Ulm (Urspringschule) Germany versus Wilbraham
(Wilbraham & Monson) MA at 2:15 PM, a quarterfinals game at 4:15 PM, another
Signature Series Game with Tilton (School) NH versus Wynnewood (Friends
Central) PA at 6:00 PM, and the final two quarterfinals games at 8:15 PM and
10:00 PM. Then, things should really get interesting on Tuesday, December
20th, as there will be two Challenge Round Games for the four winless teams
in the tournament at 8:45 AM and 10:25 AM, two Consolation Semi-Finals at
Noon and 1:45 PM, a pair of Fifth Place Semi-Finals games at 3:30 PM and
5:15PM, and the two Semi-Finals Games at 8:25 PM and 9:30 PM. And finally
on the final day there will be two more Challenge Round games at 9:00 AM and
10:40 AM, the Signature Series Consolation Game at 12:20 PM, the Consolation
Championship Game at 2:00 PM, the Fifth-Place Final at 3:45 PM, the Third
Place Final at 5:30 PM, the Signature Series Final at 7:15 PM, and the
Championship Game at 9:00 PM. The tournament also will feature five of our
top 14-ranked seniors nationally in 6'5 Shabazz Muhammad from Las
Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'8 Amile Jefferson from Wynnewood (Friends
Central) PA, 6'9 Tony Parker from Lithonia (Miller Grove) GA, 6'7
Ricardo Gathers from Reserve (Riverside Academy) PA, and 6'6 Savon
Goodman from Philadelphia (Constitution) PA and ironically all five are
still unsigned and uncommitted. And so are 6'9 Jr Julius Randle from
Plano (Prestonwood Christian) TX, 6'10 Jr Nerlens Noel from Tilton
(School) NH, and 6'1 Jr Kasey Hill from Montverde (Academy) FL, who
are our #2, #3, and #4-ranked juniors nationally. Also on our list of top
players to watch in this year's
State Farm City of Palms Classic
are 7'0
Isaiah Austin from Arlington (Grace Prep) TX, 6'8 Roscoe Allen
from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'7 Georges Niang from Tilton
(School) NH, 6'5 Nkereuwon Okoro from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'8
Ben Carter from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'5 Katin Reinhardt
from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'4 Michael Frazier from Montverde
(Academy) FL, 6'7 Xavier Johnson from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'6
Brandon Morris from Lithonia (Miller Grove) GA, 6'6 Daniel Dingle
from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'4 Jalen Hornbeck from Arlington
(Grace Prep) TX, 6'2 Louis Dabney from Riverside (Reserve Christian)
LA, 6'2 Daiquan Walker from Philadelphia (Constitution) PA, 6'4
Dominique Bull from Tilton (School) NH, 6'1 Charles Foster from
Louisville (Trinity) KY, 6'5 Adolphis Washington from Cincinnati
(Taft) OH, 6'7 Nathan Dieudonne from Louisville (Trinity) KY, 6'5 Jr
Jabari Bird from Richmond (Salesian) CA, 5'11 Jr Jaylen Brantley
from Wilbraham (Wilbraham & Monson) MA, 6'7 Jr Jordan Mickey from
Arlington (Grace Prep) TX, 6'8 Jr Goodluck Okonoboh from Tilton
(School) NH, 6'4 Darryl Hicks from Louisville (Trinity) KY, 6'1 Jr
Jaren Sina from Gladestone (Gill St. Bernard) NJ, 6'1 Jr Elijah Brown
from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'5 Jr Rashad Muhammad from Las
Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'1 Jr Shane Rector from Bronx (St.
Raymond's) NY, 6'2 Jr James Quick from Louisville (Trinity) KY, 6'6
Soph Stanley Johnson from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'5 Soph Wayne
Seldon from Tilton (School) MA, 6'3 Soph Emmanuel Mudiay from
Arlington (Grace Prep) TX, 6'5 Soph Micah Seaborn from Arlington
(Grace Prep) TX, 6'0 Soph Conrad Chambers from Philadelphia
(Constitution) PA, 6'8 Soph Ricky Doyle from Ft. Myers (Bishop Verot)
FL, and 7'0 Frosh Stephen Zimmerman from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman)
NV.
Monday, November 28, 2011
I've spent the
last five days working diligently on our
Ranking of the Top 280 Recruiting Classes from the 2011 Fall Signing Period
and Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes
by Conference from the 2011 Fall Signing Period
and, once again, I can honestly say that ours is the most complete and
up-to-date list currently available. Not only have I done my homework and
crosschecked all of the signings and commitments that we've tracked on an
on-going basis, but I also have added a number of junior college players,
thanks to
JucoJunction.com,
to the list that more often than not
would otherwise fall under the radar screen. And a classic is example is
the late addition of 6'9 Cheikh Fall from Barstow (JC) CA to the
University of Nevada's recruiting class, which is now tied at #63, along
with Old Dominion, Georgia State, and Rider, on our list of the Top
Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2012 and
also includes 6'3 Marqueze Coleman from Mission
Hills (Bishop Alemany) CA, 6'8 Cole Huff from North Hollywood
(Campbell Hall) CA, and 6'8 Raphael Carter from Diablo Valley (JC)
CA. Fall is not ranked among the top 150 players in the junior college
ranks by
JucoJunction.com
and their three paragraph article
doesn't tell you anything about where Fall stands in the pecking order.
However, upon further investigation, we did find some great quotes about
Fall by Wolfpack head coach David Carter. "He's very athletic. He's
strong at 240 pounds, He's not built like Kevin Panzer, but he
scores like him. He's a face-up guy with a back-to-the basket
game......He's a high-major guy. We wouldn't have been able to get him in
the springtime. Coach Gates was going after him. When the high-majors miss
on their players in the first signing period, these are their fall-back
guys. It was very important for us to get a guy like this in the early
period." We also found out earlier in the article that Fall speaks four
different languages, was born in the Senegal, spent his high school years in
Japan, and arrived in the United States three years ago. It also appears
that Coach Gates previously was an assistant coach at Utah State and now
holds the same position at Florida State. As for our
Ranking of
the Top 280 Recruiting Classes from the 2011 Fall Signing Period,
we did
make some important last minutes adjustments after attending the
National Prep Showcase a week ago in
New Haven, CT. And right at the top of the list is the fact that
Providence's recruiting class has moved into a tie at #9, along with
Kentucky, based on the fact that 6'6 Ricardo Ledo from Fitchburg
(Notre Dame) MA has superstar written all over him. We also moved Xavier's
recruiting class into a tie at #24, along with Michigan State, based on how
well 6'2 Myles Davis from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA, 6'10 James
Farr from Pittsfield (Maine Central Institute) ME, and 6'2 Semaj
Christon from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA all played in this same event.
We also are fascinated by the fact that the battle really does appear to be
on among the schools along Tobacco Road for supremacy in the Atlantic Coast
Conference, as N.C. State, North Carolina, and Wake Forest check in at #1,
#2, #3 in our
Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes by Conference from the 2011 Fall
Signing Period
and Duke also has another likely
McDonald's All-American in the fold in 6'3
Rasheed Sulaimon from Houston (Strake Jesuit) TX. And what about the
fact that Providence and South Florida have the two top-ranked recruiting
classes in the Big East Conference? There also appears to be a shift in the
balance of power underway in Conference USA, as UTEP, Houston, and Marshall
are right at the top of the league in recruiting for the second consecutive
year. We also are intrigued with the fact the Mid-American Conference
checks in at #9, right behind the ACC, Big-12, Big East, Pacific-10, Big-10,
SEC, CUSA, and Atlantic-10, in our
Ranking of the
Top Recruiting Classes by Conference from the 2011 Fall Signing Period.
On the other hand, this should come as no
surprise when one finds out that Western Michigan, Kent State, and Ball
State check in with recruiting classes that are ranked #30, #44, and #56 in
our
Ranking of the Top 280 Recruiting Classes from
the 2011 Fall Signing Period.
Even more impressive is the fact that those three schools are in pretty fast
company, along with Cleveland State, Wichita State, UNLV, Harvard, Towson,
Murray State, and Pennsylvania, on our list of the top 10-ranked recruiting
classes among schools that do not belong to the top eight
aforementioned high major or high major-minus conferences. Editor's Note:
Tomorrow we will totally wrap-up recruiting with our Different Ways to
Look at Recruiting Section, which will include a list of the Top
Talent Rating Average Per Recruit by both conference and team and a list of
which teams signed the best two players, the best three players, and the
best four players over a two-year period.
Monday, November 21, 2011
We've spent the last
three days covering the
National
Prep Showcase
at Albertus Magnus College in New Haven, CT and our
Ranking of the Top Players Primarily on Performance in this event is as
follows:
1) 6'6 Ricardo Ledo from South Kent (Prep) CT (Providence),
2) 6'10 Jr Nerlens Noel from Tilton (School) NH, 3) 6'2 Myles
Davis from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA
(Xavier), 4) 6'3 Akosa Maduegbunam
from Winchendon (School) MA (Penn State),
5) 6'8 William Howard from Landover Hills (New Hope) MD, 6) 6'8
T.J. Warren from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH
(N.C. State),
7) 6'8 Soph Noah Vonleh from New
Hampton (Prep) NH, 8) 6'7 Ryan Taylor from Chatham (Hargrave
Military) VA, 9) 6'5 Raphael Davis from La Porte (La Lumiere School)
IN (Purdue),
10) 6'7 Georges Niang from Tilton
(School) NH (Iowa State),
11) 6'3 Codi Miller-McIntyre from Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA
(Wake Forest), 12) 6'6 Amir Garrett
from North Bridgton (Bridgton Academy) ME
(St. John's), 13) 6'8
Montrezl Harrell from Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA
(Virginia Tech),
14) 6'2 Semaj Christon from Wolfeboro
(Brewster Academy) NH (Xavier),
15) 6'8 Jakaar Sampson from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH, 16) 6'9
James Farr from Pittsfield (Maine Central Institute) ME
(Xavier), 17) 6'8
Darnell Harris from La Jolla (Prep) CA
(Cleveland State), 18) 6'8 Aaron Ross
from Delafield (St. John's Northwest Military Academy) WI, 19) 5'11
Antonio Drummond from La Porte (La Lumiere School) IN
(Southern Illinois), 20) 6'4 Sam
Cassell from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA, 21) 6'3 Soph Jared Terrell
from New Hampton (Prep) NH, 22) 6'5 Jr Chris Thomas from South
Kent (Prep) CT, 23) 5'11 Jr Jaylen Brantley from Wilbraham (Wilbraham
& Monson) MA, 24) 6'6 Malik Nichols from North Bridgton (Bridgton
Academy) ME, 25) 6'3 Darrick Wood from North Bridgton (Bridgton
Academy) ME (St. John's),
26) 6'8 Strahinja Gavrilovic from La Jolla ((Prep) CA
( USC), 27) 6'3
Adonis Filer from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA
(Clemson), 28) 6'7
Darnell Harris from La Jolla (Prep) CA
(Northern Illinois), 29) 6'7 Marcus
Crider from North Bridgton (Bridgton Academy) ME, 30) 6'8 Ethan O'Day
from Northfield (Northfield-Mt. Hermon) MA
(Vermont), 31) 5'11 Trey Davis from
Saxtons Rivers (Vermont Academy) VT
(Massachusetts), 32) 6'5 Ryan Oliver
from Northfield (Northfield-Mt. Hermon) MA, 33) 6'2 Olivier Hanlan
from New Hampton (Prep) NH (Boston College),
34) 6'11 Mike Tobey from Blairstown (Blair Academy) ME
(Virginia), 35)
7'0 Laimonas Chatkevicius from South Kent (Prep) CT
(Kansas State), 36) 6'8 Kion Brown
from Fork Union (Military) VA, 37) 6'8 Jr Dominic Woodson from
Saxtons River (Vermont Academy) VT, 38) 6'9 Jalen Reynolds from
Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH (Xavier),
39) 6'3 Jeremiah Jones from Delafield (St. John's Northwest Military
Academy) WI, 40) 6'3 Ky Howard from Oakdale (St. Thomas More) CT, 41)
6'7 Jarion Henry from La Jolla (Prep) CA
(Oklahoma), 42) 5'11 Joey Boyle from
Pittsfield (Maine Central Institute) ME, 43) 6'8 Chris Ortiz from
South Kent (Prep) CT, 44) 6'2 A.J. English from Oakdale (St. Thomas
More) CT, 45) 6'6 Jesse Reed from Saltsburg (Kiski School) PA
(American University),
46) 6'4 Jr Donelle Munda from Saxtons River (Vermont Academy) VT, 47)
5'10 Francisco Lopez from Landover Hills (Hope Academy) MD, 48) 6'9
Hanner Perea from La Porte (La Lumiere School) IN
(Indiana), 49) 6'1
Jacoby Davis from Delafield (St. John's Northwest Military Academy) WI,
and 50) 6'3 Corban Collins from Woodstock (Massanutten Military
Academy) VA. And conspicuous by their absence are a number of other highly
ranked players who played in this event, but who did not play to a level
where they needed to be to be mentioned on this list. Obviously the first
player that this applies to is 6'10 Mitch McGary from Wolfeboro
(Brewster Academy) NH, who prior to this event was our #1-ranked 5thYear
Players, but averaged only 7.5 ppg and 5.5 rpg and was no better than the
sixth best player on his team in their two games at the
National
Prep Showcase. However, in sharp
contrast to McGary, his teammate 6'5 Aaron Thomas from Wolfeboro
(Brewster Academy) NH, who also didn't make the above list, deserves a
special mention, because he was both a great role player and an excellent
complement to the four players - 6'8 T.J. Warren, 6'2 Semaj
Christon, 6'8 JaKarr Sampson, and 6'9 Jalen Reynolds -
that did most of the damage in Brewster's two easy wins against Waynesboro (Fishburne
Military Academy) VA and Woodstock (Massanutten Military Academy) VA. Also
not making the above list were
6'7 Jr Goodluck
Okonobh from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH, 6'5 Soph Wayne Seldon
from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH, and 6'3 Dominique Bull from
Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH. But on this team there were not enough
basketball's to go around, as 6'10 Jr Nerlens Noel and 6'7 Georges
Niang combined for 41 of their team's 79 points, had 19 of their team's
37 rebounds, and combined for 18-25 field goals against Saltsburg (Kiski
School) PA. We also were intrigued by the athleticism, upper body strength,
and ball handling and passing skills of 6'0 Teven Jones from
Woodstock (Fishburne Military) VA. However, he did shoot the ball very well
in either game and his assist-to-turnover ratio (four assists and seven
turnovers) was nothing to write home about. Also absent from the above list
are Notre Dame-6'9 Zach Auguste from New Hampton (Prep) NH, New
Mexico-bound 7'0 Obij Aget from La Porte (La Lumiere School) IN, and
Purdue-bound 6'9 Jay Simpson frrom La Porte (La Lumiere School) IN,
all of whom were solid, but didn't do anything to set the world on fire. We
also want to mention 6'3 Jeremiah Jones from Delafield (St. John's
Northwest Military Academy) WI, who was a bust at the offensive end (he he
had 18 points, 4-23 field goals, 2-10 3-pointers, and 8-12 free throws), but
still got ranked #39 in the event due to the fact he did a good job
defensively against 6'6 Ricardo Ledo from South Kent (Prep) CT in
their head-to-head match-up on Saturday night.
November 14, 2011
With just a couple of
days left in the Fall Signing Period, now is a great time to take a
step back and see where things stand with regards to who is still left on
the board and our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the
Class of 2012.
A quick look at our national rankings shows that three of our top 10-ranked
seniors, six of our top 20-ranked seniors, 10 of our top 50-ranked seniors,
and 17 of our top 100-ranked seniors are still available. That list
includes 6'5 Shabazz Muhammad from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'9
Tony Parker from Lithonia (Miller Grove) GA, 6'8 Amile Jefferson
from Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA, 6'7 Ricardo Gathers from LaPlace
(Riverside) LA, 6'5 Savon Goodman from Philadelphia (Constitution)
PA, 6'9 Jarnell Stokes from Memphis (Southwind) TN, 6'8 Winston
Shepard from Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, 6'7 Charles Mitchell
from Marietta (Wheeler) GA, 6'8 Devonta Pollard from DeKalb (Kemper
County) MS, 6'5 Torian Graham from Jacksonville (Arlington Country
Day) FL, 6'11 Robert Upshaw from Fresno (San Joaquin Memorial) CA,
6'0 Nino Jackson from Ardmore (H.S.) OK, 6'8 Zena Edosomwan
from North Hollywood (Harvard-Westlake) CA, 6'3 Anrio Adams from
Seattle (Rainier Beach) WA, 6'6 Jordan Tebbutt from Mouth of Wilson
(Oak Hill) VA, 6'8 Chris Washburn from Grand Prairie (South) TX, and
6'8 Arik Armstead from Elk Grove (Pleasant Grove) CA. And, when we
dig a little further, we also find that one of our top dozen-ranked 5th Year
Players is still available in 6'5 Andrew White from Charlottesville
(The Miller School) VA and seven of top 15-ranked junior college players by
JucoJunction.com
are still available in 6'8 Titus Rubles from
Blinn (JC) TX, 6'6 Nick Wiggins from Wabash Valley (JC) IL, 6'1
Xavier Munford from Iowa Western (JC) IA, 6'6 Du Vaughn Maxwell
from Western Nebraska (JC) NE, 6'6 Shavon Coleman from Howard (JC)
TX, 6'5 Rod Rucker from Northwest Florida State (JC) FL, and 6'8
Calvin Godfrey from Howard (JC) TX. As for our list of the Top
Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2012, it looks like all of
the hard work that Arizona head coach Sean Miller, who was named the
Most Visible Head Coach-of-the-Summer in 2010 and was our
Runner-up Most Visible Head Coach of the Summer this past summer, has
done on the recruiting trail the last several years has paid big dividends.
Not only do the Wildcats have three quality big men in 6'8 Brandon Ashley
from Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, 7'0 Kaleb Tarczewski from
Southborough (St. Mark's) MA, 6'9 Grant Jerrett from La Verne
(Lutheran) CA and a skilled scoring 2-guard in 6'2 Gabe York from
Orange (Lutheran) CA in the fold, but they also have the #1-ranked
recruiting class on our list of the
Top Recruiting
Classes To-Date for the Class of 2012. And, when all the dust has
cleared, which will most likely be in the spring, we also suspect that UCLA
and Kentucky will be in the mix for the top-ranked recruiting class.
However, for that to happen, the former will have to land both 6'5
Shabazz Muhammad from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV and 6'9 Tony
Parker from Lithonia (Miller Grove) GA, who currently are the top
two-ranked seniors still available, and the latter will have to add any two
of the five top 40-ranked players that they're still recruiting. We're
talking about about 6'5 Shabazz Muhammad from Las Vegas (Bishop
Gorman) NV, 6'8 Amile Jefferson from Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA,
6'8 Anthony Bennett from Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, 6'9 Jarnell
Stokes from Memphis (Southwind) TN, and 6'8 Devonte Pollard from
DeKalb (Kemper County) MS. There also is the possibility that N.C. State
could move up to the #1 spot, if 6'8 Amile Jefferson from Wynnewood
(Friends Central) PA picks the Wolfpack. We also find it interesting that
five conferences (Atlantic Coast with N.C. State, North Carolina, and Wake
Forest; Big-10 with Indiana, Iowa, and Michigan; Big-12 with Texas and
Oklahoma State; Pacific-12 with Arizona; and Southeastern with Kentucky)
account for all 10 of the 10-ranked recruiting classes. The Big East does
get in on the board with three of the top 20-ranked recruiting classes and
eight of the top 50-ranked recruiting classes. But, any way you slice it,
the big winner appears to be the Atlantic Coast Conference, which has five
of the top 20-ranked recruiting classes and nine of the top 50-ranked
recruiting classes. Some other interesting notes include that fact South
Florida, which checks in at #13 on our list, has the top-ranked recruiting
class in the Big East Conference; Kent State, which is ranked #26, and
Western Michigan, which is ranked #29, have the two highest ranked
recruiting classes among schools that are not in BCS football conferences;
and N.C. State's Mark Gottfried, Missouri's Frank Haith,
Providence's Ed Cooley, Texas Tech's Billy Gillispie, Kent
State's Rob Senderoff, Georgia Tech's Brian Gregory,
Maryland's Mark Turgeon, UNLV's Dave Rice, Miami-FL's Jim
Larranaga, and Murray State's Steve Prohm have wasted no time on
the job at their new school by lining up recruiting classes that are ranked
among the top 50 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for
the Class of 2012.
Monday, November 7, 2011
Coming right on the
heels of our
Ranking of the Top 500 Players Nationally in the Class of 2013
(Juniors),
which was published
right here in the Members Section two weeks ago, and our
Ranking
of the Top 350 Players Nationally in the Class of 2014 (Sophomores),
which was published right here in the Members Section a week ago, is
our
Ranking of the Top250 Players Nationally in the Class of 2015 (Freshmen).
And, after pretty much doing nothing but work on this list for the last four
days, I can quite honestly say that this might be the best list that we've
ever published in terms of accuracy and being as up-to-date as possible.
Not only does this list include the high school for each player (most of the
other lists that we've seen for this age group do not do this), but all of
the heights and positions have been crosschecked to reflect where things
right stand now and we give you an exact order in terms of where we think
each player belongs, instead a list by height, in alphabetical order, or
with some jargon that puts each player into a group that isn't very
specific. We also do not have any hidden agendas like some of the
self-proclaimed experts that are now trying to cover basketball at this age
level. Can you believe that one guy who is really a hairstylist by trade
has his own rankings and his son is the #1-ranked player on the entire
list? It's also obvious that our previous
Ranking of the
Top 175 Players Nationally in the Class of 2015,
which was published on April 28, 2011, currently is the primary source of
information for all of the other people ranking the top players nationally
in this age group. And to reinforce even further that we are light years
ahead of the competition is the fact that most of the people that cover
basketball and recruiting at the high school level have not yet started
paying attention and pooh pooh watching players at an early age. As for our
list itself, there is no change at the top, as 6'2 Frosh Malik Newman
from Jackson (Callaway) MS once again is the top player on our list. Newman
did not live up to expectations a month ago at the John Lucas Basketball
Resources Midwest Invitational Camp in Louisville, KY. However, he has
big time moves and athleticism, is capable of putting up prolific numbers
and scoring anytime he wants, and is savvy well beyond his age and class, as
is evident by the fact that he had 28 points, 10 rebounds, two assists, two
steals, two turnovers, 10-19 field goals, 5-12 3-pointers, and 3-4 free
throws in his first varsity high school basketball game, which was a 72-69
win on Saturday night. The #2 and #3-ranked players - 6'4 Frosh Tyler
Dorsey from Los Angeles (Ribet Academy) CA and 6'7 Frosh Mickey
Mitchell from Plano (West) TX - on our latest list also have not
changed. However, after that it's major shake-up time as 6'8 Frosh
Elijah Thomas from Rockwall (H.S.) TX has moved up from #8 to #4, 5'10
Frosh Marcus Lovett from Burbank (Providence) CA has moved up from
#26 to #5, 6'10 Frosh Diamond Stone from Milwaukee (Dominican) WI has
gone from not being on the list at all to #6, 6'3 Frosh Austin Grandstaff
from Rockwall (H.S.) TX has dropped from #5 to #7, 6'3 Frosh Isaiah
Briscoe from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ has moved up from #14 to #8,
5'11 Frosh Justin Jenifer from Bel Air (John Carroll) MD has moved up
from #37 to #9, and 6'10 Frosh Stephen Zimmerman from Las Vegas
(Bishop Gorman) NV has moved up from #19 to #10. This class also has the
size, star power, and depth necessary to be the next great class in high
school basketball. With 6'8 Frosh Elijah Thomas from Rockwall (H.S.)
TX, 6'10 Frosh Diamond Stone from Milwaukee (Dominican) WI, 6'10
Frosh Stephen Zimmerman from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'9 Frosh
Broderick Jones from Playa del Rey (St. Bernard) CA, and 6'10 Frosh
Karl Towns from Metuchen (St. Joseph's) NJ, six of our top 17-ranked
players in this class are 6'8 or bigger and most of them seem to know that
their bread-and-butter is playing inside. There also is no doubt that 6'2
Frosh Malik Newman from Jackson (Callaway) MS, 6'4 Frosh Tyler
Dorsey from Los Angeles (Ribet Academy) CA, 5'10 Frosh Marcus Lovett
from Burbank (Providence) CA, 6'3 Frosh Isaiah Briscoe from Newark
(St Benedict's) NJ and all of the aforementioned big men depending upon the
continued growth and development have a chance to be great players. As for
the depth of the class, there are a lot guys in the 50-100 who can really
play. And, if that weren't enough, there also is a lot of quality at the
point guard position with the likes of 5'10 Frosh Marcus Lovett from
Burbank (Providence) CA, 5'11 Frosh Justin Jenifer from Bel Air (John
Carroll) MD, 6'0 Frosh Allonzo Trier from Oklahoma City, OK, 5'10
Frosh A.J. Harris from Dayton (Dunbar) OH, 5'7 Frosh Jerron Love
from Fresno (Clovis West) CA, 5'11 Frosh Nassir Barrino from Jersey
City (Hudson Catholic) NJ, 6'0 Frosh Sean McGee from Ft. Wayne (North
Side) IN, 5'10 Frosh Nick Smith from Memphis (White Station) TN, 5'9
Frosh Sam Foreman from Haverford (School) PA, 5'9 Frosh Joshere
Hardnett from Gulfport (H.S.) MS, 6'0 Frosh Jordan Ash from
Westchester (St. Joseph) IL, and 5'10 Frosh Chris Atkinson from
Brookville (Long Island Lutheran) NY. On the other hand, the players in
this class need to be especially careful not to get too caught up in all of
the hype, as the level of entitlement among both the players and the parents
in this age group appears to be at an all-time high. Editor's Note: Now is the
perfect time to subscribe
to the Members Section in order to
find out exactly how everything stacks up in our
Ranking of the Top 500 Players Nationally in the Class of 2013 (Juniors),
our
Ranking of the Top 350 Players Nationally in the
Class of 2014 (Sophomores) and our
Ranking of the
Top250 Players Nationally in the Class of 2015 (Freshmen).
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Coming right on
the heels of our updated Ranking of the Top 500 Players
Nationally in the Class of 2013 (Juniors),
which was published
right here in the Members Section a week ago, is our
Ranking of the Top 350 Players
Nationally in the Class of 2014 (Sophomores).
And,
although it appears to be pretty much status quo for most of the top players
in this class, there are some very important things to point out. First, is
our ranking of 6'1 Soph Joel Berry from Orlando (Lake Highland Prep)
FL as the #4-ranked player in the class. This is a guy that we've been
watching for three years now dating back to when he played up a year in
class and was so good that he was ranked as the fifth best player at the
14-Under AAU Nationals in Lake Buena Vista, FL. Berry has big-time
athleticism, is capable of putting up prolific numbers, and has the ball
handling and passing skills, court savvy, unselfishness, and feel for the
game necessary to play point guard. However, with the exception of Van
Coleman, who has Berry ranked #16 in his Class of 2014 Post Summer
Top 75 on his
Hot100Hoops.com
web site, nobody in our business has
come close to figuring out how good this guy is both now and with regards to
his upside and potential. Second, thanks to a tip from, believe it or not,
Brandon Bender, who is a name from the past, we have 6'8 Soph Ray
Kasongo from Lick Creek (East Ridge) KY ranked #24 in our
Ranking of the Top 350
Players Nationally in the Class of 2014 (Sophomores).
"Kasongo is the best sophomore in the
state and nobody's ever heard of him," is what Bender told us three weeks
ago at the John Lucas Basketball Resources Midwest Invitational Camp
in Louisville, KY. Bender also showed us a two-minute highlight film of
this freak-like athlete, which was impressive to say the least with numerous
and plenty of acrobatic moves to the basket. Upon even further
investigation we find that Kasongo was ranked #191 nationally back when we
last published our Ranking of the Top 250 Players Nationally in
the Class of 2014
back on March 11, 2011. This name obviously was given to us via Ro
Russell, who runs the Grassroots Canada club team organization. And to
make the story even more interesting is the fact that
NorthPoleHoops.com
has Kasongo ranked #3 in the Class of
2014 and #13 overall among players from Canada who are currently playing
both north of the border and in the United States. We also find that
Kasongo had 20 points in the Gold Division of the Heinbuch Classic,
was named the Tournament MVP in the Mark Walton Invitational,
and had 21 points consolation semi-finals in the Eastern School of
Commerce Holiday Classic while playing last winter for Toronto (Mother
Teresa) ON. And, while the level competition may be suspect in Canada,
that's still pretty darn impressive when one remembers that Kasongo was just
a freshman in high school and playing against the likes of players two and
three years older. So, if Kasongo turns out to be a one of the biggest
surprises to come down the pike in a long time, remember that we went out on
a limb on his first. And, if he turns out to be a bust, still give us
credit for doing our homework and identifying somebody early who could turn
out to be a great player. Third, we have 6'6 Soph Dante Buford from
Greenville (Oakwood) NC ranked #25 based totally on the recommendation of
our North Carolina Editor Rick Lewis, who saw Buford for the first
time over the weekend at Scout Focus Elite 80 Showcase in Greensboro,
NC. "Simply put, Buford was a “man among boys” at this event and without
question was the top prospect in attendance" is the way Lewis' evaluation
begins. "We are talking about a super athletic 6’6 wing that can do a
little bit of everything, as he used the courts at Proehlific Park as his
personal playground to showcase his athleticism and skill sets. Of course,
like many athletic wings, he loves to get out in transition and dunk
everything in sight. And yes, Buford had his fair share of highlight dunks.
Without question, he was a dunking machine in transition, but his impeccable
timing off missed shots for slam dunks were more impressive. In addition,
he was equally impressive with his outstanding range on 3-pointers, as in
one sequence had three consecutive treys from NBA range. He was coming down
in transition and pulling up and making nifty moves off the dribble for
threes. He also has great elevation and lift on his jumper, above average
ball handling abilities, and is unselfish in the open court, as he made no
look passes to open teammates. Buford plays extremely hard on both ends of
the court and competes like a warrior, as he goes hard and high for every
rebound! While one can become intoxicated with his performance at an
exposure/evaluation event, Buford is definitely a prospect high major
schools should follow and monitor over the next few years." And right now
nobody (except us) has him on their national radar screen. Fourth, it's
clear that most our competition wasn't watching when 6'8 Soph Craig
Victor from New Orleans (St. Augustine) LA was average at best when we
saw him the Las Vegas Fab 48 Tournament this past summer at Bishop
Gorman High School. Victor has been ranked among the top five players
nationally in his class by the HOOP SCOOP since we first saw him back
when he was in 6th Grade. However, he was a bust in Vegas and, as a result,
now he checks in a #58 in our Ranking of the Top 350 Players
Nationally in the Class of 2014 (Sophomores).
And, we would drop him some more, if
we had to rank him as a wing forward, which is the position where some
people in our business have projected him for down the road. Editor's Note: Now is the
perfect time to subscribe
to the Members Section in order to
find out exactly how everything stacks up in both our
Ranking of the Top 500 Players Nationally in the Class of 2013 (Juniors)
and our
Ranking of the Top 350 Players Nationally in the
Class of 2014 (Sophomores).
Sunday, October 23, 2011
The two best high
school players in the nation regardless of class are 6'8 Jr Jabari Parker
from Chicago (Simeon) IL and 6'9 Jr Julius Randle from Plano (Prestonwood
Academy) TX. I bring this up because we are now ready to publish our
updated Ranking of the
Top 500 Players Nationally in the Class of 2013 (Juniors)
and they are the
top two-ranked players on this list. We give the slight edge right now to
Parker, because he's more consistent, is equally effective both inside and
outside, and has the skills, athleticism, and versatility necessary to draw
Carmelo Anthony-like comparisons. Randle has a bigger upside due to
his incredible combination of size, strength, athleticism, post moves, ball
handling skills, and footwork and he also put on the best individual
performance that we've seen in a long time when
had 30 points, 10 rebounds, 8-13 field goals, and 14-17 free throws prior to
fouling out in his team's one-point overtime loss in
the quarterfinals of the NIKE Peach Jam. There is a big drop after
these first two, but 6'10 Jr Nerlens Noel from Tilton (School) NH is
the best shot blocker to come down the pike in a long time and, although he
doesn't always play as hard as we'd like, he does have a tendency to pick it
up in big games. And this is important, because, whether it be his high
school team, prep school team, or in a camp setting, his team usually wins
and he's primarily responsible. The final two spots in the top five are
clearly debatable. However, based on talent and athleticism, we give the
nod to 6'1 Jr Kasey Hill from Montverde (Academy) FL, who is an
incredible athletic that promises to be the next in a long line of prolific
scoring guards (i.e Nick Calathes, Kenny Boynton, and
Brandon Knight) to hail from the Sunshine State and 6'8 Jr Aaron
Gordon from San Jose (Archbishop Mitty) CA, who is one of the best
athletes in the nation and is one of the best there is when it comes time
attacking the basket and being aggressive in the paint. You also can make a
strong case for putting both of 6'5 Jr Aaron Harrison from Richmond
(Ft. Bend Travis) TX and 6'5 Jr Andrew Harrison from Richmond (Ft.
Bend Travis) TX, who check in at #6 and #8 respectively, into the top five.
And there aren't too many players better than the well-traveled 6'5 Jr
Chris Thomas, who is originally from Denver, CO, but now is at South
Kent (Prep) CT. Although in this case, Thomas needs to earn it, as is
evident by the fact that he has already attended three high schools in two
years and has also reclassified, which makes him at least a year older than
his grade. Rounding out our top 10 are 6'1 Jr Nate Britt from
Washington (Gonzaga) DC, who is the best pure point guard in the nation, and
6'5 Jr Brian Bridgewater from Baton Rouge (Episcopal) LA, who is an
undersized inside guy with an expanded mid-range game, but still doesn't get
the respect that he deserves even tough he took turns this past spring and
summer with 6'3 Rasheed Sulaimon from Houston (Strake Jesuit) TX
being the best player on the Houston Hoops club team. We also think it is
interesting to point out that five our top 16-ranked juniors (Julius
Randle, Aaron Harrison, Andrew Harrison, Matt Jones,
and Keith Frazier) are from the Lone Star State and that 17 of our
top 100-ranked juniors are already off the board. This list includes 6'8 Jr
Isaiah Hicks from Oxford (Body of Christ) NC to North Carolina, 6'4
Jr Billy Garrett from Chicago (Morgan Park) IL to DePaul, 6'5 Jr
Deonte Burton from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH to Marquette, 6'9 Jr
Brandon Watkins from Atlanta (Grady) GA to West Virginia, 6'9 Jr
Christian Wood from Henderson (Henderson Findlay) NV to UNLV, 6'3 Jr
Eric Cooper from La Verne (Lutheran) CA to Arizona, 6'5 Jr Malcolm
Hill from Belleville (East) IL to Illinois, 6'5 Jr Collin Hartman
from Indianapolis (Cathedral) IN to Indiana, 6'1 Jr Bryson Scott from
Ft. Wayne (Northrop) IN to Purdue, 6'7 Jr Kyle Wilson from Ft. Worth
(Dunbar) TX to Baylor, 6'9 Jr Bobby Portis from Little Rock (Hall) AR
to Arkansas, 6'7 Jr V.J. Beachem from New Haven (H.S.) IN to Notre
Dame, 6'4 Jr Kendall Stephens from St. Charles (East) IL to Purdue,
6'0 Jr Conner Frankamp from Wichita (North) KS to Kansas, 6'8 Jr
Marc Loving from Toledo (St. John's) OH to Ohio State, 6'3 Jr Jalen
James from Chicago (Hope) IL to Illinois, and 6'4 Jr Devin Davis
from Indianapolis (Warren Central) IN to Indiana. And seven of those
aforementioned players who are already verbally committed are bound for
Big-10 schools. Obviously this also helps explain why the top four-ranked
schools (Purdue, Michigan, Indiana and Illinois) on our list of the Top
Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2013,
which is updated daily exclusively right here in the
Members Section,
are all from this conference. And this Big-10
dominance would be even greater if we bought into all of the hype
surrounding Ohio State-bound 6'8 Jr Marc Loving from Toledo (St.
John's) OH and Wisconsin-bound 6'2 Jr Bronson Koenig from La Crosse
(Aquinas) WI. Both players are currently ranked much higher by most of our
competition than where we now have them at #80 and #99 respectively.
Another interesting trend involves the fact the recruiting process has
really been slowed down for the players on the top half of the list, as is
evident the fact that there are only two top 50-ranked juniors who are
already off the board. And this comes on the heels of this year's senior
class, where 18 of the top 40-ranked players are still available. In
contrast, there are only 13 players in the 41-100 range still available in
the Class of 2012. Editor's Note: Now is the
perfect time to subscribe
to the Members Section in order to
find out exactly how everything stacks up in our
Ranking of the Top 500 Players Nationally in the Class of 2013 (Juniors).
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
I ran across something
very interesting in the latest Five-Star Basketball Recruiting Roundup,
which was published earlier today and written by Harrison Sanford.
The headline screams
"Anderson shocked by Arits' de-commitment"
and the
article begins saying "UCLA seemingly had their backcourt of the near future
set. Five-Star rated point guard guard Kyle Anderson (Fairview,
NJ/St. Anthony) was to team with top-100 floor general Dominic Artis
(Richmond, CA/ Findlay Prep, NV) to create a dynamic 2012 tandem." And then
it quotes Anderson saying Artis "is a kinda like Myle Mack
(Anderson's former St. Anthony teammate playing at Rutgers). He shoots the
ball well, I could have found him in open spots." The articles goes on to
say "Bruins fans might not get the duo in wake of Artis' de-commitment a few
weeks back. The news was a blow to Anderson and Westwood as UCLA is left
without any other top-100 options at point guard in the 2012 class, leaving
Anderson as the sole ball handler." Then it's back to Anderson who says "I
was wondering why he (Artis) did it. I was surprised he de-committed, but
it is what it is...he had to do what's best for him. He said he is going to
weight his options, felt like he rushed into it." The article concludes by
saying that Artis is still considering UCLA, along with Oregon and
California. First of all, I want to point out that de-commit is not a
word. However, if people want to insist on using it, I also want to
reinforce the fact that de-commit does not eloquently describe what a slim
ball the coach that you gave your word to thinks you are after you've
reneged and he has to start all over in the recruiting process to find
another player to fill the same position. As for Artis, people close to the
situation at the time told me that the reason Artis decided to renege on his
decision to attend UCLA was the fact that the Bruins coaching staff had told
Artis that Anderson was going to be the point guard and, as a result, it
looked like Artis was going to be the old man out. And,, at the time we
were kind of scratching our head. As things stand now, Artis is ranked #18
nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP and is capable of
playing either guard spot, thanks to his good ball handling and passing
skills, excellent decision making, and ability to flat out shoot the
basketball. We thought also thought Anderson and Artis would complement one
another perfectly and be interchangeable in the backcourt. Artis also
would be able to more than offset Anderson's inability to defend a smaller
and quicker guard defensively and, when need be at the offensive end, beat
defenders off the dribble in a way that Anderson would not be able to do.
Now also is a good time to point out that UCLA will also have North Carolina
transfer 6'2 Jr Larry Drew waiting in the wings this year and he will
become eligible when the players in the 2012 recruiting class arrive on
campus a year from now as college freshmen. And this is important, because
Anderson will not be only point guard in the program who had a top 100
résumé as a college senior. So we think it's safe to assume that the UCLA
coaching staff didn't want to create too much of a long jam in the
backcourt, as their top priority is still landing 6'5 Shabazz Muhammad
from Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV. This too is huge, because one of the
primary reasons why Anderson picked UCLA is that he wants to play on the
same college team with Muhammad. And those in the know think that the same
also holds true for 6'9 Tony Parker from Lithonia (Miller Grove) GA,
6'8 Anthony Bennett from Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, and 6'8
William "Shaq" Goodwin from Decatur (Southwest DeKalb) GA, all of whom
also are high on UCLA's priority list. The University of Memphis is another
school high on the list of Parker and Goodwin and our Mid-South Editor
Jim Rothman tells us that they were both at Memphis Madness
on Friday, along with a long list of other high level players that also
included 6'9 Jarnell Stokes from Memphis (Southwind) TN, 6'7 Jr
Nick King from Memphis (East) TN, 6'8 Jr Austin Nichols from Eads
(Briarcrest) TN, 6'7 Soph LeRon Black from Memphis (White Station)
TN, and
6'5 Soph
Develle Roby from Memphis (White Station) TN. The other big shoe to
drop over the weekend in the recruiting world involves 6'4 D'vantes
Smith-Rivera from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, who picked Georgetown
over Louisville, N.C. State, Memphis, and UCLA. We're talking about a
strong athletic scoring combo guard who is ranked #35 nationally in the
senior class by the HOOP SCOOP and is ideally suited for the
physicality. Smith-Rivera joins 6'8 Brandon Bolden from
Charlottesville (The Miller School) VA in a recruiting class that is now
ranked #32 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the
Class of 2012.
However, even more important, the addition Smith-Rivera gives the Hoyas a
that they have not previously had into one of the most fertile recruiting
hotbeds in the country. Our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey
Editor Allen Rubin tells us that 6'5 Derrick Stewart from
Philadelphia (Neumann-Goretti) PA and 6'6 Terry Turner from Scranton
(H.S.) PA have both verbally committed to Rider, 6'0 Carson Puriefoy
from Pennsauken (Bishop Eustace) NJ is bound for Stony Brook, and 6'3
Kyle Molock from Dublin (Coffman) OH has decided to attend St.
Joseph's. Yes, Molock is the same guy who originally verbally committed to
Purdue back when he was a sophomore in high school, but re-opened his
recruitment this past summer after tearing an ACL 15 months ago and missing
his entire junior season. The reports that we're getting is that he's now
fully recovered. And, assuming that's the case, this appears to be a major
steal. Molock not only is a smart tough hardnosed point guard who knows how
to run a team, but he's also a lock down defender with incredible
athleticism and a 39-inch vertical leap. Puriefoy is a pure point guard who
knows how to run a team, score, dish, and hit the outside shot. Stewart is
a combo forward who can step out and hit the three, is a good rebounder and
defender, and brings that Philly toughness to the table. Turner promises to
be the best player from the Scranton area since Gerry McNamara, but
this very skilled and athletic wing player is going to have to learn to work
harder in the off season if he's going to live up his lofty press
clippings. Rubin also tells us that 6'8 Amile Jefferson from
Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA has visits lined up each the next three
weekends to Kentucky, Stanford, and N.C. State. He also already has been to
Ohio State and Connecticut and plans to take unofficial visits to Temple,
Villanova, and Maryland.
Wednesday, October 12,
2011
The two most
interesting things that we've recently run across on the recruiting trail in
the involves the verbal commitments that 6'4 Melvin Johnson from
Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ has made a couple of days ago to Miami-FL and
5'11 Stefan Moody from Kissimmee (Poinciana) FL has made earlier this
week to Florida Atlantic. The former is ranked #53 nationally in the senior
class by the HOOP SCOOP and our New York City Editor Ron Naclerio
thinks this is big for a number of reasons. First, Johnson has a
scorer's mentality and can really shoot the basketball, which is something
that most New York City guards don't do well. Second, he has big time
athleticism and that New York City toughness and he's improved leaps and
bounds since last season when he was junior at New York (Rice) NY. Third,
he not only promises to be the heir apparent to 6'3 Jr Durand Scott,
who will graduate year after next, at the two-guard spot, but he also helps
keep the Hurricanes' strong NYC pipeline intact. If you will recall, Scott
is an alumnus of New York (Rice) NY and 6'1 Sr Malcolm Grant
graduated from Brooklyn (Paul Robeson) NY prior to going the prep school
route for a year to Winchendon (School) MA. And to make the story even more
interesting is the fact that new Miami-FL head coach Jim Larranaga
also has strong NYC roots dating back to his high school playing days at
Briarwood (Archbishop Molloy) NY. The latter is a jet quick point guard who
came out of the woodwork this past summer to now be ranked #60 nationally in
the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP. We're talking about a guy with
an incredible vertical leap, the ability to beat you with his outside
shooting, and the speed and quickness necessary to be a lockdown defender.
In other words, we're talking about a major steal for the Owls, as well as
an excellent complement to 6'7 Chris Bryant from Waynesboro (Fishburne
Military Academy) VA, who also is already apart of a recruiting class that
is now tied at #39, along with Michigan and West Virginia, on our list of
the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2012. We
also are not surprised that 6'8 Grant Verhoeven from Visalia (Central
Valley Christian) CA has picked Stanford and we have no doubt that 6'1
Joe Rahon from San Diego (Torrey Pines) CA will be a perfect fit at
Boston College. Rahon is a pure point guard with a great frame, good
skills, a high energy level, the surprising lateral quickness, and the
toughness necessary to evolve into a big time player. Verhoeven needs to
get bigger and strong physically, but he's got a high basketball IQ, good
skills, and is very effective around the basketball for a finesse player, as
is evident by the fact that he averaged 23.0 ppg and 17.0 rpg a year ago.
The fact that his Dad (Pete Verhoeven) played at Fresno State and for
six years in the NBA is just an added bonus. And what about the two verbal
commitments that Princeton recently garnered from 7'1 Edo Lawrence
from New Haven (Canterbury) CT and 6'8 Hans Brase from Pottstown (The
Hill School) PA? Our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor
Allen Rubin tells us that Brase is a face-up four-man who can shoot
the basketball and is very effective on the boards at 6'8, 230-pounds.
Lawrence is another guy who has improved dramatically during the past year
and he's got the developing skills, frame to get bigger and stronger
physically, and the upside and potential necessary to become a force to be
reckoned with in the Ivy League. We also think that 6'7 Jr V.J. Beachem
from New Haven (H.S.) IN is a great catch for Notre Dame for a number of
reasons. First, he's a very good player, as is evident by the fact that
he's a consensus top 50-100 range junior nationally. Second, he's a skilled
wing with nice size and he can flat out light it up from behind the arc.
Third, he's a homegrown kid, which is important for the Irish, as the attend
to battle Indiana and Purdue for the top players in the state. Fourth, he
should fit in perfectly with the three players - 6'6 Cameron Beidschied
from St. Louis (Cardinal Ritter) MO, 6'8 Austin Burgett from Avon
(H.S.) IN, and 6'9 Zach Auguste from New Hampton (Prep) NH - who are
already apart of Notre Dame's currently recruiting class, which is currently
ranked #31 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the
Class of 2012. On the other hand, we're not impressed with the
fact that 6'6 Negus Webster-Chan from Huntington (Prep) WV has
verbally committed to the University of Missouri. He's was awful last
summer at the NBA Players Association Camp in Charlottesville, VA and
were not surprised that he changed his mind about going to the University of
Louisville, which is where he originally verbally committed back when Tigers
assistant coach Tim Fuller was on the Cardinals coaching staff. We
also have a number of junior college commitments to pass along, including
6'5 Darren Goodson from Pensacola (JC) FL to Kent State, 6'5
Arthur McMillan from Lawson State (JC) AL to Appalachian State, 6'0
Trantell Knight from Chipola (JC) FL to Middle Tennessee State, 6'1
Darrington Banks from Collin County (JC) KS and 6'8 Marcus Bell
from Marshalltown (JC) IA both to the University of Idaho. The first one
and the last one are especially noteworthy, as Goodson is a 6'5, 240-pound
physical presence with great hands and the ability to put up impressive
numbers to the tune of 17.1 ppg and 6.1 rpg a year ago, and Bell is a great
athlete who was good enough a year ago to be named the MVP of the Western
Division of the Northwest Athletic Association of the Community College
Conference.
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
The biggest thing
that has happened in the recruiting world during the last several days has
to be the verbal commitment that 6'6 Xavier Johnson from Santa Ana
(Mater Dei) CA has made to the University of Colorado. We're talking about
an athletic wing with a good mid-range game, the versatility to play
multiple positions, and the skills necessary to be ranked #77 nationally in
the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP. He's also a terrific kid and a
great team player, as is evident by the fact that he played out of position
for his high school team last winter and accepted his role this past summer
on a loaded Dream Vision team that featured 6'5 Shabazz Muhammad from
Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'8 Winston Shepard from Henderson
(Findlay Prep) NV, and 7'0
Robert Upshaw from Fresno (San Joaquin Memorial) CA.
And this is important, because it likely explains why the value of Johnson's
stock has dropped so much in the last year and why we suspect that he will
end up being a better player in college than he was in high school. In
other words, Johnson has the talent and the character necessary to be
exactly what the doctor ordered as the Buffaloes get ready to enter the
Pacific-10 Conference. We also find it interesting that Johnson is
following the footsteps of 6'4 Spencer Dinwiddie from Woodland Hills
(Taft) CA, 6'1 Askia Booker from Los Angeles (Price) CA, and 6'6
Damien Cain from North Hollywood (Harvard-Westlake) CA, all of who
signed with Colorado a year ago. And to make the story even more
interesting is the fact that Johnson and Dinwiddie were teammates on the
Double Pump Elite team that won the adidas Super 64 Tournament the
summer before last in Las Vegas, NV. We're not sure why the the Buffaloes
are recruiting so well in Southern California, but we do know that Buffaloes
assistant coach Tom Abatemarco has proven over the years that he's
one of the best there is on the recruiting trail and Buffaloes assistant
coach Jean Prioleau is one of the rising stars in the business. We
also have confirmed that earlier this week Colorado added 6'7 Chris
Jenkins from Detroit (Jesuit) MI to a recruiting class that is now tied
at #18, along with Missouri and Xavier, on our list of the Top Recruiting
Classes To-Date for the Class of 2012
and already includes 6'10 Josh Scott
from Monument (Lewis-Palmer) CO and 6'7 Wesley Gordon from Colorado
Springs (Sierra) CO. Our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey
Editor Allen Rubin provides us with the scoop on 6'9 Jermaine
Davis from Garfield Heights (H.S.) OH verbally committing to La Salle.
We're talking about good old-fashioned big bodied center with good post
moves and an aggressive on the boards, whereby, he doesn't take any
prisoners around the basket. And a tough hardnosed physical specimen like
Davis is exactly what the doctored ordered for Explorers head coach John
Giannini and his staff, as he promises to be the perfect complement to
7'0 Frosh Matt Lopez, 6'11 Frosh Steve Sax, and 6'8 Frosh
Devon White, all of whom are already in the program. Rubin also tells
us that 6'1 Jr Jaren Sina from Gladestone (St. Bernard's) NJ has
decided to renege on the verbal commitment that he made last winter to the
University of Alabama. On the other hand, we thought this was a strange fit
for a number of reasons. First, it's a big change of lifestyle when one
makes the move from North Jersey to the Deep South. Second, Sina is very
skilled and can shoot the lights out, but lacks the speed, quickness, and
athleticism necessary to be an impact player in the Southeastern
Conference. Third, we never bought the hype that Sina was a big time
player. Instead, we thought he would be a better fit for somebody in the
Atlantic-10 Conference or Colonial Athletic Association. Our New York City
Editor Ron Naclerio also checks in and he thinks Fairfield has stolen
one in 6'8 Amadou Sidibe from Bronx (Cardinal Hayes) NY. "He's only
been playing basketball for three years," says Naclerio. "But he's a
tremendous shot blocker and rebounder and his offensive game is starting to
catch up with his defensive game. He's developing a hook shot and some
nice moves around the basket. He's originally from the Ivory Coast and also
was considering schools like Hofstra, Fordham, Iona, Boston University,
Drexel, St. Peter's, and Siena." We also have some junior college verbal
commitments to pass along, as 6'6 Kenny Williams from Moberly (JC) MO
has picked UTEP, 6'9 Fahro Alihodzic from Southeastern Iowa (JC) IA
is bound for the University of Nebraska, 6'0 Richard Carter from
Cloud County (JC) KS has decided on Drake University, and 6'5 Ronald
McGee from Dodge City (JC) KS will attend Eastern Illinois. That first
one is especially significant, because Williams has the skills, mid-range
game, and résumé to be touted as one of the top five junior college players
in the nation. And to reinforce this point even further is the fact that
this athletic combo forward averaged 22.1 ppg and 13.9 rpg and was named a
Third Team All-America in the NJCAA (National Junior College Athletic
Association) ranks a year ago. At 6'9, 240-pounds and already 22-years
old, Alihodzic has a good combination of size, strength, experience,
pedigree, and maturity and, although he's primarily a back to the basket
type of guy, he also can step out and knock down the 3-point shot. Carter
also appears to be a steal for the Bulldogs, as he averaged 12.5 ppg, 3.7
rpg, and 4.2 apg en route to Freshman-of-the-Year honors in the touch
Jayhawk Conference a year ago. McGhee is a long wiry athletic wing who can
beat you with both his good mid-range game and excellent outside shooting.
Friday, September 30, 2011
When we found out
earlier this week that
6'4 Rodney Purvis from Raleigh (Upper
Room Christian Academy) NC was going to make an unofficial visit to N.C.
State, along with 5'11
Tyler Lewis from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA and 6'7 T.J. Warren
from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH, we knew that Purvis was a done deal
for the Wolfpack. And, if N.C. State can also seal the deal with Warren,
then they will be three-for-three when it comes to getting the top three
players from along Tobacco Road to stay at home. If you will recall, Lewis
is originally from Statesville, NC and played the last three years at
Lewisville (Forsyth Country Day) NC and Warren is from Raleigh, NC and he
played at Raleigh (Word of God) NC a year ago. And, if that weren't enough
of a connection, did you know that Warren's father (Tony Warren)
played for the Wolfpack in the late 70's and is a big N.C. State basketball
fan? It also looks like N.C. State and Florida are the two schools that you
have to beat for 6'9 Brice Johnson
from Cordova (Edisto) SC, they recently had
6'3
D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera
on campus for an official visit, 6'8
Amile Jefferson from Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA is expected to
make an official visit on November 5th, and they are hoping to join West
Virginia, Kansas Louisville, and Texas and get the final visit from 6'7
Andrew White from Charlottesville (The Miller School) VA. In other
words, N.C. State head coach Mark Gottfried and his staff have done a
magnificent job of hitting the ground running after getting hired this past
spring. And, with Purvis and Lewis already in the fold, their recruiting
class checks in at #10 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date
for the Class of 2012.
If they also get
Warren, then this class will move up to #3, right behind UCLA and Indiana
and ahead of Arizona, Oklahoma State, Iowa, Virginia, Florida State,
Providence, and Wake Forest, on our list of the
Top Recruiting
Classes To-Date for the Class of 2012. Add any one
or two of the other four aforementioned players to the list and N.C. State
should be right there when the dust has cleared next spring and we're
talking about who has the top-ranked recruiting class in our Final
Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes for the Class of 2012. As for
Purvis, he's an incredible athlete, is capable of playing either guard spot,
and is good enough to be ranked #9 nationally in the senior class by the
HOOP SCOOP. The other big commitment that we've tracked during the last
24 hours involves 6'10 Mading Thok from Hull (Western Christian) IA,
who has made it official for Ball State. Thok is ranked #132 nationally in
the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, but his upside and potential are
off the chart due to his length, athleticism, ability to run the court, and
blocks shots. He does need to get bigger and stronger physically and
develop more of an offensive repertoire. In other words, he's far from
being a finished product, but it wouldn't surprise us one bit if he evolved
into the best player in the league someday. Thok also promises to be the
perfect complement to 6'6 Bo Calhoun from South Bend (Washington) IN,
6'4 Michael Ramey from Indianapolis (Southport) IN, and 6'1 Marcus
Posley from Winnebago (H.S.) IL in a recruiting class that is now ranked
#33 on our list of the
Top Recruiting
Classes To-Date for the Class of 2012. Our Philadelphia/Eastern
Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin provides us with the
scoop on 6'8 Donovan Jack from Reading (Bucks Catholic) PA, who has
picked Duquesne over St. Bonaventure and St. Joseph's. Jack is another
pencil thin post player, but he's ranked #242 nationally in the senior class
by the HOOP SCOOP and has the skills and footwork in the paint
necessary to emerge into an impact player down the road in the Atlantic-10
Conference. Rubin also tells us that the University of Pennsylvania has
landed the big man that they were searching for in 6'10 Darian
Nelson-Henry from Kirkland (Lake Washington) WA. Nelson-Henry picked
the Quakers over Washington State, Gonzaga, Boise State, and Columbia and he
has the size, mobility, and back-to-the-basket game necessary to potentially
start as a freshman a year from now. He also joins 6'2 Tony Hicks
from Chicago (St. Rita) IL and 6'0 Jamal Lewis from Washington (Sidwell
Friends) WA in a recruiting class that is now tied, along with Harvard, for
the top spot in the Ivy League. It also looks like new Towson head coach
Pat Skerry hasn't lost his touch as an excellent recruiter, as the
Tigers have added 6'3 Jerome Hairston from Arden (The Christ School)
NC to a recruiting class that already includes 6'2 Frank Mason from
Petersburg (H.S.) VA and 6'8 Barrington Alston from Christchurch
(School) VA. Hairston is ranked #290 nationally in the senior class by the
HOOP SCOOP and he's one of those guys that is like a
jack-of-all-trades, as he does everything pretty well, but nothing
exceptionally well. We also have confirmed that 5'11 Dalante Dunklin
from San Diego (Parker) CA has picked UC-Santa Barbara, 6'6 Nate Kratch
from Watertown (Watertown-Mayer) MN is bound for Santa Clara, 6'5 Corey
Arentsen from Breese (Mater Dei) IL has decided to attend Austin Perry,
6'5 Jeff Moss from Madison (Bob Jones) AL has cast his lot with
Murray State. And on the junior college recruiting trail it's being
reported that 5'10 Denzel Douglas from Casper (JC) WY has verbally
committed to the University of Idaho, 6'8 Lamont Prosser from
Sheridan (JC) WY has verbally committed to Portland State, 6'4 Cameron
Solomon from Brevard (JC) FL has verbally committed to Georgia State,
6'8 Juan Coronado from Palm Beach (JC) FL has verbally committed to
Liberty, 7'0 Anthony Allen from Southern Idaho (JC) ID has verbally
committed to Ohio University and 5'9 Frosh Jerran Foster from
Southern Idaho (JC) ID has verbally committed to Winthrop. We also think
it's important to mention that those last two (Allen and Foster) are both
freshmen this year and, as a result, count as apart of the Class of 2013 for
their respective schools.
Friday, September 23, 2011
It looks like we knew what we were talking about
yesterday when we told you that 6'4 Musa Abdul Aleem from Georgia
Perimeter (JC) GA was on the verge of making his college decision and that
the race was between South Florida and Memphis. He made it official for the
Bulls this afternoon and Dave Dennis, who is the associated head
coach at Georgia Perimeter (JC) GA, not only confirms the fact that Aleem is
a great 3-point shooter, but also adds that Aleem has a very good mid-range
game and is very adept at both shooting and scoring. "He does both equally
well," says Dennis. "He's also is an excellent defender, but the best thing
about him is his character." Aleen averaged 13.9 ppg and 5.5 rpg a year ago
and this strong physical guard should be exactly what the doctor ordered in
terms of providing the Bulls with needed outside firepower when he arrives
on campus a year from now. He also promises to evolve into one of the
better players in the tough Big East Conference and we're intrigued by all
of the connections that the South Florida coaching staff had to get this one
done. Not only is Aleem originally from Tampa, FL, but his father still
lives there and Dennis, who played high school basketball back in the day
against South Florida head coach Stan Heath in Detroit, MI, sent one
of his players (Jay Brown) to Lamar, where he played for current
Bulls assistant coach Steve Roccaforte. It also looks like Cornell
head coach Bill Courtney and his staff are doing a good job of
putting the pieces together, as their latest recruit is 6'8 Holt Harmon
from Plano (West) TX. We're talking about a guy who can score on the block,
is crafty around the basket, and is good enough to be ranked #32 in the
state's senior class by
TexasHoops.com.
If you will recall, the Big Red also landed 6'4 Nolan Cressler from
Pittsburgh (Plum) PA three-and-a-half weeks ago and got what is believed to
be the earliest commitment ever made to an Ivy League school by 6'10 Jr
Tim Higgins from Fairfax (Paul VI) VA back in late August. What
Cressler does best is shoot the basketball. But the big prize here is
Higgins, who has grown two inches in the last year and, as a result, at
6'10, 205-pounds, is going to need some time for his body to catch up with
his growth. However, he has a high motor, great hands, runs the court,
blocks shots, and has incredible IQ both on and off the court. And the
connection here is interesting as well, as it looks like Courtney, who was
an assistant coach at Virginia, Virginia Tech, Virginia Commonwealth, and
George Mason, has gone back to his old stamping grounds to steal a big guy
with the upside and potential necessary to evolve into one of the best
players in the league someday. There also is the addition of 6'8 Austin
Haldorson from Highlands Ranch (H.S.) CO to a University of Wyoming
recruiting class that already includes 6'0 Josh Adams from Parker
(Chaparral) CO and 6'4 Jason McManamen from Torrington (H.S.) WY.
Halderson needs to get bigger and stronger physically, but has solid skills,
good athleticism and mobility, and a great bloodline, as is evident by the
fact that he is the grandson of University of Colorado All-American
Burdette Haldorson. We also have confirmed that 6'9 Zach Auguste
from New Hampton (Prep) NH has verbally committed to Notre Dame. And we
think this is a great catch for a number of reasons. First, Auguste is good
enough right now to be ranked #19 on our List of the Top 5th Year Players.
Second, this long skinny athletic big white kid has a huge upside and the
skills and versatility necessary to be perfect for Irish head coach Mike
Breys' system. Third, he promises to be an excellent complement to 6'6
Cameron Beidschield from St. Louis (Cardinal Ritter) MO and 6'8
Austin Burgett from Avon (H.S.) IN in a recruiting class that is now
ranked #24 on our list of the
Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2012. Our
Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin
also tells us that 6'9 Tyler Berantino from Brooksville (Nature
Coast) FL has verbally committed to Massachusetts, 6'4 Ronny Paden
from Willingboro (H.S.) NJ has verbally committed to St. Peter's, 6'4
Khalil Alford from Waynesboro (Fishburne Military Academy) VA has
verbally committed to Rider, and 6'5 Grant Ellis from Jersey City
(Hudson Catholic) NJ has verbally committed to Iona.
Sunday,
September 18, 2011
With the verbal
commitment a couple of days ago by 6'7 Jerami Grant from Hyattsville
(DeMatha) MD to Syracuse University and 6'8 Kyle Anderson from Jersey
City (St. Anthony) NJ expected to pick either Seton Hall or UCLA on Tuesday,
it's now easier to provide you with a list of who is left than who is
already off the board. Currently that number stands at 40 and it includes
6'5 Shabazz Muhammad from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'8 Kyle
Anderson from Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ, 6'9 Tony Parker from
Lithonia (Miller Grove) GA, 6'8 Amile Jefferson from Wynnewood
(Friends Central) PA, 6'8 Anthony Bennett from Henderson (Findlay
Prep) NV, 6'9 DaJuan Coleman from Dewitt (Jamesville-Dewitt) NY, 6'4
Rodney Purvis from Raleigh (Upper Room Christian Academy) NC, 6'5
Archie Goodwin from Sherwood (Sylvan Hills) AR, 6'6 Savon Goodman
from Philadelphia (Constitution) PA, 6'9 Jarnell Stokes from Memphis
(Southwind) TN, 6'7 T.J. Warren from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH,
6'8 Winston Shepard from Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, 6'4 Gary
Harris from Fishers (Hamilton Southeastern) IN, 6'7 Charles Mitchell
from Marietta (Wheeler) GA, 6'8 Perry Ellis from Wichita (Heights)
KS, 6'8 William "Shaq" Goodwin from Decatur (Southwest DeKalb) GA 6'8
Rosco Allen from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'4 D'Vauntes
Smith-Rivera from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'8 Alex Poythress
from Clarksville (Northeast) TN, 6'8 Devonta Pollard from DeKalb
(Kemper County) MS, 6'5 Torian Graham from Raleigh (Word of God) NC,
6'6 Twymond Howard from Pearl (H.S.) MS, 6'8 Robert Carter
from Snellville (Shiloh) GA, 6'9 Prince Ibeh from Garland (Namann
Forest) TX, 6'8 Elijah Macon from Columbus (Marian-Franklin) OH, 6'4
Melvin Johnson from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 6'9 Brice Johnson
from Cordova (Edisto) SC, 6'8 Ben Carter from Las Vegas (Bishop
Gorman) NV, 5'11 Stefan Moody from Poinciana (H.S.) FL, 6'11
Robert Upshaw from Fresno (San Joaquin Memorial) CA, 6'0 Nino Jackson
from Ardmore (H.S.) OK, 6'7 Xavier Johnson from Santa Ana (Mater Dei)
CA, 6'10 Joel James from Palm Beach Gardens (Dwyer) FL, 6'8 Zena
Edosomwan from North Hollywood (Harvard-Westlake) CA, 6'9 Landen
Lucas from Portland (Westview) OR, 6'4 Junior Lomomba from
Madison (Memorial) WI, 6'3 Anrio Adams from Seattle (Franklin) WA,
6'10 Willie Cauley from Olathe (Northwest) KS, 6'6 Jordan Tebbutt
from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, and 6'8 Chris Washburn from Grand
Prairie (South) TX. Grant picked the Orangemen over Rutgers and Notre Dame
and is ranked #23 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP.
However, what really makes this a great catch is the fact that Grant is a
phenomenal athlete with a tremendous upside and an unbelievable bloodline
(his father and uncle both played in the NBA, his three older brothers all
played college basketball, and his younger brother is one of the top rising
freshmen in the nation and has the potential to be the best player in the
family). We also find it interesting that one of the deciding factors in
Grant's decision was Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim's incredible
success with similar like players (i.e. Carmelo Anthony, Wesley
Johnson, and Donte Green). As for Anderson, he's ranked #3
nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP and also still has
Florida, St. John's, and Georgetown on his list. However, after a number of
calls earlier this evening, everybody that we've talked with thinks it will
be either Seton Hall or UCLA. If he picks the former, it will be one of the
major recruiting coups of the entire Fall Signing Period. Not only
is Anderson capable of playing any position from point guard to power
forward, but he also has an incredible basketball IQ and is the marquee
player that Pirates head coach Kevin Willard needs to take the
program to another level. On the other hand, if Anderson picks the latter,
then he would be the perfect complement to 6'0 Dominic Artis from
Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV and 6'5 Jordan Adams from Mouth of Wilson
(Oak Hill) VA in a recruiting class that is ranked #1 on our list of the
Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2012. However, even
more important, Anderson will also likely be the pied piper that UCLA head
coach Ben Howland and his staff need to get them over the top in
their quest to get 6'5 Shabazz Muhammad from Henderson (Findlay Prep)
NV, who is our #1-ranked senior nationally and the Bruins top recruiting
priority. Another top priority is 6'9 Tony Parker from Lithonia
(Miller Grove) GA, who is ranked #4 nationally in the senior class by the
HOOP SCOOP and now has a top three that includes UCLA, Ohio State, and
Duke. And, if UCLA were to really hit the jackpot and were to get Muhammad,
Anderson, and Parker to along Artis and Adams, then everybody would be
talking about the "Fab Five" recruiting class that we first mentioned back
in July.
Sunday, September 11, 2011
One of the best things that we do all year is our
"Best of the Summer Awards,"
which always provide an interesting perspective and accurate reflection of
what we saw out on the recruiting trail from Memorial Day to Labor
Day. And this time around the
Player-of-the-Summer and the
Best Senior in the Nation
was one in the same. Obviously we're talking about 6'5 Shabazz
Muhammad from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, who began the summer with
that dominant performance at the Pangos All-American Camp and ended
the summer when he scored 25 points and shared MVP honors at the Boost
Mobile Elite 24 Game in Venice Beach, CA. And he was so incredible in a
game on the first day of Live Evaluation Period at the adidas
Invitational in Indianapolis, IN that our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson
called me and told me that we can cancel the entire summer. Muhammad had 47
points in that game and he was so good at getting to the basket that he also
wrapped up the award as
Best Slasher on that
very first day. Muhammad also is a tremendous competitor who played hurt,
but still put up prolific numbers while leading his team to a runner-up
finish in the adidas Super 64 Tournament in Las Vegas, NV. And
Muhammad still has plenty of upside and potential, as he needs to develop
more of an outside shooter's mentality and to continue to improve his
mid-range game. He also has some serious competition from 6'8 Jr Julius
Randle from Plano (Prestonwood Christian) TX and 6'8 Jr Jabari Parker
from Chicago (Simeon) IL with regards to our choice as the
Best Player in the Nation Today Regardless of Class.
As a matter of fact, we think the race among these
three players is too close call and, as a result, they (Muhammad, Randle,
and Parker) are the tri-winners of this award. Randle does possess an
incredible combination of size, skills, athleticism, and footwork and he did
turn in the Best Individual Performance
that we've seen in a long time when we saw
him finish with 30 points against Memphis YOMCA in the quarterfinals of the
NIKE Peach Jam in North Augusta, SC. On the other hand, Parker does
edge out Randle as the Best Junior in the
Nation due to the fact that he was a little
more consistent throughout the entire summer. Parker also has changed his
body in the last year and, as a result, is now quick enough and athletic
enough to guard smaller guys out on the perimeter and now projects as a
2-guard or a wing forward at the highest level. We also continue to think
that 6'10 Soph Dakari Johnson from Montverde (Academy) FL is the
Best Sophomore in the Nation and
that 6'2 Frosh Malik Newman from Jackson (Callaway) MS is the
Best Freshman in the Nation.
Newman also gets our
Top Gun Award after scoring 32 of his
team's 38 points in an opening round playoff loss of the 14-Under
AAU Boys National Basketball Championship in Lake Buena Vista,
FL. However, before anybody gets too concerned about Newman's propensity
for pulling the trigger, it's also important to remember that he will be
playing high school basketball for Wayne Brent at Jackson (Callaway)
MS. Not only is Brent a former assistant coach at Ole Miss, but he's also
great at developing players and preparing them for the next level. Our
Top-Ranked 5th Year Player
and the winner of our Mr. Hustle Award
is 6'9 Mitch McGary from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH, who played
with boundless energy and enthusiasm in his quest for the latter award and
edged out an impressive list of big time players like 6'6 Ricardo Ledo
from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA and 6'11 Andre Drummond from Oakdale
(St. Thomas More) CT for the former ranking. Speaking of Drummond, he was
both the Most Widely Debated Player of the
Summer and the guy who gets the award for
Doing The Least With the Most Amount of Talent.
If you recall, Drummond has an incredible combination of size, athletic, and
natural talent, but is out of shape, lacks post moves, has no heart, and has
NBAidis, meaning that he's already bought into all of the hype and his plan
is to get to the league as fast as possible. And, while we've been on his
case for several years now, many others marvel at Drummond's upside and
potential and some even go so far as to predict that he will be the #1-pick
in the NBA Draft a year from now. And to make the story even more
interesting is the fact that Drummond recently decided to forego another
year in prep school at Wilbraham (Wilbraham & Monson) MA and, instead, has
enrolled at the University of Connecticut, where he will play for a no
non-sense head coach who has a history of getting the most out of his
players. In sharp contrast to Drummond is 6'8 Amile Jefferson from
Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA. And, if Drummond was a stock, now would be
a good time to buy due to the fact that most of our competition still does
not appear to have figured it out yet, despite the fact that he was the most
consistent player that we saw all summer. Jefferson also was the clearly
best player at the NBA Player Association Camp, was great when we saw
him play in the Las Vegas Fab 48 Tournament and, in our mind, was the
best player at the Boost Mobile Elite 24 Game in Venice Beach, CA.
He's also a great kid, excellent student, and has the length and athleticism
necessary to have as much potential as anybody in the Class of 2012. Thus,
explains, why he wins the Sportsmanship
Award, is our
Runner-up Player-of-the Summer, and is
ranked among the top five seniors nationally. We also can't say enough good
things about 6'4 Marcus Smart from Flower Mound (Marcus) TX, who not
only was the catalyst behind his team's championship in the adidas 64
Tournament, but also was easily the
Biggest Surprise of the Summer. Smart also
is one of the most versatile players in the class, as he can play the one
through the four spots, and was one of the leading candidates for
Best Defensive Player of the Summer.
However, in the final analysis, that ended up being a
tie between 6'3 Rasheed Sulaimon from Houston (Strake Jesuit) TX and
6'10 Jr Nerlens Noel from Tilton (School) NH. Noel also is the best
shot blocker to come down the pike in a long time, so it should come as no
surprise that he gets the nod as the Best
Shot Blocker. The Best Playmaker
was 6'1 Marcus Paige from Marion (Linn-Mar) IA,
the Best Outside Shooter
was 5'11 Phillip Forte from Flower Mound
(Marcus) TX, and the Best Athlete
was 6'5 Archie Goodwin from Sherwood (Sylvan
Hills) AR. The guy with the Most Potential
is 6'8 Anthony Bennett from Henderson (Findlay
Prep) NV. He hasn't quite put it all together yet, but Bennett reminds us a
lot of Larry Johnson at the same stage. And, if Bennett develops the
same type of work ethic, he has a chance to be just as good. The
Biggest Disappointment
was 6'9 Brandon Ashley from Henderson (Findlay
Prep) NV. If you will recall, this is the guy that we thought had a chance
to be the #1-ranked player in the senior class nationally when we saw him on
Memorial Day weekend at the NIKE (EYBL) Elite Youth Basketball League
(Session #3) in Torrance, CA. However, his team (the Oakland
Soldiers were a major bust this summer) and Ashley wrapped things up in late
August with only two points in the Boost Mobile Elite 24 Game.
Our Missing In Action Award
goes to 6'9 Jordan Hare from Saginaw (Arthur
Hill) MI and 6'1 Nino Jackson from Ardmore (H.S.) OK, both of whom
failed to show up early in the summer at the NBA Players Association Camp
in Charlottesville, VA and were not seen at any of the major events during
the month of July. The Most Improved
was 6'11 Robert Upshaw from Fresno (San Joaquin
Memorial) CA, the Biggest Sleeper
to emerge was 6'3 Devon Bookert from Las Vegas
(Impact Academy) NV, and the Most Unheralded
Player was 6'8 Winston Shepard from
Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV. And it looks like San Diego State assistant
coach Brian Dutcher agrees with us on those last two players, as he
was a fixture at all of their games in the adidas Super 64 and
Las Vegas 48 Fab 48 Tournament in Las Vegas, NV. We mention
this, because Dutcher gets our Most Visible
Assistant Coach of the Summer Award. And,
as things stand now, the Aztecs are 0-1 in recruiting the two aforementioned
players. If you will recall, Bookert recently verbally committed to Florida
State and Shepard is still on the board and has San Diego State right at the
top of his list. The Most Visible Head
Coach of the Summer was UCLA's Ben
Howland. And this is especially important, because there usually is a
direct correlation between coaches that you see on the recruiting trail and
coaches that end up landing highly ranked recruiting classes. In the case
of UCLA, the Bruins already have 6'0 Dominic Artis from Henderson
(Findlay Prep) NV and 6'5 Jordan Adams from Mouth of Wilson (Oak
Hill) VA both in the fold, are one of the final five for 6'8 Kyle
Anderson from Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ, and still appear to be the
team you have to beat for 6'5 Shabazz Muhmmad from Henderson (Findlay
Prep) NV. This theory also holds true with Arizona head coach Sean
Miller, who won this award a year ago and was our
Runner-up Most Visible Head Coach of the Summer
this time around. Remember, a year ago the Wildcats
landed 6'2 Josiah Turner from Sacramento (H.S.) CA, 6'3 Nick
Johnson from Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, 6'8 Sidiki Johnson from
Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, and 6'10 Angelo Chol from San Diego
(Hoover) CA and now they already have 6'8 Brandon Ashley from
Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, 6'9 Grant Jerrett from La Verne
(Lutheran) CA, and 6'2 Gabe York from Orange (Lutheran) CA in a
recruiting class that is currently ranked #2 on our list of the Top
Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2012.
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
There were a
surprising number of verbal commitments over the long holiday weekend and
right at the top of the list was the decision yesterday by 6'6 Ricardo
Ledo from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA to return home and play for new
Providence head coach Ed Cooley. Actually this is the second time
that Ledo has picked the Friars, as he committed to the previous regime back
in December, but then re-opened his recruitment again in January. Ledo also
has been around the block a few times during his high school career, as he's
already made stops at Warwick (Bishop Hendricken) RI, Barrington (St.
Andrews) RI, and South Kent (Prep) CT. However, Ledo also is ranked #2 on
our List of the Top 5th Year Players and has the incredible natural
talent and athleticism and ability to put up prolific numbers and score in a
variety of ways necessary to be the best player to ever wear the Providence
College uniform. And that's saying a lot when one remembers that Jimmy
Walker, Marvin Barnes, and Ernie DiGregorio were all
terrific players back in the day for the Friars. Ledo also had Kentucky,
Connecticut, Syracuse, and West Virginia on his list, but now Providence's
recruiting class, which also already includes 6'3 Kris Dunn from
Wilbraham (Wilbraham-Monson) MA and 6'5 Joshua Fortune from Hampton (Kecoughtan)
VA, is now ranked #3 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Dates
of the Class of 2012.
It also looks like Baylor University got the pure point guard it was
searching for in 6'3 L.J. Rose from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX.
If you will recall, the Bears have added three very talented guards during
the last year in 5'11
Pierre Jackson from Southern
Idaho (JC) ID, 6'3 Quddus "Deuce" Bello from High Point (Westchester
Country Day) NC, and 6'3 Soph Gary Franklin, who transferred from the
University of California at the semester break last winter. But none of
those guys is ideally suited to step in and run the show. Rose is not a
great player, but he is good enough to be ranked #73 nationally in the
senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, understands his role, and does a good
job of making those around him better. Our Philadelphia/Eastern
Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin also checks in with
three verbal commitments by 6'10 Devontae Watson from Midland
(Lincoln Park) PA to Temple, 6'8 Brandon Taylor from Hamilton
(Trenton Catholic) NJ to Penn State, and 6'4 Chazz Patterson from
Hamilton (Trenton Catholic) NJ to Mount St. Mary's. That last one is a
great catch for the Mountaineers, because we're talking about an athletic
wing who is best known for his athletic highlight film-like dunks, but also
isn't afraid to do the dirty work, set picks and screens, and play good
defense. Taylor is ranked #140 nationally in the senior class, but has the
potential to be ranked at least 100 spots higher, if he ever decides to take
advantage of his quickness and ability to score and rebound around the
basket. Instead, he'd rather shoot 3-pointers and play out on the
perimeter. Watson is an high energy big guy who averaged a triple-double
while leading his team to the championship game in the PIAA (Pennsylvania
Interscholastic Athletic Association) Class A State Tournament. But
what makes Rubin think Watson is a steal for the Owls are his upside and
potential. Apparently he's only been playing organized basketball for three
years and he's one of those guys who gets better every time you see him
play. Antonio Curro
of
NY2LA Sports
was the first person to call and tip us off about 6'4 Jr Deonte Burton
from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH making an early verbal commitment
last Friday to Marquette. Actually this strong physical athletic wing is
just returning home after spending most of his high school career at one of
the premier basketball factories in the tough New England Prep School
ranks. There also were the verbal commitments by 6'5 Montay Brandon
from High Point (Wesleyan Christian Academy) NC to Florida State, 6'8
Skylar Spencer from Los Angeles (Price) CA to San Diego State, 6'7
Jarmal Reid from Decatur (Columbia) GA to Oregon State, 6'5 Shavon
Shields from Olathe (Northwest) KS to the University of Nebraska, 6'4
Jordan Chatman from Vancouver (Union) WA to Brigham Young, and 6'1
Ka'Darryl Bell from Oak Park (Oak Park-River Forest) IL to Bradley.
Bell is a pure point guard, which was a top priority for the new Braves
coaching staff. Chatman is an athletic wing who appears to be following in
his father's footsteps (Jeff Chatman is one of the leading scorers
and best players in school history). Shields established himself this past
summer as a defensive specialist and he too appears to be keeping it in the
family, as his father (Will Shields) was a former All-American on the
gridiron for the Cornhuskers. Reid is listed by a lot of people as wing
forward, but what he does best at 6'8, 230-pounds, is rebound and score
around the basket. Spencer is ranked #162 nationally in the senior class by
the HOOP SCOOP and his athleticism and ability to run the court,
block shots, and rebound appears to be exactly what the doctor ordered for
the Aztecs. Brandon is ranked #17 on our List of the Top 5th Year
Players and his athleticism and ability to score in a variety of ways
makes him a perfect complement to 6'2 Devon Bookert from Las Vegas
(Impact Academy) NV and 6'5 Aaron Thomas from Wolfeboro (Brewster
Academy) NH in a recruiting class that is now ties at #7, along with Iowa
State, Virginia, and Wake Forest, on our list of the Top Recruiting
Classes To-Dates of the Class of 2012.
Monday, August 29, 2011
It really was a great
way to wrap up the summer. We're talking about the
Boost Mobile Elite 24 Game,
which was held yesterday afternoon in Venice Beach, CA and featured an
overwhelming number of the very elite high school players in the nation.
The Marques Johnson Squad beat the Raymond Lewis Squad, 142-132. However,
even more important, a lot of guys reinforced what we already think with
regards to their rankings and projections at both the college and
professional levels. We start with with 6'5 Shabazz Muhammad from
Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'8 Kyle Anderson from Jersey City (St.
Anthony) NJ, and, 6'8 Amile Jefferson from Wynnewood (Friends
Central) PA, who were the three best players in the game and are all ranked
among our top five seniors nationally. For our money Jefferson, who
finished with 23 points, nine rebounds, two blocked shots, and 10-17 field
goals, was the best player in the game. But, once again, he's almost too
efficient for his own good and, as a result, once again didn't get the
respect that he deserves, as Muhammad and 5'7 Jr Aquille Carr from
Baltimore (Patterson) MD edged him out for team MVP honors. Muhammad did
have 25 points, nine rebounds, two blocked shots, and 12-22 field goals.
But most of his points came off of dunks and baskets in transition. On the
other hand, Muhammad does deserve extra credit because he is still being
hampered by a high ankle sprain and was advised to not even play in the
game. He also did a great job of running the court and playing with a lot
of energy, which appeared to be contagious to a lot of the other players in
the game. Carr clearly was the biggest overachiever, as he used his up
tempo style and Baltimore toughness to adapt perfectly to the up-and-down
pace en route to 21 points, 10 assists, 9-17 field goals, and 3-3 free
throws. The same also can be said about 6'5 Justin Anderson from
Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD, who is a relentless competitor and made a
living off transition and dunking the basketball en route to 23 points and
an impressive 11-12 field goals. Anderson also was one of the catalysts
for the winning Marques Johnson Squad and shared team MVP honors with 6'8
Kyle Anderson from Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ. Speaking of the other
Anderson, he finished with 18 points, four rebounds, eight assists, and 9-14
field goals and was one of the most unselfish players and most skilled
players in the game. Two other unsung heroes for the Marques Johnson Squad
were 6'3 Rasheed Sulaimon from Houston (Strake Jesuit) TX and 6'5 Jr
Andrew Harrison from Richmond (Ft. Bend Travis) TX. They both only had
two points apiece in the first half, but finished with 15 points and 14
points apiece respectively when the final horn had sounded. They also
combined for 10 assists and made a number of big plays that helped spark
their team at key points in the game. And what about the battle of the big
men, which was won by 6'9 DeJuan Coleman from Dewitt
(Jamesville-Dewitt) NY and 6'8 Robert Carter from Snellville (Shiloh)
GA? The former finished with 14 points, three rebounds, 5-9 field goals,
and 4-5 free throws and the latter had 16 points, six rebounds, and 8-9
field goals. In contrast, the other two big physical specimens in the game
- 6'9 Tony Parker from Lithonia (Miller Grove) GA and 6'9 Cameron
Ridley from Richmond (Ft. Bend Bush) TX had only eight points and two
rebounds and six points and four rebounds respectively. We're also still
trying to figure out what happened to 6'9 Brandon Ashley from
Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, who was a total bust with only four points and
2-4 field goals. Currently we have Parker ranked #4, Ashley #6, and Coleman
ranked #8 nationally in the senior class. However, after watching this
game, it's pretty clear that Coleman is the best of the three, Parker should
be second on that list, and Ashley probably needs to drop out of the top 10
nationally. Another one of the unsung heroes was 6'5 Savon Goodman
from Bryn Athyn (Academy of the New Church) PA, who finished with 12 points,
six rebounds, two steals, and 6-8 field goals and, once again, always seemed
to be in the right place at the right time to make the play. We also have
to give 6'9 Grant Jerrett from La Verne (Lutheran) CA credit for
stepping up and playing better than expected with eight points and 4-8 field
goals. But we continue to wonder about all of the hype with regards to 6'2
Gabe York from Orange (Lutheran) CA, who finished with only five
points and 2-5 field goals. We also expected more out of 6'8 Jr Julius
Randle from Plano (Prestonwood Christian) TX, who showed some flashes,
but only had 10 points four rebounds, and 4-7 field goals, and 6'10 Jr
Nerlens Noel from Tifton (School) NH, who had several terrific blocks,
but finished with only two points, five rebounds, and 1-4 field goals. On
the other hand, 6'8 Perry Ellis from Wichita (Heights) KS, who had
only two points, two rebounds, and 1-5 field goals, pretty much picked up
where he left off this summer and, as a result, the value of his stock
continues to drop. It was pretty much status quo for the rest of the
players in the game, as 6'4 Rodney Purvis from Raleigh (Upper Room
Christian Academy) NC had 12 points, five rebounds, three assists, and 5-9
field goals; 6'1 Marcus Paige from Marion (Linn-Mar) IA had eight
points, two assists, and 4-10 field goals; 6'8 Anthony Bennett from
Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV had eight points, five rebounds, two blocked
shots, and 4-8 field goals; 6'5 Jr Aaron Harrison from Richmond (Ft.
Bend Travis) TX had eight points, two assists, and 4-8 field goals; 6'1 Jr
Nate Britt from Washington (Gonzaga) DC has six points, two assists,
two steals, and 3-5 field goals; and 6'4 Shaquille Johnson from
Alpharetta (Milton) GA had six points, three assists, and 3-3 field goals.
And, last but not least, is 6'10 Mitch McGary from Wolfeboro
(Brewster Academy) NH, who did not play in the game due to the fact that he
was injured while breaking the backboard in the warm-ups prior to the start
of the game. Also noteworthy is the fact that the outdoors court appeared
to have a major influence the outside shooting, as both teams combined to
hit only 1-13 3-pointers. In contrast, most of the players in the game had
no problem making dunks and finishing in transition, as the Marques Johnson
Squad shot 67-103 (65.0/%) from the field and the Raymond Lewis Squad shot
61-112 (54.5%) from the field. And really that was the big difference in
the game. We also want to give Ronnie Flores of ESPN Rise a
special mention, because he did a great job of putting together the teams
and playing a key role in running the game.
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Rick Bolus, who is the publisher of the
High Potential Basketball Recruiting Service,
has released his post summer ranking of
the top players in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and it reinforces what we
previously thought in a number of areas. First, the senior class in the
state has a lot of good mid-major players, but the pickings are pretty slim
for schools like the University of Louisville and University of Kentucky, as
his list of the top dozen-ranked players includes 6'7 Lemon Gregory
from Greenville (Muhlenberg County) KY, 6'4 MeKale McKay from
Louisville (Moore) KY, 6'0 Jaylen Beckham from Lexington (Bryan
Station) KY, 6'7 Jay Johnson from Versailles (Woodford County) KY,
6'4 Adam Wing from Morehead (Rowan County) KY, 6'7 Devon Rowan
from Goshen (North Oldham) KY, 6'2 Taylor Barnette from Lexington
(Christian) KY, 6'3 Tamron Manning from Georgetown (Scott County) KY,
6'2 Desmond Dorsey from Jeffersontown (Scott County) KY, 6'0
Charles Foster from Louisville (Trinity) KY, 6'4 Max Clemons from
Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY, and 6'8 Sawyer Williams from
Owenton (Owen County) KY. Second, there are some pretty good young players
in state, as his list of the top dozen underclassmen includes 6'4 Jr
Darryl Hicks from Louisville (Trinity) KY, 6'8 Jr Derrick Willis
from Mt. Washington (Bullitt East) KY, 6'3 Soph D'Angelo Russell from
Louisville (Central) KY, 5'11 Soph Quinton Snider from Louisville
(Ballard) KY, 6'6 Soph Trey Grundy from Lexington (Henry Clay) KY,
6'2 Soph Brandon Hatton from Ft. Mitchell (Dixie Heights) KY, 6'6
Soph Justin Johnson from Inez (Sheldon Clark) KY, 6'8 Soph Jackson
Davis from Lexington (Lafayette) KY, 6'3 Jr Larry Morton from
Lexington (Bryan Station) KY, 6'4 Jr Darius Brown from Paducah (Tilghman)
KY, 6'0 Jr Dominique Hawkins from Richmond (Madison (Central) KY, and
6'4 Soph Jordan Green from Lexington (Henry Clay) KY. And this
interesting, because the top sophomores in the state have already overtaken
the top juniors, as the aforementioned group includes seven players in the
Class of 2014 and only five players in the Class of 2013. Third, there also
are some good middle school players to keep an eye on, as his report
includes youngsters like 5'10 8th Grader Braxton Beverly from Hazard
(Perry County Central) KY, 6'2 8th Grader Chris Drabo from Louisville
(Johnson Middle School) KY, 6'0 8th Grader Quentin Goodin from
Campbellsville (Taylor County Middle School) KY, and 6'0 7th Grader A.J.
Youngman from Greenup (Greenup County) KY. And, in the case of Beverly,
he started as a 7th Grader on a team that advanced into the Kentucky
State Tournament this past March. Not only does that put him in pretty
fast company, along with O.J. Mayo, who led Ashland (Rose Hill) KY to
a state tournament appearance as a 7th Grader back in 2003, but Beverly also
is good enough to be ranked among the Second Dozen Underclassmen in the
state right now. "It's too early to project his level for college," says
Bolus. "But Beverly definitely will be a Division I point guard. He's a
good playmaker, see the floor, handles, distributes, and has surprisingly
good speed, quickness, and athleticism." Beverly also was named to play in
the Top All-Star Game and shared Top Underclassmen honors, along with 6'5
Soph Justin Johnson from Inez (Sheldon Clark) KY, at the
"Blue-Chip" Camp at Georgetown College in
Georgetown, KY on July 17th-22nd. Drabo also played in the High School
Division and played well enough make the Second All-Star Game. Goodin and
Youngman also were at this session of camp and the former was named the Camp
Runner-up MVP in the Junior Division and the latter was one of only two 7th
Graders to be named to play in the "Blue-Chip" Junior All-Star Game. Now
also is probably a good time to mention that the Blue-Chip
Camp's Junior Division included some other
very good players, like 5'11 8th Grader Brad Hall from Milford, OH,
who took home Camp MVP honors; 6'3 8th Grader Spencer Cline from
Mason (H.S.) OH, who took home All-Star Game MVP honors; and 6'0 Frosh
Calvin Johnson from Killeen (Shoemaker) TX, who took home All-Star Game
Runner-Up MVP honors. Among the other names to remember from this session's
High School Division are 6'1 James "Woo" Brown from Trotwood
(Trotwood-Madison) OH, who was named the Camp MVP and also was the Runner-up
MVP in the Top All-Star Game; 6'7 Jauan Akins from Radcliff (North
Hardin) KY, who was named the Camp Runner-up MVP; 5'9 Aaron Edwards
from Payson (Payson Seymour) IL, who was named the MVP in the Top All-Star
Game; and 6'2 8th Grader Yalen Reed from Antioch (Lighthouse
Christian) TN, who not only played up, but was good enough to be named to
play in the Top All-Star Game. For more information about either the camp
or his latest report, we encourage you to contact Bolus via phone at
1-502-543-7308, email at
bolus@insightbb.com,
or by going to his
"Blue-Chip"
Basketball Camp web site.
Friday, August 19, 2011
In recent years the Basketball Hall of
Fame's Spalding Hoophall Classic at Blake
Arena in Springfield, MA has evolved into what is arguably the premier high
school basketball event of the entire year. They have a first class venue,
the organization is second to none, the level of talent and quality of teams
are off the hook, and Greg Procino, who is the manager of events and
awards for the Hall of Fame and the driving force behind this event, is one
of the class acts in the business. This year's event is scheduled for
January 12th-16th and the first two days will offer the local teams and
players a chance to show their wears. Things will tip-off with Springfield
(Commerce) MA versus Springfield (Science & Technology) MA at 4:00 PM,
followed by Springfield (Cathedral) IN versus Lawrence (Central Catholic) MA
at 5:30 PM, Springfield (Central) MA versus Springfield (Putnam) MA at 7:00
PM, and Orange (Ralph C. Maher Regional) MA versus Westhampton (Hampshire
Regional) NY at 8:30 PM on Thursday, January 12th.
Then, there will be three Girls games sandwiched in between the two boys
games, which will include Springfield (Sabis International Charter) MA
versus Springfield (New Leadership Charter) MA at 4:30 PM and East
Longmeadow (H.S.) MA versus Longmeadow (H.S.) MA at 9:00 PM, on
Friday, January 13th. And, for our purposes,
things should really get interesting on Saturday, January 14th,
as it will be Springfield (Central) IL versus Windsor (H.S.) CT at Noon,
Washington (Gonzaga) DC versus Reserve (Riverside Academy) LA at 2:00 PM,
Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA versus Plano (Prestonwood Christian) TX at
4:00 PM, Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ versus La Verne (Lutheran) CA at 6:00
PM, and West Hartford (Northwest Catholic) CT versus Hyattsville (DeMatha)
MD at 8:00 PM. The schedule for Sunday, January 15th,
features a number of the top prep school teams in the nation, as it includes
Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY versus Baltimore (Mt. St. Joseph) MD
at 10:00 AM, Oakdale (St. Thomas More) CT versus New Hampton (Prep) NH at
Noon, Southborough (St. Mark's) MA versus Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA at
2:00 PM, Wilbraham (Wilbraham & Monson) MA versus Wolfeboro (Brewster
Academy) NH at 4:00 PM, Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA versus Tilton (School) NH
at 6:00 PM, and a Skills Challenge at 8:00 PM. And, as usual, we expect,
the first four games of the day on Monday, January 16th,
to be televised live on ESPNU, as it will be Jersey City (St.
Anthony) NJ versus Lithonia (Miller Grove) GA at 11:00 AM, Hyattsville (DeMatha)
MD versus Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV at 1:00 PM, Chicago (Simeon) IL
versus Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV at 3:00 PM, Middle Village (Christ the
King) NY versus San Ana (Mater Dei) CA at 5:00 PM, and Grandy (H.S.) MA
versus Pittsfield (St. Joseph's) MA at 7:00 PM. And, to provide even
further evidence of just how good this event will be, the long list of
outstanding players who are expected to be in attendance includes 6'5
Shabazz Muhammad from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'10 Mitch McGary
from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH, 6'8 Kyle Anderson from Jersey
City (St. Anthony) NJ, 6'9 Tony Parker from Lithonia (Miller Grove)
GA, 6'8 Amile Jefferson from Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA, 6'9
Brandon Jefferson from Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, 6'8 Anthony
Bennett from Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, 6'6 Ricardo Ledo from
Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA, 6'11 Andre Drummond from Wilbraham
(Wilbraham & Monson) MA, 6'6 Ricardo Gathers from LaPlace (Riverside)
LA, 6'10 Steven Adams from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA, 6'11 Kaleb
Tarczewski from Southborough (St. Mark's) MA, 6'8 T.J. Warren
from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH, 6'0 Dominic Artis from
Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, 6'7 Georges Niang from Tilden (School)
NH, 6'7 Jerami Grant from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 6'8 Winston
Shepard from Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, 6'5 Jordan Adams from
Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 5'11 Tyler Lewis from Mouth of Wilson
(Oak Hill) VA, 6'4 D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera from Mouth of Wilson (Oak
Hill) VA, 6'8 Rosco Allen from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'9
Grant Jerrett from La Verne (Lutheran) CA, 6'5 Omar Calhoun from
Middle Village (Christ the King) NY, 6'3 James Robinson from
Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 6'1 Myles Davis from Fitchburg (Notre Dame)
MA, 6'3 Kris Dunn from Wilbraham (Wilbraham & Monson) MA, 6'8
Steve Taylor from Chicago (Simeon) IL, 6'8 Ben Carter from Las
Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'5 Katin Reinhardt from Santa Ana (Mater
Dei) CA, 6'7 Xavier Johnson from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'5
Damien Wilson from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'6 Jordan Tebbutt
from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'3 Nik Staukas from Southborough
(St. Mark's) MA, 6'0 Jevon Thomas from Centereach (Our Savior New
American) NY, 6'5 Aaron Thomas from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH,
6'2 Sam Cassell from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA, 6'1 Dominique Bull
from Tilden (School) NH, 6'7 Brandon Morris from Lithonia (Miller
Grove) GA, 6'11 A.J. Hammons from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'9
Christopher Obekpa from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, 6'8
Demetris Morant from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'2 Semaj
Christon from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH, 6'9 Jalen Reynolds
from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH, 6'9 Zach Auguste from New
Hampton (Prep) NH, 6'7 Jerome Frink from Jersey City (St. Anthony)
NJ, 6'2 Olivier Hanlon from New Hampton (Prep) NH, 6'6 Arthur
Edwards from Oakdale (St. Thomas More) CT, 6'9 Jr Julius Randle
from Plano (Prestonwood Christian) TX, 6'7 Jr Jabari Parker from
Chicago (Simeon) IL, 6'10 Jr Nerlens Noel from Tilden (School) NH,
6'1 Jr Nate Britt from Washington (Gonzaga) DC, 6'0 Jr Jaylen
Brantley from Wilbraham (Wilbraham & Monson) MA, 6'8 Jr Kuran Iverson
from West Hartford (Northwest Catholic) CT, 6'3 Jr Nigel Williams-Goss
from Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, 6'4 Jr Kris Jenkins from Washington
(Gonzaga) DC, 6'8 Jr Austin Colbert from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ,
6'9 Jr Christian Wood from Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, 6'8 Jr
BeeJay Anya from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 6'3 Jr Eric Cooper
from La Verne (Lutheran) CA, 6'2 Jr Kendrick Dunn from Chicago
(Simeon) IL, 6'7 Jr Goodluck Okonoboh from Tilden (School) MA, 6'2 Jr
Jaylon Tate from Chicago (Simeon) IL, 6'7 Jr Deonte Burton
from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH, 6'5 Jr R.J Curington from Mouth
of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'5 Jr Rashad Muhammad from Las Vegas
(Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'6 Jr Jairus Lyles from Hyattsville (DeMatha)
MD, 6'6 Jr Jordan Fuchs from Middle Village (Christ the King) NY, 6'4
Soph Stanley Johnson from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'3 Soph Wayne
Seldon from Tilden (School) MA, and 6'2 Soph Phil Booth from
Baltimore (Mt. St. Joseph) MD. And to really illustrate the top heaviness
of this event, our top six-ranked 5th Year Players (McGary, Ledo, Drummond,
Tarczewski, Davis, and Niang), six of our top seven-ranked seniors
(Muhammad, Anderson, Parker, Jefferson, Ashley, and Bennett), and our top
three-ranked juniors (Randle, Parker, adn Noel) will all be on hand at this
year's Hoophall Classic.
Friday, August 12 2011
Earlier today I had
the privilege of being able to attend the
iHoops First Team Summer Conference
at the Hyatt Regency
La Jolla at Aventine Hotel in San Diego, CA and I received a first hand look
at the official youth basketball initiative of the NCAA and the NBA. The
two driving forces behind the
iHoops First Team
program are Greg Turner, who is the Associate Director of Programs,
and Duke Pryor, who is the Assistant Director of Programs, and this
"year round education and mentoring program designed to promote education
and the proper role of athletics in the educational process" is exactly what
the doctored ordered to help these student-athletes make an informed college
decision and be successful both on and off the court the rest of their
lives. "It helps prospective basketball student-athletes and their parents
navigate the collegiate recruiting process and understand initial
eligibility requirements. Participants are identified by their athletic
ability but not selected solely on that basis. They enter the program as
rising ninth graders and remain in the program throughout high school."
First Team alumni includes Cole Aldrich, Darryl Bryant, D.J.
Byrd, Michael Conley, Daequan Cook, Randy Culpepper,
Austin Freeman, Sterling Gibbs, Eric Gordon, P.J. Hill,
Kyrie Irving, Brandon Knight, Kendall Marshall, O.J.
Mayo, Leslie McDonald, Sean Mosley, Greg Oden,
Patrick Patterson, Travis Releford, Jonathan Scheyer, Jerry Smith,
Josh Smith, Dexter Strickland, Billy Walker, and
Chris Wright. Among the sessions that were offered yesterday were
"What's in a Ranking? Understanding the Digital World of Scouting," "Making
the Decision & Making the Transition," "Recruiting & IE (Initial
Eligibility)," "I Got This/Sophomore Jinx," "2 Down 2 To Go,"
"Talk to Me (Communications/Media Training)," "Five Key Players of
a Winning Game Plan," and "Haven't you Heard? I'm the Man!" We
also enjoyed getting to see and/or talk with a number of the players who
were in attendance, like 6'3 Rasheed Sulaimon from Houston (Strake
Jesuit) TX, 6'1 Marcus Paige from Marion (Linn-Mar) IA, 6'3 James
Robinson from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 6'9 Grant Jerrett from La
Verne (Lutheran) AZ, 6'1 Mike Gessell from South Sioux City (H.S.)
NE, 6'2 Dallas Anglin from West Orange (Seton Hall Prep) NJ, 6'9 Jr
Jonathan Williams from Memphis (Southwind) TN, 6'1 Jr Nate Britt
from Washington (Gonzaga) DC, 6'9 Jr Austin Colbert from Elizabeth
(St. Patrick) NJ, 6'7 Jr Alex Foster from Chicago (De La Salle) IL,
6'5 Jr Colin Hartman from Indianapolis (Cathedral) IN, 6'10 Soph
Dakari Johnson from Montverde (Academy) FL, 5'9 Soph Parker
Cartwright from Los Angeles (Loyola) CA, 6'6 Soph Paul White from
Chicago (Whitney Young) IL, 6'0 Soph Tyus Jones from Apple Valley (H.S.)
MN, 6'0 Soph Larry Austin from Springfield (Lanphier) IL, 6'5 Soph
Jackson Davis from Lexington (Lafayette) KY, 6'0 Frosh Allonzo Trier
from Oklahoma City, OK, 6'2 Frosh Isaiah Briscoe from Union, NJ,
6'10 Frosh Stephen Zimmerman from Las Vegas, NV, and 6'7 Frosh
Daniel Giddens from Marietta, GA. Another one of the highlights was
getting a chance to see Lawrence Funderburke, who was happy to remind
us that we had him ranked among the top 10 high school players in the
nation, instead of the top five, back when he was a senior at Columbus (Wehrle)
OH in 1989. Funderburke, who is now a financial planner and Founder &
President of The Lawrence Funderburke Youth Organization, Inc, also did a
great job of providing insight into the "Five Reasons Why Pro Athletes Go
Broke" and the "Money Ball - Life & Financial Planning Playbook" when he
talked about the "Five Key Players of a Winning Game Plan." We also
thought Anthony Calhoun, who is the Sports Director at WISH-TV
Channel in Indianapolis, IN, did a great job of providing insight and
perspective into dealing with the media in the session "Talk to Me
(Communications/Media Training). I also was honored to join ESPN.com's
Paul Biancardi and Derek Whittenburg, who has done it all as a
player, coach, and television analyst, in the session "What's in a
Ranking? Understanding the Digital World of Scouting." Last, but not
least, Turner and Pryor did a great job on their
"Late Day with Greg Turner"
television program, which included San Diego Chargers Director of Player
Development Arthur Hightower, Root Sports Color Analyst
Francis Williams, and Kyrie Irving, who was the #1-ranked pick in
the NBA Draft a month-and-a-half ago. We also think it is interesting to
point out that the iHoops
Board Members
include
NBA Deputy Commissioner Adam Silver, NBA Executive Vice President of
Social Responsibility and Player Programs Kathy Behrens, NBA
Executive VP of Basketball Operations Stu Jackson, NCAA, Vice
President of Division I Women's Basketball Sue Donohoe, NCAA Senior
VP of Basketball and Business Strategies Greg Shaheen, and Duke
University Men's Basketball Coach Mike Krzyzewski. The
iHoops Staff
includes Chief
Executive Officer Len Elmore, Director of Digital Media Matt Bortz,
Vice President of Sales Steve Hagen, Director of Finance &
Administration Ronda Hite, Manager of Events and Special Projects
Sheli Kuhl, Associate Director of Marketing Juli Morris,
Assistant Director of Programs Duke Pryor, Sales Activation Manager
Whitney Rubush, and Associate Director of Programs Greg Turner.
The iHoops Advisory
Committee
includes Women's Basketball Coaches Association, Executive Director Beth
Bass, WNBA Vice President of Basketball Operations & Player Relations
Renee' Brown, Amateur Athletic Union, President Bobby Dodd,
National Basketball Coaches Association, Executive Director Michael
Goldberg, Albany City Rocks, Director Jim Hart, National
Federation of High School Associations, Executive Director Bob Kanaby,
Special Assistant to the Commissioner/NBA Global Ambassador Bob Lanier,
National Association of Basketball Coaches, Deputy Executive Director
Reggie Minton, NCAA, Retired Head Men's Basketball Coach (South Carolina
and Wake Forest) Dave Odom, NIKE, Manager/Women's College Basketball
Jim Pizzotti, USA Basketball, Executive Director Jim Tooley,
YMCA of the USA, Corporate Relations Manager Layney McGinn, Boys &
Girls Club of America, Vice President of Corporate & Partner Relationships
Frank Sanchez, and Boo Williams Summer League, President Boo Williams.
Unfortunately the one person missing is Neil Dougherty, who had been
working as the Director of Athlete and Coach Programs for
Ihoops
prior to dying of an apparent heart attack in early July. Dougherty
previously was the head coach at Texas Christian and an assistant coach at
the University of Kansas during the Roy Williams era. He also was a
long time friend of the HOOP SCOOP and we always looked forward his
keen wit, insight, and perspective. Needless to say, Dougherty was one of
the good guys and his loss is a tragedy.
Friday, August 5, 2011
I'm a strong advocate
of not beating around the bush when it comes to recruiting and making your
college decision. And it looks like 6'0 Soph Quentin Snider from
Louisville (Ballard) KY subscribes to that theory as well, as he wasted no
time accepting the scholarship offer that University of Louisville head
coach Rick Pitino made to him just a couple of days ago. We're
talking about a pure point guard who is ranked #21 nationally in the
sophomore class by the HOOP SCOOP and started this past season as a
freshman on one of the best high school teams in the state. Snider does
need to get bigger and stronger physically but also has excellent court
savvy, a high basketball IQ, and can score in a variety of ways. Add the
fact that Snider attends Ballard High School and he's always been a
Cardinals fan and there really are a lot of similarities to former
Louisville point guard Dejuan Wheat, who not only was equally adept
at playing either guard spot, but also ended up being one of the best
players in school history. Snider also joins 6'2 Soph James Blackmon
from Ft. Wayne (Bishop Luers) IN and 6'9 Soph Tony Lyles from
Indianapolis (Tech) IN, both of whom verbally committed to Indiana
University nearly a year ago, as one of only three players in the Class of
2014 who have already made up their mind in terms of their college
decision. However, even more important is the fact that the Cardinals have
the guy who promises to be the next great one to come out of their backyard
and he also may be the link that helps get some of the other top young
players in the city, like 6'3 Soph D'Angelo Russell from Louisville
(Central) KY, who also was offered a scholarship earlier this week by the
Cardinals, to stay home. This also has been a good week for the Ball State,
as a couple of days ago the Cardinals landed 6'4 Michael Ramey from
Indianapolis (Southport) IN and yesterday they also received a verbal
commitment from 6'6 Bo Calhoun from South Bend (Washington) IN. And
both of these guys can flat out fill it up. In the case of Calhoun, he has
excellent skills, a great work athletic, deep shooting range, and averaged
18.0 ppg and 9.1 rpg this past season. He also has a long wing span,
rebounds well for his size, and plays bigger than 6'6, which means he may
also see significant playing time inside due to the fact that the Cardinals
currently only have three post players (Aaron Adeoye, Zach Fields,
and Matt Kamieniecki) slated to be on their roster a year from now.
Ramey averaged 19.5 ppg and shot an incredible 66-126 (52.4%) from behind
the arc and 69-79 (87.3%) from the charity stripe this past season. It also
looks like Arizona State Herb Sendek is doing a good job of getting
some of the better players in his backyard to stay at home, as 6'2 Calaen
Robinson from Chandler (Corona Del Sol) AZ has joined 6'10 Eric
Jacobson from Chandler (Hamilton) AZ and 6'9 Kenny Martin from
Glendale (Kellis) AZ in a recruiting class that is now ties at #16, along
with Michigan State and Virginia Commonwealth, on our list of the Top
Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2012.
Robinson has excellent
speed and quickness and is capable of playing either guard spot. However,
he's really more of a 2-guard due to his nice stroke, excellent range, and
the ability to credit his own shot. Our North Carolina Editor Rick Lewis
tells us that 6'5 Aaron Bacote from Hampton (Bethel) VA has verbally
committed to Old Dominion, but he scolds us for not including this athletic
2-guard on our List of the Top 200 Players Nationally in the Class of
2012, which was published earlier this week exclusively right here in
the Members Section. "Bacote shoots the three, attacks the
basket, and is a local kid," says Lewis. Another player who was left off
our List of the Top 200 Players Nationally in the Class of 2012
is 6'10
Ismail Dauda from Boca Raton (Grandview prep) FL who previously was
ranked #89 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP and was
verbally committed to Miami-FL. Now it looks like he' s back on the board
and is attending Polk State (JC) FL.
Monday,
August 1, 2011
It's finally over! I'm talking about that the fact
the Summer Evaluation Period
is over and, after having been on the road pretty much non-stop for the last
four months watching the top high school players in the nation on numerous
occasions and in multiple venues, it's time to step back and put things
into perspective. And what better way to start than with our
Updated Ranking of the Top 20 5th Players & Top 200 Players Nationally in
the Class of 2012 (Rising Seniors),
which was published exclusively in the Members Section earlier
today. It should come as no surprise that 6'5 Shabazz Muhammad from
Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV is our #1-ranked player in the class. He's
been the top guy in the class since the end of his freshman year and right
now he's so far out in front of the competition that it kind of reminds me
of the way Secretariat won the Belmont by 30 lengths 38 years ago. So
really the battle is for second and, after the way 6'4 Marcus Smart
from Flower Mound (Marcus) TX played in the adidas Super 64 in Las
Vegas, NV, he's the favor of the day and, as a result, gets the nod over 6'8
Kyle Anderson from Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ, 6'9 Tony Parker
from Lithonia (Miller Grove) GA, 6'8 Amile Jefferson from Wynnewood
(Friends Central) PA, and 6'9 Brandon Ashley from Henderson (Findlay
Prep) NV, who are all bunched up pretty close in the 2-6 range. We also
suspect that 6'8 Anthony Bennett from Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV,
who checks in next on the list at #7, will pass up ultimately pass up most
of the players ranked ahead of him. However, it is the editorial position
of the HOOP SCOOP to let a player earn it. And, although Bennett has
all the ingredients necessary to evolve into a superstar, he hasn't put it
altogether yet. We also probably have 5'11 Kevin "Yogi" Ferrell from
Indianapolis (Park Tudor) IN ranked higher than a lot of people might
expect. And he also is the highest ranked player in the class who is off
the board, as he is the marquee player in Indiana's current recruiting
class, which is ranked #1 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date
for the Class of 2012.
Speaking of players who have
already made early verbal commitments, we also tracked commitments by 6'3
Rasheed Sulaimon from Houston (Strake Jesuit) TX to Duke, 6'5 Savon
Goodman from Bryn Athyn (Academy of the New Church) PA to Villanova, 6'1
Marcus Paige from Marion (Linn-Mar) IA to North Carolina, 6'8
Samuel Dekker from Sheboygan (Lutheran) WI to Wisconsin, 6'0 Dominic
Artis from Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV to UCLA, 6'9 Cameron Ridley
from Richmond (Ft. Bend Bush) TX to Texas, 6'5 Jordan Price from
Decatur (Southwest DeKalb) TX to Auburn, 6'3 Ryan Arcidiacono from
Langhorne (Neshaminy) PA to Villanova, 6'5 Jordan Adams from Mouth of
Wilson (Oak Hill) VA to UCLA, 5'11 Tyler Lewis from Lewisville
(Forsyth Country Day) NC to N.C. State, 6'5 Justin Anderson from
Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD to Virginia, 6'9 Grant Jerrett from
La Verne (Lutheran) CA to Arizona, 6'5 Omar Calhoun from Middle
Village (Christ the King) NY to Connecticut, 6'9 Aaron Rountree from
Wilson (Greenfield) NC to Wake Forest, 7'0 Isaiah Austin from
Arlington (Grace Prep) TX to Baylor, 6'8 Montrezl Harrell from
Virginia Tech, 6'10 Daniel Ochefu from Westtown (Friends) PA to
Villanova, 6'5 Torian Graham from Raleigh (Word of God) NC to N.C.
State, 6'6 J.P. Tokoto from Menomonee Falls (H.S.) WI to North
Carolina, 6'6 Cameron Beidscheid from St. Louis (Cardinal Ritter) MO
to Notre Dame, 6'7 Glenn Robinson from Saint John (Lake Central) IN
to Michigan, 6'2 Gabe York from Orange (Lutheran) CA to Arizona, 6'9
Gavin Ware from Starkville (H.S.) MS to Mississippi State, 6'2
Codi Miller-McIntyre from Concord (First Assembly) NC to Wake Forest,
5'11 Ronnie Johnson from Indianapolis (North Central) IN to Purdue,
6'5 Nkereuwem Okoro from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY to Iowa State, 6'8
Hanner Perea from La Porte (La Lumiere) IN to Indiana, 6'4 Michael
Frazier from Tampa (Plant) FL to Florida, 6'8 Evan Nolte from
Alpharetta (Milton) GA to Virginia, 7'5 Sim Bhullar from Huntington
(Prep) WV to Xavier, 6'0 Braxton Ogbueze from Charlotte (United Faith
Christian) NC to Florida, 6'7 Jeremy Hollowell from Indianapolis
(Lawrence Central) IN to Indiana, 6'5 Damien Wilson from Mouth of
Wilson (Oak Hill) VA to Memphis, 6'0 Daquan Cook from Baltimore
(Digital Harbor) MD to UNLV, 6'3 Ron Patterson from Indianapolis
(Broad Ripple) IN to Indiana, 6'6 Jaron Blossomgame from Alpharetta
(Chattahoochee) GA to Clemson, 6'10 Josh Scott from Colorado Springs
(Lewis-Palmer) CO to Colorado, 7'0 Peter Jurkin from Charlotte
(United Faith Christian) NV to Indiana, 6'5 Fred Thomas from
Mississippi State, 6'5 Raphael Davis from Ft. Wayne (South Side) IN
to Purdue, and 6'8 Arik Armstead from Elk Grove (Pleasant Grove) CA
to USC (football). In other words, 41 of our 100-ranked rising seniors are
already off the board. And that number increases even more when one looks
at our 5th Year List, where five of the top dozen-ranked players are
currently committed to four-year Division I colleges and universities, as
we've tracked 6'2 Myles Davis from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA to
Xavier, 6'7 Georges Niang from Tilton (School) NH to Iowa State, 6'11
Isaiah Hill from Grand Prairie (God's Academy) TX to Seton Hall, 6'6
Nik Stauskas from Southborough (St. Mark's) MA to Michigan, and 6'9
Jordan Goodman from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL to Texas
Tech. We also think it's important to point out that we have 6'11 Andre
Drummond from Oakdale (St. Thomas More) CT ranked no higher than #3 on
our List of the Top 5th Year
Players, behind
6'10 Mitch McGary from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) MA and 6'6
Ricardo Ledo from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA. However, McGary, who plays
with incredible heart and passion and is much more skilled that Drummond,
and Ledo, who is one of the most naturally gifted and athletic guys to come
down the pike in a long time, are not chopped liver, as they both
would be ranked in the 6-10 range, if they were still high school seniors.
And Drummond, who actually played the best we've ever seen him play in the
adidas Super 64 Tournament, would check in at #10 on our
Ranking of the Top 200 Players Nationally in the Class of 2012,
if he was eligible to be on that list. But there are still to many question
marks, like post moves, being in shape, having the heart and desire
necessary to be a great player, and being caught up in all the hype of being
one of the guys who has to get to the NBA as fast as possible, for Drummond
to be ranked any higher. Or to put this another way, right now Drummond is
currently on track to be the next Kwame Brown. However, if the light
ever click on, he could end up being a $100 million man.
Thursday, July 28, 2011
The
4th Annual
Desert Duel Charity Basketball
Tournament
at
Mesquite High School in Gilbert, AZ has become the place to be in recent
years after all the tournaments have concluded in Las Vegas, NV and this
year's tournament provided some of the very elite traveling teams with a
chance to redeem themselves after getting knocked off early in the playoffs
just a few days early. We pick things up with about three minutes remaining
and the score tied at 64-64 in the semi-finals game between the Mac Irvin
Fire and the Long Island Island. That's when 6'8 Jr Jabari Parker
from Chicago (Simeon) IL took over the game with a lay-up, a 3-pointer, a
pair free throws, and several big rebounds en route to an impressive 71-67
win against a tough hardnosed athletic team that appeared to have the Fire
on the ropes midway through the second half. Parker finished with 19 points
and clearly was the best player in the entire tournament. Also coming up
big for the Mac Irvine Fire was 6'8 Steve Taylor from Chicago
(Simeon) IL with 17 points. The Long Island Lighting was led by 6'4
Melvin Johnson from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, who finished with 26
points in this game and was consistently one of the best 3-point shooters
and leading scorers in the entire tournament. We also were really impressed
with 6'5 Oscar Assie from Putnam (Putnam Science) NY, who is a high
energy under the radar screen athletic four-man that runs the floor and had
at least four power dunks en route to a very impressive 14-point
performance. And once again 6'1 Kareem Canty from North Bridgton
(Bridgton Academy) ME was a handful in transition and did a good job of
knocking down the outside shot, as he finished with three treys in that
game. The Playaz Basketball Club beat the Atlanta Celtics by one-point in
the other semi-finals game and, after the Mac Irvin Fire jumped out to 43-20
half-time lead in the championship game, it looked like that was pretty much
all she wrote for the Playaz. However, after Parker hit a three to start
the second half, the Playaz countered with three straight threes by 6'4
Darrick Wood from Newark (Nia Prep) NJ, who was the guy who elevated the
value of this stock the most in this tournament. Soon the game was tied at
50-50 and, when the dust had cleared, the Playaz had outscored the Fire
42-19 in the second half. And the Playaz also scored eight unanswered
points in the overtime en route to a 70-62 victory. The key turning point
was that the Playaz switched from a man-to-man defense in the first half to
a zone in the second half and the Fire settled for jump shots. The Playaz
also featured a balanced attack, as Wood had 18 points and also hit another
big 3-pointer in overtime, 6'6 Savon Goodman from Bryn Athyn (Academy
of the New Church) PA had 14 points and 11 rebounds, 6'8 Kyle Anderson
from Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ had 13 points, 10 assists, eight rebounds,
two blocked shots, and two steals, and 6'2 Myles Davis from Fitchburg
(Notre Dame) MA had 14 points. The two best players once again for the Fire
were Parker with 15 points, six rebounds, three blocks, and three steals and
Taylor with 15 points and seven rebounds. Also chipping in with 12 points
and eight rebounds was 6'8 Jermaine Morgan from 12 points and eight
rebounds. Now also is probably a good time mention that 6'2 Myles Davis
from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA turned in one of the best individual
performances of the entire tournament when he knocked down seven 3-pointers
in the quarterfinals against the Mac Irvin Fire 16-Under Team. Another one
of the best players was 6'9 Amile Jefferson from Wynnewood (Friends
Central) PA, who had 26 points against Team 94 (CA) and was a model for
consistency throughout the entire tournament. The same thing also can be
said about 6'10 Josh Scott from Colorado Springs (Lewis-Palmer) CO,
who had 22 points, 18 points, and 15 points in three straight consolation
bracket games, and 6'8 Damien Wilson from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill)
VA, who was the guy primarily responsible for leading the Atlantic Celtics
to a spot in the final four. We also can't say enough good things about 5'9
Maurice Watson from Philadelphia (Boys Latin) PA, because he not only
did was the floor general who ran the show for Team Philly, but he also did
a great job of making his teammates better and he even tossed in 24 points
in one game. It also comes as no surprise that the Florida Assault Showtime
Ballers, which featured some incredible athletes, like 6'1 Jr Rashawn
Powell from Orlando (Dt. Phillips) FL, 6'5 Andre Nation from
Valrio (Durant) FL, 6'1 Anthony Tompkins from Orlando (Agape) FL, and
6'6 Billydee Williams from Winter Park (H.S.) FL, advanced all the
way to the championship game in the consolation bracket. And we want to
give special mention to Nation, who had 20 points when we saw him against
the Arizona Magic Pump N Run and later put up 36 points against the World
Wide Renegades in the consolation bracket semi-finals. Not only is he long
and athletic, has a great nose for the ball, and is a thoroughbred in
transition, but he also was arguably the best player in the tournament that
we didn't know about previously. Some other guys who we have not previously
written about, but who deserve special mention are 6'6 Cameron Forte
from Phoenix (Westwind Prep) AZ, who finished with 28 points in a second
round game against the Mac Irvin Fire and appears to be a steal for Texas
Tech; 6'4 Derreck Brooks from Mesa (Desert Ridge) AZ, who is a long
lanky prolific scoring 2-guard that knocked down four treys and had 24
points against Florida Assault, and 6'8 Jr Mike Young from Jersey
City (Hudson Catholic) NJ, who is a skinny athletic shot blocking inside who
had 28 points for the Playaz Red 16-Under Team.
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Believe it or not, the best individual
performance that we saw all day at the Las Vegas
Fab 48 Tournament at Bishop
Gorman High School in Las Vegas, NC was by 6'0 Dominic Artis from
Richmond (Salesian) CA, who had 29 points and seven 3-pointers in the
Oakland Soldiers 86-69 win over the Juice All-Stars. However, even more
interesting is what Artis told us about his recruiting, as he confirmed that
he will be attending Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV next season and also makes
note of the fact that UCLA is currently the leader in the sweepstakes for
his point guard services. Artis also smiles when confronted with the
possibility of playing with the likes of 6'5 Shabazz Muhammad from
Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'8 Kyle Anderson from Jersey City (St.
Anthony) NJ, 6'9 Brandon Ashley from Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, and
6'5 Jordan Adams from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, who a month ago
verbally committed to UCLA, and says that the Bruins coaching staff is
attempting to put together a Fab Five-like recruiting class. Now also is a
good time to point out that UCLA coach Ben Howland has been one of
the hardest working guys on the recruiting trail this summer and, as a
result, now appears to be the leading candidate to win our Most Visible Head
Coach of the Summer Award. We also were impressed with the way 6'9 Amile
Jefferson from Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA took over the game down
the stretch (he hit a baseline jumper with 2:25 left in the game to give his
team the lead for good) en route to an impressive win 68-66 over the New
Jersey Playaz and the likes of 6'8 Kyle Anderson from Jersey City
(St. Anthony) NJ, 6'6 Savon Goodman from Bryn Athyn (Academy of the
New Church) PA, and 6'2 Myles Davis from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA.
Length and athleticism, quickness and body control, great moves to the
basket, and a tremendous motor are just some of the things that make
Jefferson one of our favorite players in the senior class nationally. And
this time around he finished with 22 points and clearly got the better of
Anderson, who not only couldn't guard him, but also had only 11 points in
the game and zero points in the second half. Goodman picked up the slack
with 19 points, but was not in the same class with Jefferson, who very well
may be the fifth player, along with 6'5 Shabazz Muhammad from Las
Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'8 Kyle Anderson from Jersey City (St.
Anthony) NJ, 6'9 Tony Parker from Lithonia (Miller Grove) GA, 6'9
Brandon Ashley from Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, and on our list of the
top five seniors nationally. Jefferson also is a great kid and excellent
student and right now it looks like Villanova, Temple, Maryland, N.C. State,
Miami-FL, Pittsburgh, Ohio State, and Stanford are the schools that you have
to beat for his services. And, when asked about the likelihood that
Jefferson will stay home and join 6'5
Savon Goodman
from Bryn Athyn (Academy of the
New Church) PA, 6'3 Ryan Aricidacono from Langhorne (Neshaminy) PA,
6'10 Daniel Ochefu from Westtown (Friends) PA in Villanova's
recruiting class that is currently ranked #2 on our list of the Top
Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2012,
he
not only didn't rule out the possibility, but also mentioned the fact that
Goodman is one of his best friends and that he's known and has been playing
against Aricidacono since their junior high school days. Another one of our
favorite players of the day was 6'6 Andrew White from Charlottesville
(The Miller School) VA, who has 11 points against Team Philly and has the
athleticism, outside shooting, and perimeter skills to emerge as one of the
premier 5th Year Players in the nation next year. And, it looks like a lot
of big time schools agree, as his list of school currently includes
Louisville, West Virginia, South Florida, Providence, N.C. State, Wake
Forest, Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech, Memphis, Tennessee, Missouri, Texas
A&M, Oklahoma State, and Richmond. Two of the biggest sleepers of the day
were 5'11 Stefan Moody from Poinciana (H.S.) FL and 6'4 Brandon
Channer from Tampa (Blake) FL and together they combined for 39 points
and led Team Breakdown to an impressive 68-61 win over Belmont Shore. The
best young player that we didn't know about prior to today was 6'5 Soph
Rashad Vaughn from Minneapolis (Cooper) MN, who has the big time
athleticism, work ethic, mid-range game, and the ability to slash to the
basket necessary to evolve into one of the premier players in the Class of
2014. We also should probably mention 7'0 Jordan Dickerson from
Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY, who appears to be prep school bound to Bradenton (IMG
Academy) FL. Dickerson is still a project, but he had 16 points
against the Oakland Soldiers and his confidence level, skills, and moves
have improved 500% since we saw him last winter. The most
disappointing player of the day and a player who continues to head South
after we first saw him 15 months ago at the Hoop Group's Providence Jam
Fest is 6'9 Jr Kuran Iverson from West Hartford (Northwest
Catholic) CT. He had nine points against
the Mac Irvine Fire, but has lost the
explosiveness necessary to blow past defenders when he brings the ball up
the court and more often than not sets up out on the perimeter, which is a
problem because he's not a very consistent outside shooter. His attitude
and a lack of consistency also appear to be problems as he does appear to
have any idea that his most value assets are his size and potential to be a
dominant force around the basket. On the positive side, there are a lot of
good prep school right in his backyard and, if he doesn't wake up and turn
this around, he may be looking for one at this time two years from now. We
also were not impressed with 6'8 Brandon Taylor
from Hamilton (Trenton Catholic) NJ even though his team pulled out a 57-49
over Team Loaded. Taylor is so lazy and unwilling to run the court that his
teammates frequently have to slow the game down and what for him to walk up
the court. And, when he finally does get into a position where he can be
apart of the offense, he rather jack up threes out on the perimeter than
utilize his strength and size inside, where he could have a field day
scoring around the basket and dominating on the glass. Another guy who was
not only top of his game today was 5'11 Tyler Lewis
, who recently decided that he will transfer from Lewisville (Forsyth
Country Day) NC to Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA. However, we can't
criticize Lewis for a lack of effort, as fatigue appeared to set in as the
game wore on and he still finished with 17 points and also did a good job of
getting his teammates involved. It also was only just an average day at the
office 6'8 Jr Jabari Parker
from Chicago (Simeon) IL, who had 14 points for the Mac Irvin Fire against
the Juice All-Stars and is arguably the best player in the tournament
regardless of class.
Friday, July 15, 2011
A number of very interesting things happened
when the playoffs began last night at the Elite
Youth Basketball League Finals at the NIKE Peach Jam
in North Augusta, SC. We start with the 79-56 good old-fashioned ass
kicking that B.A.B.C. put on Team Takeover, which was the tournament's
defending champions from a year ago. There also was the hard fought battle
where the Georgia Stars beat the Mac Irvin Fire in a game that was not as
close as the 74-60 final score might indicate. And even though the Playaz
Basketball Club did not have enough horses to knock off the Oakland
Soldiers, which won the game 79-73, 6'8 Kyle Anderson from Jersey
City (St. Anthony) NJ made a strong case for being the most consistent
player in the tournament with 20 points, nine rebounds, and 10 assists.
This also came right on the heels of Anderson's triple-double when he had
17 points, 11 rebounds, and
10 assists against CP3 in the morning session. However, it was the 69-68
overtime thriller with Memphis YOMCA over the Team Texas Titans that created
the biggest buzz. And, in that game, 6'10 Jr Julius Randle from
Plano (Prestonwood Christian) TX had 30 points, 10 rebounds, 8-13 field
goals, 0-0 3-pointers, and 14-17 free throws prior to fouling out on a
controversial charging foul near the end of regulation. However, that only
begins to tell the story, as Randle's high level of intensity, incredible
moves and footwork, unbelievable combination of size, strength, quickness,
and athleticism, and the ability to score pretty much whenever and from
wherever he wanted put him on a whole another level. In other words, this
was one of the all-time great performances in the history of the tournament
and a strong case can now be made for Randle being one of the best players
to come down the pike in the 28-history of the HOOP SCOOP. This also
makes calling him the best high school player in the nation regardless of
class a no-brainer and predicting that he will be a future #1 pick in the
NBA Draft an easy call. Yes, Randle was that good! And anybody who saw him
play last night will tell you the same thing. The other great story in the
playoffs involved 6'10 Jr Nerlens Noel from Tilton (School) NH and
the entire B.A.B.C. team, which picked up where they left off last night in
the semi-finals this morning when they jumped out to a 12-2 lead and totally
took the Oakland Soldiers out of their game with their toughness on defense
and the incredible shooting blocking of Noel, who turned in his second
triple-double of the tournament with 12 points, 10 rebounds, and 11 blocked
shots. Noel also had a controversial goal tending call, altered numerous
other shots, and totally shut down 6'8 Brandon Ashley from Henderson
(Findlay Prep) NV, who, any way to slice it, is one of the top five-ranked
seniors nationally, but had only 10 points, three rebounds, three blocked
shots, and 4-12 field goals against Noel. We also want give 5'11 Jr
Jaylen Brantley from Wilbraham Wilbraham-Monson) MA, 6'8 Georges
Niang from Tilton (School) NH, 6'2 Jr Rene Castro from Chestnut
Hill (Beaver Country Day) MA, and 6'8 Jake Layman from Wrenton (King
Phillip) MA their props, because this truly was a team effort. Brantley
finished with 17 points, five assists, two turnovers, two steals, 6-11
field goals, 3-6 3-pointers, and 2-2 free throws and he is the tough
hardnosed point guard who runs the show, makes big 3-point shots, and
provides the clue necessary for this to be a great team. Niang had 18
points and 7-10 field goals and he is always a physical presence inside with
his great physic and killer mentality. Castro had 12 points, seven assists,
and 5-10 field goals and he provided the perfect complement to Brantley in
the backcourt with his relentless defense, excellent passing, and ability to
slash to the basket. Layman had only seven points, 3-4 field goals, and 1-2
3-pointers, but his upside and potential are off the chart due to his
length, athleticism, and ability to flat out shoot the basketball. We also
were impressed with the way Brantley, Castro, and 6'3 Domoniq Bull
from Tilton (School) NH totally shut down 6'1
Dominic Artis from Richmond (Salesian) CA, who was as bad as he was good
the night before when he turned in one of the better performances that we
saw all week with 26 points, five rebounds, three assists, four turnovers,
8-14 field goals, 6-9 3-pointers, 4-5 free throws against the Playaz
Basketball Club. This time around Artis had only five points, four assists,
four turnovers, 2-8 field goals, and 1-4 3-pointers.
The
other semi-finals game this morning between Memphis YOMCA and the Georgia
Stars also was not as close as the 78-64 final score might indicate. And
the big difference in this game was the dominance inside by 6'8 William
Goodwin from Decatur (Southwest DeKalb) GA, who had 29 points, 12
rebounds, 12-16 field goals, and 5-7 free throws and played as well as we've
ever seen him play, and 6'8 Jarnell Stokes from Memphis (Central) TN,
who had 12 points and 17 rebounds. In contrast, 6'8 Tony Parker from
Lithonia (Miller Grove) GA was average at best with only eight points, eight
rebounds, and 4-10 field goals and 6'8 Alex Poythress from
Clarksville (Northeast) TN was not nearly as good as he was earlier in the
week, as he finished with only 11 points, four rebounds, and 3-10 field
goals. Another one of the highlights of the entire week came when 6'7 Jr
Nicholas King from Memphis (East) TN tipped the ball in with six-tenths
of a second remaining to give his team a 74-73 overtime win over the CP3
All-Stars in the Championship Game of the 16-Under Division. King finished
with 19 points and 12 rebounds, but Memphis YOMCA's best player was 6'8 Jr
Jonathan Williams from Memphis (Southwind) TN, who impressed us with
his length, athleticism, and ability to score, rebound, and block shots to
the tune of 21 points, six rebounds, and seven rejects in the title game.
Editor's Note: We were unable to hang around
for the 17-Under Championship Game due to our travel schedule (the original
time in the afternoon was changed to 7:00 PM in the evening in order to
accommodate the game being televised live by ESPNU). However, it looks like
BABC picked up where they left off last night and earlier today win a 84-67
win over Memphis YOMCA in the title game. A quick look at the stats shows
that BABC was led by 5'11 Jr Jaylen Brantley from Wilbraham
Wilbraham-Monson) MA with 24 points, four rebounds, 9-15 field goals, and
4-5 3-pointers, 6'8 Georges Niang from Tilton (School) NH with 21
points, seven rebounds, and 9-12 field goals, and
6'10
Jr Nerlens Noel from Tilton (School) NH with 17 points, 10 rebounds,
five assists, six blocked shots, four steals, and 8-19 field goals. The
leading scorer for the Memphis YOMCA was the sharpshooting 6'3 Anthlon
Bell from Memphis (Bartlett) TN with 19 points, 7-12 field goals, and
5-8 3-pointers.
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Our Ohio Editor
Chris Johnson and yours truly (Clark Francis) were at the
2011 LeBron James Skills
Academy
earlier today
in Akron, OH and two things are already very clear about this camp. First,
the top three-ranked juniors in the nation - 6'9 Jr Julius Randle
from Plano (Prestonwood Christian) TX, 6'9 Jr Jabari Parker from
Chicago (Simeon) IL, and 6'11 Jr Nerlens Noel from Everett (H.S.) MA
- are already just as good as all of the top seniors in both the camp and
the country. And, if you don't believe it, just look below and check out
the fact that Randle and Parker are right at the top of the list and Noel
also is included among the top 10-ranked players in camp. Second, this camp
has an overabundance of quality inside guys, as is evident by the fact that
12 of the 20 players in camp play the power forward and center positions.
And what makes this even more impressive is the fact that Johnson saw 6'11
Andre Drummond from Oakdale (St. Thomas More) CT, 6'9 Cameron
Ridley from Richmond (Ft. Bend Dulles) TX, 7'0 Kalen Tarczewski
from Southborough (St. Mark's) MA, 6'9 Shaquille Cleare from Houston
(The Village) TX, 6'10 Joel James from Palm Beach Gardens (Dwyer) FL,
and 6'9 Jr Chris Walker from Bonifay (Holmes County) FL perform
yesterday at the adidas
Invitational
in Indianapolis, IN and 7'0 Isaiah Austin from Arlington (Grace Prep)
TX appears to have extended his summer vacation by another three days.
Johnson also gives the people running the camp their props for emphasizing
team play, making sure that the big guys touch the ball, and providing a
structured environment. Our
Ranking of the Top Players in Camp
includes 1) 6'9 Jr Julius Randle from Plano (Prestonwood Christian)
TX, 2) 6'9 Jr Jabari Parker from Chicago (Simeon) IL, 3) 6'9
DaJuan Coleman from Dewitt (Jamesville-Dewitt) NY, 4) 6'9 Mitch
McGary from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH, 5) 6'6 Savon Goodman
from Bryn Athyn (Academy of the New Church) PA, 6) 6'8 Brandon Ashley
from Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, 7) 6'4 Jr Matt Jones from De Soto
(H.S.) TX, 8) 6'8 T.J. Warren from Raleigh (Word of God) NC, 9) 6'9
Amile Jefferson from Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA, 10) 6'11 Jr
Nerlens Noel from Everett (H.S.) MA, 11) 6'5 Rasheed Sulaimon
from Houston (Strake Jesuit) TX, 12) 6'1 Braxton Ogbueze from
Charlotte (United Faith Christian) NC, 13) 6'8 Anthony Bennett from
Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, 14) 6'7 Jr Aaron Gordon from San Jose
(Archbishop Mitty) CA, 15) 6'9 Tony Parker from Lithonia (Miller
Grove) GA, 16) 6'10 Soph Jahlil Okafor from Chicago (Whitney Young)
IL, 17) 6'9 Jarnell Stokes from Memphis (Central) TN, 18) 6'4
Rodney Purvis from Raleigh (Upper Room Christian) NC, 19) 6'5 Justin
Anderson from Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD, 20) 6'7 Charles
Mitchell from Marietta (Wheeler) GA, 21) 6'8 Kyle Anderson from
Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ, 22) 6'5 Jordan Price from Decatur
(Southwest DeKalb) GA, 23) 6'1 Dominic Artis from Richmond (Salesian)
CA, 24) 7'0 Adam Woodbury from Sioux City (East) IA, and 25) 6'3
James Robinson from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD.
Our Ranking of the Top Centers in Camp
includes 1)
6'9 DaJuan Coleman from Dewitt (Jamesville-Dewitt) NY, 2) 6'9
Mitch McGary from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH, 3) 6'11 Jr Nerlens
Noel from Everett (H.S.) MA, 4) 6'9 Tony Parker from Lithonia
(Miller Grove) GA, 5) 6'10 Soph Jahlil Okafor from Chicago (Whitney
Young) IL, 6) 6'9 Jarnell Stokes from Memphis (Central) TN, 7) 7'0
Adam Woodbury from Sioux City (East) IA, 8) 6'10 Grant Jerrett
from La Verne (Lutheran) CA, 9) 6'11 Prince Ibeh from Garland (Naaman
Forest) TX, 10) 6'11 Soph Dakari Johnson from Elizabeth (St. Patrick)
NJ, 11) 6'8 Jr Kennedy Meeks from Charlotte (West) NC, and 12) 6'11
Daniel Ochefu from Westtown (Friends) PA.
Our Ranking of the Top Power
Forwards in Camp
includes 1) 6'9 Jr
Julius Randle from Plano (Prestonwood Christian) TX, 2) 6'8 Brandon
Ashley from Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, 3) 6'9 Amile Jefferson
from Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA, 4) 6'8 Anthony Bennett from
Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, 5) 6'7 Jr Aaron Gordon from San Jose
(Archbishop Mitty) CA, 6) 6'7 Charles Mitchell from Marietta
(Wheeler) GA, 7) 6'9 Jr Danrad Knowles from Houston (Home School) TX,
8) 6'9 Christopher Obekpa from Centereach (Our Savior New American)
NY, 9) 6'8 Alex Poythress from Clarksville (Northeast) TN, 10) 6'10
Brice Johnson from Orangeburg (Edisto) SC, 11) 6'10 Jr Jimmie
Taylor from Greensboro (H.S.) AL, and 12) 6'8 Jr Isaiah Hicks
from Creedmoor (Webb) NC.
Our Ranking of the Top Wing Forwards in Camp
includes 1) 6'9 Jr Jabari Parker from Chicago (Simeon) IL, 2) 6'6
Savon Goodman from Bryn Athyn (Academy of the New Church) PA, 3) 6'8
T.J. Warren from Raleigh (Word of God) NC, 4) 6'5 Justin Anderson
from Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD, 5) 6'8 Kyle Anderson from
Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ, 6) 6'7 Tyler Roberson from Union (H.S.)
NJ, 7) 6'9 Steve Taylor from Chicago (Simeon) IL, 8) 6'7 J.P.
Tokoto from Menomonee Falls (H.S.) WI, 9) 6'6 Jamel Artis from
Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 10) 6'6 Arnaud Moto from Alexandria
(Episcopal) VA. Our Ranking
of the Top 2-Guards in Camp
includes 1) 6'4 Jr Matt Jones from De Soto (H.S.) TX, 2) 6'5
Rasheed Sulaimon from Houston (Strake Jesuit) TX, 3) 6'5 Jordan Price
from Decatur (Southwest DeKalb) GA, 4) 6'5 Shaquille Johnson from
Alpharetta (Milton) GA, 5) 6'7 Jr Troy Williams from Hampton
(Phoebus) VA, 6) 6'7 Jodan Price from Beverly Hills (Detroit Country
Day) MI, 7) 6'5 Jr Nick King from Memphis (East) TN, 8) 6'3 Soph
Wayne Selden from Tilden (School) NH, 9) 6'6 Ricardo Ledo from
Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA, and 10) 6'6 Gary Harris from Fishers
(Hamilton Southeastern) MI.
Our Ranking of the Top Point Guards in Camp
includes 1) 6'1 Braxton Ogbueze from Charlotte (United Faith
Christian) NC, 2) 6'4 Rodney Purvis from Raleigh (Upper Room
Christian) NC, 3) 6'1 Dominic Artis from Richmond (Salesian) CA, 4)
6'3 James Robinson from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 5) 6'2 Marcus
Paige from Marion (Linn-Mar) IA, 6) 6'3 Soph Emmanuel Mudiay from
Arlington (Grace Prep) NJ, 7) 6'2 Jr Anthony Barber from Hampton (H.S.)
VA, 8) 6'3 L.J. Rose from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX, 9) 6'2
J-Mychal Reese from Bryan (H.S.) TX, 10) 6'4 D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera
from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 11) 6'4 Jr Allerick Freeman
from Charlotte (Olympic) NC, and 12) 6'0 Jr Jaren Sina from
Gladestone (Gill-St. Bernard) NJ.
Editor's Note: These rankings
are based primarily on performance in camp and not necessarily college or
pro potential and were published exclusively in the Members Section
after the first day of camp. So it's obvious that you will have to
subscribe
in order to find out who played well and who did not play well and
what changes we made in our final ranking of the top players at the
LeBron James Skills Academy.
Friday, July 1, 2011
It is the editorial
policy of the HOOP SCOOP to move each player in every class up one
year on July 1st and, with that in mind, this is the perfect time to publish
our Final Ranking of the
Top 500 Players in the Class of 2011 (Graduating Seniors),
which can be found exclusively in the Members
Section.
And right on it's heels
we plan to publish our Final Ranking of the Top Recruiting
Classes for the Class of 2011 on Monday, our
Final Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes by Conference for
the Class of 2011 on Tuesday, and our
Different Ways to Look at Recruiting
section on Wednesday. And, if I get done in time, I will head to
Indianapolis, IN on Wednesday, June 6th, and kick off the
Summer Evaluation Period
at the adidas Invitational.
However, regardless of whether I end that day in Indianapolis, IN or
Louisville, KY, the next morning I will held to Akron, OH and will cover the
LeBron James Skills Academy on
June 7th and June 8th. Friday, June 9th, will be a travel day to Myrtle
Beach, SC, where I will cover the Big Shots Tournaments
on Sunday, June 10th, and Monday, June
11th. The next stop will be NIKE Peach Jam
in North Augusta, SC and I will cover that in its entirety on June
12th-15th. I also will be at the AAU 14-Under Nationals
in Orlando, FL during the dead period between July 16th-July 20th. And,
once I'm done there, Thursday, July 21st will be a travel day to Las Vegas,
NV, where I will check in and get organized for the adidas
Super 64 Tournament, the Las
Vegas Fab 48 Tournament, and the
Big Foot Basketball Tournament,
which will be taking place between July 22nd-26th. My final two stops at
the end of the month will be the Desert Duel
in Phoenix, AZ on July 27th-28th and the Best of the Summer
Tournament in Anaheim, CA on July 29th-31st.
Then, I plan on going home for four days on August 1st, but will be back on
the West Coast again on Friday, August 5th for the
Junior Phenom Camp in San Diego, CA.
Obviously I'm going to be very busy for the next five weeks and, in the
process, will be providing you with the coverage on a daily basis of what's
going on in the grassroots basketball world. So make sure you check back on
a daily basis because nobody covers all of this as well as we do. Nor do
they quite have our perspective, as this is the 29th consecutive summer that
I will be out covering all of the major tournaments and events. Getting
back to our
Final Ranking of the Top 500 Players in the Class of 2011 (Graduating
Seniors),
the most important thing to note is the fact that 6'9 Khem Birch from
Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA has moved into our top five, along with 6'8
Michael Gilchrist from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 6'10 Anthony
Davis from Chicago (Perspectives Christian) IL, 6'4 Austin Rivers
from Winter Park (H.S.) FL, and 6'2 Marquis Teague from Indianapolis
(Pike) IN, and 6'6 Samuel "P.J." Hairston from Chatham (Hargrave
Military) VA has moved into our top 10, along with 6'4 Bradley Beal
from St. Louis (Chaminade) MO, 6'8 James McAdoo from Norfolk
(Christian) VA, 6'8 Quincy Miller from High Point (Westchester
Country Day) NC, and 6'6 Branden Dawson from Gary (Wallace) IN, on
our list. And, in both cases, we think this is an easy call, especially in
light of the fact that Birch was our #1-ranked player last summer at the
LeBron James King City Classic in Cleveland, OH and was one of
the best players in both the McDonald's All-American Game with
15 points, 10 rebounds, and six blocked shots and the Jordan Brand
Classic with 15 points, seven rebounds, and five blocked shots. And
Hairston was pretty good in the McDonald's All-American Game
as well with 15 points. However, it looks like once again our competition
is out to lunch. Van Coleman's new
Hot100Hoops
and Rivals both have
Birch ranked #9, ESPN has him ranked #11,
Scout has him
#14, and Rob Harrington has him ranked #25 in the
Recruiter's Handbook. Hairston is
ranked as high as #12 by the Recruiter's Handbook and
ESPN and as low as #20 by Scout. On the other hand,
this should come as no surprise, as we're always way ahead of the curve in
terms of rankings and accuracy. And, if you don't believe it, just look
around and see who else had Jared Sullinger ranked #1 in their final
ranking of the top players in the Class of 2010. We also encourage you to
check our archives, which can be found by subscribing to the Members
Section and then clicking onto Ranking of the Top
Players Nationally,
and compare our rankings with the competition.
Friday, June 24, 2011
The field for the 39th Annual State Farm
City of Palms Classic, which will be held at
Bishop Verot High School in Ft. Myers, FL on December 16th-21st, was
officially being released yesterday and it includes Santa Ana (Mater Dei)
CA, Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, Lithonia (Miller Grove) GA, Thomasville (H.S.)
GA, Montverde (Academy) FL, Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, Louisville (Trinity)
KY, Plano (Prestonwood Christian) TX, Arlington (Grace Prep) TX, Pompano
Beach (Ely) FL, Reserve (Riverside Academy) LA, Richmond (Salesian) CA,
Cincinnati (Taft) OH, Gladstone (Gill St. Bernard) NJ, Ft. Myers (Bishop
Verot) FL, and the City of Palms/USSSA Division III state champion, which
will determined this weekend. There also will be a Signature Series, which
will include Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA, Tilton (School) NH, Sugar Land
(Trent International) TX, and Ulm (Urspringschule) Germany, and a Sunshine
Series Game between Tallahassee (Godby) FL and Ft. Myers (H.S.) FL.
City of Palms Classic Vice-President
Donnie Wilkie, who is the guy that invites the teams for the tournament,
likes to tout the fact that 99 players who have played in this tournament
have gone on to become McDonald's All-Americans
and there were 45 players who played on NBA teams who have participated in
his tournament. And there should be a lot more, as the list of players
expected to be in attendance in this year field includes 6'5 Jr Shabazz
Muhammad from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'9 Jr Tony Parker
from Lithonia (Miller Grove) GA, 6'8 Jr Amile Jefferson from
Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA, 7'0 Jr Isaiah Austin from Arlington
(Grace Prep) TX, 6'7 Jr Ricardo Gathers from Reserve (Riverside
Academy) LA, 6'6 Jr Xavier Johnson from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'8
Jr Robert Carter from Thomasville (H.S.) GA, 6'9 Jr Rosce Allen
from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'5 Jr Nkereuwem Okoro from Bronx
(St. Raymond's) NY, 6'4 Jr Katin Reinhardt from Santa Ana (Mater Dei)
CA, 6'8 Jr Georges Niang from Tilton (School) NH, 6'9 Jr Ben
Carter from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'9 Jr Jordan Goodman
from Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, 6'0 Jr Dominic Artis
from Richmond (Salesian) CA, 6'6 Jr Daniel Dingle from Bronx (St.
Raymond's) NY, 6'4 Jr Carlos Morris from Jacksonville (Arlington
Country Day) FL, 6'3 Jr Jelon Hornbeck from Arlington (Grace Prep)
TX, 6'8 Jr Nick Baynard from Arlington (Grace Prep) TX, 6'5 Jr
Michael Carey from Sugar Land (Trent International) TX, 6'8 Jr
Demetris Morant from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'2 Jr Louis Dabney
from Reserve (Riverside Academy) LA, 6'9 Jr Zach Peters from Plano (Prestonwood
Christian) TX, 6'9 Jr Wannah Bail from Sugar Land (Trent
International) TX, 6'8 Jr Willie Clayton from Thomasville (H.S.) GA,
6'2 Jr Eli Stalzer from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'7 Jr Ronnie
Stanley from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'0 Jr Charles Foster
from Louisville (Trinity) KY, 6'5 Jr Adolphus Washington from
Cincinnati (Taft) KY, 6'8 Soph Julius Randle from Plano (Prestonwood
Christian) TX, 6'10 Soph Nerlens Noel from Tilton (School) NH, 6'0
Soph Kasey Hill from Montverde (Academy) FL, 6'4 Soph Darryl Hicks
from Louisville (Trinity) KY,6'4 Soph Trey Boykin from Jacksonville
(Arlington 6'9 Soph Goodluck Okonoboh from Tilton (School) NH, 6'5
Soph Rashad Muhammad from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'5 Soph
Jabari Bird from Richmond (Salesian) CA, 6'1 Soph Jason Sina from
Gladston (Gill St. Bernard) NJ,6'4 Soph Dominique Bull from (Tilton
School) NH, 6'6 Frosh Shaqquan Aaron from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA,
6'4 Frosh Stanley Johnson from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'3 Frosh
Emmanuel Mudiay from Arlington (Grace Prep) TX, 6'4 Frosh Wayne
Seldon from Tilton (School) NH, and 6'8 Frosh Ricky Doyle from
Ft. Myers (Bishop Verot) FL. Or to put this into even better perspective,
four of the consensus top 10-ranked juniors (Muhammad, Parker, Jefferson,
and Austin), three of our top five-ranked sophomores (Randle, Noel, and
Hill), and two of our top 10-ranked freshmen (Aaron and Johnson) will be
showing the wears in this tournament. And that doesn't even include the
Harrison twins, as the word on the street is that 6'5 Soph Aaron Harrison
and 6'5 Soph Andrew Harrison will be transferring from Richmond (Ft.
Bend Travis) TX to Sugar Land (Trent International) TX. We also continue to
hear rumors about 6'6 Frosh Shaqquan Aaron from Santa Ana (Mater Dei)
CA transferring from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA to Las Vegas ((Bishop Gorman)
NV. But either way, he'll be in what promises to be the premier high school
basketball event in the entire country during next year's Christmas Holiday
Season.
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Our Ohio Editor
Chris Johnson and yours truly (HOOP SCOOP Editor & Publisher
Clark Francis) talked with a number of players at the
NBA Players Association Top 100 Camp,
which was held last week at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville,
VA, and a lot of these guys are still wide open. We start with 6'8 Jr
Amile Jefferson from Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA, who has a 3.4 gpa
and mentioned schools like Villanova, Temple, Maryland Ohio State, N.C.
State, Connecticut, Stanford, Miami-FL, Wake Forest, West Virginia, and Penn
State. Among those involved with 6'10 Mitch McGary from Wolfeboro
(Brewster Academy) NH are Maryland, Connecticut, Florida, West Virginia,
Marquette, Kentucky, Kansas, Texas, North Carolina, Duke. The list for 6'5
Jr Alex Caruso from College Station (A&M Consolidated) TX includes
UCLA, USC, Oregon, Oregon State, Stanford, Washington Arizona, Arizona
State, Utah, Oklahoma State, Nebraska, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Colorado,
Colorado State, Northern Colorado, Richmond, and Sam Houston State. The
early list for 6'1 Soph Nate Britt from Washington (Gonzaga) DC
includes North Carolina, Villanova, Georgetown, Maryland, Virginia, Virginia
Tech, Miami-FL, Xavier, Duke, Pittsburgh, Texas, Arizona, and Boston
College. Everybody in the Pac-10 and the Big-12 appears to be recruiting
6'5 Jr Jordan Tebbutt from Tualatin (Horizon Christian) OR. Texas,
Texas A&M, Texas Christian, UTEP, Houston, Maryland, Arizona, Oklahoma,
Oklahoma State, Missouri, Colorado, California, USC, North Carolina South
Carolina, and Jacksonville State were all mentioned by 6'7 Jr Daniel
House from Sugar Land (Hightower) TX. UCLA, USC, Arizona, Arizona
State, Washington, Washington State, Oregon Oregon State, California,
Stanford, Texas, Florida, Florida State, Virginia, Virginia Tech, and
Georgetown are involved with 6'6 Jr Xavier Johnson from Santa Ana
(Mater Dei) CA. Ohio State and Duke still appear to be the leaders for 6'9
Jr Tony Parker from Lithonia (Miller Grove) GA. But he also
mentioned Memphis, Texas, Kansas, North Carolina, Georgia, and Georgia
Tech. It looks like Georgetown, Florida, Kansas, N.C. State, Louisville,
Ohio State, and North Carolina are going to be the ones who will battle it
out for 6'7 Jr T.J. Warren from Raleigh (Word of God) NC. Georgia,
Memphis, UCLA, Florida, and Alabama are the top five for 6'8 Jr William
Goodwin from Decatur (Southwest DeKalb) GA. Florida, Florida State,
Texas, Cincinnati, and Ohio State are involved with 6'8 Jr Robert Carter
from Thomasville (H.S.) GA. Kansas, Louisville, Baylor, Oregon, and
Texas A&M are the leaders for 6'2 Jr J-Mychal Reese from Bryan (H.S.)
TX. However, his Dad also mentioned schools like Tennessee, Georgia Tech,
Oklahoma, LSU, Providence, and Texas. The list for 6'4 Jr L.J. Rose
from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX includes UCLA, Texas, Kentucky, Kansas,
Baylor, and Virginia. When 6'5 Jr Katin Reinhardt from Santa Ana
(Mater Dei) CA recently reneged on his commitment to USC, the door was
opened for schools like Arizona, Baylor, N.C. State, Syracuse, and Florida
to get involved. St. John's, Connecticut, Syracuse, LSU, Arizona, Texas,
Baylor, Kansas, California, Memphis, and USC promise to make things
interesting in the race for 6'7 Jr Ricardo Gathers from Reserve
(Riverside Academy) LA. Florida, Florida State, Kentucky, Syracuse,
Memphis, Iowa State, Tennessee, Louisville, and Kansas are all already in
the hunt for 6'8 Soph Chris Walker from Bonifay (Holmes County) MS.
Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Alabama, Kentucky, Duke, N.C. State,
Georgetown, and LSU are on the list of 6 '8 Jr Devonta Pollard from
DeKalb (Kemper County) MS. A wide range of schools including Iowa, Iowa
State, Stanford, Creighton, Harvard, Boston College are recruiting 6'2 Jr
Mike Gesell from Sioux City (South) NE. Maryland, Arizona, Texas,
Texas A&M, Baylor, Miami-FL, and Florida were the schools mentioned by 6'9
Jr Shaquille Cleare from Houston (The Village School) TX. Minnesota,
Georgia Tech, Texas, Ohio State, Maryland, Purdue, Indiana, and Virginia
make up an interesting the list for 6'11 Jr A.J. Hammonds from Mouth
of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA. North Carolina, Ohio State, Miami-FL, Florida,
Florida State, and West Virginia are involved with 6'10 Jr Joel James
from Palm Springs (Dwyer) FL.
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
It looks like most of
the top high school players in the nation will be in attendance when this
year's NBA Players
Association Top 100 Camp
begins
tomorrow at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, VA. Among those
on the list of players that was officially released yesterday are a two guys
who will be 5th Year Players next year in 6'10 Mitch McGary from
Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH and 6'1 Kareem Canty from North
Bridgton (Bridgton Academy) ME; 94 players who will be seniors in high
school next year in 6'5 Jr Shabazz Muhammad from Las Vegas (Bishop
Gorman) NV, 6'8 Jr Kyle Anderson from Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ,
6'9 Jr Brandon Ashley from Oakland (Bishop O'Dowd) CA, 6'9 Jr Tony
Parker from Lithonia (Miller Grove) GA, 6'8 Jr Anthony Bennett
from Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, 6'10 Jr Andre Drummond from Oakdale
(St. Thomas More) CT, 6'7 Jr Ricardo Ledo from Fitchburg (Notre Dame)
MA, 6'4 Jr Rodney Purvis from Raleigh (Upper Room Christian) NC, 6'10
Jr Cameron Ridley from Richmond (Ft. Bend Bush) TX, 6'8 Jr Perry
Ellis from Wichita (Heights) KS, 6'8 Jr Jarnell Stokes from
Memphis (Central) TN, 6'6 Jr Xavier Johnson from Santa Ana (Mater
Dei) CA, 5'11 Jr Kevin Ferrell from Indianapolis (Park Tudor) IN, 6'4
Jr Rasheed Sulaimon from Houston (Strake Jesuit) TX, 6'7 Jr Jerami
Grant from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 6'7 Jr Ricardo Gathers from
LaPlace (Riverside Academy) LA, 6'5 Jr Omar Calhoun from Middle
Village (Christ the King) NY, 6'3 Jr James Robinson from Hyattsville
(DeMatha) MD, 6'8 Jr Amile Jefferson from Wynnewood (Friends Central)
PA, 6'6 Jr Savon Goodman from Bryn Athyn (Acadmey of the New Church)
PA, 6'3 Jr Ryan Arcidiacono from Langhorne (Neshaminy) PA, 6'0 Jr
Tyler Lewis from Lewisville (Forsyth Country Day) NC, 6'1 Jr Marcus
Paige from Marion (Linn-Mar) IA, 6'9 Jr Grant Jarrett from
LaVerne (Lutheran) CA, 6'9 Jr Rosco Allen from Las Vegas (Bishop
Gorman) NV, 6'8 Jr Alex Poythress from Clarksville (Northeast) TN,
6'7 Jr Montrezl Harrell from Tarboro (North Edgecombe) NC, 6'8 Jr
Devonta Pollard from DeKalb (Kemper County) MS, 6'5 Jr Archie Goodwin
from Little Rock (Sylvan Hills) AR, 6'5 Jr Jordan Price from Decatur
(Southwest DeKalb) GA, 6'8 Jr William Goodwin from Decatur (Southwest
DeKalb) GA, 6'10 Jr Daniel Ochefu from Westtown (Friends) PA, 6'0 Jr
Braxton Ogbueze from Charlotte (United Faith Christian) NC, 6'5 Jr
Michael Frazier from Tampa (Plant) FL, 6'4 Jr Gary Harris from
Fishers (Hamilton Southeast) IN, 6'8 Jr Elijah Macon from Columbus
(Marian-Franklin) OH, 6'8 Jr Winston Shepard from Henderson (Findlay
Prep) NV, 6'8 Jr Robert Carter from Thomasville (H.S.) GA, 6'5 Jr
Justin Anderson from Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD, 6'2 Jr J-Mychal
Reese from Bryan (H.S.) TX, 6'4 Jr L.J. Rose from Houston
(Westbury Christian) TX, 6'3 Jr Marcus Smart from Flower Mound
(Marcus) TX, 6'7 Jr T.J. Warren from Raleigh (Word of God) NC, 6'4 Jr
D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera from Indianapolis (North Central) IN, 6'9 Jr
Hanner Perea from La Porte (La Lumiere) IN, 6'7 Jr Sam Dekker
from Sheboygan (Lutheran) WI, 6'6 Jr J.P. Tokoto from Menomonee Falls
(H.S.) WI, 6'8 Jr Evan Nolte from Alpharetta (Milton) GA, 6'0 Jr
Javan Felix from New Orleans (St. Augustine) LA, 6'7 Jr Cameron
Biedscheid from St. Louis (Cardinal Ritter) MO, 6'8 Jr Steve Taylor
from Chicago (Simeon) IL, 6'2 Jr Gabe York from Orange (Lutheran)
CA, 6'6 Jr Armaud Moto from Alexandria (Episcopal) VA, 6'11 Jr A.J
Hammons from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'7 Jr Twymond Howard
from Pearl (H.S.) MS, 6'6 Jr Glenn Robinson from Lake Central (St.
John) IN, 6'10 Jr Landon Lucas from Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, 6'9
Jr Shaquille Cleare from Houston (The Village School) TX, 6'5 Jr
Jordan Adams from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'4 Jr Anrio Adams
from Seattle (Garfield) WA, 6'7 Jr George Niang from Tilton (School)
NH, 6'3 Jr Ron Patterson from Indianapolis (Broad Ripple) IN, 6'5 Jr
Katin Reinhardt from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'6 Jr Marcus Hunt
from North Clayton (H.S.) GA, 6'2 Jr Nino Jackson from Ardmore (H.S.)
OK, 6'0 Jr Ronnie Johnson from Indianapolis (North Central) IN, 7'0
Jr Robert Upshaw from Fresno (San Joaquin Memorial) CA, 6'5 Jr
Jordan Tebbutt from Tualatin (Horizon Christian) OR, 6'5 Jr Raphael
Davis from Ft. Wayne (South Side) IN, 6'2 Jr Mike Gesell from
Sioux City (South) NE, 6'5 Jr Kellen Dunham from Pendleton (Heights)
IN, 6'10 Jr Jordan Hare from Saginaw (Arthur Hill) MI, 6'7 Jr
Jeremy Hollowell from Indianapolis (Lawrence Central) IN, 6'9 Jr
Brice Johnson from Cordova (Edisto) SC, 6'4 Jr Shawn Smith from
Jacksonville (Providence School) FL ,6'3 Jr Kris Dunn from New London
(H.S.) CT, 6'8 Jr Gavin Ware from Starkville (H.S.) MS, 6'7 Jr
Zena Edosomwan from North Hollywood (Harvard-Westlake) CA, 6'7 Jr
Daniel House from Sugar Land (Hightower) TX, 6'5 Jr Denzel Valentine
from East Lansing (Sexton) MI, 6'11 Jr Adam Woodbury from Sioux City
(East) IA, 6'10 Jr Joell James from Palm Springs (Dwyer) FL, 6'6 Jr
Andrew White from Charlottesville (The Miller School) VA, 6'9 Jr
Matt Costello from Linwood (Bay City Western) MI, 6'5 Jr Alex Caruso
from College Station (A&M Consolidated) TX, 6'2 Jr Codi Miller-McIntyre
from Charlotte (First Assembly) NC, 6'4 Jr Charles Mann from
Milton (H.S.) GA, 6'6 Jr Negus Webster-Chan from Huntington (Prep)
WV, 6'5 Jr Jabari Bird from Richmond (Salesian) CA, 6'9 Jr Josh
Scott from Colorado Springs (Lewis Palmer) CO, 6'6 Jr Damien Wilson
from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'9 Jr Kellen McCormick from
Pontiac (Notre Dame) MI, 6'8 Jr Kenny Kaminski from Medina (Senior)
OH, and 5'11 Jr Tyler Clark from Sterling (H.S.) NJ; and 14 players
who will be juniors in high school next year in 6'11 Soph Nerlens Noel
from Tilton (School) NH, 6'4 Soph Chris Thomas from Phoenix (Windward
Prep) AZ, 5'8 Soph Kuran Iverson from West Hartford (Northwest
Catholic) CT, 6'1 Soph Nate Britt from Washington (Gonzaga) DC, 6'8
Soph Chris Walker from Bonifay (Holmes County) FL, 6'3 Jr Anton
Gill from Raleigh (Ravenscroft) NC, 6'4 Soph Miles Overton from
Philadelphia (St. Joseph's Prep) PA, 6'7 Soph A.J. Davis from Atlanta
(Greater Atlanta Christian) GA, 6'4 Soph Allerick Freeman from
Charlotte (Olympic) NC, 6'3 Soph Elijah Brown from Lakewood (St.
Edward) OH, 6'2 Soph Aubrey Dawkins from Palo Alto (H.S.) CA, 6'1
Soph Dirk Minniefield from Houston (Bellaire) TX, 6'6 Soph Reggie
Theus from Los Angeles (Fairfax) CA, and 6'5 Soph DeLante Victory
from Fredericksburg (Chancellor) VA. Or to put this into even better
perspective the only four consensus top 50-ranked players in the Class of
2012 that are missing from the above list are 6'9 Jr Dajuan Coleman
from Dewitt (Jamesville-Dewitt) NY, 7'0 Jr Isaiah Austin from
Arlington (Grace Prep) TX, 7'0 Jr Kalen Tarczewski from Southborough
(St. Mark's) MA, and 6'0 Jr Jevon Thomas from Centereach (Our Savior
New American) NY. In other words, most of the gang is going to be there
and, as a result, the HOOP SCOOP's ranking of the top players based
on performance, which will be updated daily from the camp and published
exclusively right here in the Members Section, will be an
important indicator in terms of where things stand as we get ready to begin
the Summer Evaluation Period. So, with this in mind, now is the
perfect time
to subscribe!
Friday, June 10, 2011
With the verbal
commitment a couple of days ago by 6'6 Grandy Glaze from Fitchburg
(Notre Dame) MA to Saint Louis, there is now only one player ranked among
our top 100 seniors nationally who still available. And, when the dust has
cleared, we suspect that 6'10 Joseph Uchebo from Raleigh (Word of
God) NC, who is ranked #51 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP
SCOOP, will end up at the University of Missouri, thanks at least in
part to the strong ties that new Tigers assistant coach Tim Fuller
has along Tobacco Road. As for Glaze, he is ranked #75 nationally in the
senior class by the HOOP SCOOP and appears to be exactly what the
doctor ordered for Billikens head coach Rick Majerus and his staff
who were in search of a tough hardnosed athletic undersized inside guy who
can step in next season and provide immediate help on the boards. Glaze
picked Saint Louis over Providence and South Florida and he joins 6'11
John Manning from Chantilly (H.S.) VA, who is ranked #289 nationally in
the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP and is the only the player in the
Billikens' current recruiting class. Our New York City Editor Ron
Naclerio tells us that 6'5 Jr Omar Calhoun from Middle Village
(Christ the King) NY made a visit to the University of Connecticut earlier
this week and, upon his return, decided to pull the trigger for the
Huskies. And this is big for a number of reasons. First, we're talking
about somebody who is ranked #17 nationally in the junior class by the
HOOP SCOOP. Second, the addition of Calhoun perpetuates the UConn's
already strong pipeline into the Big Apple. Third, Calhoun is a great
outside shooter who can flat out shoot the lights out. Fourth, Calhoun is
an excellent student, which is important due to the fact that the Huskies
have recently penalized by the NCAA for falling below where they are
required to be on the Academic Progress Rate Public Report. Fifth, Calhoun
is a great kid who potentially could be like the Pied Piper in terms of
helping Connecticut head coach Jim Calhoun and his staff continue to
attract more great players. It also looks like Clemson may have stolen with
their early verbal commitment from 6'0 Jr Jordan Roper from Irmo (H.S.)
SC. We're talking about a scoring point guard who is explosive in
transition, good at getting into the lane, and has a good mid-range jump
shot. He does need to improve his outside shooting, but does have an
incredible work ethic, is an in-state player, and is a winner, as is evident
by the fact that he led his team to the AAAA State Championship three months
ago. There also is the commitment by 6'7 Seth Gearhart from
Wilsonville (H.S.) OR to Rice and a pair of junior college commitments by
6'7 DeAngelo Scott from Arizona Western (JC) AZ to Texas Southern and
6'7 Ronnie Boggs from Moberly (JC) MO to Jacksonville State. Boggs
is ranked #84 in the junior college ranks by
JucoJunction.com
and averaged 15.2 ppg, 6.6 rpg, 2.6 apg this past season. Scott is ranked
#99 in the junior college ranks by
JucoJunction.com
and
received Third Team NJCAA (National Junior College Athletic Association)
All-American enrolls after averaging 14.0 ppg and 7.1 rpg this past
season. Did you also know that there is still plenty of action left to
occur on the recruiting trail by players in the junior college ranks, as a
quick look at the rankings in
JucoJunction.com
shows that 15 of the 75-ranked junior college players are still available.
And right at the top of the list is 6'8 Karron Johnson from Midland (JC)
TX, who is ranked #1 on the list and is back on the board after being
suspended from his junior college team during the season and having his
scholarship offer rescinded by Oklahoma State. Next on this list are
#19-ranked 6'10 Monterale Clark from Highland (JC) IL, #24-ranked
6'10 Bryant Crowder from Eastern Utah (JC) UT, #27-ranked 6'8 Will
Ohuaregbe from Chipola (JC) FL, #28-ranked 6'0 Widget Washington
from Northeastern (JC) CO, #39-ranked 6'5 Anthony Rapley from Aiken
Tech (JC) SC, #40-ranked 6'0 Johnnie Lacey from Howard (JC) TX,
#46-ranked 6'3 JaMichael Rivers from Snead State (JC) AL, #58-ranked
6'8 Richard Anderson from Tallahassee (JC) FL, #64-ranked 6'1
Marquis Glaze from Daytona State (JC) FL, #66-ranked 6'1 Vernon Payne
from Cape Fear (JC) NC, #68-ranked 6'10 Chris Brand from Western
Texas (JC) TX, #69-ranked 6'11 Melvyn Oliver from Southwest (JC)
TN, #71-ranked 6'4 Andre Paulk from Cincinnati State (JC)
OH and #73-ranked 6'6 Niko Stejilkovic from Lon Morris (JC) TX.
Friday, June 3, 2011
I am still on the West
Coast and today I am getting ready for the
Ninth Annual Pangos All-American
Camp,
which will be held this year at Cal State-Dominguez Hills in Carson, CA and
will feature a number of the top high school players in the nation,
including 6'5 Jr Shabazz Muhammad from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV,
6'9 Jr Brandon Ashley from Oakland (Bishop O'Dowd) CA, 6'10 Jr
Andre Drummond from Oakdale (St. Thomas More) CT, 7'0 Jr Isaiah
Austin from Arlington (Grace Prep) TX, 6'7 Jr Xavier Johnson from
Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'10 Jr Cameron Ridley from Richmond (Ft.
Bend Bush) TX, 6'7 Jr Ricardo Gathers from LaPlace (Riverside
Academy) LA, 6'6 Jr Savon Goodman from Bryn Athyn (Academy of the New
Church) PA, 6'9 Jr 6'1 Jr Marcus Paige from Marion (Linn Mar) IA, 6'5
Jr Jordan Adams from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'1 Jr Tyler
Lewis from Lewisville (Forsyth Country Day) NC, 6'5 Jr Archie Goodman
from Little Rock (Sylvan Hills) AR, 6'8 Jr Winston Shepard from
Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, 6'8 Jr Roscoe Allen from Las Vegas
(Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'8 Jr Anthony Bennett from Henderson (Findlay
Prep) NV, 6'4 Jr Junior Lomomba from Madison (Memorial) WI, 6'2 Jr
Nino Jackson from Ardmore (H.S.) OK, 6'3 Jr Gabe York from Orange
(Lutheran) CA, 6'8 Jr Charlie Mitchell from Marietta (Wheeler) GA,
6'5 Jr Jordan Tebbutt from Tualatin (Horizon Christian) OR, 6'5 Jr
Katin Reinhardt from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'3 Jr Jelon Hornbeak
from Arlington (Grace Prep) TX, 7'0 Jr Robert Upshaw from Fresno (San
Joaquin Memorial) CA, 6'5 Jr Twyond Howard from Pearl (H.S.) MS, 6'7
Jr Kale Abrahamson from West Des Moines (Valley) IA, 6'8 Jr Akoy
Agau from Omaha (Central) NE, 6'9 Jr Stefon Jankovich from
Huntington (Prep) WV, 7'1 Jr Adam Woodbury from Sioux City (East) IA,
6'1 Jr Mike Gesell from Sioux City (South) IA, 6'0 Jr Dominic
Artis from Richmond (Salesian) CA, 6'11 Jr Mading Thok from Sioux
City (East) IA, 6'8 Jr Ben Carter from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV,
6'5 Jr Demarquise Johnson from Phoenix (Westwind Prep) AZ, 6'8 Jr
Tevin Glass from Norcross (Meadowcreek) GA, 6'6 Jr Alex Caruso
from College Station (Consolidated) TX, 6'2 Jr Calaen Robinson from
Tempe (Corona del Sol) AZ, 6'8 Jr Zena Edsowoman from North
Hollywood (Harvard-Westlake) CA, 6'3 Jr Jarryn Skeete from Brampton
(Wasatch Academy) ON, 6'3 Jr Kris Dunn from New London (H.S.) CT, 6'7
Jr David Andoh from Berkeley (St. Mary's) CA, 6'7 Jr Chris Reyes
from La Verne (Damien) CA, 6'8 Jr Christian Wood from Palmdale (H.S.)
CA, 6'8 Jr Demetris Morant from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'4
Soph Chris Thomas from Phoenix (Westwind Prep) AZ, 6'6 Soph Aaron
Gordon from San Jose (Archbishop Mitty) CA, 6'5 Soph Isaac Hamilton
from Los Angeles (Crenshaw) CA, 6'3 Soph Eric Cooper from La
Verne (H.S.) CA, 6'5 Soph Roschon Prince from Long Beach (Poly) CA,
6'3 Soph Nigel Williams-Goss from Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV, 6'9 Jr
Maurice Kirby from Chandler (Basha) AZ, 6'5 Soph Jabari Byrd
from Richmond (Salesian) VA, 6'3 Soph Tyree Robinson from San Diego
(Lincoln) CA, 6'3 Soph Tyrel Robinson from San Diego (Lincoln) CA,
6'4 Soph Rashad Muhammad from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV, 6'5 Soph
R.J. Currington from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'7 Soph Stephen
Domingo from San Francisco (St. Ignatius Prep) CA, 6'8 SophTreshaun
Bolden from Jackson (Callaway) MS, 6'0 Soph Solomon Poole from
Jacksonville (Parker) FL, 6'4 Soph Dakari Allen from Sacramento
(Sheldon) CA, 6'7 Soph Brannen Greene from Forsyth (Persons) GA, 6'1
Soph Ikenna Iroegbu from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'3 Soph
Tyler Ennis from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 6'7 Soph Aqunwa Okolie
from Ajax (O'Connor) ON, 6'6 Frosh Shaqquan Aaron from Santa Ana
(Mater Dei) CA, 6'4 Frosh Stanley Johnson from Santa Ana (Mater Dei)
CA, 6'3 Frosh Rashad Jackson from Bakersfield (Garces) CA, 6'4 Frosh
Xavier Rathan-Mayers from Toronto, ON, 6'4 8th Grader Tyler Dorsey
from Los Angeles (Ribet Academy) CA, 6'8 8th Grade Horace Spencer
from Westminster, PA, and 6'10 8th Grader Stephen Zimmerman from Las
Vegas, NV. Dinos Trigonis, who is the director of the camp, is
touting 6'5 Jr Shabazz Muhammad from Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman) NV,
6'10 Jr Andre Drummond from Oakdale (St. Thomas More) CT, 7'0 Jr
Isaiah Austin from Arlington (Grace Prep) TX as the three best players
in the junior class nationally. However, after watching 6'9 Jr Brandon
Ashley from Oakland (Bishop O'Dowd) CA play last weekend in the NIKE
(EYBL) Elite Youth Basketball League (Session #3), we think this
athletic big man from the Bay Area could very well could end up being the
chief challenger to Muhammad for the #1-billing in the Class of 2012. And
to make things even more interesting is the fact that 6'10 Jr Cameron
Ridley from Richmond (Ft. Bend Bush) TX is a good old-fashioned post
player and a physical specimen inside who is ranked among everybody's top 10
juniors nationally; 7'0 Jr Robert Upshaw from Fresno (San Joaguin
Memorial) CA and 7'1 Jr Adam Woodbury from Sioux City (East) IL have
both dramatically improved in the last year; and 6'8 8th Grade Horace
Spencer from Westminster, PA and 6'10 8th Grader Stephen Zimmerman
from Las Vegas, NV are a pair of highly touted middle school guys who will
have to grow up in a hurry if they want to be successful while playing
against the likes of this crowd. The camp will begin with check-in from
1:00 PM-5:00 PM at the Renaissance Hotel in Long Beach, CA, followed by
dinner and distribution of gear at Cal State-Dominguez Hills from 6:00
PM-7:00 PM, opening remarks/instructions from 7:00 PM-7:15 PM, individual
instruction by former NBA and NCAA assistant coach Dave Miller from
7:15 PM-8:30 PM, and camp games from 8:30 PM-10:00 PM. Things will get
going on Saturday, June 4th, with lunch at Noon, followed by strength &
conditioning with Steve Campbell from 1:00 PM-1:30 PM, Individual
Instruction with Dave Miller from 1:30 PM-3:00 PM, camp games from
3:00 PM-5:00 PM, dinner from 5:00-6:00 PM, Recruiting Roundtable (questions
and answers with national scouts) from 6:00-6:40 PM, camp games from 6:40
PM-8:30 PM, and a media reception at Hotel Avia's Rooftop Deck from 9:45
PM-Midnight. The schedule on Sunday, June 5th, will begin with breakfast
from 8:00 AM-8:45 AM, followed by camp games from 9:00 AM-11:00 AM, an
announcement of all-star teams and final remarks from 11:00 AM-11:30 AM, the
"Cream of the Crop" Top 40 Game from 11:30 AM-12:30 PM, the "Cream of the
Crop" Top 20 Game from 12:30 PM-1:30 PM, and the closing of the camp and
transportation to the airport from 1:30 PM-2:00 PM.
Editor's Note: We will
publish all the highlights, comments about the top players, and a ranking of
the top players in the camp early next week exclusively in the Members
Section. So obviously now is the perfect time to subscribe.
Friday, May 27, 2011
I am already on the West Coast and I am looking
forward to getting my first look this spring at a lot of the players that
are playing on NIKE-sponsored teams at the
NIKE (EYBL) Elite Youth Basketball League
Session #3, which will be held this weekend at the Hangar Athletic XChange
in Torrance, CA. Things will tip-off tomorrow morning
at 9:30 AM with CIA Bounce (Canada) versus NIKE Team Florida on Court
#1, the New York Gauchos versus the Playaz Basketball Club on Court #2,
Athletes First versus the Alabama Challenge on Court #3, Iowa Attack versus
the Boo Williams Summer League Team on Court #4, the Georgia Stars versus
Playground Elite (WI) on Court #5, and the Arkansas Wings Elite versus CP3
(Chris Paul) on Court #6. The next round of games will begin at 11:00 AM
with the Jackson Tigers versus the Southern Kings on Court #1, the Houston
Hoops versus MoKan Elite on Court #2, All Ohio Red versus Mac Irvin Fire on
Court #3, BABA (MA) versus the Charlotte Royals on Court #4, Baltimore Elite
versus the St. Louis Eagles on Court #5, and California Supreme versus ICP-Portland
on Court #6. Then at 12:30 PM it will be the King James Shooting
Stars versus Louisiana Select on Court #1, the Albany City Rocks versus
Spiece on Court #2, the Oakland Soldiers versus E1T1 (FL) on Court #3, The
Family versus the Team Texas Titans on Court #4, means Streets versus
Memphis YOMCA on Court #5, and Team Final versus the Metro Hawks on Court
#6. In the middle of the afternoon things will slow down at 2:00 PM
with only two games apiece with Howard Pulley versus Team Takeover on Court
#1 and Seattle Rotary Select versus the Tennessee Travelers on Court #2 and
at 3:30 PM with NIKE Team Florida versus the New York Gauchos on
Court #1 and the All Iowa Attack versus the Alabama Challenge on Court #2.
The next set of games at 5:00 PM will feature CP3 (Chris Paul) versus
Baltimore Elite on Court #1, ICP-Portand versus Arkansas Wings Elite on
Court #2, the Southern Kings versus the Houston Hoops on Court #3, MoKan
Elite versus the Jackson Tigers on Court #4, Playground Elite versus CIA
Bounce (Canada) on Court #5, and the Mac Irvin Fire versus BABC on Court
#6. At 6:30 PM it will be Athletes First versus the Boo Williams
Summer League Team on Court #1, the Playaz Basketball Club versus the
Georgia Stars on Court #2, Team Final versus The Family on Court #3, Memphis
YOMCA versus All Ohio Red on Court #4, Means Streets versus the Metro Hawks
on Court #5, and the Charlotte Royals versus the Team Texas Titans on Court
#6. And finally at 8:00 PM it will be Spiece versus Seattle Rotary
on Court #1, the Tennessee Travelers versus the King James Shooting Stars on
Court #2, E1T1 (FL) versus Team Takeover on Court #3, the Oakland Soldiers
versus Howard Pulley on Court #4, Louisiana Select versus the Albany City
Rocks on Court #5, and the St. Louis Eagles versus California Supreme on
Court #6. The times of the games will be exactly the same on
Sunday, May 29th, as things will begin at 9:30
AM with All Ohio Red versus the Team Texas Titans on Court #1, BABC
versus the Metro Hawks on Court #2, the Charlotte Royals versus Team Final
on Court #3, Memphis YOMCA versus the Mac Irvin Fire on Court #4, The Family
versus Mean Streets on Court #5, and CP3 (Chris Paul) versus MoKan Elite on
Court #6. They will be followed at 11:00 AM by the St. Louis Eagles
versus ICP-Portland on Court #1, the King James Shooting Stars versus E1T1
(FL) on Court #2, Baltimore Elite versus the Jackson Tigers on Court #3, the
Arkansas Wings Elite versus the Houston Hoops on Court #4, the Alabama
Challenge versus NIKE Team Florida on Court #5, and California Supreme
versus the Southern Kings on Court #6. The third set of games of the day
at 12:30 PM will include Team Takeover versus Seattle Rotary on Court
#1, Louisiana Select versus the Oakland Soldiers on Court #2, the Albany
City Rocks versus the Tennessee Travelers on Court #3, the Howard Pulley
Panthers versus Spiece on Court #4, Playground Elite versus the Playaz
Basketball Club on Court #5, and the Georgia Stars versus All Iowa Attack on
Court #6. Then at 2:00 PM it will be the New York Gauchos versus the
Boo Williams Summer League Team on Court #1 and CIA Bounce (Canada) versus
Athletes First on Court #2 and at 3:30 PM it will be Mean Streets
versus B.A.B.C. versus Mean Streets on Court #1 and The Family versus All
Ohio Red on Court #2. The evening session will begin at 5:00 PM with
the Mac Irvin Fire versus the Charlotte Royals on Court #1, Team Final
versus Memphis YOMCA on Court #2, the Metro Hawks versus the Team Texas
Titans on Court #3, Arkansas Elite versus Baltimore Elite on Court #4, the
Jackson Tigers versus California Supreme on Court #5, and the Southern Kings
versus ICP-Portland on Court #6. Then at 6:30 PM it will be MoKan
Elite versus the St. Louis Eagles on Court #1, the Houston Hoops versus CP3
(Chris Paul) on Court #2, the Howard Pulley Panthers versus Louisiana Select
on Court #3, the Oakland Soldiers versus the Albany City Rock on Court #4,
Seattle Rotary versus the King James Shooting Stars on Court #5, and Spiece
versus Team Takeover on Court #6. And finally at 8:00 PM it will be
the Boo Williams Summer League Team versus CIA Bounce (Canada) on Court #1,
the All Iowa Attack versus the New York Gauchos on Court #2, the Playaz
Basketball Club versus Athletes First on Court #3, NIKE Team Florida versus
Playground Elite on Court #4, the Alabama Challenge versus the Georgia Stars
on Court #5, and E1T1 Florida versus the Tennessee Travelers on Court #6.
We also will get a final look at all of the teams with a morning set of
games on Monday, May 30th, beginning at
8:00 AM with the Albany City Rocks versus the Howard Pulley Panthers
on Court #1, Team Takeover versus the King James Shooting Stars on Court #2,
the Team Texas Titans versus BABC on Court #3, the Charlotte Royals versus
the Metro Hawks on Court #4, Team Final versus the Mac Irvin Fire on Court
#5, and Memphis YOMCA versus The Family on Court #6. The 9:30 AM
games will includes Spiece versus the Oakland Soldiers on Court #1, Seattle
Rotary versus E1T1 (FL) on Court #2, Baltimore Elite versus the Houston
Hoops on Court #3, CP3 (Chris Paul) versus the Jackson Tigers on Court #4,
the Georgia Stars versus the Boo Williams Summer League Team on Court #5,
and the New York Gauchos versus the Alabama Challenge on Court #6. At
11:00 AM it will be the Tennessee Travelers versus Louisiana Select on
Court #1, All Ohio Red versus Mean Streets on Court #2, Athletes First
versus Playground Elite on Court #3, the All Iowa Attack versus NIKE Team
Florida on Court #4, CIA Bounce (Canada) versus the Playaz Basketball Club
on Court #5, and the St. Louis Eagles versus the Southern Kings on Court
#6. And the final two games will tip-off at 12:30 PM with California
Supreme versus the Arkansas Wings Elite on Court #1 and the ICP-Portland
versus MoKan Elite on Court #2. A quick look at the rosters also shows that
this tournament will be absolutely loaded, as the list of top players that
we expect to be in attendance includes 6'2 Myles Davis from Fitchburg
(Notre Dame) MA, 6'8 Jr Kyle Anderson from Jersey City (St. Anthony)
NJ, 6'8 Jr Tony Parker from Lithonia (Miller Grove) GA, 6'9 Jr
DaJuan Coleman from Jamesville (Jamesville-DeWitt) NY, 6'7 Jr Ricardo
Ledo from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA, 6'4 Jr Rodney Purvis from
Raleigh (Upper Room Christian Academy) NC, 6'7 Jr Ricardo Gathers
from La Place (Riverside Academy) LA, 6'6 Jr Savon Goodman from Bryn
Athyn (Academy of the New Church) PA, 6'10 Jr Brandon Ashley from
Oakland (Bishop O'Dowd CA, 6'8 Jr Jarnell Stokes from Memphis
(Central) TN, 6'3 Jr Rasheed Sulaimon from Houston (Strake Jesuit)
TX, 6'3 Jr L.J. Rose from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX, 6'2 Jr
J-Mychal Reese from Bryan (H.S.) TX, 6'8 Jr Jerami Grant from
Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 6'1 Jr Marcus Paige from Marion (Linn-Mar)
IA, 6'5 Jr Omar Calhoun from Middle Village (Christ the King) NY, 6'3
Jr James Robinson from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 6'7 Jr Anthony
January from Woodland Hills (Taft) CA, 6'1 Jr Jevon Thomas from
Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, 6'5 Jr Torian Graham from
Raleigh (Word of Gord) NC, 6'8 Jr Alex Poythress from Clarksville
(Northeast) TN, 6'8 Jr Steve Taylor from Chicago (Simeon) IL, 6'8 Jr
Elijah Macon from Columbus (Marian-Franklin) OH, 6'3 Jr D'vante
Smith-Rivera from Indianapolis (North Central) IN, 6'5 Jr Justin
Anderson from Rockville (Montrose Christian) VA, 7'0 Jr Aaron Hammons
from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'5 Jr Cameron Biescheid from St.
Louis (Cardinal Ritter) MO, 6'10 Jr Willie Cauley from Overland Park
(Olathe (Northwest) KS. 6'8 Jr William Goodman from Decatur
(Southwest DeKalb) GA, 6'8 Jr Evan Nolte from Alpharetta (Milton) GA,
6'0 Jr Braxton Ogbueze from Charlotte (United Faith Christian) NC,
6'5 Jr Archie Goodwin from Little Rock (Sylvan Hills) AR, 6'4 Jr
Jordan Price from Decatur (Southwest DeKalb) GA, 6'4 Jr Darryl Hicks
from Louisville (Trinity) KY, 6'5 Jr Arroyo Edwards from Milwaukee
(Rufus King) WI, 6'8 Jr Anthony Bennett from Henderson (Findlay Prep)
NV, 6'5 Jr Katin Reinhardt from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, 6'2 Jr
Nino Jackson from Ardmore (H.S.) OK, 6'4 Jr Reggie Dillard from
Greensboro (Dudley) NC, 5'11 Jr Siyani Chambers from Minnetonka
(Hopkins) MN, 7'5 Jr Sim Bhullar from Huntington (Prep) WV, 6'10 Jr
Stefan Jankovic from Huntington (Prep) WV, 6'0 Jr Justin Pride
from Huntsville (Butler) AL, 6'5 Jr Raphael Davis from Ft. Wayne
(Southside) IN, 6'1 Jr Mike Gesell from South Sioux (H.S.) IA, 7'1 Jr
Adam Woodbury from Sioux City (East) IA, 6'0 Jr Dashawn Suber
from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 6'7 Jr Isaiah Miles from Owings
Mills (Glenelg Country School) MD, 6'9 Jr Justin Tuoya from Hampton
(Lovejoy) GA, 5'9 Jr Stephen Clark from Oklahoma City (Douglass) OK,
6'4 Jr Jamal Ferguson from Norfolk (Maury) VA, 6'8 Jr Cimmeon
Bowers from Milwaukee (Rufus King) WI, 6'7 Jr Georges Niang from
Tilton (School) NH, 6'3 Jr Craig Sword from Montgomery (Carver) AL,
6'6 Jr Derrick Finner from Washington (Gonzaga) DC, 6'2 Jr Brian
Bernardi from Brooklyn (Xaverian) NY, 6'8 Jr Brandon Morris from
Lithonia (Miller Grove) GA, 6'3 Jr Louis Dabney from La Place
(Riverside Academy) LA, 6'3 Jr Domoniq Bull from Tilton (School) MA,
6'10 Jr Prince Ibeh from Garland (Namaan Forest) TX, 7'0 Jr Mike
Tobey from Lakeville (Hotchkiss School) CT, 6'8 Jr Jermaine Morgan
from Chicago (Whitney Young) IL, 6'6 Jr Leroy Fludd from Brooklyn
(Boys & Girls) NY, 6'4 Jr Anrio Adams from Seattle (Garfield) WA,6'9
Jr Jordan Hare from Saginaw (Arthur Hill) MI, 6'5 Jr Junior
Lombomba from Madison (Memorial) WI, 6'8 Jr Richard Longrus from
Oakland (Bishop O'Dowd) CA, 6'0 Jr Jacolby Mobley from Starkville (H.S.)
TN, 6'6 Jr Jalen Jackson from West Memphis (H.S.) AR, 6'7 Jr
Lorenzo Cugini from Akron (St. Vincent-St. Mary's) OH, 6'5 Jr Jeff
Neverson from Brooklyn (Boys & Girls) NY, 6'7 Soph Jabari Parker
from Chicago (Simeon) IL, 6'8 Soph Julius Randle from Plano (Prestonwood
Academy) TX, 6'9 Soph Nerlens Noel from Tilton (School) NH, 6'6 Soph
Brian Bridgewater from Baton Rouge (Episcopal) LA, 6'6 Soph Peter
Jok from West Des Moines (H.S.) IA, 6'8 Soph Beejay Anya from
Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 6'9 Soph Tommy Hamilton from Chicago
(Whitney Young) IL, 6'9 Soph Jonathan Williams from Memphis (Southwind)
TN, 6'6 Soph Roschon Prince from Long Beach (Poly) CA, 6'6 Soph
Ishmail Wainwright from Raytown (South) MO, 6'9 Soph Austin Colbert
from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 6'8 Soph Aaron Gordon from San
Jose (Archbishop Mitty) CA, 6'8 Soph Marc Loving from Toledo (St.
John's) OH, 6'7 Soph Rondae Jefferson from Philadelphia (Roman
Catholic) PA, 6'8 Soph Torren Jones from Chandler (Basha) AZ, 6'8
Soph Tyrek Coger from Raleigh (Upper Room Christian) NC, 6'6 Soph
Semilore Ojeleye from Ottawa (H.S.) KS, 6'2 Soph Duane Wilson
from Milwaukee (Dominican) WI, 6'7 Soph Alian Chigha from Gainesville
(The Rock School) FL, 6'6 Soph Jason Boswell from Elizabeth (St.
Patrick) NJ, 6'9 Soph Goodluck Okonoboh from Tilton (School) NH, 6'1
Soph Brenton Scott from Ft. Wayne (Northrop) IN, 6'0 Soph Bryson
Scott from Ft. Wayne (Northrop) IN, 6'2 Soph Shane Rector from
Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'8 Soph Shannon Hale from Johnson City
(Science Hill) TN, 6'4 Soph Tyrell Robinson from San Diego (Lincoln)
CA, 6'4 Soph Tyree Robinson from San Diego (Lincoln) CA, 6'4 Soph
Billy Garrett from Chicago (Whitney Young) IL, 5'11 Soph Britton Lee
from Philadelphia (Roman Catholic) PA, 6'7 Frosh Andrew Wiggins from
Toronto (Vaughn) ON, 6'1 Frosh Joel Berry from Orlando (Lake Highland
Prep) FL, 6'5 Frosh Stanley Robinson from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA,
6'10 Frosh Tre Lyles from Indianapolis (Tech) IN, 6'2 Frosh Shep
Gardner from Philadelphia (Roman Catholic) PA, 6'0 Frosh Tyus Jones
from Apple Valley (H.S.) MN, 6'4 Frosh Wayne Selden from Tilton
(School)) NH, 6'6 8th Grader Kejuan Johnson from Atlanta, GA, 6'7 8th
Grader Mickey Mitchell from Plano (Prestonwood Academy) TX, and 6'0
8th Grader Allonzo Trier from Oklahoma City, OK.
Editor's Note: We'll have all the highlights,
rankings, and comments about the top players from this weekend's
NIKE (EYBL) Elite Youth Basketball League
exclusively in the Members Section early next week. So
obviously now is the perfect time to subscribe.
Monday,
May 23, 2011
Originally the plan
had been to deal with whatever signings and commitments trickled in over the
weekend and today. However, the only interesting things that we've run
across involved a couple of transfers. The first is 6'0 K.C. Ross-Miller,
who is leaving the University of New Orleans after just one year and is now
bound for New Mexico State. If you will recall, this is the same guy who
verbally committed to the University of Kentucky back when he was a freshman
in high school, but then backed out of that commitment two years ago after
the coaching change. Ross-Miller also verbally committed to LSU back in
February 2010, but then failed to get cleared by the NCAA Clearinghouse and
enrolled last fall at Florida International. But that didn't work out
either and he ended up playing at the Division II level this past season for
the Privateers, where he averaged 9.7 ppg, 3.7 rpg, and 3.4 agp. "The
Aggies have most of their players back and they need a point guard who can
come in and run show," says Tim Miller, who is Ross-Miller's father.
The second is 6'5 Soph Luke Hancock, who, after the recent coaching
change at George Mason, is following in the footsteps of his former prep
school coach to the University of Louisville. If you will recall, Kevin
Keatts, who previously was the head coach at Chatham (Hargrave Military
Academy) VA, was recently hired by Rick Pitino as an assistant coach
for the Cardinals. Hancock averaged 10.9 ppg 4.2 rpg, and 4.3 apg and
played a key role in the Patriots first round upset against Villanova in the
NCAA Tournament this past March. He will redshirt next year and then should
be ideally suited to step in and replace 6'4 Jr Kyle Kuric, who will
graduate after next season. There also has to be more than meets the eye
with regards to Penn State head coach Ed DeChellis making the move
earlier today to a similar position at Navy. After going 19-15 overall and
9-9 in the league and advancing into the NCAA Tournament two months ago, we
thought this would be the perfect time for DeChellis to ask for a raise. On
the other hand, four of the Nittany Lions' top five players will graduate
this spring and 6'2 Frosh Taran Buie decided to transfer last month.
However, we really don't want to go there either due to the fact I've
already put the finishing touches on our updated
Ranking of the Top 100 Players
Nationally in the Class of 2016 (7th Graders). And
what is really amazing is the fact that 10 of the top 25-ranked players in
this class are already 6'4 or taller. We're talking about 12 and
13-year-olds and this list includes 6'8 7th Grader Deron Davis from
Denver, CO, 6'9 7th Grader Khalea Turner from Marrero, LA, 6'5 7th
Grader V.J. King from Charlotte, NC, 6'4 7th Grader Dedric Lawson
from Memphis, TN, 6'5 7th Grader Antoyne Jackson from
Indianapolis, IN, 6'7 7th Grader Edrice Adebayo from Newton, NC, 6'4
7th Grader Sam Green from Bowie, MD, 6'10 7th Grader Raekwon Long
from Davidson, NC, 6'4 7th Grader Joe Hampton from Riverdale, MD, and
6'4 7th Grader Harry Giles from Flat Rock, NC. And this list doesn't
even include 6'10 7th Grader Thon Maker from Australia, who was one
of the better players that we saw a week ago at the John Lucas
Basketball Resources Camp in Houston, TX, and 6'2 7th Grader
Sebastian Baugh from Pelta, IA and 6'3 7th Grader Devin Young
from Sacramento, CA, both of whom have the shoe size necessary to project as
a potential 7-footer someday. We also plan to publish our updated
Ranking of the Players Nationally in the Class of 2017 (6th Graders)
sometime within the next week. And
then the process will start all over again with our Final
Ranking of the Top 5th Year Players and
Final Ranking of the Top Players Nationally in the Class of 2011
(Graduating Seniors), which will be published
in late June. A quick check of our archives also shows that we published
our most recent Ranking of the Top 55 Year Players
on
December 2, 2010; our most recent
Ranking of the Top 750 Players
Nationally in the Class of 2011 (Seniors)
on November
2, 2010; our most recent
Ranking of the Top 500 Players Nationally in the Class of 2012
(Juniors)
on November 24, 2010; our most recent
Ranking of the Top 400 Players
Nationally in the Class of 2013 (Sophomores)
on March 7, 2011; our
most recent Ranking
of the Top 250 Players Nationally in the Class of 2014 (Freshman)
on March
11, 2011; and our most recent
Ranking of the Top 175
Players Nationally in the Class of 2015 (8th Graders)
on April 28, 2011.
That's a grand total of 2,230 names and we don't cop out like a lot of our
competition by listing them with stars, at the level at which we think they
might play, or in alphabetical or numerical order. In other words,
with this type of clarity there is no doubt that now is the perfect time to
subscribe
to the Members Section
in order to find out where any or all of these players are ranked.
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Today is the final day
of the Spring Signing Period and, as a result, it is fitting that 6'3
Trevor Lacey from Huntsville (Butler) AL, who was the only player ranked
among our top 100 seniors nationally that had yet to pick a school (Kevin
Ware, Joseph Uchebe, and Grandy Glaze also are still
available, but are back on the board after a coaching change), has finally
made his college decision. And, in the end, Lacey decided to stay home by
opting for the University of Alabama over Kentucky, Kansas, N.C. State, and
Auburn. Obviously this huge, because we're talking about a guy who averaged
32.4 ppg, 8.0 rpg, 2.6 apg, and 3.1 spg and for this second straight year
was named the state's Mr. Basketball. Lacey is ranked #30 nationally in the
senior class by the HOOP SCOOPand also is terrific at slashing to the
basket and beating you with his outside shooting. He's also a winner, as
is evident by the fact that he led his team to three state titles in four
years, and is exactly what the doctor ordered to complement 6'8 Nick
Jacobs from Atlanta (South Atlanta) GA, 7'0 Moussa Gueye from
Lake Land (JC) IL, 6'4 Levi Randolph from Madison (Bob Jones) Al, and
6'5 Rodney Cooper from Phenix City (Russell County) AL in a
recruiting class that is now ranked #10 on our list of the Top Recruiting
Classes To-Date for the Class of 2011. It also looks like 6'4 Jr
Katin Reinhardt from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA, who is ranked #75
nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP and was verbally
committed to USC, has reneged on the Trojans; 6'5 Nick Faust from
Baltimore (City College) MD, who is ranked #33 nationally in the senior
class and is one of the best 3-pointers to come down the pike in a long
time, is back in the fold after asking for and obtaining a release from the
National Letter-of-Intent that he signed last fall with the University of
Maryland; and 6'8 Jamari Traylor from Bradenton (IMG Academy) FL, who
is a high energy athletic power forward that is very active around the
basket, has become Kansas' fourth recruit. And what about the fact that 6'8
Thomas De Thaey from the Canarias Basketball Academy (Spain) is bound
for N.C. State and 6'1 Zeke Chapman from Scottsdale (Chapparal) AZ
has picked Ball State? Chapman doesn't have his father's incredible
athleticism (his father is former Kentucky All-American and NBA player
Rex Chapman), but he is a very good outside shooter and promises to be
an excellent piece to the puzzle for Cardinals head coach Billy Taylor.
DeThaey averaged 18.4 ppg and 6.8 rpg while playing for the Belgium 20-Under
Team last summer and, at 6'8, 235-pounds, is both a force to be reckoned
with around the basket and a match-up problem out on the perimeter, thanks
to his excellent 3-point shooting. Our Mississippi Editor Lavel Johnson
tells us that 6'2 Brett Arrington from Jackson (Southern Sports
Academy) MS, 6'5 Blake Ralling from Kennesaw (North Cobb) GA, and
5'10 Roger Hubbard from Marietta (Covenant Christian) GA are all
bound for Mississippi Valley State. "I don't know much about the two
Georgia kids," says Jackson. "But Arrington is a long athletic combo guard
who is excellent defensively and should be a good fit in Sean Woods'
up tempo system." We also have a plethora of signings and commitments by
players in the junior college ranks. And right at the top of the list is
6'5 Larry McGaughey from Lawson State (JC) AL, who is bound for
Fresno State and was a Division II First Team NJCAA (National Junior
College Athletic Association) All-American. Next are the pair of
commitments that University of Seattle head coach Cameron Dollar has
received from 6'6 Allen Tate from Lamar (JC) CO, who is an extremely
talented versatile wing player, and 6'9 Louis Green from Moraine
Valley (JC) IL, who is ranked #79 in the junior college ranks by
JucoJunction.com.
The
rest of the list includes 6'10 Ilija Ivanjkovic from Santa Fe (JC) FL
to the University of Charlotte, 6'6 Corbin Thomas from John A. Logan
(JC) IL to Missouri State, 6'3 Demetrice Jacobs from Missouri
State-West Plains (JC) MO to Northwestern State, 6'7 Tarvin Gaines
from Lawson State (JC) AL to Jacksonville State, 6'10 Elhadji Ndieguene
from Lake Land (JC) IL to Hampton, 6'7 Bruce Reed from Hutchinson (JC)
KS to Morehead State, 6'10 Jordan Hickert from Neosho County (JC) KS
to Eastern Washington, 6'9 Antonio Kalpic from Roane State (JC) TN to
Campbell, 6'4 Derick Beltran from Tallahassee (JC) FL to Southeastern
Louisiana, 6'4 Kameron Pearce from Northeastern (JC) CO to Idaho
State, 6'8 Kareen Ferguson from Lincoln Trail (JC) IL to St Peter's,
6'1 Carlyle Francis from Tallahassee (JC) FL to Binghamton, 6'6
Nate Drayton from USC-Salkehatchie (JC) SC to Florida A&M, 6'2 Matt
Samuels from South Suburban (JC) IL to Chicago State, and 6'2 Kevin
Schaffartzik from Odessa (JC) TX and 6'4 DeMarcus Gatlin from
Naverro (JC) TX both to Sam Houston State.
Thursday, May 12, 2011
It was just an average
year in terms of the number of head coaching changes at the Division I level
in college basketball until the recent flurry of movement that included
Texas A&M's Mark Turgeon saying yes to the University of Maryland
after the retirement of Gary Williams, Vermont's Mike Lonergan
getting the nod to replace Karl Hobbs at George Washington, and Navy
head coach Billy Lange returning to his old stamping grounds as the
new associate head coach at Villanova. These last three moves bring the
number to 50 head coaching changes this year, which is three above the 47.4
average for the last eight years. Using ESPN.com, CBSSports.com, Sports
Illustrated.com, and Wikipedia.org as sources of reference, we
have found that there were 43 head coaching changes in 2002-2003, 37 head
coaching changes in 2003-2004, 45 head coaching changes in 2004-2005, 61
head coaching changes in 2005-2006, 62 head coaching changes in 2006-2007,
45 head coaching changes in 2007-2008, 32 head coaching changes in
2008-2009, and 54 head coaching changes in 2009-2010. And this year's
number could increase by another one or two, if Texas A&M, Vermont, Navy,
and Alabama A&M, which are the four schools that still have head coaching
vacancies, hire a somebody who is currently a Division I head coach. The
most likely is Texas A&M, which now appears to have a list of candidates
that includes Wichita State's Gregg Marshall, UTEP's Tim Floyd,
Nebraska's Doc Sadler, Colorado's Tad Boyle, and ESPN
television analyst Fran Franschilla after Memphis' Josh Pastner
and Marquette's Buzz Williams both quickly let be known that they
aren't interested. As for 50 head coaching opening that have already
occurred, we divide the list up into four different categories. The first
are the 12 big time high profiles jobs at the high major level, which
include Mark Turgeon replacing Gary Williams at the University
of Maryland, Mark Gottfried replacing Sidney Lowe at N.C.
State, Brian Gregory replacing Paul Hewitt at Georgia Tech,
Jim Larranaga replacing Frank Haith at Miami-FL, Ed Cooley
replacing Keno Davis at Providence College, Cuonzo Martin
replacing Bruce Pearl at the University of Tennessee, Mike
Anderson replacing John Pelphrey at the University of Arkansas,
Frank Haith replacing Mike Anderson at the University of
Missouri, Lon Kruger replacing Jeff Capel at the University of
Oklahoma, Billy Gillispie replacing Pat Knight at Texas Tech,
the job that is currently open at Texas A&M, and Larry Krystowiak
replacing Jim Boylen at the University of Utah. The second are the
10 good jobs in conferences that are better than the mid-major level, but
not in the BCS Conferences. This list includes Dave Rice replacing
Lon Kruger at UNLV, Archie Miller replacing Brian Gregory
at the University of Dayton, Mike Lonergan replacing Karl
Hobbs at George Washington, Paul Hewitt replacing Jim
Larranaga at George Mason, Larry Shyatt replacing Heath
Schroyer at the University of Wyoming, Michael White replacing
Kerry Rupp at Louisiana Tech, Paul Lusk replacing Cuonzo
Martin at Missouri State, Geno Ford replacing Jim Les at
Bradley, Rodney Terry replacing Steve Cleveland at Fresno
State, and Ron Hunter replacing Rod Barnes at Georgia State.
The third are seven jobs at the mid-to-low major level, where the previous
coach left the cupboard full, there is great fan support, an excellent
recruiting base, and/or enough tradition to make it a good job. This list
includes Rod Senderoff replacing Geno Ford at Kent State,
Mitch Henderson replacing Sydney Johnson at Princeton, Sydney
Johnson replacing Ed Cooley at Fairfield, Pat Skerry
replacing Pat Kennedy at Towson, Todd Howard replacing Ron
Hunter at IUPUI, Pat Knight replacing Steve Roccaforte at
Lamar, and the job that is currently open at the University of Vermont. The
fourth are the seven jobs at the mid-major level, which includes Steve
Masiello replacing Barry Rohrssen at Manhattan, King Rice
replacing Dave Calloway at Monmouth, Rob Murphy replacing
Charles Ramsey at Eastern Michigan, Porter Moser replacing Jim
Whitesell at Loyola-Chicago, Mark Montgomery replacing Ricardo
Patton at Northern Illinois, Marty Wilson replacing Tom Asbury
at Pepperdine, and Willis Wilson replacing Perry Clark at
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. The fifth are 14 tough jobs in conferences at the
bottom of the Division I level, which include the job that is now open at
Navy, Steve Payne replacing Mike Sutton at Tennessee Tech,
Jim Hayford replacing Kirk Earlywine at Eastern Washington,
Casey Alexander replacing Derek Waugh at Stetson, Matt Langel
replacing Emmett Davis at Colgate, Andy Enfield replacing
Dave Balza at Florida Gulf Coast, Tony Jasick replacing Dane
Fife at IPFW, Lewis Preston replacing Tony Ingle at
Kennesaw State, Jim Les replacing Gary Stewart at UC-Davis,
Rod Barnes replacing Keith Brown at Cal State-Bakersfield,
Roman Banks replacing Rob Spivey at Southern University,
Luther Riley replacing Larry Smith at Alcorn State, Clemon
Johnson replacing Eugene Harris at Florida A&M, and the job that
is still open at Alabama A&M. We also think it's interesting to point out
that the average life expectancy of a Division I head coach is 7.2 years
based on the fact that there are currently 346 Division I schools and an
average of 47.8 heading coaching changes per season over the last nine
years.
Thursday, May 5, 2011
The big story right now in the recruiting
world involves 6'9 Jr Alex Murphy from Southborough (St. Mark's) MA,
who is ranked #11 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP,
but has signed a binding National Letter-of-Intent with Duke and plans to
enroll into school this fall. Murphy, who originally was in the Class of
2011, but reclassified several years ago, joins 6'9 Jr Khem Birch
from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA as the second high profile player in this
class to reclassify, but then rejoin his original class and graduate from
high school earlier than was originally anticipated. And to make the story
even more interesting is the fact that Murphy was absolutely sensational
last fall when he had 18 points and 17 rebounds against Lee (Academy) ME in
the National Prep Showcase in New Haven, CT, but has struggled every
time we've seen him since. However, the addition of Murphy is still very
important, because it moves the Blue Devils' recruiting class, which also
already includes 6'4 Austin
Rivers from Winter Park (H.S.) FL, 6'0 Quinn Cook from Mouth of
Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'6 Michael Gbinije from Richmond (Benedictine)
VA, and 6'11 Marshall Plumlee from Arden (The Christ School) NC, up
to #3 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of
2011.
It's also being
reported that 6'8 Corderio Maclin from Connors State (JC) OK is bound
for UT-Martin, 6'8 Dejan Kostur from Triton (JC) IL has signed with
Idaho State, and 6'10 Anthony Borden from Holmes (JC) MS has picked
Central Arkansas, and 6'3 Kenny Smith from St. Petersburg (Boca Ciega)
FL and 6'2 Raheem Appleby from Jacksonville (H.S.) AR have both made
it official for Louisiana Tech. But that's it, as the signing and
commitments have really slowed down as the end of the Spring Signing
Period is now less than a week away. So now is a good time to step back
for a minute and see where things stand on a number of fronts. First, is
our ranking of the top 100 seniors, which now shows that there are only four
players left on the board. However, 6'4 Kevin Ware from Conyers
(Rockdale County) GA, who originally picked Tennessee, 6'10 Joseph Uchebo
from Raleigh (Word of God) NC, who originally picked N.C. State, and 6'6
Grady Glaze from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA, who originally picked
UNLV, are currently on the rebound after recent coaching changes. So that
means that 6'3 Trevor Lacey from Huntsville (Butler) AL is the only
player ranked among our top 100 seniors nationally who has remained
available all the way through. There also is one big name high profile 5th
Year Player still left on the board in 6'8 DeAndre Daniels from
Bradenton (Pendleton School) FL and five of the top 25-ranked junior college
players by
JucoJunction.com
are
also still available. We're talking about 6'8 Karron Johnson from
Midland (JC) TX, 6'8 Dwight Miller from Midland (JC) TX, 6'10
Monterale Clark from Highland (JC) IL, 6'0 Antonio Biglow from
Mt. San Antonio (JC) CA, and 6'10 Bryant Crowder from Eastern Utah (JC)
UT, who are ranked #1, #10, #19, #23, and #24 respectively on this list. We
also find it interesting that 32 of our top 100-ranked juniors have already
made early verbal commitments, as 6'9 Jr Khem Birch from Fitchburg
(Notre Dame) MA to Pittsburgh, 6'9 Jr Cameron Ridley from Richmond
(Ft. Bend Bush) TX to Texas, 6'11 Jr Isaiah Austin from Arlington
(Grace Prep) TX to Baylor, 6'9 Jr Alex Murphy from Southborough (St.
Mark's) MA to Duke, 6'0 Jr Jevon Thomas from Centereach (Our Savior
New American) NY to St. John's, 6'5 Jr Savon Goodman from Bryn Athyn
(Academy of the New Church) PA to Villanova, 6'3 Jr Rasheed Sulaimon
from Houston (Strake Jesuit) TX to Duke, 6'3 Jr Ryan Arcidiancono
from Langhorne (Neshaminy) PA to Villanova, 6'1 Jr Marcus Paige from
Marion (Linn-Mar) IA to North Carolina, 5'11 Jr Kevin Ferrell from
Indianapolis (Park Tudor) IN to Indiana, 5'11 Jr Tyler Lewis from
Lewisville (Forsyth Country Day) NC to N.C. State, 6'9 Jr Grant Jerrett
from La Verne (Lutheran) CA to Arizona, 6'5 Jr Justin Anderson
from Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD to Maryland, 6'7 Jr Jeremy
Hollowell from Indianapolis (Lawrence Central) IN to Indiana, 6'9 Jr
Zach Peters from Plano (Prestonwood Christian) TX to Kansas, 6'6 Jr
J.P. Tokoto from Menomonee Falls (H.S.) WI to North Carolina, 6'10 Jr
Daniel Ochefu from Westtown (Friends) PA to Villanova, 6'8 Jr Evan
Nolte from Alpharetta (Milton) GA to Virginia, 6'7 Jr Montrezl
Harrell from Tarboro (North Edgecomb) NC to Virginia Tech, 6'6 Jr
Cameron Beidschied from St. Louis (Cardinal Ritter) MO to Notre Dame,
6'0 Jr Braxton Ogbueze from Charlotte (United Faith Christian) NC to
Florida, 6'4 Jr Michael Frazier from Tampa (Plant) FL to Florida,
6'11 Jr Isaiah Hill from Grand Prairie (God's Academy) TX to Seton
Hall, 6'8 Jr Hanner Perea from La Porte (La Lumiere) IN to Indiana,
6'4 Jr Katin Reinhardt from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA to USC, 6'3 Jr
Ron Patterson from Indianapolis (Broad Ripple) IN to Indiana, 6'5 Jr
Denzel Valentine from Lansing (Sexton) MI to Michigan State, 6'5 Jr
Raphael Davis from Ft. Wayne (South Side) IN to Purdue, 6'8 Jr
Brandon Bolden from Charlottesville (The Miller School) VA to
Georgetown, 6'9 Jr Matt Costello from Bay City (Western) MI to
Michigan State, 7'0 Jr Peter Jurkin from Charlotte (United Faith
Christian) NC to Indiana, and 7'5 Jr Sim Bhullar from Huntington
(Prep) WV are all already off the board. However, as we mentioned above 6'9
Jr Khem Birch from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA and 6'9 Jr Alex
Murphy from Southborough (St. Mark's) MA won't be included the next time
we update these rankings due to the fact that they both plan to rejoin their
originally class and enroll into college this fall.
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
There are two things that I've been working
on for well over a month whenever I haven't been traveling, covering an
event, or dealing with the latest recruiting news and/or business of day.
One is Ron Naclerio's updated New York
City Report
and the other is our
Ranking of the Top Players in the Class of 2015 (8th Graders).
And I am happy to report that the former was published exclusively in the
Members Section earlier today and the latter will be published in
the same place either tomorrow or Friday. The
New York City Report
includes Naclerio's ranking of the top 100
seniors, top 75 juniors, top 50 sophomores, top 25 freshmen, top 11 8th
Graders, top 10 7th Graders, and top six 6th Graders within the five
boroughs of New York City, some interesting analysis and commentary by yours
truly, and our six All-Metro New York
teams, which include the top 30 players in the New York Metropolitan area
regardless of class and position. And the contrast between the level of
talent inside the city and within the metropolitan area is dramatic. We
also have included in this report some of the latest recruiting news from
the city, which previously had not been reported by the HOOP SCOOP.
We start with the commitment that 6'3 Evan Conti from Flushing (Holy
Cross) NY, who is ranked #12 in the senior class on Naclerio's list, made
two days ago to Quinnipiac. "Conti is not a pure point guard, but he does
make his teammates better and he knows when to pick his spots and score,"
says Naclerio. "He also knows how to use his body, moves well without the
ball, and always puts up consistent numbers." He also has a knack for being
in the right place at the right time and is a good rebounder for his size,
as is evident by the fact that he averaged 17.1 ppg, 10.0 rpg, and 5.0 apg
this past season. Conti, who is ranked #420 nationally in the senior class
by the HOOP SCOOP, also is expected to be another important piece to
the puzzle for Bobcats head coach Tom Moore, because he's got that
New York City toughness and competitiveness and he promises to be an
excellent complement to 6'4 Zaid Hearst from Salisbury (School) CT
and 6'8 Qusmane Drame from Thompson (Marianapolis Prep) CT. We also
are interested in the fact that 6'0 Davontay Grace from Brooklyn
(Thomas Jefferson) NY and 6'10 Edson Avila from Brooklyn (Thomas
Jefferson) NY have both changed their minds about attending Manhattan
College after the coaching change this spring and suspect that they both
will end up in prep school due to the fact that Avila still hasn't made it
academically and Grace had such a bad senior season that even schools at the
mid-major level are now hard pressed to take him. However, Grace also is a
classic example of what can happen when you're ranked too high too early,
If you will recall, we had this guy ranked as the #1 7th Grader in the
nation when we published our Ranking of the Top Players in the Class of
2011 back on February 4, 2006. Unfortunately Grace never grew, never
developed a jump shot, never toned down his body, and and we stopped
cheating on his height (at that time we had him listed at 6'2). It also
looks like Wichita State may have stolen one in 6'5 Osamuede "Ede"
Egharevba from Jamaica (Edison) NY via Charlotte (Evelyn Mack) NC. "Egharevba
is excellent slashing to basket, can pull up and hit the outside shot, and
has almost unlimited untapped potential," says Naclerio. And he's pretty
good right now, as Naclerio tells us that Egharevba would be a legitimate
First Team All City Player, if he was still in New York and was still a high
school senior. Naclerio also backs this up even further when he tells us
that Egharevba is a better all-around player and a better athlete than 6'5
Jermaine Sanders from New York (Rice) NY, who is currently ranked #1
in the city's senior class by Naclerio and #82 nationally in the senior
class by the HOOP SCOOP. So how does Wichita State get a kid
originally from the sidewalks of New York to go to the plains of the
Midwest? Our guess is Devon Smith, who the Shockers' Director of
Player Development and a close confidant of the legendary Howard
Garfinkel. Editor's Note: Our updated
Ranking of the Top 175 Players in the Class of
2015 (8th Graders) was published on Thursday, April 28, 2011.
So to get both this and Ron Naclerio's
New York City Report, there is no time like the present to
subscribe
to the Members Section.
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South
Jersey Editor Allen Rubin talked with a number of the top players
over the weekend at the Hoop Group's Pittsburgh Jam Fest in
Pittsburgh, PA and it comes as no surprise that 6'8 Jr Amile Jefferson
from Wynnewood (Friends Central) PA has Villanova, Temple, Stanford,
Georgetown, Pittsburgh, Texas, and Ohio State right at the top of his list.
Seton Hall, Arizona, UCLA, Villanova, St. John's, Xavier, and Kentucky
appear to be the leaders for 6'8 Jr Kyle Anderson from Jersey City
(St. Anthony) NJ. Maryland, Rutgers, Georgetown, Virginia, Clemson, and
Virginia Tech were the schools mentioned 6'8 Jr Jerami Grant from
Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD. The early favorites for 6'8 Soph Beejay Anya
from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD appear to be Texas, St. John's, UCLA,
Maryland, Georgetown, and Pittsburgh. The list for 6'9 Mitch McGary
from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH includes schools like Arizona, Texas,
Connecticut, Florida, Duke, Illinois, Indiana, Purdue, Florida State,
Maryland, and Marquette. Among those showing the most interest in 6'10 Jr
C.J. Gettys from Findlay (H.S.) OH are Penn State, Virginia Tech,
Xavier, Toledo, Oregon State, Bowling Green, Holy Cross, UNC-Wilmington, and
Eastern Michigan. It looks like Boston College, Butler, Richmond, Duquesne,
Drake, William & Mary, and Colgate are all in the hunt for 6'2 Jr Micah
Mason from Natrona Heights (Highlands) PA. There is a wide range of
schools, like Dayton, LSU, Cincinnati, Ball State, Oakland, and Ohio
University, showing varying degrees of interest in 6'8 Jr Deontae Hawkins
from Dayton (Dunbar) OH. The three favorites for 6'7 Jr Marshall Wood
from Rustburg (H.S.) VA are Richmond, William & Mary, and Liberty. We also
are sure that Duquesne, St. Francis-PA, and Youngstown State are doing
everything they can to convince 6'2 Jr Justin Dobbs from Pittsburgh (Allderdice)
PA to stay close to home. We also find it extremely interesting that 6'4
Kevin Ware from Conyers (Rockdale County) GA
signed an athletic aid agreement yesterday with Central Florida (NCAA rules
prohibit a student-athlete from signing more than one National
Letter-of-Intent in the same year and Ware signed with the University of
Tennessee last fall, but was released after the recent coaching change). If
you will recall, the University of Louisville was supposed to have been the
favorite for this athletic 2-guard who is ranked #16 nationally in the
senior class by the HOOP SCOOP. And making the story more
interesting is the fact that Ware is supposed to play this weekend in the
Kentucky Derby Festival Classic
in Louisville, KY. Talk about
going from being the fan favorite to the goat in a New York-minute. All he
had to do was wait until next week to let his decision by known. However,
for our purposes the highest ranked senior still available is now off the
board and his addition moves the Knights' recruiting class, which also
already includes 6'10 Michael Chandler from Indianapolis (Lawrence
North) IN, 6'6 Rod Days from Weston (Sagemont) FL, 6'6 Kasey
Wilson from North Port (H,.S.) FL, and 6'8 Wayne Martin from
Jacksonville (Providence School) FL, moves it into a tie at #26, along with
Western Kentucky and Oregon, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes
To-Date for the Class of 2011.
We also find it ironic
that Chandler originally verbally committed to University of Louisville back
when he was a sophomore in high school, but later changed his mind, then
committed to Xavier, and then reneged again. It also looks like the new
coaching staff at the University of Wyoming has snagged one of the better
big men still available in 6'10 Lekan Ajayi from Winston-Salem
(Quality Education Academy) NC and his teammate - 6'9 Dwight Meikle
from Winston-Salem (Quality Education Academy) NC is back on the board after
being released from the National Letter-of-Intent that he signed last fall
with St. John's. It's being reported as a mutually arrived at decision.
But do you suppose that the Red Storm are after a bigger fish - i.e. 6'9
God's Gift Achiuwa from Erie (JC) NY, who averaged 13.1. ppg and 13.5
rpg and is ranked #21 in the junior college ranks by
JucoJunction.com?
Achiuwa
will be on campus at St. John's this weekend and he also still has the
University of Washington and University of Cincinnati on his list. It also
looks like 6'2 Jarrett Jones from Evanston (Township) IL is bound for
New Hampshire and 6'2 Jr Javion Watson from San Ysidro (H.S.) CA has
made an early verbal commitment to Long Beach State. There also is the
usual daily plethora of junior college signings and commitments, which
include 6'6 Nathaniel Butler from John A. Logan (JC) TX to Texas
Christian, 6'4 Cedric Martin from Lee (JC) UT to the University of
Utah, 6'5 Rashard McGill from Tallahassee (JC) FL to Southern Miss,
6'2 Xavier Roberson from Paris (JC) TX to South Alabama, 6'9
Brennan Cougill from Kirkwood (JC) MO to Wisconsin-Green Bay, 6'0
Rodney Melvin from Midland (JC) TX to Appalachian State, 6'5 Jonathan
King from East Mississippi (JC) MS to Stephen F. Austin, and 6'2
Brandon Thompson from South Plains (JC) TX to Long Island.
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Today is the first day
of the Spring Signing Period, but we don't expect a lot of action
when it comes time for the top players to make their college decision. As a
matter of fact, the only two players - 6'4 Kevin Ware from Conyers
(Rockdale County) GA and 6'3 Trevor Lacey from Huntsville (Butler) AL
- left on the board that are ranked among our top 50 seniors nationally both
appear to be a long way away from picking a school. As things stand right
now, the University of Louisville is the leader for Ware, who is ranked #16
nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP and has the skills
and athleticism necessary to step in right away and make an immediate impact
a year from now at the 2-guard spot. However, UCLA, Georgia, Florida State,
Kentucky, Baylor, Virginia, and Central Florida are also on Ware's list and
he won't even begin setting up visits until next week. Lacey is ranked #30
nationally in the senior class and he will begin what promises to be a busy
five days when University of Kentucky head coach John Calipari makes
an in-home visit on Friday. Then, it will be off to Tuscaloosa, AL on
Saturday, where Lacey will make an on-campus visit and attend the University
of Alabama's annual Crimson-White spring football game, where over 90,000
fans are expected to be in attendance. Next, Kansas' Bill Self will
make an in-home visit on Sunday, April 17th, and finally new N.C. State head
coach Mark Gottfried will return to his old stamping grounds on
Tuesday and make the final in-home visit. Instead, the big news of the day
appears to be Marquette's signing of 6'3 Todd Mayo from Fitchburg
(Notre Dame) MA and the two early verbal commitments by a pair of foreign
exchange students to Northwestern. They are 6'11 Jr Alex Olah from
Whitestown (Traders Point Christian Academy) IN and 6'7 Soph Milos Kostic
from Hammond (Bishop Noll) IN and Wildcats assistant coach Ivan Vujic,
who originally is from Split, Croatia and is the obvious connection,
deserves a raise for getting this done (especially so early). Olah is not
ranked among the top 500 juniors nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, but he
led his team to the Indiana Independent School State Championship,
where he was named MVP, and has improved dramatically since arriving in the
United States a year ago from Romania. And, at 6'11, 240-pounds, he's got
the skills, mobility, work ethic, frame, and upside necessary to project as
a NBA player down the road. Schools like Illinois, Purdue, Boston College,
California, and Texas A&M were also showing interest, but the fact that
Northwestern is a great academic institution also appears to have been one
of the deciding factors in his decision. Kostic is ranked #193 nationally
in the sophomore class and he averaged 7.3 ppg, 5.1 rpg, and 2.7 apg on a
team that advanced all the way to the Indiana Class 2A State Championship
Game three weeks ago in Indianapolis, IN. He also is your stereotypical
Eastern European player in that he doesn't like to bang inside, but has an
excellent skill package out on the perimeter and is a really good outside
shooter. However, it's the upside and potential of this native of Serbia
and the fact that he is ideally suited for their system that should get
Wildcats head coach Bill Carmody and his staff excited. As for Mayo,
he's ranked #7 on our List of the Top 5th Year Players, has a great
bloodline (he's the younger brother of O.J. Mayo), and is capable of
putting up prolific numbers to the tune of 22.0 ppg. Mayo also has the
skills necessary to play point guard and he's an excellent passer (6.0 apg).
But, when you can score like he can, why diminish what he does best by
making him run the show? We also were not surprised that over the weekend
6'4 Soph Billy Garrett from Chicago (Morgan Park) IL made an early
verbal commitment to DePaul and were intrigued by the fact that 6'10
Braeden Anderson from Wilbraham (Wilbraham & Monson) MA picked the
University of Kansas. Is Anderson good tough to step in and start or make a
major impact as a freshman next year for the Jayhawks? Probably not due to
the fact that he's still very raw around the basket. But he does have nice
size and athleticism. And, once he gets bigger and stronger physically and
develops some post moves, there is no telling how good be may become down
the road. Garrett is ranked #128 nationally in the sophomore class by the
HOOP SCOOP, but he's capable of playing either guard spot, averaged
15.0 ppg a good team this past season, is a straight "A" student, and is the
son of DePaul assistant coach Billy Garrett, whose job is to lock up
the top players in the Windy City. So, obviously in this case, it is
mission accomplished. Among the signings and commitments that are being
reported today, the only thing new is 6'3 P.J. Torres from New
Rochelle (H.S.) NY picking Duquesne over schools like College of Charleston,
Hofstra, and Rhode Island; 6'5 Dwayne Davis and 6'5 Darren White,
both of whom played important roles on the Midland Junior College team that
finished second in the NJCAA (National Junior College Athletic
Association) Tournament in Hutchinson, KS, picking Southern Miss
and Campbell respectively; 6'2 Travis Smith from Gulf Coast (JC) FL
and 6'2 Shaquille Harris from Enterprise-Ozark (JC) GA both signing
with Mercer; 6'9 Bernard Webb from Salt Lake (JC) UT opting for Cal
State-Fullerton, and 6'10 Dominique Youmans from Snow (JC) UT
selecting South Carolina State. Other verbal commitments that we've
recently run across include 6'1 Wesley Washpun from Cedar Rapids
(Washington) IA to the University of Tennessee, 6'9 Kris Obasekia
from Manuel (H.S.) TX to Oral Roberts, 6'8 Breon Dixon from Tifton
(Tift County) GA to Troy, and 6'11 Jaleel Roberts from Greensboro
(Day) NC to UNC-Asheville. We've also have tracked early verbal commitments
by 6'6 Jr Dominic Hoffman from Gladstone (Gill St. Bernard's) NJ to
Bucknell and 6'3 Soph Jared Fay from Chestnut Hill (Brimmer & May) MA
and 6'3 Soph Jake Fay from Chestnut Hill (Brimmer & May) MA both to
Fordham.
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Next season starts this weekend for people in our
business and the first stop on our spring and summer tour will be at the
Big Shot DC Assault Tournament,
which will be held at the Capital Sports Complex in District Heights, MD on
Saturday, April 9th, and Sunday, April 10th and will feature an interesting
array of players that include 6'7 Jr Montrezl Harrell from Tarboro
(North Edgecomb) NC, 6'1 Jr Daquan Cook from Baltimore (Digital
Harbor) MD, 6'3 Jr James Ford from Christ Church (School) VA, 6'3 Jr
Lionel Greene from Bel Air (John Carroll) MD, 6'8 Jr Aaron
Roundtree from Wilson (Greenfield) NC, 6'4 Jr Shaq Patterson from
Martinsville (Magna Vista) VA, 5'8 Jr Maurice Watson from
Philadelphia (Boys Latin) PA, 6'1 Soph Nate Britt from Washington
(Gonzaga) DC, 6'2 Soph Brandon Austin from Philadelphia (Imhotep
Charter) PA, 6'4 Soph Kris Jenkins from Washington (Gonzaga) DC, 6'7
Soph Kyle Wilson from Ft. Worth (Dunbar) TX, and 6'6 Soph Derrick
Finner from Washington (Gonzaga) DC. The tournament will have three
different divisions in the 17-Under age group and we are told that we should
expect to find some major sleepers in the Orange Bracket, which will include
first round games on Saturday with the Under Armour Baltimore Panthers
versus BWSL Woods on Court #1 at 2:50 PM, the LBA Seawolves versus Delaware
Assault Griffin on Court #2 at 2:50 PM, Team Redemption versus Maryland Sure
Shots on Court #1 at 4:00 PM, DC Assault Blue versus Team Philly on Court #2
at 4:00 PM, Cecil-Kirk versus Virginia Assault Gold on Court #9 at 4:00 PM,
Loudoun Triple Threat versus SELF Carolina Elite on Court #10 at 4:00 PM,
Fairfax Stars versus Maryland 3D Basketball on Court #7 at 5:10 PM, and
Richmond Phenoms 16 versus DC Assault Gold on Court #8 at 5:10 PM. The
second round will feature winners bracket quarterfinals games at 6:20 PM and
8:40 PM on Saturday night, the semi-finals games will be at 1:40 PM on
Sunday afternoon, and the Championship Game will be on Court #1 at 5:10 PM
on Sunday afternoon. We also hope to get a head start on the future
by watching the 15- Division, which will begin on Saturday with DC Assault
Gold 14 versus Carolina Elite 15 on Court #1 at 9:00 AM, Ivery Terps 23-15
versus DC Assault, 15 on Court #2 at 9:00 AM, 6th Man Warriors 15 versus
Maryland 3D Basketball 15 on Court #1 at 10:10 AM, Team Philly White 15
versus DC Assault Gold 15 on Court #2 at 10:10 AM, Cecil-Kirk 15 versus
Virginia Assault 15 on Court #9 at 10:10 AM, Team Philly Blue 15 versus
Under Armour Baltimore Pant on Court #10 at 10:10 AM, and DE Assault-Barnes
15 versus Team Hines 15 on Court #1 at 11:20 AM. The 15-Under winner's
bracket quarterfinals game will be at 1:40 PM and 2:50 PM on Saturday, the
semi-finals games will be at 5:10 PM on Saturday and 10:10 AM on Sunday, and
the Championship Game will be on Court #1 at 12:30 PM on Sunday. The other
championship games, all of which will be held on Sunday, will include the
title games in the 17-Under White Division on Court #2 at 2:50 PM, 17-Under
Blue Division on Court #1 at 4:00 PM, the 13-Under Division on Court #5 at
1:40 PM, the 12-Under Division on Court #5 at 12:30 PM, the 11-Under
Division on Court #5 at 11:20 PM, and the 10-Under Division on Court 5 at
10:10 AM. We also plan on attending the Pittsburgh Hoop Group
Jam Fest in Pittsburgh, PA on April 15th-17th;
the Kentucky Derby Festival Basketball Classic,
which will be played at the new KFC Yum Center in Louisville, KY on Friday,
April 22nd; the Providence Hoop Group Jam Fest
in Providence, RI on April 29th-May 1st; the Bill Hensley
Memorial Run-N-Slam in Ft. Wayne, IN on May
6th-8th; the John Lucas International Middle
School Combine in Houston, TX on May
14th-15th, the Bob Gibbons Tournament of Champions
in Chapel Hill, NC on May 27th-29th, the Pangos All-American
Camp in Long Beach, CA on June 3rd-5th, the
Rumble in the Bronx at Fordham
University in the Bronx, NY on June 10th-12th, the NBA
Players Association Top 100 Camp in
Charlottesville, VA on June 16th-18th, adidas Phenom Top 150
Camp in San
Diego, CA on June 24th-26th; Blue Chip Basketball Camp
in Georgetown, KY on June 29th; LeBron
James Skills Academy
in Akron, OH on July 6th-8th: Big Shots
Myrtle Beach I on
July 11th-12th, NIKE Peach Jam in
North Augusta, SC on July 12th-15th, 14-Under AAU Nationals
at Disney's Wide World of Sports in Lake Buena Vista, FL on July 16th-21st,
Las Vegas Fab 48 at Bishop Gorman
High School in Las Vegas, NV on July 22nd-25th and adidas Super
64 in Las Vegas, NV on July 22nd-26th,
Desert Duel in Phoenix, AZ on July
27th-28th, and adidas Junior Phenom Camp
in San Diego, CA on August 5th-7th. Needless to stay, I plan on being very
busy once again this spring and summer. To find out what happens at
all of these events, as well as get a great overview of what happens this
spring and summer, obviously now is a great time to subscribe
to the Members Section.
Thursday,
March 31, 2011
It was pretty much
status quo in the
McDonald's All-American Game,
as the elite players rose to the top in front of the largest crowd in the
34-year history of the game, which was held last night at the United Center
in Chicago, IL. The co-MVP's were 6'8 Michael Gilchrist from
Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ and 6'8 James McAdoo from Norfolk
(Christian) VA. And, in the case of Gilchrist, this should come as no
surprise especially in light of the fact that he's been our #1-ranked player
in the class dating back to when he was the best player almost three years
ago at the LeBron James
Skills Academy
in Akron, OH. Nobody plays harder, gets more hustle points, and is more
dominant on the boards than Gilchrist, who finished with 16 points, 12
rebounds, and four assists and led the East Squad to a 111-96 win over the
West, which featured our #2, #3, and #4-ranked seniors nationally in 6'9
Anthony Davis from Chicago (Perspectives Charter) IL, 6'4 Austin
Rivers from Winter Park (H.S.) FL, and 6'2 Marquis Teague from
Indianapolis (Pike) IN. However, this too comes as no surprise, as
Gilchrist's hustle and work ethic are often contagious and the team that
Gilchrist plays on usually wins. If you will recall, his high school team
was ranked #1 in the nation and was undefeated until they got knocked off in
the state tournament by Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ and the Team Final AAU
team for which Gilchrist played during the spring and summer has been one of
the best club teams in the nation the last two years. As for the North
Carolina-bound McAdoo, who is the nephew of former Tar Heels All-American
Bob McAdoo and is currently ranked #5 nationally in the senior class by
the HOOP SCOOP, he was tied for high scoring honors with 17 points in
the game. They also had plenty of help from Florida-bound 6'5 Bradley
Beal from St. Louis (Chaminade) MO, who also finished with 17 points and
is ranked #7 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, and
North Carolina-bound 6'6 P.J. Hairston from Chatham (Hargrave
Military) VA, who finished with 15 points and made a strong case for moving
up from #14 into the top 6-10 range when later this spring we publish our
Final Ranking of the Top Players in the Class of 2011. Also
chipping in with 14 points and 6-13 field goals for the East Squad was
Duke-bound 6'0 Quinn Cook from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA and
finishing nine points and seven rebounds was Georgetown-bound 6'9 Johnny
O'Bryant from Cleveland (H.S.) MS. Davis, who, along with Gilchrist and
Teague, is bound for the University of Kentucky, was the best player and the
crowd favorite for the West Squad, as he finished with 14 points, six
rebounds, and four blocked shots. The Duke-bound Rivers also had 14 points,
while Teague chipped in with nine points and three assists.
Pittsburgh-bound 6'9 Khem Birch from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA also
more than lived up to his top 10 national reputation with 15 points, 10
rebounds, and six blocked shots and Texas-bound 6'2 Myck Kabongo from
Henderson (Findlay Prep) NV did his usual thing in transition en route to
seven points and five assists. Also noteworthy for the West Squad was
Indiana-bound 6'10 Cody Zeller from Washington (H.S.) IN, who had 10
points and was 5-6 from the field; Michigan State-bound 6'6 Branden
Dawson from Gary (Lew Wallace) IN who had nine points and eight
rebounds; and Kentucky-bound 6'10 Kyle Wiltjer from Portland (Jesuit)
OR, who had 11 points and two rebounds. Among the more nondescript players
in the game were Duke-bound 6'10 Marshall Plumlee from Arden (The
Christ School) NC, Georgia-bound 6'5 Kentavious Caldwell-Pope from
Greenville (H.S.) GA, Syracuse-bound 6'5 Michael Carter-Williams from
Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, Syracuse-bound 6'10 Rakeem Christmas
from Bryn Athyn (Academy of the New Church) PA, Ohio State-bound 6'2
Shannon Scott from Alpharetta (Milton) GA, Louisville-bound 6'6 Chane
Behanan from Bowling Green (H.S.) KY, Oklahoma State-bound 6'7
LeBryan Nash from Dallas (Lincoln) TX, Memphis-bound 6'6 Adonis
Thomas from Memphis (Melrose) TN, Ohio State-bound 6'10 Amir Williams
from Beverly Hills (Detroit Country Day) MI, and Louisville-bound 6'5
Wayne Blackshear from Chicago (Morgan Park) IL, although Blackshear does
deserve credit for playing injured.
Thursday, March 24, 2011
The big news of the
day is that 6'7 Jr Jeremy Hollowell from Indianapolis (Lawrence
Central) IN has decided to stay home and attend Indiana University and this
is important for a number of reasons. First, Hollowell is a very good
player, as is evident by the fact that he is ranked #36 nationally in the
junior class and he picked the Hoosiers over schools like Purdue, Ohio
State, and Cincinnati. Second, Hollowell is a skilled athletic
multi-dimensional wing forward who is good enough and productive enough to
step and make an immediate impact when he arrives on campus a
year-and-a-half from now. And this is important, because after three rough
seasons Indiana head coach Tom Cream needs all the help that he can
get and, as a result, Hollowell should be exactly what the doctor ordered at
the wing forward spot to complement 6'11 Cody Zeller from Washington
(H.S.) IN, who will be a major upgrade at center next year; 6'6 Austin
Etherington from Arcadia (Hamilton (Heights) IN is a great designated
shooter; and 511 Jr Kevin Ferrell from Indianapolis (Park Tudor) IN
is a pure point guard and is more than capable of stepping in and running
the show. We also think 6'3 Jr Ron Patterson from Indianapolis
(Broad Ripple) IN is good enough to play an important role when he arrives
on campus for the 2012-2013 season, but still have major reservations about
6'8 Jr Hanner Perea from La Porte (La Lumiere) IN and 70 Jr Peter
Jurkin from Charlotte (United Faith Christian) NC, both of whom have
lots of athleticism and potential, but all too frequently are embarrassingly
unproductive and leave you wanting more. Third, the addition of Hollowell
puts the Hoosiers in the enviable position of having the #1-ranked
recruiting class on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for
the Class of 2012, as they already have Hollowell, Ferrell, Perea,
Jurkin, and Patterson in the fold; #1-ranked recruiting class our list of
the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2013, as they
already have 6'6 Soph Collin Hartman from Indianapolis (Cathedral) IN
and 6'4 Soph Devin Davis from Indianapolis (Warren Central) IN in the
fold; and #1-ranked recruiting class our list of the Top Recruiting
Classes To-Date for the Class of 2014, as they already have 6'2 Frosh
James Blackmon from Ft. Wayne (Bishop Luers) IN and 6'7 Frosh Tony
Lyles from Indianapolis (Tech) IN in the fold. In other words, help is
on the way, as Crean's biggest problem may be finding enough scholarships
year after next, as six of the top seven players currently in the program
are freshmen and sophomores. Obviously we're talking about 6'8 Soph
Christian Watford, 6'0 Soph Jordan Hulls, 6'5 Soph Maurice
Creek, 6'9 Soph Derek Elston, 6'5 Frosh Victor Oladipo,
and 6'6 Frosh Will Sheehey and 6'9 Soph Bobby Capobianco also
is a serviceable role player. Fourth, the addition of Hollowell means that
29 of our top 100-ranked juniors are already off the board, as we've also
already tracked early verbal commitments by 6'2 Jr Rodney Purvis from
Raleigh (Upper Room Christian Academy) NC to Louisville, 6'9 Jr Cameron
Ridley from Richmond (Ft. Bend Bush) TX to Texas, 6'11 Jr Isaiah
Austin from Arlington (Grace Prep) TX to Baylor, 6'9 Jr Alex Murphy
from Southborough (St. Mark's) MA to Duke, 6'0 Jr Jevon Thomas from
Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY to St. John's, 6'5 Jr Savon
Goodman from Bryn Athyn (Academy of the New Church) PA to Villanova, 6'3
Jr Rasheed Sulaimon from Houston (Strake Jesuit) TX to Duke, 6'3 Jr
Ryan Arcidiacono from Langhorne (Neshaminy) PA to Villanova, 6'1 Jr
Marcus Paige from Marion (Linn-Mar) IA to North Carolina, 5'11 Jr
Kevin Ferrell from Indianapolis (Park Tudor) IN to Indiana, 5'11 Jr
Tyler Lewis from Lewisville (Forsyth Country Day) NC to N.C. State, 6'9
Jr Grant Jerrett from La Verne (Lutheran) CA to Arizona, 6'5 Jr
Justin Anderson from Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD to Maryland, 6'9
Jr Zach Peters from Plano (Prestonwood Christian) TX to Kansas, 6'8
Jr Elijah Macon from Columbus (Marian-Franklin) OH to West Virginia,
6'6 Jr J.P. Tokoto from Menomonee Falls (H.S.) WI to North Carolina,
6'10 Jr Daniel Ochefu from Westtown (Friends) PA to Villanova, 6'7 Jr
Montrezl Harrell from Tarboro (North Edgecomb) NC to Virginia Tech,
6'6 Jr Cameron Beidschied from St. Louis (Cardinal Ritter) MO to
Notre Dame, 6'0 Jr Braxton Ogbueze from Charlotte (United Faith
Christian) NC to Florida, 6'4 Jr Michael Frazier from Tampa (Plant)
FL to Florida, 6'8 Jr Hanner Perea from La Porte (La Lumiere) TX to
Indiana, 6'4 Jr Katin Reinhardt from Santa Ana (Mater Dei) CA to USC,
6'3 Jr Ron Patterson from Indianapolis (Broad Ripple) IN to Indiana,
6'5 Jr Denzel Valentine from Lansing (Sexton) MI to Michigan State,
6'5 Jr Raphael Davis from Ft. Wayne (South Side) IN to Purdue, 6'8 Jr
Brandon Bolden from Charlottesville (The Miller School) VA to
Georgetown, 6'9 Jr Matt Costell from Bay City (Western) MI to
Michigan State, and 7'0 Jr Peter Jurkin from Charlotte (United Faith
Christian) NC to Indiana.
Editor's Note: 6'9 Jr Khem Birch from Fitchburg (Notre Dame)
MA, who has already verbally committed to Pittsburgh, and 6'11 Jr Isaiah
Hill from Grand Prairie (God's Academy) TX, who has already committed to
Seton Hall, also are both included on list, but have reclassified up a year
into the Class of 2011 since the publication of these rankings on November
24, 2010.
Friday, March 18, 2011
Earlier this week our
Florida Editor Rick Staudt emailed me his
Florida Report
and it includes six all-state teams, some interesting comments about
the top players in each class, and his ranking of the state's top 125
seniors, top 75 juniors, top 50 sophomores, top 25 freshmen, and top 15 8th
Graders. It also includes some surprises and right at the top of the list
is the fact that 6'1 Phil Greene from Bradenton (IMG Academy) FL, who
is ranked #13 in the senior class on Staudt's list, has verbally committed
to St. John's. Apparently it happened on January 16th and I never picked up
on it due to the fact I was down for the count a few days later for the rest
of month with my hernia operation. Greene is originally from Chicago
(Julian) IL and his addition to the Red Storm is important for a number of
reasons. First, this addition solidifies even further St. John's #1-ranking
on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of
2011.
If you will recall, the Johnnies already had
eight players - 6'3 Nurideen
Lindsey from Redlands (JC) OK, 6'6 Amir Garrett from Henderson
(Findley Prep) NV, 6'7 Maurice Harkless from South Kent (Prep) CT,
6'3 DeAngelo Harrison from Richmond (Ft. Bend Dulles) TX, 6'8
Jakarr Sampson from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH, 6'9 Norvel Pelle
from Los Angeles (Price) CA, 6'5 Dominique Pointer from Winston-Salem
(Quality Education Academy) NC, and 6'9 Dwight Meikle from
Winston-Salem (Quality Education Academy) NC -
in the fold in this year's recruiting class,
as Steve Lavin and his staff attempt to replace the 10 seniors that
are currently in the program. Second, Greene is a good ball ball handler,
makes good decisions, and he's got good speed and quickness, which is
exactly what the doctor ordered, as the Red Storm needed a quick fix at
point guard until 6'0 Jr Jevon Thomas from Centereach (Our Savior New
American) NY, who also is already verbally committed to St. John's, enrolls
into school a year-and-a-half from now. Third, Greene promises to be good
insurance in case Lindsey, who is a prolific scoring combo guard that
averaged 22.3 ppg in the junior college ranks and was one of the best junior
college players in the nation this past season, decides to forego the rest
of his college eligibility and, instead, enters his name into the NBA Draft
this spring. We also didn't know that 6'4 Jr Shawn Smith, who is the
best junior in the state, as well as a player who is ranked #78 nationally
in the junior class on our national list, had reneged on his verbal
commitment to Central Florida and had transferred from Jacksonville
(Arlington Country Day) FL to Jacksonville (Providence) FL, and that 6'8 Jr
Jordan Goodman, who previously was at Temple Hill (Progressive
Christian Academy) MD, had surfaced at Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day)
FL. We also were surprised that Goodman, who is ranked #122 nationally in
the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP, but actually is a reclassified
junior, was ranked #3 in the state's junior class. Staudt says in his
article that the junior class has "great
promise as there could be as many as 30 mid-to-high major caliber players
when the dust has cleared and everybody has figured out where they are going
to college a year from now. On the other hand, I'm not as hopeful,
especially if Goodman is ranked #3 on his list. In other words, Goodman has
the size, athleticism, and natural talent necessary to be very intriguing,
but is one of these guy who appears to be more concerned about the style
than the substance. However, we do agree with Staudt about all of the good
young players in the state and it appears that 6'0 Soph Kasey Hill
from Montverde (Academy) FL and 6'1 Frosh Joel Berry from Orlando
(Lake Highland Prep) FL are already well on their way towards following in
the footsteps of the long list of prolific scoring guards, like Nick
Calathes, Kenny Boynton, Brandon Knight, and Austin
Rivers, who have graced the state with their presence in recent years.
Editor's
Note: This report is available via subscription
only to the Members Section.
Friday, March 11, 2011
A lot of people want to pooh-pooh the fact that we
start ranking and keeping track of the top players in the nation when they
are in middle school. However, this added perspective was invaluable
earlier this week as we put together our updated Ranking of the
Top 250 Players Nationally in the Class of 2014 (Freshman).
And so was the insight and perspective provided by all
of our area editors and correspondents and, as a result, we're so far ahead
of the curve when compared to the rest of our competition that it's not even
funny. Not only do we put it on the line and tell you where each player
belongs in the pecking order (the norm for most of our competition is to
just provide you with an alphabetized list and more often than not those who
do try and provide a numerical list end up with something that looks quite
similar to what we published a year or two ago), but we also have done a lot
of research and crosschecking, which means we should be pretty darn accurate
in terms of heights and where each
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