SCOOP OF THE DAY

FOR THE MONTH OF MAY 2000

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Thursday, June 1, 2000 - Yesterday we reported that Indiana was going to get 6'7 Jr Sean Kline from Huntington (North) IN, so it makes sense that Notre Dame, which was the other finalist on Kline's list, is already looking in another direction.  It also comes as no surprise that the Irish got a commitment today from 6'8 Jr Jordan Cornette from Cincinnati (St. Xavier) OH, who will be the #5 ranked junior in state when Chris Johnson sends us his list of the top players in Ohio later this month.  Cornette needs to get stronger and tougher, but just like his brother, Joel, who was underrecruited and later blossomed in college at Butler, he has a tremendous upside.  He also just turned 17 years old and was a major reason why the Cincinnati AAU #1 team pulled off a shocking upset over the Houston Hoops in the playoffs at the Spiece Tournament three weeks ago.  As a matter of fact, Cornette was the one who not only guarded, but totally shut down 6'2 Jr Carlos Hurt from Alief (Alief-Elsik) TX late in the game.  He also had the key block, as he rejected a Hurt 3-pointer that would have tied the game in the closing seconds.   Speaking of the top programs in the state of Indiana, we haven't heard much on Purdue's recruiting lately, so we decided to make a few phone calls.  At the top of the Boilermakers priority list are two of the fastest rising juniors in the state - 6'1 Jr Brandon McKnight from South Bend (La Salle) IN and 6'9 Jr Will Caudle from Indianapolis (Warren Central) IN - as well as one of the biggest sleepers in the state several years ago - 6'5 Demetrius Kilgore from Tyler (JC) TX.  We also wouldn't be surprised if the Boilermakers coaching staff tries to make a push for 6'7 Najeeb Echols from Chicago (Whitney Young) IL, who is one of the athletes in the class and has had a monster spring.

Wednesday, May 31, 2000 - Sunday at the NIKE Bluegrass Classic 6'7 Jr Sean Kline from Huntington (North) IN, who ranks #3 in the junior class in Indiana by Jim Kasberg, confirmed to us that he has a press conference scheduled for Friday, June 2nd.  He also confirmed that his final two are Notre Dame and Indiana.   However, he wasn't saying which school would win out for his services.  So we asked several of the coaches for the Bloomington Red AAU team, but if they knew, they weren't talking.   Neither was his teammate - 6'1 Jr Chris Thomas from Indianapolis (Pike) IN, who verbally committed to the Irish two weeks ago.   However, we do have a source who is close to the Indiana program that tells us that it is done deal for the Hoosiers.  Sure, something could change at the 11th hour, like his mother, who apparently has a problem with IU head coach Bob Knight, talking him into changing his mind.  But in the past, our source has been amazingly accurate.    And that's not the only good news for Indiana fans.  We talked with 6'1 Jr Maurice Williams from Jackson (Murrah) MS, who ranks as one of the top 10 juniors nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, at the Bob Gibbons Tournament of Champions and he tells us that his top three schools are Indiana, Georgetown, and Alabama.  He also mentioned Miami-FL, Tennessee, Mississippi, Mississippi State, Duke, UCLA, and LSU, but if he were to pick the Hoosiers, he would instantly turn Indiana into a NCAA title contender again the moment he gets on campus.  Remember, the point guard spot is currently the only question mark on what appears to be a young, but talented team.   With the return of Kirk Haston and Jeffrey Newton and the addition of 6'10 Jared Jeffries from Bloomington (North) IN and George Leach, Indiana's front line should the best its been in years.  And Kline will add even more depth when he arrives in a year.  Dane Fife, Kyle Hornsby, and 6'3 A.J. Moye from Atlanta (Westlake) GA are all excellent at the 2-guard spot and 6'1 Andre Owens from Indianapolis (Perry Meridian) IN, who is a great defender and incredible athlete, but who lacks the decision making necessary to get it done running a team at the big time college level, promises to be an excellent backup combo guard.  The only question is who will step into the point guard spot next year?  If nobody does and they aren't successful at landing Williams, another possibility is 6'0 Jr Donald Perry from Tallulah (Reuben McCall) LA, who impressed us enough in the Gibbons Tournament to get serious top 100 national consideration.  This lightning quick point guard with good handling and passing skills and surprising 3-point range, also mentions Indiana right at the top of his list, along with Mississippi, Tennessee, Georgetown, Vanderbilt, Louisiana Tech, and Mississippi State.  And if that weren't enough, it also looks like Indiana is also among the top five, along with Alabama, Georgetown, Mississippi State, and Utah for 6'5 Jr Dwayne Mitchell from New Orleans (John F. Kennedy) LA, who ranks among our top 60 juniors nationally.  You might be wondering how all this is possible after all the negative publicity that Indiana head coach Bob Knight has received in recent months?  The answer is Mike Davis, who is widely regarded as one of the best assistant coaches, as well as one of the best people in the business.  Remember, Davis was formerly an assistant coach at Alabama and he's the one with all the Southern contacts that have proved to be so valuable in recruiting at Indiana the last several years. 

Tuesday, May 30, 2000 - Yesterday our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin told us that 6'4 Dahntey Jones had decided to officially transfer from Rutgers to Duke.  So it came as no surprise when we read this today in the USA Today.   One that we don't think anybody has yet is Rhode Island assistant coach Mike Wilson, who has established himself as one of the best recruiters in the nation in recent years at UNC-Wilmington, Baylor, and Rhode Island, taking a similar position at Auburn.  And one of the first players we expect Wilson to sign at Auburn next year is 6'9 Walter Kalabokuba from Nigeria.   We talking about a 245 lbs. monster athlete who Wilson stashed a year ago at Lincoln Trail (JC) IL, because he didn't have the necessary academics to become eligible at a four year school.  The reason we know this is that our Kentucky Editor Larry Kihnley saw him when he took his former player - 6'0 Michael Griffin - to Lincoln Trail recently.  And that's another scoop, Griffin is transferring from Tennessee Tech to Lincoln Trail (JC) IL.  Speaking of transfers, it looks like 6'10 Frosh Grant Billmeir from Pennington (H.S.) NJ, who ranks as one of the top 20 freshmen in the nation by the HOOP SCOOP, will be at Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ next year.   We continue to hear that 6'2 Jr Dajuan Wagner from Camden (H.S.) NJ will transfer to Memphis, TN and that 6'9 Jr Ousmane Cisse from Montgomery (St. Jude) AL will transfer to Louisville, KY, but we don't think it will happen in either case.  We've also heard that 6'3 Jr Billy Edelin from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD may transfer to Louisville (Ballard) KY.  While Edelin and 6'9 Jr Brandon Bender from Louisville (Ballard) KY both have played for the USA Players this spring, we think the chances of this happening are slim and none for the reason.  Speaking of Bender, his latest list includes USC, N.C. State, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, Duke, Florida, Connecticut, and Louisville.  The race between 6'2 Jr Carlos Hurt from Alief (Alief-Elsik) TX suddenly is too close to call again between Louisville and Arizona, because Houston Hoops head coach Josh Pastner, who is one of the bright young guys in the business, has gotten the graduate assistant position at Arizona.  Remember, Hurt's grandmother lives in Louisville and his cousin is former Louisville player Derwin Webb.    As a result, Hurt has always been a Louisville fan.  However, he also is close to Pastner, who will be with Hurt all July while the Houston Hoops travel around on the summer circuit. 

Saturday, May 27, 2000, Sunday, May 28, 2000, and Monday, May 29, 2000 - The Atlanta Celtics won the championship at the Bob Gibbons Tournament of Champions for the third consecutive year, but by the time they met the Georgia Stars in the championship game, we were long gone back to the Louisville, KY to cover the last two days of the NIKE Bluegrass Classic.  So we will only talk about what we saw first hand on Friday and Saturday in Chapel Hill, NC.  We understand that tournament MVP honors went to 6'11 Jr Kwame Brown from Brunswick (Glynn Academy) GA, but Brown was not much of a factor when we saw the Georgia Stars against DC Assault on Saturday night.   Also disappointing were most of the other big name big men who were in the tournament, like 6'9 Jr Tony Key from Russellville (H.S.) KY, 6'10 Jr David Harrison from Brentwood (Academy) TN, 6'10 Jr Eddy Curry from South Holland (Thornwood) IL, and 6'9 Jr Ousmane Cisse from Montgomery (St. Jude) AL.   But we need to qualify that, because Curry was one of the leading scorers in the tournament (20 ppg after two games) and Cisse was one of the leading rebounders and shot blockers in the tournament.   However, if people are talking about you as a lottery pick in the NBA darft in the spring of 2001, like Curry and Cisse, your level of expectation increases dramatically.   Which is why it is important to point out that Cisse's lack of offense was more obvious than it was three weeks ago at the Spiece Run'N-Slam in West Lafayette, IN and Curry just doesn't play hard enough to warrant being ranked any higher than top five in the class.   Instead, the point guards and the multi-dimensional wing players were the ones who stole most of the thunder at the Bob Gibbons Tournament of Champions.    Let's start with 6'2 Jr Ernest Turner from Somerdale (Sterling) NJ, who set the single game tournament scoring record with 56 points against the PG Jaguars on Saturday morning.  He also had 35 points when we saw him on Friday night against the Atlanta Celtics, which means he was by far and away the leading scorer in the tournament averaging 45.5 pgg when we left late Saturday night.   As a result, the debate rages on as to who the #2 ranked player in the Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey area should be - Turner or 6'5 Jr John Allen from Coatesville (H.S.) PA, who was hurt and didn't play in this tournament.  Also averaging over 30 ppg were 6'5 Jr Julius Hodge from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, 6'5 Soph Lenny Cook, who apparently is transferring from New York (La Salle) NY to Old Tappan (H.S.) NJ.    Hodge still needs to get stronger, but he's combines athleticism, skills, and a tremendous knack for scoring both inside and outside.  As a result, he may be en route to becoming the best player Gary DeCesare has ever produced at St. Raymond's.  Cook isn't as explosive to the basket and he's three inches taller, but he reminds us of Cincinnati's Kenny Satterfield.  Just like Satterfield, Cook has those long arms and quick hands and feet.  He also plays with a lot of intensity at the defensive end and, as a result, he makes a living turning defense into offense, as he beats you either going to the hole or pulling up from beyond the arc.  Also, averaging over 30.0 ppg was 6'1 Jr Johnathan Hargett from Durham (Emmanuel) NC, but he didn't have to carry his team the way 6'0 Soph Anthony Roberson from Saginaw (H.S.) MI and 6'3 Soph Sean Dockery from Chicago (Julian) IL did. Roberson had 23 points when we saw him in the opening game of the tournament against St. Louis Gateway.   However, even more important, Roberson didn't think twice about taking over for 6'4 Jr Kelvin Torbert from Flint (Northwestern) MI, who is out with mono, 6'9 Jr Robert Whaley from Benton Harbor (H.S.) MI, who was missing in action, and 6'6 Jr Jaquan Hart from Flint (Northern) MI, who was playing for the Flint Team in another tournament during the Memorial Day Weekend.   Roberson was deadly from 3-point land early, but he also made numerous great passes and played excellent defense, despite the fact that he's just come off an leg injury that had sidelined him all spring.  As a matter of fact, nobody played any better than Roberson either Friday night or all day Saturday, which is why he now edges out 6'1 Soph Chad Moore from Huntsville (Lee) AL as our #1 ranked player in the sophomore class nationally.  For more on the Bob Gibbons Tournament of Champions, as well as our complete coverage from the NIKE Bluegrass Classic, which was won by the Wisconsin Playground Warriors, and a plethora of recruiting information, you can subscribe to the Members Section.

Friday, May 26, 2000 - The early list for 6'1 Jr Brandon Cheatham from Beaver Falls (Black Hawk) PA includes Memphis, Ohio State, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, and N.C. State, which makes perfect sense.  Obviously, it's the John Calipari connection that gets the Tigers right at the top of the list.  Remember, Calipari and Cheatham's AAU coach John Miller are related.  Apparently Calipari is telling Cheatham that he can step in and run the show and 6'2 Jr Dajuan Wagner from Camden (H.S.) NJ, who is ranked as the #1 junior in the nation by the  HOOP SCOOP, will see a lot of action at the 2-spot.  And this too is sellable, because Calipari had a history of playing several guards together in the backcourt (i.e. Edgar Padilla, Derek Kellogg, and Camerlo Travieso) and not really worrying about their positions.  Ohio State makes the list, because it's only an hour and a half away from where Cheatham lives and Pittsburgh gets mentioned because his father wants him to stay close to home so he can see him play.  Cincinnat is also natural, because J.O. Stright, who is the general manager of the Pittsburgh Jots, is a close friend of Bearcats head coach Bobby Huggins.    Remember, Danny Fortson, who is another one of Stright's former players, played for the Cincinnati.  N.C. State also makes sense, because John Miller's older son, Sean Miller, is an assistant coach for the Wolfpack, and his younger son, Arch Miller, plays for N.C. State.

Thursday, May,  25, 2000 -Anybody who doubts that the Deep South is absolutely loaded needs to look no further than HOOP SCOOP's latest Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana Prep Report, which was published today exclusively in the Members Section.   Our first team regardless of position and class includes 6'1 Chris Duhon from Slidell (Salmen) LA, 6'9 Mario Austin from York (Sumpter County) AL, 6'7 Gerald Wallace from Childersburg (H.S.) AL, 6'9 Darius Rice from Jackson (Lanier) MS, and 6'9 Jr Ousmane Cisse from Montgomery (St. Jude) AL.  The second five is also tremendous as it includes 6'1 Soph Chad Moore from Huntsville (Lee) AL, 6'1 Jr Maurice Williams from Jackson (Murrah) MS, 6'7 Justin Reed from Jackson (Provine) MS, 6'5 Brandon Mouton from Lafayette (St. Thomas More) LA, and 6'7 Nick Anderson from Baton Rouge (Southern Lab) LA.  One player who didn't make the list is 6'10 Jr Ali Dauda from Nigeria.  Where he will end up in school next year is anybody's guess, but the word is that he will be playing for the Alabama Lasers this summer.  We mention him here, because he's supposed to be super.  In otherwords, he's 6'10, 240 lbs., and more athletic than anybody on our Alabama/Mississippi/Louisiana list.    Speaking of our Deep South list, it includes 109 seniors, 78 juniors, 33 sophomores, 18 freshmen, 22 8th graders, and two 7th graders all ranked in order by class.  A special thanks to Lavel Johnson, Michael Theus, & et al. who helped make our rankings as accurate as possible.  

Wednesday, May 24, 2000 - Yesterday we heard that Illinois head coach Lon Kruger had interviewed for the Atlanta Hawks job.  Then, this morning we kept hearing that he'd taken his name out of consideration.  But that is not true.    As a matter of fact, our New England Editor Wayne Simone is telling us that it's already done.  Write it down!  Kruger to the Atlanta Hawks! Obviously this is a sad day for college basketball, because Kroger is widely recognized as one of the top head coaches in the nation.  However, for our purposes, it's exciting, because this is a major scoop!  Also, it opens up all kinds of possibilities in terms of job speculation.  Obviously, current  Illinois assistant coach Rod Judson, who is also a former player for the Fighting Illini, will be candidate for the job.  However, we suspect they'll try and hire a proven head coach.  A perfect candidate would be St. John's head coach Mike Jarvis.    Remember, yesterday rumor had it that he was in line for a Big 10 job, but most people in the know that it was Michigan.  Only problem with that is that Michigan isn't open, plus our sources tells us that Jarvis will likely be staying put at St. John's for a while.  How about Tulsa head coach Bill Self, who is probably the hottest young guy in the business after guiding the Golden Hurricanes to the NCAA Final Eight in March?  Another great choice would be Vanderbilt head coach Kevin Stallings, who already has proved he can recruit in the state when he was the head coach at Illinois State.  Do you believe that Seton Hall head coach Tommy Amaker when he says he wants to stick around and coach the players he signed in that great recruiting class last fall? Our guess is that if Illinois came up with the right deal, he'd be gone in a New Jersey minute.  Appalachian State head coach Buzz Peterson and Hofstra head coach Jay Wright also have to be mentioned with any big job that opens up and how about Cincinnati head coach Bobby Huggins? 

Tuesday, May 23, 2000 - Two of the biggest tournaments of the entire year - the Bob Gibbons' Tournament of Champions in Chapel Hill, NC and the NIKE Bluegrass Tournament in Louisville, KY - both will be held this weekend and we are very seriously considering both tournaments.  Gibbons' Tournament will tipoff Friday night at 7:00 PM and then run from 9:00 AM until 11:00 PM on Saturday and from 9:00 AM until 5:30 PM on Sunday.  The NIKE Bluegrass Tournament will tipoff at 8:30 AM on Saturday morning and run until 8:30 PM that evening.  Then, on Sunday it will be even more of a marathon, as games begin at 8:30 AM and run until 11:30 PM.  Monday should be easy, with quarterfinals games scheduled for 9:30 AM, semi-finals games scheduled for 12:30 PM, and the championship slated for 3:00 PM.  The plan now is to catch all the action on Friday and Saturday at the Gibbons' Tournament.   Then, we'll drive all night Saturday night and spend all of Sunday and the early part of Monday at the NIKE Tournament.  The 17-Under Division at Gibbons' appears to be loaded!  Pool A will feature the Michigan Mustangs, Belmont Shore, Tallahassee Wildcats, and St. Louis Gateway.  Pool B will include the Tim Thomas Playaz, the Pepsi Challenge, Durham Disciples, and Houston Select.  Pool C includes the Illinois Gold, Long Island Panthers, Kappa Magic (NC), and Jackson Panthers.   Pool D features the Georgia Stars, DC Team Assault, the Pittsburgh Jots, and Midland Lakers (SC).  Pool E has the Atlanta Celtics, P.G. Jaguars (MD), Memphis YOMCA, and the New Jersey Gym Rats.  Pool F has the Tennessee Travelers, Illinois Fire, Charlotte Aces, and Team Y.E.S. (WA).   Pool G includes the New York Ravens, New Orleans Jazz, Illinois Select, and the Blue Ridge Wildcats.  Pool H includes the Friends of Hoops, (WI), Houston Superstars, USA Players, and BeachBall Select (SC).  And Pool I has the Salisbury Hornets (NC), Alabama Ice, Greensboro Gaters (NC), Ft. Worth Lions (TX), Team Carolina Topps, and NEP-17 (PA).  The lineup for the NIKE Bluegrass Tournament also is very impressive!   Pool A features the Kentucky Hoop Stars #2, Albany City, Sports Express, and Emerald City.  Pool B has the Houston Hoops, Portland Legends, Magnolia Stars, and the Charlotte Royals.   Pool C features Coast to Coast, Bloomington Red, Howard Pulley, and The Family.   Pool D has the Southern California All-Stars, Bray Center, Kansas City 76ers, and the Arkansas Rockets.  Pool E includes Georgia Elite, Potomac Valley, Shreveport Bossier, and Team Florida.  Pool F has Boo Williams, Playground Warriors, Alabama Select, and Arizona Stars.  Pool G features the Alabama Lasers, Arkansas Wings, the Carolina Warriors, and the Kentucky Hoop Stars.  Pool H includes the St. Louis Eagles, New York Riverside Church, Del Val Hoops, and High Five America.   Pool J has Team Texas, Cleveland Top Prospects, Illinois Warriors, and the New Jersey Celtics.   At the conclusion of the NIKE Tournament on Monday afternoon, we reserve the right to take a day to recover.  However, by Tuesday night we should have some great analysis on the players, as well as all the scores and highlight from both tournaments in the Members Section.  So now it the perfect time to Subscribe, especially since our complete recruiting wrapup is just around the corner and the summer camp season is only a month away. 

Monday, May 22, 2000 - When we first heard about the tragic death of former St. John's All-American Malik Sealy Saturday afternoon at the Brooklyn USA-Albany City Rocks quadrupleheader at Xaverian High School in Brooklyn, NY, everybody was stunned and saddened.  Sealy one of the most popular players New York City has ever produced, as well as a great role model and tremendous ambassador for the game.  He was the star for the great Bronx (Tolentine) NY team, coached by John Sarandrea, that went 30-1.   They lost only once early in the season in Hawaii to Jersey City (St. Anthony's) NJ, which included a trio of terrific juniors in Bobby Hurley, Jerry Walker, and Terry Dehere, and then even onto win the mythical national championship. The year was 1988 and that was a golden era in high school basketball, because that was the class that also nationally produced Alonzo Mourning, Shawn Kemp, Billy Owens, et al. It was also the age of Kenny Anderson, who at the time was a junior in high school.  As a matter of fact, it was Briarwood (Archbishop Molloy) NY that Tolentine knocked off to win the New York City Catholic Championship en route to the national title.   If you will recall, that Tolentine team also included Adrian Autry and Brian Reese, who were both sophomores.  We saw Sealy a number of times at Five-Star and the NIKE All-American Camp and he truly was one of our all time favorite players, because he was a true warrior, great competitor, and winner in every sense of the word.  He was the senior class president at Tolentine and graduated in four years at St. John's, where was the second all-time leading scorer in school history behind Chris Mullin.    He was then drafted in the NBA by the Indiana Pacers and played for several other teams, including the Los Angeles Clippers, before finally finding a home a year ago with Minnesota Timberwolves.  He not only had become one of the most popular players in Minnesota, but he was about to become a free agent and re-sign for big money with the Timberwolves next season.  He also had done some acting and had a clothing line.    He came from a great family and, as a matter of fact, his father had once been a body guard for Malcolm X.  And like Malcolm X, Malik's life was cut short early Saturday morning when he was hit head-on by a car traveling the wrong direction on Minnesota Highway 100.  He was pronounced dead at the scene.  And with his death Sealy becomes the second player from that Tolentine championship team to die tragically.     Several years ago 6'5 Jerome Holmes, who had gotten involved with drugs, was shot and killed.  Holmes originally had signed with Pete Gillen when he was at Xavier, but later transferred and dropped off the basketball map.  Sealy's funeral will be Friday morning at 10:00 AM in Harlem. 

Sunday, May 21, 2000 - Brooklyn USA beat the Albany City Rocks in three of the four games in the quadrupleheader at Xaverian High School in Brooklyn, NY yesterday and there were a number of excellent players who made a huge impression on us during the course of the afternoon.   However, we have to begin with 5'10 Sebastian Telfair from Brooklyn (Ann Sullivan) NY, who is the #1 8th grader America.  Telfair not only dominated the 8th grade game with amazing passes, explosive speed and quickness, and excellent outside shooting, but also was the leading scorer for his team with 16 points in the 11th grade, despite only playing half the game.  As a matter of fact, Telfair is such a competitor that he wanted to play in all four games, but Tom "Ziggy" Sicignano didn't think that would be fair to other players.  Still, Telfair was a joy to watch in the two games he did play in, because he's got a incredible vision, savvy, court sense, and feel for the game for somebody so young.  He also cheers for his teammates and provides the leadership that is expected from a point guard, even though he was the youngest player on the team in the junior age group by several years.   Obviously Telfair is the type of players others will want to play with in the same program in the years to come, which is why we'd be surprised if many of the other good young players in the Brooklyn USA program bolt to other programs in the New York City as they get older, which is something that has happened in the past.  At the top of the list is 6'8 Frosh Chris Taft from Brooklyn (Xaverian) NY, who was a defensive force and shot blocker in the 9th grade game, but more of a scorer (14 points) when playing up in the 10th grade game.  Taft needs to physically get a lot stronger, but he does get after it inside and, as a result, dominates at his age level.  Taft's father is 6'11, so he'll probably be a 7-footer before he's through growing, but what makes him a can't miss future superstar are his terrific agility and mobility, which is rare for somebody so big and so young.   The leading scorer with 20 points and the perfect complement to Taft in the 9th grade game was 6'6 Kirk Bunn from Briarwood (Archbishop Molloy) NY, who makes a living slashing to the basket.  Bunn is wiry strong, which is why he's such a good rebounder, and he possesses a soft touch, which he uses out to mid-range.  Also impressing us on the 9th grade Brooklyn USA team were 5'9 Frosh Japhet NcNeil from Middle Village (Christ the King) NY, 6'6 Frosh Aaron Harvey from Brooklyn (Paul Robeson) NY, and 6'5 Frosh Timmy Wall from Manhasset (St. Mary's) NY.   Wall is a tough hardnosed white kid with deceptive speed and athleticism, as well as the ability to beat you outside with picture perfect 3-point shot.  However, on this team he was primarily a role player.  Harvey did most of his damage using his explosiveness slashing to the basket, while McNeil created havoc defensively with his speed and quickness.  McNeil also is an outstanding passer and good playmaker, although his decision making needs work, he likes to pull the trigger too often from outside, and he gambles too much.  Brooklyn USA also was loaded in the 8th grade age group.  In addition to Telfair, 6'0 James Walker from Brooklyn, NY and 6'2 Abdoulaye Fall from Brooklyn, NY, and 6'1 Terrance Portis from Brooklyn, NY all could have terrific futures, but they all have to grow or develop their permeter skills in order to be successful at high levels.  Moving down even younger, Brooklyn USA's 7th grade team beat the Silver Bullets Basketball Club from Long Island in the preliminary game, 96-35, thanks the efforts of 6'1 Saiquon Stone from Brooklyn, NY and 5'3 Eugene Harvey from Brooklyn, NY, both of whom have to be ranked among the top 7th graders in the nation.  Stone is excellent at putting the ball on the floor and is a terrific passer, but he does most of his damage inside at this level, because he's got long arms, explosive quickness, and great hands.   Plus, he really gets after it for somebody so young.  He'll get bigger and stronger as he gets older, but if he develops a consistent outside shot, the sky is the limit, becuase he'll be a multi-dimensional athlete out of the Kevin Garnett, Lamar Odom, and DerMarr Johnson mold. Whether he'll ever be as good  as that will depend upon how hard he's willing to work, but the natural talent, athleticism, and inside/outside skills are already in place.  The word is that Harvey doesn't have the same willingness to work two or three hours everyday, like Telfair does, but his decision making, passing, court awareness, and understanding are just as good and, as a result, he could develop into a great one.  Also playing well for the Brooklyn USA 7th grade team were 6'0 Jermaine Campbell from Brooklyn, NY and 5'6 Mitchell Smith from Brooklyn, NY.  Smith needs strength, but he's a slasher with great moves to the hole and a great bold line (he's the younger brother of Iowa State's Jamal Tinsley).  Campbell is a blue collar player in the boards, but how much better he gets will depend a lot on how much more he grows.  However, time is on his side.  The best player for the Silver Bullets Basketball Club was 5'5 Brett Wilson from Central Islit (Cordello School) NY.  Wilson has a great handle, but he needs to work on his decision making, if he wants to be a pure point guard down the road, and his outside shooting, if he wants to become a two.  The Albany City Rocks got beat 62-43 by Brooklyn USA in the 8th grade game, but they did have three excellent players - 6'5 Matthew Mannion from Troy (Castleton Maple) NY, 6'4 Josh Pelletier from Troy (La Salle) NY, and 6'2 Christian Keith from Albany (Vanderheiden Hall) NY.   Mannion was their best player, because he was just so tough on the boards and dominant inside.  He's got excellent skills, great hands, and good body control, plus he's got an effective outlet pass.  The only question is how much more he'll grow?   With three or four inches, he should project as a Big East power forward.   Pelletier is a veratile white kid with surprising athleticism.  He's best around the basket right now, but he does have a good mid-range jumper and good passing and handling skills.  Keith is a quick leaper and big time athlete, but right now we question what position he'll play down the road.  The Albany City Rocks also got beat 75-53 in the 9th grade game, but it could have been a lot worse, because they didn't have much.  However, it was a much different story in the 10th grade game, as Albany City jumped out to 31-13 lead with 4:23 left in the second quarter, coasted to a 50-32 lead at the end of the three quarters, and hung on to win 63-59.  Their best player was 6'8 Soph Rashawn Freeman from Schenectady (H.S.) NY.  Remember the name, because he'll be a potential McDonald's All-American in two years.  He's super quick around the basket and he's got extremely soft hands and a great touch, which explains why he got most of his shots seem to bounce or role in.  He's also got a great frame and is aggressive inside, but he needs to get physically stronger.   However, time is on his side, because he won't be 16 until November, which makes him very young for his grade.  We also were very impressed with 6'6 Soph Anthony Bruin from Colonie (H.S.) NY and 6'1 Soph Michael Beers from Broadalbin (H.S.) NY.  Bruin, who is the son of former Syracuse All-American Tony Bruin, is a terrific athlete and is so explosive that he's almost unstoppable at this level when he goes to the basket.  He's also got great hands and extremely long arms, but he extremely thin and doesn't show much shooting range right now.   Beers is a great outside shooter, but he has the handling and passing skills, as well as enough speed and quickness, to play point guard.  We also really liked his competitive nature and basketball smarts.  The best player of the entire day, as well as one of the biggest surprises was 6'8 Yamar Diene from Poughkeepsie (H.S.) NY.  We saw him last fall and immediately like his potential, because he was such a world-class athlete.  However, he stood around a lot and didn't show much of a feel for the game.  But now the improvement is like night and day.  He dunks, rebounds, and dominates inside like Donnell Harvey, but he's better offensively away from the basket.  Diene is young for his age, which means he's already a senior in high school.  He's also verbally committed to Rice.  What a steal!  Based on what he did yesterday, there is no doubt in our mind that he's a top 100 senior nationally and, with coaching and continued development, he has a chance to play in the NBA someday.  We also liked 6'0 Jr  David Johnson from Albany (Nishayuna) NY and 6'5 Jr Marcus Snipes from Schenectady (H.S.) NY.  Johnson doesn't score much, but he's quick off the dribble and does what a point guard should with his ball handling and passing.  Snipes has long arms and is a good rebounder, but his forte is exploding to the hole with his big time dunking ability.  A special thanks to Ziggy for inviting us for the second consecutive year to one of our favorite one day events of the entire year.  He does a great job of running Brooklyn USA and should be commended for giving so much back to both his kids and the community.  Deserving similiar praise is Jim Hart, who is the director of the Albany City Rocks, as well the guy who has a great tournament in the middle of June at Fordham University in the Bronx, NY, June 16th-18th.  We're talking about the Rumble in the Bronx and it should once again be one of the best events of the entire year. 

Saturday, May 20, 2000 - Charlie Weber and Wayne Simone are two of the best there is at putting together and running AAU-like tournaments and events, so there is no doubt in our mind that the event they are planning will be one of the top places to be this summer.   The July version of the Charlie Weber Invitational Tournament, which will be held at Penn State University, July 19th-21st, is expected to feature 64 teams in the 17-Under age group, 32 teams in the 16-Under age group, and 16 teams in the 15-Under, 14-Under, 13-Under, and 12-Under age groups and it is the perfect stop for teams coming east after they're done in the adidas Big Time Tournament in Las Vegas, July 15th-19th.  As a matter of fact, except for the NIKE Super Showcase in Orlando, FL, there is no other major tournament being held East of the Mississippi River during those dates and Weber tells us that the schedule will be arranged to avoid any conflict for teams coming from Las Vegas.  The entry fee is $325 for the first team and only $300 for each additional team.  Each team is guaranteed at least three games and all games will be played on the campus of Penn State University.  College coaches and club team coaches who are interested in attending or participating should contact Weber at (703) 256-0727 or Simone at (203) 596-9264.  

Friday, May 19, 2000 - Everybody talks about New York Riverside Church, the Long Island Panthers, the New York Ravens, and the Bronx Gauchos, but since the departure of Ed Cota and Devonaire Deas et al. four years ago many have forgotten about the Brooklyn USA.    However, all that is about to change, because program director Tom "Ziggy" Sicignano has a plethora of young talent in the program, including 5'10 Sebastian Telfair from Brooklyn (Ann Sullivan) NY, who ranks as the #1 8th grader in the nation and has the talent and potential to become the next Stephon Marbury.  So naturally we're looking forward to attending the battle for Upstate-Downstate bragging rights when the Albany City Rocks meets Brooklyn USA in a quadrupleheader at Xaverian High School in Brooklyn, NY tomorrow beginning at 12 Noon.    That's when the eighth grade (Class of 2004) game tips off, followed by the Freshman (Class of 2003) game at 1:30 PM., the Sophomore (class of 2002) Game at 3:00 PM. and the Junior (Class of 2001) at 4:30 PM.  And if that weren't enough, the day's action will preceded by a seventh-grade matchup between Brooklyn USA and the Long Island Silver Bullets at 11:00 AM.  Each game will feature many of the top-ranked class players from upstate New York and Brooklyn.  For more information, the latest rosters, ticket information, and directions to Xaverian High School, check the Brooklyn-Albany Hoops Challenge website by clicking www.eteamz.com/upstatedownstate.

Thursday, May 18, 2000 - It's not officially done, but you almost write 6'3 Jr Rashaad Carruth from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA down for Georgia Tech.  That's right!  New head coach Paul Hewitt has gotten it done in a hurry.    Sure, schools like Kentucky, Louisville, Miami-FL, North Carolina, Connecticut, and Memphis are still being mentioned, but our sources tells us that Hewitt has already said the magic words, which are "the 2-guard is Carruth's to lose."   Speaking of Oak Hill, it looks like that basketball factory in Western Virginia is one of the leaders for 6'3 Billy Edelin from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD.   Remember, we reported that Edelin had been expelled from DeMatha last week and now it is being reported that he definitely will not be back for what many think will legendary head coach Morgan Wootten's last year.  Also on Edelin's list are Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD, Kensington (Newport School) MD, Washington (Archbishop Carroll) DC, Falls Church (Bishop O'Connell) VA, and even Silver Springs ( Montgomery Blair) MD, which is the public right away around the corner from where he lives.  But the biggest basketball story in Washington, DC involves the return of former George Washington head coach Mike Jarvis.  At least that's what the word on the street is in both New York City and Washington, DC.  We can't confirm whether Jarvis has officially accepted the job, but we do know that Michael Jordan has asked St. John's athletic director Ed Manetta and school president Donald Harrington for permission to talk to Jarvis.

Wednesday, May 17, 2000 - Our New England Editor Wayne Simone is hearing from a number of different sources that St. John's head coach Mike Jarvis is in Washington, DC interviewing for the Washington Wizards job.  Redmen.com also confirms this and adds that there is a press conference scheduled for Friday, which makes sense, because Jordan has said that he wants to have a coach in place by Sunday's NBA lottery selections.  In a related Associated Press article last night we find that Michael Jordan has hired Darrell Walker, who was the interim head coach, as Director of Player Personel for the Wizards.  Jordan also appointed Golden State assistant coach Rod Higgins as the Assistant General Manager and it appears that John Paxon, who was Jordan's former teammate with the Bulls, has taken his name out of the running of the head coaching position.  As a result, there are only two remaining candidates - Lenny Wilkens and Jarvis.  And our sources tell us there is no way that Wilkens is getting the Wizards job.  Instead, he's maneauvering for the Vancouver Grizzlies job.    Assuming that Jarvis does get the head coaching job with the Wizards, we believed that Hofstra head coach Jay Wright is lock for St. John's.   Current Red Storm assistant coach Kevin Clark also we be mentioned, but the only other potentially serious candidate that we can think of is new Georgia Tech head coach Paul Hewitt.  But he's not leaving with only a month under his belt at Georgia Tech.  Former Georgia Tech head coach Bobby Cremins is also being mentioned, but he's a longshot.  So is St. Bonaventure head coach Jimmy Baron, who was interviewed for the job last time it was open.  So write it down:   Jarvis to the Wizards and, if that happens, we think Jarvis will take Clark and his son, Mike Jarvis, Jr, with him.   Wright moves to St. John's, which opens the door for Tom Pecora to get take over at Hofstra, which he and Wright have build into the second best program in New York.  The irony is that Pecora was very disappointed a year ago when he didn't get the Wagner College job, but now his disappointment from a year ago could turn into a dream come true.  And if he gets the job, our prediction is that he'll be there forever, because he's a New York fixture.   Obviously, if Wright gets the St. John's job, Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY head coach Gary DeCesare, New York (Rice) NY and head coach Maurice Hicks will be prominent candidates for an assistant coaching position with the Red Storm.   However, the smart money is on Bayside (Cardozo) NY head coach Ron Naclerio.   Not only is he an alumnus of the school and a good friend of Wright and athletic director Ed Manetta, but he is one of the best individual workout coaches in the nation.   This important from a recruiting standpoint, because many of the young players gravitate toward Naclerio, because he is willing to offer his time and energy to help make them better. 

Tuesday, May 16, 2000 - We have confirmed that the University of Louisville has signed 6'8 Mac Wilkinson from Louisville (Ballard) KY and 6'8 Daouda Cisse from Montgomery (St. Jude) AL and we believe the Cardinals will also get 6'8 Joseph E'Sima from Riverside (JC) CA.  Wilkinson and E'Sima aren't expected to walk in and start from day one, but both are good enough to contribute, along with 6'7 Ellis Myles from Compton (Centennial) CA, who signed earlier in the spring and has top 100 potential, and 6'6 Luke Whitehead from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, who signed last fall and ranks #33 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP.  While Cisse is a project right now, taking him may pay dividends down the road, because he not only has a lot potential, but his younger brother is 6'9 Jr Ousmane Cisse from Montgomery (St. Jude) AL, who ranks #6 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP and is a bigger and stronger version of Donnell Harvey.  Obviously that would push Louisville into the forefront in the recruitment of the younger Cisse, who is exactly what Louisville needs right now - a shot blocking center who takes no prisoners inside.    We also believe Louisville is now the school you have to beat for 6'2 Jr Carlos Hurt from Alief (Alief-Elsik) TX.  Remember, a week ago we reported that Arizona was on the verge of getting an early commitment from 6'2 Jr Salim Stoudamire from Lake Oswego (H.S.) OR.  Well, it hasn't happened yet, but it will sometime fairly soon.  This is important, because Stoudamire will be the heir apparent to Gilbert Arenas at the two spot, as well as an excellent backup to Jason Gardner at the point spot.  So it makes sense that Louisville would move to the top of Hurt's list, especially since his mother is from Louisville,KY and went to Louisville (Male) KY in the early 1970's.  Obviously this explains why Hurt has become Louisville's #1 target in the junior class.  Louisville also was recently involved with 6'9 Randy Holcomb from Los Angeles City (JC) CA, but he has signed with San Diego State.

Monday, May 15, 2000 - It looks like we were right about Indiana head coach Bob Knight getting off the hook.  A three game suspension, $30,000 fine, and zero tolerance policy sounds tough, but if they didn't have guts to get rid of Knight now, they never will.    Moral to the story is that if you've won three NCAA Championships and people think you're God in the state of Indiana, you can get away with just about anything.   Don't believe it?   How long do you think an athletic director or college president at any other school in the nation would put up with this kind of garbage?   How long would a coach under their charge have a job if he got caught choking a player on video tape?    How long would that coach have a job if he verbally and/or physically challenged the athletic director?  How long would he have a job if he got caught assaulting and abusing his assistant coaches?  How long would he have a job if he threw a vase at a secretary?  And what about all the lying and covering up?    When asked none of the players who were there could remember the Neil Reed choking incident, but there they all were on video tape watching it?   And why was the incident with Sports Information Director Kit Klingelhoffer never mentioned?  As a matter of fact, the manipulation of the facts and orchestration of letting Knight off the hook made a mockery of the entire process.   Rememeber, there are federal laws about attacking employees and, they don't call for giving second chances.   Indiana University President Miles Brand says he is interested in maintaining the integrity of the school, but his actions indicate otherwise.  While the national media will be having a field day with the fact that Brand didn't have guts or the backbone to do what should have been done, college coaches will be using this to their advantage in recruiting.  As a matter of fact, just today 6'1 Jr Chris Thomas from Indianapolis (Pike) IN, who is widely regarded as the #1 junior in the state of Indiana, made an early commitment to Notre Dame.   Sure Thomas could have played for that tyrant in Bloomington, but Notre Dame head coach Matt Doherty is out of the Dean Smith school, whereby, he is a class act and treats his players like human beings. 

Saturday, May 13, 2000, and Sunday, May 14, 2000 - Will Indiana University head coach Bob Knight keep his job and should he keep his job?  You can tell us by clicking on our Question of the Day.   Our guess is that Indiana University President Myles Brand will let Knight off the hook, but he shouldn't.  Knight has crossed the line of what any normal person can do and even has the gaul and audacity to try and manipulate the process at the 11th hour with a weak apology, whereby, he finally admits that he has a problem with his temper.  However, he doesn't offer us any real assurance that he's going to do anything about it.   Where are the promises to seek counseling and/or get psychiatric help?  And where is the apology to Neil Reed and all the other people he has publicly lambasted?  Our guess is that Brand will reprimand Knight, whereby, if he does anything out of line for the next two years, he's gone.  Or so he thinks.   It's  great window dressing.  It looks like you've solved the problem, especially if Bobby can overcome his temper problem enough not shoot, hit, choke, push, kick, or head-butt somebody in a public venue.  But there is one big problem.   What happens when something else comes out next week?    We still don't think the nuclear bomb in all this has been dropped yet, which is why the meeting earlier today by the Board of Trustees was so important.  They're off the hook!   They no longer are responsible for making what very well could have been the toughest decision they will ever have to make.  Instead, that responsibility rests on the head of only one man and before all this over, we think Brand will be the one who is out.  That's what usually happens to weak old men who don't have the guts to do the right thing.  This is how tyrants and dictators solidify their power.     Assuming that Brand lets Knight off the hook, do you really think he's going to say a word the next time Knight does something?  And if Knight is allowed to stay, do you really think he's going to let those who crossed him off the hook?  Sick people do sick things and it will be payback time.  And the first person Knight will try and destroy is his former assistant coach Ron Felling, who is the person alleged to have pushed by Knight in a confrontation in early December.  You can bet we'll hear about a conspiracy that involves Felling and Terry Reed, who is Neil Reed's father and has been a close friend of Felling for nearly 30 years.    We suspect there will be more tapes, more players and possibly even more assistant coaches coming forward, and probably some lawsuits.  But one thing is for sure, this is far from over.

Friday, May 12, 2000 - More time and effort has been put into our Washington, DC/Maryland/Virginia Report than any other State-by-State Report we've ever published and it appears to be worth it.  I am particularly pleased with our ranking of the top freshman, many of whom I got a chance to see in April.   As a matter, the Class of 2003 in the Washington, DC/Maryland/Virginia area is sensational.  It has everything, including a top five player nationally in his class in 6'7 Omari Isreal from Wheaton (Good Counsel) MD, who promises to be even better than 6'7 Jr James White from Kensington (Newport School) MD.   It has great point guards like 6'0 Frosh Earl Risby from Washington (Gonzaga) DC, 6'1 Frosh Vernon Hamilton from Chester (Thomas Dale) VA, 6'1 Frosh J.R. Reynolds from Roanoke (Catholic) VA, and 5'11 Frosh Tre Kelly from Washington (Dunbar) DC.   There are some terrific 3-point shooters, like 6'1 Frosh Dominique Smallwood from Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD, 6'0 Jr Alfred Walsh from Washington (Archbishop Carroll) DC, and 6'1 Frosh James Taylor from Baltimore (Dunbar) MD.  And it has some size with 6'6 Frosh Marcus Sikes from Petersburg (H.S.) VA, 6'7 Frosh Jerome Johnson from Baltimore (Dunbar) MD, and 6'5 Frosh Ricky Lucas from Falls Church (Bishop O'Connnell) VA, although Lucas is working to become more of a perimeter player.  You get our comments about all of the top freshmen and juniors in the area and if that's not enough, you also can get our complete list of the top players in each class.    This list includes our ranking in order of the top 124 seniors, top 105 juniors, top 64 sophomores, top 47 freshmen, top 30 8th graders, top 26 7th graders, and top four 6th graders.  However, you can't get any of this unless you Subscribe to the Members Section.  Remember, you get what you pay for and no free site can comes close to publishing the volume of information that we make available for our subscribers.  A special thanks to Steve Turner, Chris Chaney, Tony Squire, and et al. who helped make this report one of the best ever.  And we hope to keep it that way, because Turner, who is one of the most knowledgeable people there is when it comes to basketball in the area, has agreed to become our Washington, DC/Maryland/Virginia Editor.   

Thursday, May 11, 2000 - If you liked the Neil Reed chocking incident on video tape, you'll love what's in the Chicago Sun-Times and the Indianapolis Star today.  The Sun-Times article is by Jay Mariotti and the headline reads More trouble for Knight.  "Never has the ground beneath Bob Knight seemed more unsteady, ready to buckle and bury him," says Mariotti.  "In the latest tremor that could end his reign of terror at Indiana, allegations surfaced Wednesday that Knight physically confronted longtime assistant coach Ron Felling, an episode that led to Felling's sudden dismissal from the program in December." However, this should come as no surprise to HOOP SCOOP readers, because at the time we told you that there was a lot more to the Felling retirement story than meets the eye.  And we dropped another hint in the middle of March right after Indiana got beat by Pepperdine in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.  "It looks like former Indiana University assistant coach Ron Felling was absolutely right when he was talking to Bowling Green head coach Dan Dakich in a telephone conversation on December 1st, which ironically was Felling's last day on the job.  Felling told Dakich that Coach (Knight) needed to ease up on the team.  Apparently the night before Bob Knight had come down especially hard on his players, despite the fact they'd played well and beaten Notre Dame.  And Felling went on to predict that the players wouldn't respond well later in the season if Knight didn't eventually start reinforcing the team with something positive to balance out all the negative.   It's too bad Knight wasn't listening to the conversation, because that could have been one of the major reasons why the Hoosiers started off so strong, but ended up so bad."  It's obvious now that Knight was listening.  As a matter of fact, we've heard the same story that corresponds with what Mariotti says in his article, which can be found clicking on  http://www.suntimes.com/output/mariotti/jay11.html, 20 different times from people in the know since it was announced that Felling had resigned the day of the Kentucky-Indiana game.  If that weren't enough for one day, the headline on the front page of the Indianapolis Star in an Associated Press article by Steve Wilstein reads IU trustees might ask for Knight's resignation. Underneath a smaller headline reads A high-ranking school official says the trustees' decision could be "tantamount to dismissal."  "In one of the latest damaging allegations to emerge, Knight is accused of throwing a vase near a secretary 12 years ago, shattering it against an office wall," says Wilstein. "If the Knight investigation is expanded, it could include the accusation about the vase, which reveals as much about him as it does the campus culture that has loved, feared and tolerated him for three decades.  Venting his fury at the athletic director at the time, the late Ralph Floyd, Knight allegedly grabbed a vase in the office of Floyd's administrative assistant and flung it across the tiny room, shattering the glass on a framed picture.   Pieces of glass and porcelain flew in front of the administrative assistant, Jeanette Hartgraves, as she recoiled in terror.  Later Wilstein quotes Hartgraves saying, "'We're not supposed to be talking to the press,' she said.   'But I've seen his temper other times ... the shouting and the cursing, things like that.'"   The article article also mentions the same stuff about Felling that was in the Sun-Times, plus there is a lot more and you can get it all by clicking on http://www.starnews.com/sports/indianasgame/iu/0512ap_trust.html.    So now the big question becomes what's next?  Our guess is that more former players and perhaps even other former coaches will go on record about abuse.   We also suspect that we'll hear about Knight's attempt to cover up and intimidate former players into coming out in his defense.  As a matter of fact, we've heard that Knight sent out a prepared statement for each former Indiana player to sign and forward to the board of trustees.  Obviously, Knight's defenders will still try and tell us it's some kind of conspiracy, but to believe that, more people would have to be lying than were lying for Bill Clinton.  Our theory is that God just got so sick and tired of hearing his name used in vain and vulgarized so often by Knight that he himself decided to bring him down.  In other words, what goes around comes around.  Which brings us to Question of the Day.    How long will Knight be the coach at Indiana University?  A day, a week, a month, a year, or as long as he wants.

Wednesday, May 10, 2000 - Today is a day of mourning for those at the University of Alabama, because assistant coach Robert Scott, who been diagnosed with stomach cancer last September, died last night.   Scott, who had recently been replaced on the road by former Memphis assistant coach Johnny Jones, was still on the staff in an administrative capacity.  He was an outstanding recruiter and a great person.  He will be missed by his family and all who knew him in the basketball world. His funeral will be at Fair Park Arena in Birmingham, AL on Saturday at 3:00 PM and a Memorial Service will be held on Sunday at 3:00 PM in Tuscaloosa, AL.  Scott came to the University of Alabama from UAB and it is truly ironic that we're talking about that right now, because current UAB assistant coach, Andy Kennedy, who was repsonible for recruiting what might be the best class ever for the Blazers this year, may be on the verge of taking a similar position at Auburn.   However, it may not be done yet, because it would not look good if UAB continues to lose assistant coaches to Alabama and Auburn.  Which is why it wouldn't surprise us if head coach Murry Bartow ups the ante.   Remember, Bartow's father, Gene Bartow, is the athletic director and it stands to reason that Murry should be able to talk him into giving Kennedy a big raise.  If Kennedy does take the Auburn job, he would be replacing Mike LaPlante,who recently got the head coaching job at Jacksonville State in the Trans American Athletic Conference.  And this too is important, because he is well connected in Africa and, as a result, he'll make a living signing great athletes with size from places like the Senegal. 

Tuesday, May 9, 2000 - We continue to hear  rumors about University of Kentucky head coach Tubby Smith being in line for the Atlanta Hawks job, but we no longer believe that there is a possibility that this is going to happen. Apparently Smith was approached about the job recently, but he told the Hawks that he wasn't interested.  Instead, it looks like the Hawks are interested another NCAA Championship coach.  We're talking about Michigan State's Tom Izzo and, despite the fact that he recently signed a multi-million dollar contract with the Spartans, we think that this is a possibility.    And if Izzo takes the Hawks job, the question becomes who would be the next head coach at Michigan State?  Our guess would be Marquette head coach Tom Crean.    Remember, Crean was an assistant coach under Izzo before taking the Marquette job last spring and, as a result, he played a big part in recruiting Michigan State's NCAA Championship team.  Also, Crean, who is originally from the state of Michigan, is widely recognized as one of the top young head coaches in the nation.  One thing is for sure, whoever is the head coach at Michigan State next year will be in great shape, because the Spartans return everybody except Mateen Cleaves, Morris Peterson, and A.J. Granger from their NCAA Championship team, plus they have two outstanding recruits in 6'3 Marcus Taylor from Lansing (Waverly) MI, who ranks #4 nationally in the senior class by the HOOP SCOOP, and 6'8 Zach Randolph from Marion (H.S.) IN, who is the  #1 ranked in the nation regardless of class by the HOOP SCOOP.

Monday, May 8, 2000 - Our Mid-South Editor Jim Rothman has confirmed that 6'7 John Grice from Shelby State (JC) TN, who shot 39.6% from 3-point land and has a high arching jump shot, had a 10:00 AM press conference this morning and has elected to stay home and attend the University of Memphis. This this leaves the University of Kentucky's recruiting class without the star wing forward they were looking forward and, as a result, Kentucky fans have to be more than a little disappointed. However, it also marks the continuation of a trend, whereby, Memphis, which is under the direction of new head coach John Calipari, is one of the hottest programs in college basketball. It also may be one of the most improved. Grice, who finished fourth in scoring and had a 41 point effort in the consolation championship game in the National Junior College Tournament in March, was part of that great class locally in 1997, which also produced Tennessee's Tony Harris, Wake Forest's Robert O'Kelley, Illinois' Cory Bradford, Memphis' Marcus Moody, UNLV's Kenny Dye, and Life University's Jimmie Hunter.  Grice picks Memphis over Mississippi, Arkansas, and Florida State, but even more important, he moves the Tigers recruiting class into the top dozen on our preliminary list of the top recruiting classes to date during the spring signing period. If you recall, the previous regime landed 6'5 Lou Wright and 6'2 Scooter McFadgon, both from Memphis (Raleigh-Egypt) TN, last fall. Then, in March the new staff started off quickly by locking up 6'7 Arthur Barclay from Camden (H.S.) NJ and recently more recently signed 6'9 Modibo Diarra from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA.  Getting Diarra wasn't as impressive as when Calipari landed 7'0 Marcus Camby when he was at the University of Massachusetts. But getting Diarra is still pretty important, especially in a senior class that had very little size, because he ranks #47 nationally and #7 overall at the center position.  Instead, Calipari will have to wait until next year for the franchise player, as 6'2 Jr Dajuan Wagner from Camden (H.S.) NJ, who ranks as the #1 player in his class nationally, is all but a lock for the Tigers. Speaking of Wagner, we continue to hear it's done deal that his father, Milt Wagner, will be hired by Calipari as an administrative assistant.  But as of yet we haven't heard anything official.

Saturday, May 6, 2000, and Sunday, May 7, 2000 - Pool play has come to a conclusion and the playoffs will begin in less than an hour tonight at the Spiece Run'N Slam All-Star Classic at Purdue University in West Lafayette, IN.  But the big story so far has been the emergence of two players - 6'9 Jr Osumane Cisse from Montgomery (St. Jude) AL and 6'9 Frosh Kendrick Perkins from Beaumont (Ozen) TX - as National Player-of-the-Year contenders in their respective classes.   We're not ready to proclaim Cisse as the best junior in America, but after his performance this morning, he definitely moves into that very elite group of juniors nationally that includes 6'2 Jr Dajuan Wagner from Camden (H.S.) NJ, 6'11 Jr Kwame Brown from Brunswick (Glynn Academy) GA, 7'0 Jr Tyson Chandler from Compton (Dominguez) CA, 6'4 Jr Kelvin Torbert from Flint (Northwestern) MI, 6'11 Jr Eddy Curry from South Holland (Thornwood) IL, 6'2 Jr Carlos Hurt from Alief (Alief-Elsik) TX, and 6'5 Jr Josh Childress from Lakewood ( Mayfair) CA.  Cisse, who was ranked as the #2 center at the adidas ABCD Camp last summer by the HOOP SCOOP, was academically ineligible to play this past season after transferring from Montgomery (Catholic) AL to Montgomery (St. Jude) AL, but the layoff hasn't hurt him at all.  As a matter of fact, he was the most dominant player in the tournament that we've seen so far.  He's tremendous on the boards and his agressiveness and intensity remind us Kenyon Martin and/or Donnell Harvey, but he's bigger and he's a better shot blocker.   Don't believe it?  Well, we may have to start keeping a new statistic, which is blocked shots per possession.  That's right!   Several times he blocked several shots in sequence, as he tallied over a dozen rejects in the game against the Cobras at 9:30 AM this morning.  And like both Martin and Harvey, Cisse's offensive game is very limited, but it doesn't matter. He's just so dominant at the other end!    Most of the other scouts at the tournament don't know about Perkins yet, but Chris Johnson and caught the last quarter, plus overtime, of the thriller between the Playground Warriors and the Houston Hoops in the 15-Under age group.  Like Cisse, Perkins plays hard, blocks shots, and is aggressive on the boards, but he's the best freshman in America hands down, thanks to his ability to score around the basket.  As a matter of fact, he finished with 30 points against the Playground Warriors and there is no telling how many he might have had, if he had a great point guard to help set him up.   If that weren't enough, Perkins, whose long arms, big time athleticism, and ability to run the court like a dear, is still growing, plus he'll continue to get outstanding coaching from Josh Pastner and his father, Hal Pasnter, in the Houston Hoops program.  Which means there is no telling how good Perkins might get.  So forget about hiring the younger Pastner, who is widely recognized as one of the bright young coaches in the business, because he appears to be one of the keys to getting Carlos Hurt.    Instead, somebody, who has the foresight to look ahead, should hire Pastner, because then he could recruit Perkins for the next three years via his father.  And if Perkins is so good that he goes straight from high school into the league, 6'9 Frosh Ndidi Ebi from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX, who has to be a legitimate top 20 freshman nationally, would be a great consolation prize.  Ebi doesn't have Perkins' frame, but he does have great athleticism, excellent mobility, long arms, soft hands, and excellent touch around the basket, as was evident by the fact that he had close to 20 points of his own. 

Friday, May 5, 2000 - When the Indiana High School Association decided to implement class basketball several years ago, they basically ensured that the Spiece Run'N Slam at Purdue University in West Lafayette, IN on the first Saturday in May would be the premier basketball event annually in the state of Indiana.  It's also one of the best basketball events in the nation regardless of the time of year and it doesn't matter that college coaches can't come.  It's so good even that I now annually have to miss the Kentucky Derby and that's saying a lot, because my father has grandstand seats (remember I'm from Louisville, KY and I've been going to the Derby most of my life).  However, we're talking about an event that will feature 68 teams in the Seniors-To-Be Division, 52 teams in the Juniors-To-Be Division, and 28 teams in the Sophomores-To-Be-Division.  Over 50 different scouting services are expected to attend and at peak times they will have their choice of watching games on 26 different courts. And making this even more interesting is the fact that this one of the few tournaments that cross shoe company lines, as many of the top teams nationally from both NIKE and adidas will be in attendance.  In the Seniors-To-Be Division there is no Pool #1, but Pool #2 will include the West Valley Basketball Club, Bray Center NIKE, Arizona Heat, and Northwest All-Stars.  Pool #3 includes Pump N Run, Bloomington Silver, Illinois Warriors A, and Randolph Boys Club.    Pool #4 has Bloomington Red, Team Breakdown, Cincinnati AAU #1 Black,, and Illinois Wildcats.  Pool #5 includes Municipal Gardens, Playground Warriors, Portland Legends, and Oconomowoc Lakers.   Pool #6 has Indiana Select Gold, St. Louis Gameface, All Ohio Red, and Lake Bearcats.  Pool #7 includes Spiece Gym Rates NW Stars, Los Angeles Orcas, Salt Lake Metro, and Illinois Finest.  Kentucky Elite, Team Texas Red, Tiffany's, and Tim Thomas Playazz are in Pool #8.  Pool #9 will include Cincinnati AAU #2 Red, Brooklyn USA Basketball, Central Kansas Jazz, and Georgia Select.   Pool #10 includes the Cobras, Illinois Warriors B, Challenge, and St Louis Blue Devils.   Pool #11 has the Indiana Crusaders, Kentucky Blue, Sam Rines Basketball, and St. Louis Mustangs.  Pool #12 includes SMAC Bearcats, Naptown Stars, Thatcher Thunder, and Spiece Gym Rats North Stars.  Pool #13 includes Illinois Gold, Los Angeles Rockfish, The Family/Detroit, and Stay in the Game.  Pool #14 features the Houston Hoops, Friends of Hoop Orange, Howard Pulley Panthers Green, and Tallahassee Wildcats.   Pool #15 has the Spiece Gym Rats Central Stars, Courthouse Elite, Martin Brothers - Iowa Select, and Friends of Hoop/Young Lions.  Pool #16 includes the Gateway Basketball Club, Full Court X-Press, Cincinnati AAU #3 White, and Learning Exchange Wildcats.  Howard Pulley Panthers White, Friends of the Hoops Black, St. Louis Eagles, and Chicago Demons will be in Pool #17 and Pool #18 will feature the Indiana Cyclones, Ft. Wayne Warriors, The Hoop, and Wisconsin Razz.   You can get all the highlights, as well as find out what players have emerged, like Rashard Lewis, Caron Butler, and Darius Miles, all of whom were considered for National Player-of-the-Year honors after they elevated their game several levels at this tournament during each of the last three years.  However, this information will only be posted in the Members Section, so for more information, click on Subscribe .

Thursday, May 4, 2000 - I continue to get emails from people who try and defend Indiana University head coach Bob Knight.  Obviously they just don't get it!    However, the general public, which is being influenced by newspaper columnists from all over the nation who are having a field day with what's happened this spring, does get it.  Remember, the investigation by Indiana University and the athletic department that found no evidence that Knight had abused Neil Reed or any other player in his 29 years as head coach of the Hoosiers.  Which brings us to our very important Question of the Day.    During the course of the investigation one of three things had to have transpired in order for them to have reached that conclusion.  Which was it?  A) they did not talk to any of the players who have since come forward and provided evidence to the contrary; B) they did talk to the players, but the players lied to them; C) they talked to the players and they told them the truth, but they decided to cover it up and/or disregard facts.  Sure Knight said that he may have done something, but he doesn't remember chocking Reed.  He also down played the incident by saying that he would never do anything to physically harm one of his players.   However, the videotape makes it obvious that he went over the line of what is acceptable behavior by coach when teaching a player.  As a result, Knight's defenders are arguing over what "is" means and when that happens right and wrong suddenly are tossed right out the window.  Anybody else would be long gone.   However, most people still think Knight will survive.  But if he does, the University, the NCAA, and the game in general will be cheapened and compromised forever and, in the process, they all become the poster boy for the game's hypocrisy.  Indiana University can either do the right thing and get rid of Knight or they can line up all their ducks in a row and tell everybody they've arrived at a compromise with which everybody can hopefully live.   Unfortunately that's not possible.  And they'd better not do it, because we hear the worst is yet to come.  Our guess is that one of Knight's latest targets - former Indiana University assistant coach Ron Felling - may be the one who drops the next bomb.  Remember, Felling has been accused of leaking the videotape of Knight chocking Reed to CNN/SI.  But if they can't prove it, Felling has one hell of a lawsuit.  Also, remember that Felling mysteriously quit in December and that was never really properly explained.  And do you really think Knight wants it explained?  We also have to wonder which former player will be next?  First it was Reed, then it was Ricky Calloway alleging that Knight hit Steve Alford.  Next it was Butch Carter alleging racial slurs and most recently it was Andre Patterson saying that if he'd known what he knows now, he would have gone elsewhere.  And don't forget the incident with athletic director Clarence Doninger. Can't Knight get along with anybody?   Obviously not, which is just one of the many reasons why Bob Knight has to go.   He's an embarrassment to the University and he has proven to be exactly the opposite of everything he's always preached and claimed that to have stood for.  What a lousy role model!  As a result, Indiana fans have a right to be very disappointed, but they should not defend him, because they only make themselves look blind and stupid.   And by doing so they themselves are telling us that they condone Knight's behavior and, as a result, become part of the problem.  For years I have laughed about Knight's antics, but now I am appalled.  There is no wiggle room and no changing my mind.  So instead of making excuses for Knight, tell me who you think will be the next head coach at Indiana?   Dan Dakich, Jim Crews, Quin Buckner, Randy Wittman, and all the other former Indiana players and coaches will be mentioned, but with the exception of Iowa head coach Steve Alford, none of them should even be given a look.  Obviously, it may be impossible to get Alford to leave Iowa.  So, instead, they should go after somebody like Utah head coach Rick Majerus, who is widely regarded as one of the top five coaches in the game today.    Majerus is also like Knight, because he is very demanding on the court.   However, unlike Knight, Majerus is a wonderful person and, as a result, would be able to recruit like crazy.  Every player in the state would be lining up to play for him.  Another tremendous candidate would be Tulsa head coach Bill Self, who young, good looking, well spoken, and tremendously respected by the media.  He guided the Golden Hurricane to within one game of the NCAA Final Four a month and a half ago and at about the same time turned down close to a million dollars a year from University of Nebraska.  Self is a great recruiter, excellent motivator, and chip off the old block (he was an assistant under Eddie Sutton at Oklahoma State before moving onto Oral Roberts and Tulsa as a head coach) as a bench coach.   Ironically, Self was in Indianapolis, IN today for a golf outing?  While this is a total coincidence and nothing should be read into this, maybe it is a prelude of things to come.  Remember, Indiana is the one of the best basketball jobs in the nation.  Not only did Indiana win NCAA Championships long before Knight ever arrived, but the potential is there to win big after Knight is long gone.  Hopefully, general Douglas MacArthur's quote about old soldiers never dying will soon apply to Knight.   Instead of dying, Knight should just fade into the night. 

Wednesday, May 3, 2000 - Kansas may have gotten an early commitment from 6'6 Jr Bryant Nash from Carrollton (R.L. Turner) TX, which in part may make up for the loss of 6'5 DeShawn Stevenson from Fresno (Washington Union) WA, who is supposed to have press conference today to announce that he will enter his name into the NBA draft.    However, everybody doesn't appear to be on the same page when it comes to Stevenson's decision.  As a matter of fact, his parents not only are very unhappy with the decision, but said so today in the Fresno Bee.  "'It's more than likely we won't even be there (the press scheduled for today),' Terry Popps, the stepfather, said of him and his wife,'" in the article by Andy Boogaard. "'We're devastated.'  Genice Popps, Stevenson's mother said, 'I'm not happy at all because I feel people have been doing things behind my back.'    She targeted her wrath at Darren Matsubara, her son's longtime summer tournament coach, whom she said has been feeding her son NBA information and orchestrating the decision without here knowledge until Monday.  'He's known this.   He's done research,' she said.  'Then he comes here Monday and tries to tell me stuff.  He asked if I wanted to meet with agent David Falk and another guy.  I told him I didn't want to hear it, and that I didn't want to meet with anybody.'  Her husband added:  'DeShawn has been programmed by Mats.'     Matsubara declined comment late Tuesday, saying he didn't want to settle an argument with the family through the media."  Stevenson will be the first player this spring to officially declare for the NBA draft when he makes the announcement today.    But he won't be the last.  Everybody already knows that 6'9 Darius Miles from East St. Louis (H.S.) IL is NBA bound and you can bet there will be others, like 6'9 Mario Austin from York (Sumpter County) AL, 6'7 Gerald Wallace from Childersburg (H.S.) AL, 6'9 Darius Rice from Jackson (Lanier) MS, 6'9 Alton Ford from Houston (Milby) TX, and 6'8 Zach Randolph from Marion (H.S.) IN.   The official announcement won't come until Friday, but unlike Stevenson, Miles has almost no chance to make it academically, which means he has a choice of sitting out next year as an academic casualty at St. John's or going straight into the League.  Which would you do?  But Stevenson, who hasn't passed the SAT test yet either, is capable of doing well in college.  As a matter, he's a middle class kid and needs the coaching that somebody like Jayhawks head coach Roy Williams can provide.  In other words, he's got too much bullshit in his game and needs to develop better perimeter skills and shot selection, plus he needs to learn how to be a team player.  And this is why he doesn't currently rank any higher than #8 in the senior class nationally by the HOOP SCOOP, despite the fact that he was the leading scorer in the McDonalds All American Game.    However, that doesn't mean that he won't be great in the League down the road, because he is a sensational athlete, a terrific long range shooter, and a physical specimen, but like so many others, he needs the time to develop.

Tuesday, May 2, 2000 - Darius Rice, the 6'9 wing forward from Jackson (Lanier) MS, shocked the basketball today when he picked Miami-FL over Kentucky, Memphis, and Mississippi State.  However, when it comes to Rice nothing should shock us.   Remember, this is the player who verbally committed to Kentucky last fall, led Mississippi State to believe that if he didn't sign in the fall that they would get him in the spring, and allowed Memphis' new head coach John Calipari to get involved and make a strong push.   However, Miami-FL head coach Leonard Hamilton is one of the best recruiters in the business and there were actually rumors lately that Miami-FL was a lot stronger lately than anybody believed.  So why didn't anybody believe that the Hurricanes were a serious contender?  Well, Rice had cried wolf for so long that everybody stopped listening.    Rice couldn't even make up his mind about playing in the NIKE Derby Festival Classic until the last minute.  As a matter of fact, the two things that Rice always did best   were tell everybody what the want to hear, but at the same time keep his options open.  However, Rice's commitment does make sense, because at Miami-FL he should be able to step in and make an immediate impact as a freshman.   However, if he'd gone to Kentucky, he would have had to wait his turn behind Tayshaun Prince and Keith Bogans.  Still there is the possibility that Rice could enter his name into the NBA draft, which may have been why he didn't play in the Derby Classic on Sunday.  If you will recall, he shot the lights out in the McDonalds All American Game and, as a result, the value of his stock may be higher with NBA scouts that it actually should be.  In other words, if he played Derby Classic and had an off night, it might have diminished his value.  Several scouts have told us that Rice could be drafted as high as #20 in the NBA Draft in June, but right now he just misses being ranked among our top 10 nationally.  Rice is a great outside shooter and an extremely talented athlete.   However,  he lacks the strength and killer demeanor to take the punishment he would face night in and night out in the league, plus he's a great kid and an outside student who would thrive both on and off the court in a college environment.  Now that Rice, who was the top unsigned senior in the class nationally, is off the board, it appears that the focus of the University of Kentucky will turn toward 6'7 John Grice from Shelby State (JC) TN.  If you will recall, Kentucky and Memphis were two of the finalists for both Rice and Grice, but it appeared that Grice was waiting to see what Grice did. 

Monday, May 1, 2000 - Speaking of the NBA, we continue to hear rumors about Isiah Thomas becoming the General Manager of the Atlanta Hawks and University of Kentucky head coach Tubby Smith being hired to fill the void that was created last week when Lenny Wilkens resigned.  Now that Stan Kroenke has bought the Denver Nuggets, we're hearing that Bobby Huggins will be hired as the new head coach.   However, there is one problem - Dan Issel is extremely popular in Denver.  So throw that theory out the window, unless Issel gets the Kentucky job, if Smith gets the Hawks job.  We also are hearing that St. John's head coach Mike Jarvis still may be bound for the NBA.  The New Jersey Nets or the Boston Celtics are a possibility, but we think the Washington Wizards are more probable.  We also still think Boston Celtics head coach Rick Pitino will be someplace else next year.  If Smith were to leave Kentucky and Pitino took the job again, there would be 5,000 Celtics fans at the airport in Boston to make sure he gets on the plane and 15,000 Kentucky fans at the airport in Lexington, KY to welcome him with open arms.   However, we still think the New Jersey Nets are also a possibility for Pitino.   And that might be good for the owner of the Celtics, Paul Gaston, because then maybe he could move back to Boston.  Did you know that Gaston recently bought a house in Greenwich, CT in order to get away from Pitino and all the heat he was taking in Boston?  As for Smith, he continues to deny any interest in the Hawks job, but we know for a fact that he has been contacted by the Hawks on more than one occasion in the last week.

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