TODAY'S HOT RECRUITING INFORMATION

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Tuesday, August 31, 2004

Within the last several days 6'3 Lewis Clinch from Cordale (Crisp County) GA verbally committed to Georgia Tech, 6'6 Alex Ruoff from Brookville (Central) FL verbally commitment to West Virginia, 6'6 Larry Gurganious from Berkeley (St. Mary's) CA verbally committed to Gonzaga, 5'8 Maurice Acker from Hillcrest (Country Club Hills) IL verbally committed to Ball State, 6'3 George Drake from Calera (H.S.) AL verbally committed to Vanderbilt, and 7'0 Jr Jonathan Kreft from Parkland (Marjory Stoneman Douglas) FL made an early verbal commitment to Florida State.  Obviously the verbal commitment by Clinch is huge for the Yellowjackets, because he's a great athlete, an excellent 3-point shooter, a legitimate top 50-100 senior nationally, and somebody in their backyard.  In other words, Georgia Tech head coach Paul Hewitt landed the ideal replacement for 6'4 Sr B.J. Elder, who will graduate after next season, as well as an excellent complement to 6'9 Alade Aminu from Stone Mountain (Stephenson) GA, who does not rank among our top 100 nationally right now, but is just oozing with potential.  So it's easy to see why Georgia Tech's recruiting class has moved into a tie at #28, along with Arizona, on our list of Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  And they may not be done yet, as the Yellowjackets also are among the leaders for 6'6 C.J. Miles from Dallas (Skyline) TX and 6'8 Kevin Rogers from Dallas (South Oak Cliff) TX.  But, as things stand now, Kansas appears to be the favorite for Rogers, who is expected to visit Georgia Tech the first weekend in September, Arizona the third weekend in September, and Kansas the last weekend in September, and Miles' final five are Kansas, Arizona, Georgia Tech, North Carolina, and Texas.  Roy Schmidt of the Illinois Bulls-eye Report tells us that Purdue, Virginia Tech, Missouri, Toledo, and Northwestern are showing the most interest in 6'3 Nate Minnoy from Chicago (Hales Franciscan) IL and our Mississippi Editor Lavel Johnson reports that the final two for 6'9 Cyrus McGowan from Meridian (H.S.) MS are Georgia Tech and Mississippi State.  However, when it comes to McGowan, the smart money is on the Bulldogs.  Remember, Mississippi State head coach Rick Stansbury doesn't lose many in his backyard.  Our New York Editor Ron Naclerio and our Philadelphia/South Jersey/Eastern Pennsylvania Editor Allen Rubin both are telling us that Maine assistant coach Ted Woodward will be the guy who replaces John Giannini, who a week-and-a-half ago got the La Salle job, at the helm of the Black Bears.  And we find this amazing, because, by hiring Woodward, Maine will be passing on Providence assistant coach Steve DeMeo, Bryant College head coach Max Good, and Villanova assistant coach Fred Hill, all three of whom are overqualified for the job.  Naclerio also tells us that Siena assistant coach Steve Seymour and East Carolina assistant coach Dino Presley, both of whom have strong Philly ties, will become part of Giannini's staff at La Salle.  It also appears that 6'6 Kiwan Smith from Laurinburg (Institute) NC, who was listed as a high school senior last season, is not a 5th Year Player.  Instead, we're being told that Smith will be starting his 7th Semester of high school this fall and, as a result, should be listed as a senior.  We also have done some research and want to take a minute to catch you up on a number of verbal commitments that have slipped through the crack in recent months.  The list includes 6'5 Terrell Eargle from Youngstown (Austintown-Fitch) OH, who has verbally committed to Akron, but first is heading to a prep school in South Carolina; 6'7 Sean Raboin from New Hampton (Prep) NH to Towson State; 6'4 Bryan Moten from Saginaw (Arthur Hill) MI, 6'6 Donald Cloutier from Indianapolis (Lawrence North) IN, and Andre Ricks from Detroit (Pershing) MI all to Western Michigan; 6'4 Jr Kerwin Dunham from Bondurant (Farrar) IA, 6'4 Travis Brown from Richfield (H.S.) MN, and 6'8 Anthony Davis from Clarinda (H.S.) IA all to Northern Iowa; 6'2 Dodie Dunson from Bloomington (H.S.) IL and 6'2 Brandon Holtz from Bloomington (H.S.) IL both to Illinois State; 6'3 Jr Grant Leiendecker from Ft. Wayne (Homestead) IL to Butler; 7'1 Matt Hewson from Woodbridge (C.D. Hylton) VA to Delaware; 6'2 Sean Smiley from Erie (McDowell) PA, 6'10 Cem Dinc from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH, and 6'3 Greg Gamble from Niagara Falls (H.S.) NY all to Buffalo; 6'0 Josh Dotzler from Bellevue (West) NE to Creighton; 6'3 Jamel White from Laurinburg (Institute) NC to Nebraska; 6'4 Ray Murdock from Phoenix (Pinnacle) AZ to San Diego; 6'6 Matt Lawrence from Wildwood (Lafayette) MO to Missouri; 6'8 Jay Tunnell from Topeka (East) KS to Indiana State; 6'4 John David Gardner from Homewood (H.S.) AL to UNC-Wilmington; 6'9 Justin Howerton from Howe (H.S.) TX to Texas A&M; 6'1 Kevin Lisch from Belleville (Althoff) IL to Saint Louis; 6'4 Billy Parrish from Naperville (Neuqua Valley) IL to Eastern Illinois; 6'2 Caleb Skogen from Chattanooga (Temple) TN to Mercer; 6'8 Brandon Moore from Bethel (Spanaway) WA to Eastern Washington; 6'3 Robbie Sisca from Weston (H.S.) CT to Vermont; 6'10 Arden Skoglund from Minnetonka (Hopkins) MN to Valparaiso; 6'2 Eric Maynor from Fayetteville (Westover) NC and 6'4 T.J. Gwynn from Burlington (Cummings) NC both to Virginia Commonwealth; 5'11 Jason Holsinger from Lapel (H.S.) IN to Evansville; and 6'6 Derrick Moore from Dallas (Lincoln) TX, 6'0 Justin Fuehrmeyer from St. Charles (Francis Howell Central) MO, and 6'0 Shane Laurie from Springfield (Kickapoo) MO all to Southwest Missouri State.

It looks like 6'8 Tyrell Biggs from Ramsey (Don Bosco Prep) NJ redeemed himself this past week at Five-Star's Honesdale II session, which featured most of the top players in the East, as he took home camp MVP honors and reestablished himself as one of the premier inside players still available in the senior class nationally.  If you will recall, Biggs was ranked #12 nationally by the HOOP SCOOP prior to the start of the summer, but played so poorly in July that he was our leading candidate for the most Disappointing Player-of-the-Summer honors.  But, instead of trying to do too much on the perimeter, it appears that at this camp Biggs went back to doing what he does best and took care of business inside.  However, the most impressive performance all week was turned in by 6'4 Stephon Jackson from Philadelphia (Lutheran) PA, who connected on eight 3-pointers and scored 44 points, which is a Five-Star-Honedale Orange-White All-Star Game record, in the Orange-White All-Star Game.  Jackson, who is ranked #35 our list of the Top 5th Year Players, was the recipient of many passes from 5'11 Kevin White from Brooklyn (Grady) NY, who, along with 6'0 Greg Johnson from Plymouth (Holderness) NH, was named the co-Best Playmaker for the week in the NBA, which is league in which most of the top juniors and seniors in camp participate.  The Best Defender was 6'8 Jr Lance Thomas, who appears to be transferring from Scotch Plains (H.S.) NJ to Newark (St. Benedict) NJ.  The Best Rebounder was 6'8 Brandon Costner from West Orange (Seton Hall Prep) NJ.  The Most Improved was 6'0 Terrance Grier from Cranford (H.S.) NJ, who currently is ranked #51 on our list of the Top 5th Year Players, and the Playoff MVP was 6'4 Delroy James from White Plains (Southern Maryland Christian) MD.  James, who is the younger brother of 6'9 Shaun James from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA and previously was at Brooklyn (Paul Robeson) NY, also was a runner-up, along with 6'3 Jr Steve Kendall from St. George (Blue Ridge School) VA, for the prestigious Mr. Station 13 Award.  And that's important, because anybody who religiously attends of Five-Star's optional teaching station obviously has the burning desire necessary to get better.  The four players who shared the Station 13 Award were 6'8 James Tchana from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, 6'1 Sean McCurdy from Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ, 6'6 Ryan Ayers from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA, and 6'4 Craig Moore from Lawrenceville (Prep) NJ and, as a result, we have to assume that Five-Star Camp director Howard Ginfinkel was happy with this group.  Remember, Garfinkel always stresses how important the teaching is at Five-Star and it's obvious that a lot players went the extra mile to improve their game.  Speaking of Moore, soon-to-be Oakland University assistant coach Devon Smith, who worked the camp and deserves an assist for some of the information in this report, thought he was the best 3-point shooter in camp.  And this is good news for Northwestern University, because Moore is rumored to be close to making a verbal commitment to the Wildcats.  The Most Promising Prospect, which always goes to the top underclassman in camp, went to 6'5 Jr Wayne Ellington from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA and one of the best athletes, as well as the leaper in camp was 6'5 Kevin Payton from Camden (H.S.) NJ.  We also understand that the two leaders for 6'8 Brandon Costner from West Orange (Seton Hall Prep) CT are N.C. State and Kansas and that 6'11 Eric Boateng from Middletown (St. Andrews) DE arrived late to camp, after visiting and verbally committing to Duke earlier this week, and still made the White All-Star Team, along with 6'5 Jr Wayne Ellington from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA, 6'8 Brandon Costner from West Orange (Seton Hall Prep) CT, 6'7 Jr Jonathan Mitchell from Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY, 6'8 Jr Lance Thomas from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 6'6 Ryan Ayers from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA, 6'0 Greg Johnson from Plymouth (Holderness) NH, 6'1 Jr Luis Guzman from Paramus (Catholic) NJ, 6'7 Jr Terrell Williams from Paterson (Catholic) NJ, 6'5 Kevin Payton from Camden (H.S.) NJ, 6'0 Jr Malcolm Grant from Brooklyn (Paul Robeson) NY, and 6'1 Sean McCurdy from Jersey City (St. Anthony) NJ.  The Orange All-Star Team included 6'8 Tyrell Biggs from Ramsey (Don Bosco Prep) NJ, 6'6 Danny Green from Manhasset (St. Mary's) NY, 6'9 Jr Curtis Kelly from New York (Rice) NY, 6'5 Jr Gerald Henderson from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA, 6'7 Jr Earl Clark from Rahway (H.S.) NJ, 6'8 Gerald Inman from Montvale (St. Joseph's) NY, 6'6 Jaron Griffin from Manchester (H.S.) NJ, 5'10 Jr James Bryant from Ramsey (Don Bosco) NJ, 6'4 Craig Moore from Lawrenceville (Prep) NJ, and 6'8 Jr Jabari Edwards from Brooklyn (Poly Prep) NY.  The alternate for the Orange Team was 6'3 Jamel White from Laurinburg (Institute) NC and alternate for the White Team was 5'11 Terrence Grier from Cranford (H.S.) NJ.  The Most Outstanding Player in the Developmental League was 6'5 Soph Corey Stokes from Newark (St. Benedict's) NJ, 5'8 Soph Malik Boothe from Middle Village (Christ the King) NY edged out 5'10 Soph Mike Coburn from Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY for top playmaker honors, and the Best Rebounder in the Developmental League in 6'9 Soph Brandon Waters from Brooklyn (Lincoln) NY.  

Saturday, August 28, 2004, Sunday, August 29, 2004, & Monday, August 30, 2004

Our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin tells us that 6'7 Shane Clark from Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA has decided to renege on Villanova University and, as a result, has re-opened his recruitment.  And making the story even more ironic is the fact that 5'11 Kyle Lowry from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA, who is one of the Clark's best friends and former teammates, decided to follow in Clark's footsteps and now is enrolled at Villanova.  If you will recall, Clark made an early verbal commitment to the Wildcats over a year ago and our guess is that this athletic combo forward simply wants to be recruited.  However, this does open the door for schools like Syracuse, Xavier, Rhode Island, La Salle, Temple, and St. Joseph's, which were the schools that showed the most early interest, to get back involved.  We also have confirmed that 7'0 Jonathan Huffman from Birmingham (Central Park Christian) AL has verbally committed to the University of Louisville, which means that's Duke's run with the #1-ranked recruiting class, after landing 6'11 Eric Boateng from Middletown (St. Andrews) DE last week, was a very short-lived one.  Apparently Cardinals head coach Rick Pitino thinks Huffman can become another Narz Mohammed, but we think Huffman is more like Walter McCarty.  In other words, we're talking about a 6'11 finesse player who would rather shoot 3-pointers and drift around on the perimeter than take care of business inside.  Huffman also isn't nearly as good as Mohammed, who was ranked #100 nationally in the Class of 1995 by the HOOP SCOOP, and McCarty, who was ranked among the top 25 seniors nationally in 1992 by the HOOP SCOOP.  As a matter of fact, Huffman did not make our list of the top 50 players overall or the top 20 players at his position at the Reebok ABCD Camp nor is he good enough right now be ranked among our top 200 seniors nationally.  So we have to question whether this was a good move, if Huffman is getting the Cardinals' sixth and final scholarship, as he's not ready to step in next year and be Francisco Garcia's replacement, if Garcia decides to forgo his final year of college and enter his name into the NBA Draft next spring.   But this could be a good catch, if Pitino decides to role the scholarship dice and sign a wing forward who is capable of stepping in and contributing immediately as a freshman year after next.  And some of the players who fit that description include 6'6 Marcus Johnson from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 6'5 Brian Harvey from Compton (Dominguez) CA, 6'6 Marcus Williams from Seattle (Roosevelt) WA, 6'4 Ricky Torres from Bronx (St. Raymond's) NY, and 6'4 Edwin Lashley from Oakdale (St. Thomas More) CT.  We also have confirmed via our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson that 6'7 Derrick Brown from Dayton (Chaminade-Julienne) OH, who is the second best senior in the state and a borderline top 100 senior nationally, has verbally committed to Xavier.  And this is big for the Musketeers for a number of reasons.   First, it means that the new coaching staff has picked up right where the old one left off in terms of recruiting and perpetuating the program.  Second, with 6'6Churchill Odia from Rockville (Montrose Christian) MD, 6'7 Josh Duncan from Cincinnati (Moeller) OH and 6'2 Stan Burrell from Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA already signed, sealed, and delivered from last year's recruiting class and Brown and 6'6 Ben Raymond from Toledo (St. John's) OH both already in the fold for this year, the Musketeers have already replaced Romain Sota, Lionel Chalmers, and Anthony Myles, who were the driving force behind their Elite Eight finish in the NCAA Tournament and graduated last spring.  Third, the addition of Brown reinforces the fact that Xavier can recruiting the top players in their own backyard, as is evident by the fact that Raymond is ranked #1 and Brown is ranked #2 in the state's senior class by Johnson.   Fourth, the addition of Brown moves Xavier's recruiting class into a tie at #32, along with the College of Charleston and Michigan State, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.   Fifth, getting Brown immediately following his official visit over the weekend shows that Musketeers head coach Sean Miller and his staff are tough to beat once they've gotten a kid on campus and turn the heat up.  We also have confirmed that William & Mary has beaten out schools like Holy Cross, Colgate, and Bucknell for 6'8 Chris Darnell from Stafford (North Stafford) VA.  We've talking about a combo-forward with skills, athleticism, and smarts, as is evident by the fact he's an excellent student (over a 1200 on the SAT) and plays like a coach's son (which he is).  However, Darnell, who impressed us enough at the NIKE All-American Camp, to be ranked among our top 300 seniors nationally, does need to get bigger and stronger phyically, as right now he checks in at 6'8, 190 lbs.  The fact that he is an in-state kid (currently William & Mary has only two players from Virginia on their roster) is just an added bonus. 

Friday, August 27, 2004

One of my favorite questions when I'm talking to somebody in the business is who's our competition?  Obviously I want to know what other people think, but part of this also stems from the fact that I rarely have time to go to other people's web sites and just see what's out there on the internet.   Instead, I gather information the old-fashioned way, whereby, I get a call if something happens and, if I think something might be going to happen, I start making calls.  I bring this up, because I firmly believe that Vince Baldwin & John Stovall are two other hardest working and most knowledgeable people in the business and, as a result, that translates in the fact that PrepSpotlight.com has emerged into our biggest competition.  As a matter of fact, Baldwin told me at the 14-Under National AAU Tournament in Orlando, FL that he would be on the road this summer 42 of 45 days from a period extending from late June into early August.  Then, later that same week, I saw Stovall at the adidas Junior Phenom Camp in San Diego, CA.   And this is important, because by this time most of our competition had packed it in and gone home.  However, by going the extra mile, Baldwin and Stovall have gotten a tremendous head-start on the future (just like us) and they us provide with valuable insight that even we can't get anywhere else.  I bring this up, not just because I like to give just credit where it is due, but also because I've updated our page that lists our Favorite Links and it didn't just happen that in the top left-hand corner of the page, where most of the important national recruiting web sites are found, is a link to PrepSpotlight.com.  Another guy who we have a great deal of respect for and who is another one of the hardest working people in the business is Dave Telep and, thus explains why we have his sight listed right below PrepSpotlight.com and above of SoCalHoops, which is a regional site, but is loaded with useful information, PrepStars.com, HoopMasters.com (Van Coleman & Bob Gibbons), CollegeBasketball News, RivalsHoops.com, GregSwaim.com, and HoopsUSA.com.  And, even further down in this column are links to web sites that provide a list of most Division I school and all Division I conference web sites, which can be found by clicking on Collegiate Web Sites and College Athletic Conferences, as well as a link to Newspapers.com, Official site of the NCAA, Official site of the NJCAA, and Official site of the NBA.  It also should come as no surprise that the HOOP SCOOP On-Radio, which is the hottest recruiting weekly radio show that you can find anywhere, is right at the top of the page in the second column, ahead of Full Court Press, which is a public relations tool for Dinos Trigonis; Big Apple Sports and JucoJunction.com, which are the two best web sites for junior college information; NewYorkCityNewJersey High School Hoops and Redmen.com, both of which are a must if you are interested in high school and college basketball in New York City; and a number of web sites that cover specific areas and/or teams from New England to Florida and then back up through Alabama and Tennessee to Kentucky.  It also should come as no surprise that right at the top of the third column are links to Broadcastmonsters.com, which is the company that broadcasts the HOOP SCOOP On-Radio every Sunday night 10:00 PM until Midnight, and VisionSports.com, which is the public relations tool for Hal Pastner and all his events and tournaments, followed by the official links to some of the premier holiday tournaments in the nation, like the Beach Ball Classic, City of Palms Classic, Slam Dunk to the Beach, and Kingdom of the Sun National Invitational Tournament, and a number of web sites that cover specific areas and/or teams in the Midwest and West.  The last column is headed by Five-Star Basketball Camp, because, like so many people in the business, Howard Garfinkel helped me when I first starting out in the business.  And, next comes Five-Star's biggest rival, the Hoop Group, which also does a tremendous job of both teaching and running events and tournaments; the adidas Junior Phenom Camp; the official web site for AAU; the web site for the Cage Scope/High Potential "Blue Chip" Basketball Camp, which is the best camp in the Midwest; and web sites for a multitude of other things.  In all we have links to 83 web sites and they all are current and update.  Many of them we've had links to for years, but just recently added some new ones that are worth checking out, like PrepSpotlight.com, TennesseePrep.com, IllinoisPrepBulls-eye.com, Oregon Live, Northwest Hoops, and International Scouting Service.

Thursday, August 26, 2004

It really was more a question of when than if 6'11 Eric Boateng from Middletown (St. Andrews) DE would pick Duke, so yesterday it came as no surprise when this athletic big man cast his lot with the Blue Devils.  And this is important, because it shows that Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski has not lost his touch, as the addition of Boateng gives the Blue Devils not one, not two, but three inside players in this recruiting class who are potential McDonald's All-American's.  If you will recall, Duke's recruiting class also already includes 6'10 Josh McRoberts from Carmel (H.S.) IN, 6'2 Greg Paulus from Syracuse (Christian Brothers) NY, and 6'7 Jamal Boykin from Los Angeles (Fairfax) CA and, with the addition of Boateng, it moves up to #1, just ahead of Louisville, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  Making the story even more interesting is the fact that the Blue Devils also appear to be one of the final three, along with UCLA and Washington, for 6'7 Jon Brockman from Snohomish (H.S.) WA, who will be ranked #11 nationally in the senior class when we publish our rankings of the Ranking of the Top Players in the Class of 2005 either late this week or early next week.  And, if the Krzyzewski and his staff pull this off, it would be a supreme coup, because this not only would make Duke tough to beat in our final analysis of the Top Recruiting Classes for 2005, but it also would give the Blue Devils for inside players to necessary to replace 6'9 Jr Sheldon Williams and 6'10 Jr Shavlik Randolph, who will graduate year after next, and, as a result, remain one of the premier programs in college basketball for a long time.   However, we still think that may be easier said than done, which is why we are now calling UCLA the favorite for Brockman.  And there are several reasons why we think UCLA will win this battle over the the University of Washington, despite the fact Brockman expressed a desire to stay close to home.  First, 6'1 Mitchell Johnson from Seattle (O'Dea) WA, who is close friends, as well as the teammate of Brockman on the Friends of Hoop-Seattle team, recently verbally committed to Stanford.  If you will recall, we thought, if Washington could get Johnson, that might be the deciding factor that would tip the Huskies over the top with Brockman.  Second, the University of Washington athletic department is still recovering from a string of scandals in recent years that earlier this cost the athletic director her job.  Third, the one missing piece to the puzzle at UCLA is a tough hardnosed competitor inside.  If you you will recall, they signed 6'5 Arron Afflalo from Compton (Centennial) CA, 6'2 Jordan Farmar from Woodland Hills (Taft) CA, 6'5 Josh Shipp from Los Angeles (Fairfax) CA, and 6'9 Lorenzo Mata from Southgate (H.S.) CA in last year's recruiting class, but still need a power forward who is ready to step in and play immediately.  And Brockman, who is a killer on the boards and almost unstoppable offensively when gets the ball around the basket, thanks to his deceptive athleticism, high skill level, and surprising mobility, appears to be tailer made for second year head coach Ben Howland, who made a living with the same type of players when he was at Pittsburgh.  As a matter of fact, the only difference is that Brockman is a lot better than anybody Howland had a Pittsburgh.  We also have confirmed that 6'6 Alonzo Gee from West Palm Beach (Dwyer) FL has verbally committed to the University of Alabama.  And this is huge, because Mark Gottfried already has a plethora of good big men and guards in the program, but needed another wing player to replace 6'6 Jr Kennedy Winston.  And Gee, who became one of the fastest rising players in the nation after he took home tournament MVP honors when the Tallahassee Wildcats won the adidas tournament in Suwanee, GA in early July, is exactly what the doctor ordered, because he's a big time athlete who can both shoot the outside jumper and slasher to the basket with the best of them.  And making this catch even more impressive is the fact that the Crimon Tide beat schools like Florida, Florida State, and Miami-FL for one of their prime targets right in the own backyard.  This comes right on the heels of the verbal commitment by 6'9 Yamene Coleman from Camden (Wilcox Central) AL, who verbally committed the Crimson Tide three days ago.  And, if the Alabama coaching staff also can wrap up 6'8 Richard Hendrix from Athens (H.S.) AL, who is a consensus top five senior nationally and will be visiting Tuscaloosa, AL this weekend, then we would be talking about the best recruiting class that Gottfried has landed since arriving at Alabama six year ago.   Remember, they already have 6'3 Ray George from Georgia Perimeter (JC) GA and 6'9 Yamene Coleman from Camden (Wilcox Central) AL in the fold and, with the addition of Gee, their class moves up to #10 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  And, if they also get Hendrix, their class would move up to #3, behind Duke and Louisville and ahead of North Carolina, Marquette, Oklahoma State, Notre Dame, Mississippi, Georgia, and Memphis, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  We also have confirmed that 6'6 Soph Devon Evertsen is transferring from Boston College to Fordham, which means that season after next Rams head coach Dereck Whittenburg should be one of the stocked teams in the Atlantic-10 Conference at both forward spots with Evertsen, 6'8 Sebastian Greene from Lafayette (Central Catholic) IN, 6'8 Bryant Dunston from Astoria (St. John's Prep) NY, and 6'7 Michael Binns from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH.

Wednesday, August 25, 2004

Last night the University of Alabama received a verbal commitment from 6'9 Yamene Coleman from Camden (Wilcox Central) AL and this is important for a number of reasons.  First, getting Coleman shows the that Crimson Tide are as strong as ever in terms of recruiting in the own backyard.   Second, Coleman has a huge upside and, as a result, he gives the Crimson Tide yet another good young inside player in the program to go along with 6'10 Soph Jemario Davidson, 6'9 Frosh Akini Adkins, and 6'11 Frosh Shawn Taylor.  Third, the addition of Coleman moves Alabama's recruiting class into a tie at #18, along with LSU and Oklahoma, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  Fourth, Coleman does not rank among our top 100 nationally right now and, as a result, is not good enough to scare off 6'8 Richard Hendrix from Athens (H.S.) AL.  However, Coleman and 6'3 Ray George from Georgia Perimeter (JC) GA, who will be one of the top junior college two guards in the nation this coming season, are good enough to give Mark Gottfried and his staff the momentum that they need to convince Hendrix, who will be ranked #4 nationally in the senior class when we publish our updated rankings later this week, to pick Alabama over North Carolina.  As a matter of fact, we would not be surprised if Hendrix does exactly that this weekend while on his official visit to Tuscaloosa, AL.  And, even if Hendrix decides to drag it out a little longer, because he does not want to make it look like the commitment earlier this week by 6'9 Tyler Hansbrough from Poplar Bluff (H.S.) MO to North Carolina forced his hand, we still think Hendrix will pick the Crimson Tide.   Remember, Hendrix's aunt was one of the first black people to ever enroll at and graduate from the University of Alabama.  And, if that we're even of a recruiting advantage for the Crimson Tide, a majority of the people in Hendrix's family also have their college degree from the University of Alabama.  So when this does happen, look for Alabama's recruiting class to move up to #4, behind Louisville, Duke, and North Carolina and ahead of Marquette and Oklahama State, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  But even more important, getting Hendrix should give Gottfried what should be the final pieces to the puzzle year after next.  And that's saying a lot when one remembers that Alabama lost to Connecticut in the NCAA Elite this past March.  Our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin tells us that it appears that new Marist head coach Matt Brady has hit the jackpot by landing 6'11 Marco Vucajnk from Slovenia.  Not only does Vucajnk have the size, skills, and potential necessary to develop into one of the better players in the Metro Atlantic Conference, but he will be eligible right away and, as a result, counts as a late addition to Marist's 2003-2004 recruiting class, which also included 6'5 Ben Farmer from Oakdale (St. Thomas More) CT, 6'4 Kaylen Gregory from St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, and 6'7 Shae McNamara from Milwaukee (Marquette) WI.  Rubin also has the scoop on 6'3 Scott Rodgers from Philadelphia (Central) PA, who has verbally to Drexel; 6'7 Brian Connelly from Camden (Catholic) NJ, who has verbally committed to Albany; 6'3 Andrew Pusar from West Orange (Seton Hall Prep) NJ, who has verbally committed to Harvard; and 5'9 Chris Andrews from West Orange (Seton Hall Prep) NJ, who has verbally committed to Yale.  Rubin also tells us that the final five for 6'11 Eric Boateng from Middletown (St. Andrews) DE are Duke, Georgetown, Georgia Tech, Boston College, and Villanova; the list for 6'4 Ed Lashley from Oakdale (St. Thomas More) CT, who is one of the best 3-point shooters in the nation, includes St. Joseph's, St. John's, Boston College, College of Charleston, Drexel, East Carolina, Kent State, Miami-FL, Louisville, and Georgia Tech; 6'7 David Bell is transferring from La Salle to East Carolina, where he will join other Philadelphia area products Mike Cook, Marvin Kilgore, and Charles Bronson; and 6'5 John Holmes, who previously was supposed to be a 5th Year Player and was heading to Pottstown (The Hill School) PA, is now heading to Iowa Western (JC) IA.  Speaking of 5th Year Players, earlier today we published our initial list of the Top 5th Year Players for the Class of 2005 and we will continue to update it as more information and names become available.  Especially noteworthy is the fact that seven of the top dozen players on the list are already verbally committed, as 6'9 Shawne Williams from Laurinburg (Institute) NC is heading to Memphis, 6'7 Gerald Green from Houston (Gulf Shores) TX is heading to Oklahoma State, 6'7 Shane Clark from Philadelphia (Cardinal Dougherty) PA is heading to Villanova, 6'8 Jonathan Kale from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI is heading to Providence, 6'6 Jeff Adrian from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH is heading to Connecticut, 6'5 Antonio Anderson from Pittsfield (Maine Central Institute) ME is heading Memphis, and 6'9 Carl Swanigan from Birmingham (Central Park Christian) AL is heading to Mississippi, and the top dozen players -  6'11 Andray Blatche from South Kent (Prep) CT, Williams, Green, Clark, 6'9 Vernon Goodridge from Philadelphia (Lutheran) PA, 6'6 Sam Young from Chatham (Hargrave Military) VA, Kale, 6'6 Brandon Rush from Durham (Mt. Zion Christian) NC, 6'8 Leo Criswell from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH, Adrian, Anderson, and Swanigan - all would be ranked among our top 40 high school seniors, if we included 5th Year Players with our Ranking of the Top Players in the Class of 2005.   Our West Coast Editor Dinos Trigonis tells us that 6'5 Jr D'Andre Bell from Los Angeles (Palisades) CA will visit Georgetown on September 7th, Georgia Tech on September 14th, and Michigan State sometime after his first two official visits.  However, Trigonis also notes that UCLA, Syracuse, UNLV, USC, Oregon State, and Washington State are showing interest in Bell, who has top 100 potential nationally.  Trigonis also tipped us off sometime ago about the probability that 6'7 Joe Darger from Riverton (H.S.) UT would verbally commit to UNLV and tomorrow appears to be the day that he will make it official.  We also mentioned a-week-and-a-half ago that it was premature to write down Northeastern head coach Ronnie Everhart as the next assistant coach at Cincinnati.  And, once again, it looks like we were right on the money, because Everhart, who has four years remaining on his current contract and has four starters returning from a team that was 19-11 overall and 13-5 in the America East this past season, has taken himself out of the running.  Instead, it looks like Northeastern assistant coach Frank Martin has emerged as the leading candidate to fill Dan Peters old spot at Cincinnati.  And this too is crystal ball stuff, because that's who we said Cincinnati head coach Bobby Huggins should hire, if Everhart doesn't take the job. 

Tuesday, August 24, 2004

As expected, 6'9 Tyler Hansbrough from Poplar Bluff (H.S.) MO verbally committed to North Carolina yesterday and, as a result, the Tar Heels recruiting class, which also includes 6'5 Marcus Ginyard from Arlington (Bishop O'Connell) VA and 6'3 Bobby Fraser from Chicago (Brother Rice) IL, has moved up to #3, right behind Duke, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  As a matter of fact, this race is almost too close to call, as only one point separates the Blue Devils and the Tar Heels and, if Hansbrough were ranked #5, instead of #6, on our list of the Top Seniors Nationally in the Class of 2005, which will be published later this week, it would be a tie.  And, if the Tar Heels also land 6'9 Richard Hendrix from Athens (H.S.) AL, 6'7 Jon Brockman from Snohomish (H.S.) WA, and/or 6'11 Andrew Bynum from Metuchen (St. Joseph) NJ and/or Duke lands Brockman, Bynum, and 6'11 Eric Boateng from Middletown (St. Andrews) DE, then either or both could move ahead of Louisville, which currently has the #1-ranked recruiting class on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  We also believe that Texas Tech is extremely close to landing 6'10 Kenneth Cooper from Monroe (Richwood) LA and this makes perfect sense, because the Red Raiders already have a verbal commitment from Cooper's teammate - 6'5 Terry Martin from Monroe (Richwood) LA.  And, assuming that we are correct and Cooper does make it official for Texas Tech sometime in the near future, it would move their recruiting class, which currently is ranked #14 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005 and also already includes 6'8 Justin Wilkerson from Greenville (H.S.) TX, 6'7 Michael Prince from Plano (West) TX, 6'7 Dazzmond Thornton from Denver (East) CO, and 6'7Jeremy Buttel from Colleyville (Heritage) TX, up to #9, behind Louisville, Duke, North Carolina, Marquette, Oklahoma State, Notre Dame, Mississippi, and Georgia on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  And, while not one of these players rank among our top 100 seniors nationally, Wilkerson, Martin, and Cooper are close, plus they are extremely coachable and all have huge upsides. When you also add the fact that will be back for three more years 6'1 Soph Jay Jackson from Monroe (Ouachita Parish) LA and 6'5 Martin Zeno from Baton Rouge (Sulphur) LA, 6'8 Dimir Suljagic from Tucson (Salpointe) AZ,and 6'8 Phil Harbaugh from Corvallis (H.S.) OR will just be freshmen at Texas Tech this year, several other things become obvious.   First, the Red Raiders have a strong pipeline into both the city of Monroe and the state of Louisiana.  Second, they are building the program from the ground up, instead of upon junior college players, as Cooper would become the 10th high school player that Bob Knight and his staff have landed in the last year-and-a-half.   Third, they're building a strong nucleus that will be together for several years and, as a result, the Red Raiders appear to be only one or two great players away from having all the necessary pieces in a couple of years.  Our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson also tells us that Louisville-bound 6'7 Lamar Roberson from Compton (Dominguez) CA is now planning on enrolling at Birmingham (Central Park Christian) AL, which is interesting, because that's the same school that 6'11 James Lang, who verbally committed to Louisville two years ago, but ended up by-passing college and entering his name into the NBA Draft in the spring of 2003, attended and is the a same school that 7'0 Jonathan Huffman, who currently is being recruited by the Cardinals right now, attends right now.  And making the story even more interesting is the fact that 6'10 Carl Swanigan from Salt Lake City (Hunter) UT, 6'3 Jarvis Hill from Starkville (H.S.) MS, and 6'6 Frosh Martez Walker from Birmingham (Central Park Christian) AL also are planning on enrolling at Birmingham (Central Park Christian) AL this fall.  Johnson also tells us that 6'8 Leo Criswell from Kansas City ({Piper) KS, who finished ranked #7 at the Reebok ABCD Camp in July, plans to enroll at Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH and 5'10 Brian Smith from Fork Union (Military) VA will enroll at the University of Mississippi as a walk-on this fall.  And this is interesting because all three of University of Kentucky head coach Tubby Smith's kids (G.G. Smith at Georgia, Saul Smith at Kentucky, and Brian Smith at Mississippi) will get a chance to play college basketball in the Southeastern Conference.  We also have confirmed that 6'10 Elijah Miller is transferring from the University of Houston to Liberty and that's very significant, because there just aren't very many 6'10 guys playing in the Big South Conference. 

Saturday, August 21, 2004, Sunday, August 22, 2004, Monday, August 23, 2004

It would be a major surprise if 6'9 Tyler Hansbrough from Poplar Bluff (H.S.) MO, who is ranked #6 on our list of the top seniors nationally that will published later this week, does not pick North Carolina tomorrow and, assuming that we're right, this could make things very interesting for University of Kentucky.  Remember, Hansbrough and 6'7 Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA have been the Wildcats primary recruiting targets ever since they wrapped up last year's recruiting class, which was ranked #2 in our Final Rankings of the Top Recruiting Classes from the Class of 2004 and included 7'0 Randolph Morris from Fairburn (Landmark Christian) GA, 6'3 Joe Crawford from Detroit (Renaissance) MI, 6'3 Ramel Bradley from Bradenton (Pendleton School) FL, 6'2 Rajon Rondo from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, and 6'4 Adam Williams from St. Albans (H.S.) WV.  However, we've always thought Mitchell was a done deal for LSU, because his Godfather is LSU assistant coach Butch Pierre and Hansbrough was supposed to be a lock for Missouri until the mess surrounding Ricky Clemons arose.  So now that the Wildcats are well stocked at the center spot with Morris, 7'1 Soph Lukasz Obrzut, and 7'3 Shagari Alleyne; at the wing forward spot with 6'5 Jr Kelenna Azubuike and 6'7 Soph Bobby Perry; and at both guard positions with Crawford, Bradley, Rondo, and 6'2 Patrick Sparks, who sat out last year after transferring from Western Kentucky, where he was the Sun Belt Conference Player-of-the-Year two years ago; the one remaining question is whether Tubby Smith and his staff can find somebody good enough to beat out 6'8 Soph Sheray Thomas, if they don't get either Hansbrough or Mitchell, when 6'6 Sr Chuck Hayes graduates after this season.  How about 6'7 Korvotney Barber from Manchester (H.S.) GA?  If you will recall, this is the guy who was unranked in the state by our Georgia Editor Linzy Davis when he last updated his rankings in February and whose list featured Georgia State and Georgia Southern prior to the Houston Kingwood Classic in Houston, TX in late April.  After that schools like Georgia, Tennessee, Georgia Tech, and Auburn entered the mix and, after watching him at the Bob Gibbons Tournament Champions, where Barber was good enough to be ranked #34 in the tournament, we moved him into our top 100 nationally.  But it wasn't until the NBA Players Association Camp that we realized just how good Barber is, as he was one of the top five players in the camp, along with 7'0 Jr Greg Oden from Indianapolis (Lawrence North) IN, 6'5 Soph Bill Walker from Cincinnati (North College Hill) OH, 6'5 Soph O.J. Mayo from Cincinnati (North College Hill) OH, and 6'3 Eric Devendorf from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA.  At 6'7, Barber is skilled enough, athletic enough, and powerful enough to project at either forward spot.  However, the way Barber rebounds, scores, and doesn't take any prisoners inside, it would be a shame if somebody tried and made a wing forward out of him.  In other words, just imagine what Chuck Hayes would be like if he was an inch taller, just as athletic, and even more skilled from mid-range.  No, we're not ready to go on record saying that Barber is the best power forward in the senior class nationally, but we might be, if he hadn't broken his hand the last day at the NBA Players Association Camp and been sidelined for the entire month of July.  We also might have been willing to do call Barber the best power forward in the class, if NIKE hadn't encouraged a number of the top forwards in the nation, like Hansbrough, 6'8 Richard Hendrix from Athens (H.S.) AL, 6'8 Julian Wright from Flossmoor (Homewood-Flossmoor) IL, 6'8 Keith Brumbaugh from Deland (H.S.) FL to skip the NBA Associaton Players Camp and attend individual work-out in Portland, OR the same weekend in June.  But we will rank Barber behind 6'2 Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, 6'9 Josh McRoberts from Carmel (H.S.) IN, 6'8 Julian Wright from Flossmoor (Homewood-Flossmoor) IL, 6'8 Richard Hendrix from Athens (H.S.) AL, 6'4 Monta Ellis from Jackson (Lanier) MS, 6'9 Tyler Hansbrough from Poplar Bluff (H.S.) MO, 6'7 Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA, 6'8 Keith Brumbaugh from Deland (H.S.) FL, 6'9 Amir Johnson from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 6'3 Eric Devendorf from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, and 6'7 Jon Brockman from Snohomish (H.S.) WA.  Auburn appears to be the leader over Georgia and Florida State, but our Georgia Editor Linzy Davis tells us that Kentucky and Miami-FL have both shown recent interest and our guess is that Kentucky will turn the heat up in September.  Our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin tells us that La Salle finally has hired Maine head coach John Giannini and, as a result, the next question becomes who will get the Maine job?  Right now the leading candidates are Providence assistant coach Steve DeMeo, Villanova assistant coach Fred Hill, Bryant College head coach Max Good, Massachusetts-Lowell head coach Kenny Barer, and Maine assistant Ted Woodward.  DeMeo has done a great job of building the program at Providence and appears to have the right contacts to get the job and Hill is our #1-ranked assistant coach in the nation, but, if Good wants the job, we think this one is a no-brainer.   Remember, Good has head coaching experience at the Division I level at both Eastern Kentucky and UNLV, previously was the head coach at Pittsfield (Maine Central Institute) ME, and now is turning Bryant College into a Division II power.  Our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson also tells us that former Ohio State assistant coach Lamonte Stone has gotten an assistant coaching job at Bowling Green, which is important because Stone will give the Falcons an in into the state of Michigan that they haven't had before, and Devon Smith, who was a player on the Buckeyes 1999 NCAA Final Four team and previously was an assistant coach at St. Peter's for a year, has gotten an assistant coaching spot at Oakland.  And, as long as we're talking about assistants who are on the move, did you Know that Western Kentucky assistant coach Arch Miller has returned to N.C. State as an assistant coach?  If you will recall, Miller's older brother, Sean Miller, who is now the head coach at Xavier, recruited his younger brother to N.C. State when first arrived as an assistant coach at N.C. State in 1996. 

Friday, August 20, 2004

Our Mississippi Editor Lavel Johnson and our Tennessee Correspondent Andre Whitehead are both telling us that the University of Mississippi has landed 6'9 Marquis Young from Chicago (Austin) IL and 6'7 Trey Hampton from Birmingham (Hoover) AL and, as a result, the Rebels now have not one, not two, but three inside players in this recruiting class.  If you will recall, last spring they landed 6'10 Carl Swanigan from Salt Lake City (Hunter) UT, but he needed a year of prep school in order to be eligible academically.  So they stashed Swanigan at Birmingham (Central Park Christian) AL and he'll count with their recruiting class again this year.  And making the story even more interesting is the fact that neither Young nor Swanigan are finished products, but they're both huge.  Swanigan also is extremely skilled and has surprising mobility for somebody his size, but he needs to drop 30-50 pounds and turn the rest of the bulk that he carries around into muscle.  Young, who also is surpringly skilled, is one of the fastest rising players in the senior class nationally, as is evident by the fact that he wasn't even ranked among the top 400 players nationally in the junior class nationally February, but finished ranked #21 overall and #5 at the center position, behind 6'9 Jr Derrick Caracter from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 7'0 Jr Greg Oden from Indianapolis (Lawrence North) IN, 6'8 Jonathan Kale from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, and 6'9 Amir Johnson from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, in our rankings of the top players at the Reebok ABCD Camp.  Hampton is an undersized power forward, but he's one of the most talent and toughest competitors in the class, which makes him ideally suited to complement one of the two big guys inside when Rebels head coach Rod Barnes decides he wants to go with a smaller and quicker line-up.  Obviously Ole Miss assistant coach Tracy Dildy was able to go back to his old stamping grounds in Chicago, IL to get Young, but the two-years he spent as an assistant coach at Auburn also apparently paid off, because he's the one who deserves most of the credit for also getting Hampton done as well.  And they aren't done yet, as 6'6 Charles Little from Cleveland (H.S.) TN, 6'9 Xavier Webb from Atwood West Carroll) TN, 6'5 Reginald Delk from Jackson (Northside) TN, 6'5 Richard Delk from Jackson Northside) TN, and a number of junior college guards also appear to be prime targets for the Rebels.  But getting the Delk's might be easier said than done, because Mississippi State, Auburn, and UAB are also really turning up the heat.  And the determining factor with the Delks will probably be which is willing to take them both and who has the strongest ties in Western Tennessee.  That's why Whitehead is betting on UAB.  However, if they both pick Ole Miss, then the Rebels recruiting class, which already has moved up to #6 on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005, would move all the way up to #2, behind Louisville and ahead of Duke, Marquette, Oklahoma State, and Notre Dame, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  Whitehead also thinks Tennessee beat out Kansas, UCLA, and Alabama for 6'6 Tyler Smith from Pulaski (Giles County) TN.  As a matter of fact, it wouldn't surprise us one bit if Smith verbally committed to the Volunteers when he takes his official visit to Knoxville, TN the first weekend in September.  Whitehead also tells us that 5'10 Devan Downey from Chester (H.S.) SC has an official visit scheduled to the University of Tennessee during the last weekend in August and, despite reports to the contrary, 6'6 Anthony Mason from Memphis (Fairley) TN does not have a visit scheduled to Tennessee.  Instead, it appears that Mason's final five are Washington State, Oklahoma, St. John's, Georgia Tech, and UAB.  Whitehead also believes it's too close to call between Memphis and Tennessee for 6'4 Jamont Gordon from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA and has learned that 6'9 Rousean Cronwell is planning on transferring this fall from Memphis (Fairley) TN to Bradenton (Pendleton School) FL.  Johnson also tells us that 6'9 Cyrus McGowan from Meridian (H.S.) MS, who finished ranked #6 overall and #24 at the center spot by the HOOP SCOOP at the Reebok ABCD Camp, will visit Georgia Tech and Mississippi State in September and right now they appear to be the final two.  Did you know that Southern Mississippi recently landed 6'0 Craig Kraft from Raleigh (H.S.) MS?  Neither did we until Johnson tipped us off about it today.  Apparently Kraft is an excellent outside shooter, but, as an undersized 2-guard, we wonder how he'll be anything more than a good role player and zone buster for the Golden Eagles?  Johnson also is excited about the match-up between Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA and Jackson (Lanier) MS, which, if things go as planned, will occur in Jackson, MS on Saturday, January 15th.  That's 6'4 Monta Ellis from Jackson (Lanier) MS, who was the HOOP SCOOP's Player-of-the-Summer and best 2-guard in the nation, versus 6'2 Louis Williams from Snellville (South Gwinnett) GA, who will be the HOOP SCOOP's #1-ranked senior in the nation when we publish our updated rankings next week.  We also are now predicting that 6'9 Tyler Hansbrough from Poplar Bluff (H.S.) MO will pick North Carolina over Kentucky, Kansas, and Missouri at his scheduled press conference on Monday.  So stay tuned!

Thursday, August 19, 2004

When I first heard that 7'1 Robert Rothbart from Sacramento (Natomas) CA had decided to play professionally in Europe, instead of enrolling at Indiana University this fall, I was just going to ignore it.  However, after reading today's article in the Louisville Courier-Journal, I changed my mind.  "His signing was supposed to ease Hoosiers' pain from losing forward Josh Smith, who was picked by the Atlanta Hawks in the first round of the National Association Basketball Association draft," writes C.I. Brown.  Brown also goes on to quote Indiana head coach Mike Davis saying what a big loss it is and says that Rothbart's decision will leave the Hoosiers without a true center.  "Mike Roberts, D.J. White, Sean Kline, and Pat Ewing - none of whom is taller than 6'9 - now will have to pass as the big men in IU's rotation."  Brown also quotes Ron Briscoe, publisher of the Southeast Regional Sports Report, who says "it's going to have a big impact.  Mike Davis had everything in place.  Now he's got to go back to the drawing boarding for a big man."  No he doesn't!  Anybody who has seen Rothbart actually play knows that Rothbart is totally a finesse guy, as what he does best is drift out on the perimeter and shoot threes.  In other words, Davis liked Rothbart, because he thought he might develop into the next Kirk Haston.  However, at 7'1, 230-pounds, Rothbart has a long way to go before that happens.  As a matter of fact, I thought Rothbart had a long way to go before he ever saw any serious playing time at Indiana.  So obviously I think all this talk about Rothbart, who announced his decision to go to Indiana and entered his named into the NBA Draft during the same week in April, is a total joke.  I even went so far as to tell some IU fans that they should hope Rothbart picks UCLA and some UCLA fans that they should hope Rothbart picks Indiana after Rothbart had narrowed his list down to those two.  Thus, explains why I had Rothbart ranked no higher than #258 nationally in our Final Rankings of the Top 600 Players in the Class of 2004.  And Bob Gibbons of All-Stars Sports, who didn't rank Rothbart among the top 200, and Brick Oettinger of the Recruiter's Handbook, who ranked Rothbart #157 in his final rankings of the top players in Class of 2004, appear to agree with me.  Getting back to my original point, it's totally obvious that D.J. White, who was a consensus top 20 senior nationally and was the best player on the first day at the NIKE All-American Camp prior to getting hurt and being sidelined for the rest of the summer of 2003, and Marco Killingworth, who transferred from Auburn to Indiana earlier this year and will sit out next season, are the inside players that Davis needs to make another NCAA Final Four run year after next.  But what I do I know?  Remember, I'm the guy who thought Neil Fingleton, Shagari Alleyne, and Yao Ming would all be a busts.  Well, two out of three isn't bad!  We also were right on the money yesterday when we told you that it would be only a matter of time before 6'6 Jeff Adrian from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH verbally committed to Connecticut and 6'4 Maurice Joseph from Montreal (Champlain-St. Lambert) QU picked Michigan State over N.C. State.  Sure, Adrian is a little undersized, but he's the prototypical college power forward in this day and age, because he's a world-class athlete, physical specimen, and killer inside.  He's is very skilled around the basket and likely be there for four or five years, which means they can bring him along slowly.  If you will recall, the Huskies are already loaded inside, as 6'10 Soph Josh Boone, 6'10 Soph Charlie Villanueva, 6'10 Jr Hilton Armstrong, 6'8 Soph Marcus White, who red-shirted last season, and 6'8 Ed Nelson, who transferred from Georgia Tech and sat out last season, all will battle for playing time this season.  And when you also add 6'8 Rudy Gay from Severn (Archbishop Spalding) MD at the wing forward spot and 6'2 A.J. Price from Amityville (H.S.) NY at the point guard spot and return 6'5 Jr Rashad Anderson, 6'5 Jr Denham Brown, and 6'2 Soph Marcus Williams, it's easy to see why we think Connecticut could be as good as any team in college basketball again next year.  We also are intrigued by Joseph's verbal commitment to Michigan State, which has a plethora of excellent guards and wing players in program this year in 6'3 Soph Shannon Brown, 6'4 Jr Maurice Ager, 6'4 Sr Kelvin Torbert, 6'3 Sr Chris Hill, 6'6 Sr Alan Anderson, and 6'1 Frosh Drew Neitzel.  However, we're not sold on the fact that Joseph will be ready to step in as a freshman a year from now after Torbert, Hill, and Anderson all graduate and become the third guard, if Brown decides to forgo his final two years of college eligibility next spring and enters his name into the NBA Draft.   Joseph is an excellent athlete who thrives in transition and hits the outside shot, but he also tends to be very streaky, needs to get bigger and stronger physically, and, although he's well coached in high school, needs to continue to improve his understanding of the game.  Remember, all players from Canada a suspect until proven otherwise, because they don't get the same quality of competition night in and night out that players do in the United States.  Our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson also tells us that 6'3 Farnold Degand from Boston (O'Bryant) MA has picked Iowa State over Boston University, George Washington, Northeastern, Rhode Island, and Villanova.  And this comes as no surprise, because Degand's AAU coach Leo Papile told us that the Cyclones were the heavy favorite a month ago when we watched him play at the NIKE Peach Jam.  Degand was nothing more than just a good role player on that team, which featured 6'6 Jeff Adrian from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH, 6'8 Jonathan Kale from Barrington (St. Andrews) RI, 6'4 Colby Santos from Marion (Tabor Academy) MA, and 6'3 Jr Anthony Gurley from Newtown (North) MA, but it was easy to see that he's just oozing with potential. We're talking about a big time athlete, good 3-point shooter, and terrific student, as is evident by the fact that he's a year ahead of himself academically.   Obviously the connection here is the fact that Iowa State already has 5'11 Soph Will Blalock, who played for Papile in the BABC program.  And, assuming that Blalock and 6'2 Soph Curtis Stinson are both around for a while, Cyclones head coach Wayne Morgan will have the luxury of being able to bring Degand along slowly. 

Wednesday, August 18, 2004

The big decision by 6'9 Tyler Hansbrough from Poplar Bluff (H.S.) MO, who is expected to pick North Carolina, Kentucky, Missouri, or Kansas, will be forthcoming on Monday, August 23rd, and the ramifications from whatever he does are extremely interesting.  If Hansbrough picks the Tar Heels, that would huge for a number of reasons.  First, it move North Carolina's recruiting class, which already includes 6'5 Marcus Ginyard from Arlington (Bishop O'Connell) VA and 6'3 Bobby Frasor from Chicago (Brother Rice) IL, up to #3, behind Louisville and Duke, on our list of the Top Recruiting Classes To-Date for the Class of 2005.  Second, getting Hansbrough would give North Carolina another quality inside player to go along with 6'8 Jr Sean May and 6'9 Frosh Marvin Williams.  Third, a commitment by Hansbrough would give the Tar Heels the momentum that they need to land another quality inside player like 6'8 Richard Hendrix from Athens (H.S.) AL, 6'7 Jon Brockman from Snohomish (H.S.) WA, and 6'11 Andrew Bynum from Metuchen (St. Joseph) NJ.  Fourth, a commitment from Hansbrough would give North Carolina head coach Roy Williams all kinds of versatility in the future, because Williams and Hansbrough are both multi-dimensional and athletic enough to play both inside and outside.  If Hansbrough picks Kentucky, it would mean that the Wildcats will have filled their only need, which is somebody who is good enough to beat out 6'7 Soph Sheray Thomas at the power forward spot year after next.  And that's not knocking Thomas.  In other words, why would Kentucky sign anybody in this year's recruiting class, unless they can land somebody, like Hansbrough, 6'8 Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA, or 6'9 Ryan Wright from Mississauga (Loyola Catholic) ON, who is better than what they have at the one spot where they will have to replace somebody after next season.  It also is safe to assume that Mitchell would be even more of a lock for LSU than he already is, if Hansbrough picks the Wildcats.  Hansbrough would just be the icing on the cake for Missouri, which returns 6'3 Jr Jimmy McKinney, 6'5 Soph Thomas Gardner, and 6'8 Frosh Linas Kleiza and will have four outstanding freshmen in the program in Jason Horton, Marshall Brown, Kalen Grimes, and Glen Dandridge.   However, even more important, if Hansbrough elects to stay home, despite all the off the court issues that have surrounded the Missouri program during the last year, it would be a testament to just how strong the Tigers are in their own backyard.   Did you know that Hansbrough has always been a Missouri fan and, as a result, under normal circumstances it already would have been done for the Tigers.  If Hansbrough picks Kansas, he would be one of the last pieces to the puzzle.  Remember, the Jayhawks landed Russell Robinson, Alexander Kaun, Alex Galindo, Darnell Jackson, and Chester Giles in last year's recruiting class and they already have 6'8 Micah Downs from Bothell (H.S.) WA and 6'2 Mario Chalmers from Anchorage (Bartlett) AK in this year's recruiting class.  Hansbrough also would be the replacement for 6'10 David Padgett, who transferred to Louisville this spring, as well as the perfect complement to the three inside players that we just mentioned above.  Our guess is that Hansbrough will pick North Carolina and, if we're right, we don't think that will have any effectojn Hendrix, who, in the end, will probably pick the Crimson Tide.   Did you know that Hendrix's aunt was one of the first black people to ever graduate from the University of Alabama?  But we do think that a verbal commitment from Hansbrough to the Tar Heels could have an effect on Brockman, who also plays the power forward position.  So, if the dominos fall like we think they will, our guess is that Brockman elect to stay on the West Coast and pick either UCLA or Washington.  And, if the Tar Heels lose out on Hendrix and Brockman, then they probably will try and turn the heat up on 6'11 Andrew Bynum from Metuchen (St. Joseph) NJ.  But it probably will be too late, because it appears that Connecticut is way out in front of North Carolina, Georgia Tech, Georgia, Rutgers, and Duke.  Speaking of the Huskies, we also believe that a verbal commitment by 6'6 Jeff Adrian from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH could be forthcoming almost immediately.  And Adrian would be perfect for the Huskies, because he's a good old-fashioned blue collar banger type athlete out of the Kevin Freeman mold.  We also believe that 6'4 Maurice Joseph from Montreal (Champlain-St. Lambert) QU will pick Michigan State over N.C. State at almost any time.  We also still think Duke is the team you have to beat for 6'11 Eric Boateng from Middletown (St. Andrews) DE and Arizona is the favorite for 6'6 Martell Webster from Seattle (Prep) WA, but we are wondering what's taking so long.  Speaking of Webster, he also could the odd-man-out at Arizona, if 6'8 Julian Wright from Flossmoor (Homewood-Flossmoor) IL and 6'6 C.J Miles from Dallas (Skyline) TX both commit to the Wildcats first.  Miles also has Kansas, Texas, and North Carolina on his list, but we still think Georgia Tech is the team to beat due at least in part to the potential package that would involve both Miles and his Team Texas teammate - 6'8 Kevin Rogers from Dallas (South Oak Cliff) TX.  We also still think it's too close to call in the sweepstakes for 6'6 Marcus Johnson from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA among Syracuse, Connecticut, and Louisville and the top three for 6'5 Bryan Harvey now appear to be Arizona State, Louisville, and Kansas.  A month ago Oklahoma State appeared to be a near lock for 5'11 Byron Eaton from Dallas (Lincoln) TX, but now Cincinnati is making a strong push.  And still think Mississippi State is the team to beat for 6'10 Vernon Goodridge from Philadelphia (Lutheran) PA and Tennessee will prevail in the race for 6'6 Tyler Smith from Pulaski (Giles County) TN.  However, we're backing off our earlier prediction that the Volunteers also are the favorite for 6'4 Jamont Gordon from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA and 6'9 Brandon Costner from West Orange (Seton Hall Prep) NJ is a near lock for Connecticut.  Instead, Costner appears to be more open than we originally thought, as his final five are Connecticut, Kansas, UCLA, Seton Hall, and N.C. State.  We also have finally confirmed that 6'0 Jr Tywon Lawson from Forestville (Bishop McNamara) MD has transferred to Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA (we've been predicting this will happen for months) and 6'11 Jermaine Bell from Rochester (Franklin) NY, Virginia Beach (Coastal Christian) VA, Bradenton (Pendleton School) FL, and Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA and who holds the record for most times verbally committed and reneged on the same school (three times each to St. John's) now appears to be bound for Indian Hills (JC) IA.  We also have received word from our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson about 6'11 Robert Whaley transferring from Cincinnati to Walsh College, which is a NAIA Division II school in Canton, OH, where Bobby Huggins got his start in coaching.   Whaley appears to be following Jerrod Calhoun, who served in an administrative role at Cincinnati last season and is now a full-time assistant coach at Walsh.  And Whaley isn't the only transfer that Calhoun is responsible for landing as 5'9 Malcolm Andrews is transferring from Wright State to Walsh and 5'11 Jason Hicks is transferring from Akron to Walsh.  Whaley will have one year, Andrews has two years, and Hicks has three years of eligibility remaining.  We also have confiirmed that 6'4 Tyler Newbold from Payson (H.S.) UT has picked Utah State and 6'9 John Oates from Ramsey (Don Bosco Prep) NJ appears to have landed a scholarship to Boston College and, as a result, will enroll in college, instead of prep school at Blairstown (Blair Academy) NJ, this fall. 

Tuesday, August 17, 2004

Within the last several days the University of Minnesota got a verbal commitment from 6'5 Brandon Smith from Minneapolis (Patrick Henry) MN, Oklahoma landed 6'6 Taylor Griffin from Edmond (Christian) OK and 6'4 Michael Neal from Lon Morris (JC) TX, and New Mexico State added another transfer in 6'9 Tyrone Nelson.  You probably remember that Nelson, who is originally from Hempstead (H.S.) TX, signed with Baylor as a high school senior, but then decided to enroll at Prairie View A&M after he got out his National Letter-of-Intent last fall.  And making the story even more interesting is the fact that Nelson was named the Freshman-of-the-Year in the Southwestern Athletic Conference this past season and, as a result, gives the Aggies not one, but two excellent transfers who will be waiting in the wings next year.  If you will recall, earlier this spring New Mexico State also got 5'11 Elijah Ingram, who transferred from St. John's.  The commitments by Neal and Griffin are also big, because we're talking about one of only two freshmen named to the All-National Junior College Athletic Association Second Team and Griffin is widely regarded as the best rising senior in the state.  We also understand that 6'10 Tyler Hansbrough from Poplar Bluff (H.S.) MO will announce his college decision on Monday, August 23rd, and the final four are still North Carolina, Kentucky, Missouri, and Kansas.  But, otherwise, it still is amazingly quiet and, as a result, today seemed like a good time to update our list of Dates/Future Events.  Obviously the next important event, which is the Five-Star Basketball Camp at Camp Bryn Mawr in Honesdale, PA, August 26-31st, is just around the corner, but the High School Elite Pep Fall Classic at Riverside-Brookfield High School in Riverside-Brookfield, IL, September 4th-5th; the FullCourt Press Fall Showcase at Long Beach City College in Long Beach, CA, September 12th; the FullCourt Press Fall Hoops Classic at SCBA Center in Cypress, CA, September 17th-19th; the Hoop Group Fall Jam Fest at Seton Hall University in South Orange, NJ, September 18th-19th; the Charlie Weber Maryland Invitational at the University of Maryland in College Park, MD, September 24th-26th; the Gym Rats Midnight Madness at Cherry Hill East High School in Cherry Hill, NJ, September 25th; the High School Elite Top 50 Super Showcase at North Park University in Chicago, IL, October 3rd; the Eddie Griffin Challenge at St. Benedict's High School in Newark, NJ, October 23rd, and the War on the Shore National Prep School Invitational in Milford, DE, November 19th-21st; also are among the events that I'm considering covering this fall.  However, things won't get ridiculous again until December when I attend the Marshall County High School Hoop Fest at Marshall County High School in Benton, KY, December 2nd-4th; St. Louis Shootout at the Sabis Center in St. Louis, MO, December 9th; the 4th Annual L&N Federal Credit Union Blue-Chip Shootout in Louisville, December 10th; the King of the Bluegrass Holiday Classic at Fairdale High School in Fairdale, KY, December 16th-17th; the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, FL, December 17th-22nd; and Slam Dunk to the Beach, the Beach Ball Classic, and the Academy National Invitational in Houston, TX, all between December 26th-30th.  And in a few cases we've even looked further ahead than that as we already have all of Hal Pastner's events and most of the Spiece events listed for next spring and summer.   Obviously we will continue to update our list of Dates/Future Events, so don't hesitate to email me at hoopscooponline@msn.com, as this information becomes available.  Now also is a good time to pass along what teams and players are going to be in some of these events.  The Marshall County High School Hoop Fest, which will feature Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, Flossmoor (Homewood-Flossmoor) IL, Jackson (Lanier) MS, Poplar Bluff (H.S.) MO, Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, Bolivar (Central) TN, Memphis (White Station) TN, Carbondale (H.S.) IL, Houston (Westbury Christian) TX, Tucson (Santa Rita) AZ, Ullin (Century) IL, Chicago (Hales Franciscan) IL, Mayfield (Graves County) KY, Metropolis (Massac County) KY, Charleston (H.S.) MO, Fairdale (H.S.) KY, Webster Groves (H.S.) MO, Bowling Green (H.S.) KY, Cadiz (Trigg County) KY, Paducah (Tilghman) KY, Benton (Marshall County) KY, Hopkinsville (Christian County) KY, Paducah (Lone Oak) KY, and Belleville (Althoff) IL, once again is loaded at the top, as 6'8 Julian Wright from Flossmoor (Homewood-Flossmoor) IL, 6'4 Monta Ellis from Jackson (Lanier) MS, 6'10 Tyler Hansbrough from Poplar Bluff (H.S.) MO, and 6'9 Jr Kevin Durant from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA all rank among the top players in the nation in their respective classes.  The 4th Annual L&N Federal Credit Union Blue-Chip Shootout will include Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, Brentwood (Academy) TN, Georgetown (Scott County) KY, Jeffersontown (H.S.) KY, Bowling Green (Warren Central) KY, Louisville (Manual) KY, Louisville (Holy Cross) Ky, Louisville (Western) KY, Nicholasville (West Jessamine) KY, and Portsmouth (Clay) OH and will feature players like 6'9 Jr Brandon Wright from Brentwood (Academy) TN, 6'9 Jr Kevin Durant from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'4 Jamont Gordon from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'5 K.C. Rivers from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'11 Bamba Fall from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'0 Dominic Tilford from Jeffersontown (H.S.) KY, 6'6 Jr Anthony Wright from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, and 7'0 Jared Carter from Georgetown (Scott County) KY.   The King of the Bluegrass Holiday Classic will include Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY, Louisville (Trinity) KY, Louisville (Ballard) KY, Jeffersontown (H.S.) KY, Louisville (Butler) KY, Louisville (Fairdale) KY, Frankfort (H.S.) KY, Mayfield (Graves County) KY, Owensboro (Catholic) KY, Horse Cave (Caverna) KY, Mt. Washington (Bullitt East) KY, Mt. Vernon (Rockcastle County) KY, Henderson (County) KY, Scottville (Allen County) KY, Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, and Miami (Senior) FL and will feature players like 6'8 James Tchana from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY, 6'8 Jr Dwayne Collins from Miami (Senior) FL, 5'11 Jujuan Spillman from Louisville (Pleasure Ridge Park) KY, 6'0 Dominic Tilford from Jeffersontown (H.S.) KY, 6'2 Maurice Grinter from Fairdale (H.S.) KY, 6'4 Ravon Lee from Louisville (Ballard) KY, 6'5 Wilbert Reeves from Louisville (Ballard) KY, 5'11 Zach Berry from Louisville (Trinity) KY, 6'4 Tory Robertson from Frankfort (H.S.) KY, and 5'11 Aaron Cash from Mt. Vernon (Rockcastle County) KY.  The Beach Ball Classic will include Aiken (H.S.) SC, Anchorage (Bartlett) AK, New Orleans (Brother Martin) LA, Dayton (Dunbar) OH, Los Angeles (Dominguez) CA, Dunwoody (H.S.) GA, Toronto (Henry Carr) ON, New York (Frederick Douglass) NY, Greenville (Mann) SC, Miami (Senior) FL, Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY, Myrtle Beach (H.S.) SC, Memphis (Ridgeway) TN, Myrtle Beach (Socastee) SC, Manhasset (St. Mary's) NY, and Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ and feature players like 6'8 Jr Derrick Caracter from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ, 6'8 Jr Thaddeus Young from Memphis (Mitchell) TN, 6'2 Mario Chalmers from Anchorage (Bartlett) AK, 6'4 Jr Daequan Cook from Dayton (Dunbar) OH, 6'7 Jr Jonathan Mitchell from Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY, 6'0 Jr D.J. Augustine from New Orleans (Brother Martin) LA, 6'5 Bryan Harvey from Compton (Dominguez) CA, 6'6 Danny Green from Manhasset (St. Mary's) NY, 6'8 Jr Dwayne Collins from Miami (Senior) FL, 6'7 Soph Marshall Moses from Aiken (H.S.) SC, 6'0 Soph Mike Coburn from Mt. Vernon (H.S.) NY, and 5'11 Soph Corey Fisher from Elizabeth (St. Patrick) NJ.  The field for the Academy National Invitational will have Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, which should be the pre-season #1-ranked team in the nation, Middle Village (Christ the King) NY, Jacksonville (Arlington Country Day) FL, Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, LaPlace (Reserve Christian) LA, Baton Rouge (Southern Lab) LA, Montverde (Academy) LA, and Houston (Westbury Christian) TX in the National Division and Houston (Aldine) TX, Kingwood (H.S.) TX, Alief (Taylor) TX, Houston (Westfield) TX, Houston (Cy Ridge) TX, Houston (Bellaire) TX, Garland (South Garland) TX, and Missouri City (Ft. Bend) TX in the Texas Divison.   Some of the top players at the Academy National Invitational will include 6'9 Amir Johnson from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 6'6 Marcus Johnson from Los Angeles (Westchester) CA, 6'7 Fendi Onobun from Alief (Taylor) TX, 6'5 Terrel Harris from Garland (South Garland) TX, 6'3 David Huertas from Jacksonville (Arlington County Day) FL, 5'10 Jr Nigel Minson from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 6'8 Jr Jeff Allen from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 6'8 Desmond Adedeji from Hyattsville (DeMatha) MD, 7'2 Jr Jason Bennett from Jacksonville (Arlington County Day) FL, 6'8 Obi Ikeakor from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX, 6'8 Jeremy Barr from Houston (Westbury Christian) TX, 6'5 Jr Dale Van Wright from Houston (Bellaire) TX, 5'9 Jr Nic Wise from Houston (Westfield) TX, 6'9 Jr Darius Santee from Houston (Westfield) TX, 6'4 Jr Trent Boone from Garland (South Garland) TX, 6'7 Soph Gary Johnson from Houston (Aldine) TX, 6'5 Soph Mike Singletary from Kingwood (H.S.) TX, 5'10 Soph Jai Lucas from Houston (Bellaire) TX, 6'7 Soph Isaiah Rusher from Houston (Bellaire) TX, 6'4 Soph Kevin Branch from Laplace (Reserve Christian) LA, 5'8 Soph Malik Boothe from Middle Village (Christ the King) NY, and 6'5 Soph Andrew Gabriel from Middle Village (Christ the King) NY.

Saturday, August 14, 2004, Sunday, August 15, 2004, & Monday, August 16, 2004

Our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin tells us that Pennsylvania head coach Fran Dunphy did not take the La Salle job, because he was not willing to meet their deadline.  Apparently Dunphy wanted more time, but La Salle athletic director Tom Brennan gave Dunphy a 7:00 PM deadline on Friday evening, August 13th.   Instead, Rubin thinks Maine head coach John Giannini and Lafayette head coach Fran O'Hanlan are the leading candidates for the La Salle job, but we think the smart money is on Giannini for several reasons.  First, O'Hanlan already turned the job down once recently and, instead, signed a new 10-year contract at Lafayette.  Second, Giannini is a heck of a coach, as is evident by the fact that he has led Maine to more victories than any other America East Conference school during the last six years and is the only coach school history to win 20 or more games in a single season (24-7 in 1999-2000 and 20-10 in 2003-2004).  And, going back even further, Giannini also had a 168-38 record at Rowan University, where his .816 winning percentage ranked him first among active Division III coaches and included Division III NCAA Final Four appearances in 1993 and 1995 and the Division III National Championship and Division III National Coach-of-the-Year honors in 1996.  Third, Giannini also is an excellent recruiter and he's got strong ties to the Philadelphia area.  Did you know that Rowan University is located in Glassboro, NJ, less than 30 minutes from Philadelphia, PA?   And, if this happens, then our New York City Editor Ron Naclerio thinks Providence assistant coach Steve DeMeo may have the inside track for the Maine job.  And, this would make perfect sense, because DeMeo not only has all the right ties necessary to get it done at any program in the Northeast, but he's also a terrific evaluator of talent and recruiter (i.e. most of the players on Providence's roster).  Naclerio also continues to tell us that Northeastern head coach Ronnie Everhart will move onto Cincinnati as an assistant coach, but our sources think this is a little bit pre-mature, because nothing can happen until Bearcats head coach Bobby Huggins gets done with his suspension on Friday, August 27th.  However, if Everhart does take the job, then we think it's a no-brainer that Northeastern should hire Frank Martin, who has been an assistant coach at the school for four years, worked for two different head coaches, and was the main reason why the Huskies got players like Marcus Barnes, Sylbrin Robinson, Javorie Wilson, Cornellius Wright,and Jose Juan Barea.  And Martin has plenty of head coaching experience dating back to the days when he was at Miami (Senior) FL.  As a matter of fact, we think Martin is so good that, if Everhart doesn't take the Cincinnati job, Huggins should, instead, consider hiring Martin.   And making the story even more interesting is the fact that Martin, who is really the guy with the pull with Barea, also has been mentioned for the open assistant coaching job at Murray State.  So, if Everhart goes to Cincinnati and Martin goes to Murray State, does Barea stay at Northeastern, transfer to Cincinnati, or transfer to Murray State?  Our guess is that he would stay at Northeastern.  That way Barea wouldn't have to sit out this coming season and he could enter his name into the NBA Draft next spring.  And, if Northeastern doesn't hire Martin, then the smart money is on Connecticut assistant coach Tom Moore, Boston College assistant coach Bill Coen, and Brown head coach Glen Miller.  Rubin also has some more recruiting information for us, as Duke, Villanova, Georgia Tech, Wake Forest, N.C. State, North Carolina, and Notre Dame make up the early list for 6'5 Jr Gerald Henderson from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA.  The top six for 6'11 Andrew Bynum from Metuchen (St. Joseph) NJ are Georgia Tech, Georgia, Rutgers, Connecticut, Duke, and North Carolina.  Among those showing the most interest in 6'9 Kent Tribbett from Chester (H.S.) PA are Rutgers, Villanova, Navy, Virginia Tech, Penn State, and George Washington.  Apparently 6'0 Jr Malcolm Grant from Brooklyn (Paul Robeson) NY, whose high school coach is former Mississippi State guard Todd Myles and is close firends with current Mississippi State point guard Gary Ervin, has the Bulldogs right at the top of his list, along with St. John's, Florida State, Clemson, Seton Hall, and Hofstra.  The early favorites for 6'0 Jr Jawan Carter from Wilmington (Titnall) DE are Duke, North Carolina, Wake Forest, Maryland, Georgetown, Notre Dame, Georgia Tech, Villanova, and St. Joseph's.   Pennsylvania, Columbia, Dartmouth, and Lehigh are the leaders for 6'7 Steve Rossiter from Staten Island (Monsignor Farrell) NY.  The early list for 6'9 Jr Andrew Ott from Ft. Washington (Germantown Academy) PA includes Penn State, North Carolina, Wake Forest, Villanova, Illinois, Purdue, and Georgia Tech.   The list for 6'7 Jr Daniel Werner from Lincroft (Christian Brothers) NJ is already very interesting as he mentions Richmond, Notre Dame, N.C. State, Monmouth, Fordham, and Rutgers.  Our West Coast Editor Dinos Trigonis tells us that Washington, San Francisco, Texas Tech, Indiana, Florida, Boston College, UCLA, USC, and UNLV are all in the hunt for 6'6 Dior Lowhorn from Berkeley (H.S.) CA and North Carolina, Arizona, UNLV, USC, Texas, and Washington are showing the most interest in 6'8 Davon Jefferson from Lynwood (H.S.) CA.   However, the coup would be if the Huskies can get 6'7 Jon Brockman from Snohomish (H.S.) WA.  And Trigonis thinks this may happen, if Washington head coach Lorenzo Romar goes ahead and pulls the trigger on Brockman's close friend and Friends of Hoop-Seattle teammate - 6'0 Mitch Johnson from Seattle (O'Dea) WA.  The Huskies already have verbal commitments from 6'6 Roburt Sallie from Laurinburg (Institute) NC, 6'4 Harvey Perry from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH, and 6'8 Artem Wallace from Toledo (H.S.) WA, but getting Brockman and Johnson also might give the Huskies the momentum they need to convince 6'7 Martell Webster from Seattle (Prep) WA to stay home.   And, if the Huskies were to by some chance beat out Arizona for Webster, that also would probably put them in the driver's seat next year for 6'10 Jr Spencer Hawes from Seattle (Prep) WA.  In other words, Romar wasn't standing behind the basket at all of the Friends of Hoop-Seattle's games at the Main Event in Las Vegas, NV in late July for nothing. 

Friday, August 13, 2004

Our Ohio Editor Chris Johnson apparently has the scoop on our West Coast Editor Dinos Trigonis, because he tells us that 6'11 Jordan Wilkes from Los Angeles (Loyola) CA has verbally committed to the University of California.  And this comes as no surprise, because we've thought all along that Wilkes would decide to follow in the footsteps of his older brother - 6'3 Omar Wilkes, who transferred from Kansas to California earlier this year.  Currently we have Wilkes ranked #47 in the senior class nationally based on his size, potential, and skill level, but whether he wants it bad enough and has the toughness necessary to develop into a great player remain question marks.  He also needs to get bigger and stronger and remain injury free, but, if all that happens, he could develop into the best player that Ben Braun has ever coached.  Johnson also tells us that LSU has landed 6'11 Chris Johnson from Laurinburg (Institute) NC and Wisconsin has gotten 6'7 Marcus Landry from Milwaukee (Vincent) WI.   The verbal commitment by Landry, who is more of a power forward right now, but will project as a wing forward down the road, if he improves his jump shot and perimeter skills, is a perfect complement to 6'7 Joe Krabbenhoft from Sioux Falls (Roosevelt) SD and 6'2 Phillip Perry from Maywood (Proviso East) WI, both of whom are already a part of the Badgers' current recruiting class; 6'11 Greg Steimsma from Randolph (H.S.) WI, 6'5 DeAaron Williams from Bartonville (Limestone) WI, and 6'2 Michael Flowers from Madison (La Follette) WI, all of whom signed with the Badgers a year ago; and 7'0 Brian Butch from Appleton (East) WI, who signed with the Badgers two years ago, but sat out last season as a red-shirt.  We're less excited about the verbal commitment by Johnson, because, as a general rule, I don't like finesse big men.  However, Johnson, who is a more of a three than a four at 6'11, does provide an interesting piece to the puzzle for LSU.  Remember, the Tigers already have two of the best young inside players in the Southeastern Conference in 6'8 Frosh Glen Davis and 6'8 Soph Brandon Bass, plus they have 6'9 Kentrell Gransberry from San Jacinto (JC) TX, who was one of the top freshman junior college centers in the nation last year, already in the fold in this recruiting class.  So, assuming that LSU also gets 6'7 Tasmin Mitchell from Denham Springs (H.S.) LA, whose godfather is Tigers assistant coach Butch Pierre, then Johnson projects as nothing more than a good role player.  Johnson also tells us that the top three for 6'5 Jr Daequan Cook from Dayton (Dunbar) OH now appear to be Michigan, North Carolina, and Ohio State and that the early favorites for 6'5 David Lighty from Cleveland (St. Joseph) OH are Syracuse, Arizona, Ohio State, Michigan, and North Carolina.  It also looks like the College of Charleston has picked up right where they left off on the recruiting trail last year, as the Cougars have landed 6'5 Brian Greene from Santa Fe (JC) FL and re-signed 6'11 Ben Brown from Winchendon (School) MA.  If you will recall, Brown was apart of the College of Charleston's recruiting class, which was ranked #49 in our Final Ranking of the Top Recruiting Classes for the Class of 2004 and also included 6'8 Josh Jackson from Fitchburg (Notre Dame) MA, 6'7 Tavon Nelson from South Kent (Prep) CT, 6'2 Marcus Hammond from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH, 6'7 J.R. Hairston from Fork Union (Military) VA, and 6'8 Jermaine Johnson from Winchendon (School) MA.  It also is important to point out that Brown, who originally from Richmond (Steward School) VA, will be following in the footsteps of the College of Charleston's other five recruits from a year ago, as he plans to go the prep school route.  And who better to toughen up this rail thin 6'11 center than Winchendon head coach Mike Byrnes, who is the one of the best there is at pushing his players every day in practice and, as a result, getting them ready for the next level?  However, the real story here is Greene, who sat out all last year with an injury, but was the Freshman-of-the-Year in the Florida Junior College ranks during the 2002-2003 season.  We're talking about a big time athlete and terrific scorer who apparently has slipped through the cracks, as the College of Charleston was able to hold off schools like Mississippi and Wichita State.  And they aren't done yet, as College of Charleston assistant coach Patrick Skerry was reportedly been scouring the junior college ranks in July looking for not one, but wing players to complement all of the other good young players that they already have in the program, like Jackson, Nelson, Hammond, Hairston, Johnson, and 6'2 Jr Drew Hall, who sat out last year after transferring from Georgetown.  We also have confirmed that Missouri-Kansas City has landed 6'4 Dane Brumagin from Warrenton (Christian) MO, who averaged 32.0 ppg and is an excellent 3-point shooter.  And this is exactly what the doctor ordered, as the Kangaroos' coaching staff needed an good 2-guard to complement 5'11 Mose Howard from Iowa Western (JC) IA, 6'7 Chris Temple from Iowa Western Iowa (JC) IA, 6'8 Brian Gettinger from Overland Park (Shawnee Mission South) KS, 6'9 Jeremiah Hartsock from Bartlesville (H.S.) OK, and 6'7 Albert Reese from Westchester (St. Joseph) IL, all of whom were apart of last year's recruiting class.  We also understand that Louisville, Minnesota, and Miami-FL are the leaders for 7'0 Jonathan Huffman from Birmingham (Central Park Christian) AL and it's a three horse race among Connecticut, Pittsburgh, and Kansas for 6'6 Jeff Adrian from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH.  Our Philadelphia/Eastern Pennsylvania/South Jersey Editor Allen Rubin tells us that Arizona, UCLA, Kansas, Michigan, St. Joseph's, Connecticut, Louisville, Villanova, Notre Dame, North Carolina, Duke, Georgia Tech, N.C. State, Wake Forest, Kentucky, and Florida are all now in the hunt for 6'5 Jr Wayne Ellington from Merion Station (Episcopal Academy) PA and that the final five for 6'8 Brandon Costner from West Orange (Seton Hall Prep) NJ are Connecticut, Kansas, UCLA, Seton Hall, and N.C. State.  Rubin also reports that St. Joseph's, George Washington, Fordham, M