ROUND 2 - APRIL 2008 "LIVE" PERIOD
By Antonio Curro - NY2LA Sports
April 24, 2008
Round 2 of the April 2008 "Live" evaluation period kicks off this weekend with a host of tournaments in Akron, Las Vegas, Dallas, Providence, Washington D.C., and Phoenix.
With teams traveling all over the country, here's some guys to try and catch up with on the courts this weekend...
6'5" G Raymond Cowles of Minnesota. The standout class of 2009 prospect will take the floor with the Net Gain Sports program in Dallas and the Next Level Baller National Tournament. Ray is one of the truly underrated prospects nationally as he has excellent athleticism, nice length, can fill it up from anywhere on the floor, and is an excellent student as well. Pound for pound Ray can play with anyone at anytime and he brings to mind current Marquette standout Jerel McNeal whenever he takes the court. In the right system, Cowles has a chance to be an absolute steal in the coming years.
Super stud 6'7" So. SF Harrison Barnes of Ames, Iowa looks to continue his explosion up the ranks nationally as he and his All Iowa Attack teammates take the court this weekend as the King James Shooting Stars Classic in Akron, Ohio. Harrison is a do it all slashing forward with big time upside both on and off the court and he'll be looking to build upon his monster performances at the Swish & Dish and Real Deal on the Hill tournaments earlier this month. Texas, Kansas, Minnesota, Iowa, Iowa State, Arizona, Florida, Illinois, Purdue, Wisconsin, Michigan and a host of others are starting to pick up the trail of the guy we think is a definite top 10 national prospect in the Class of 2010.
6'7" So. PF Calvin Godfrey of D.T.A. looks to continue his stellar play as the D.T.A. Devin Harris Superstars head to Ohio looking to follow up their final 4 finish last weekend in Arkansas. Godfrey is a beast on the glass, has excellent shot blocking ability, and some nice athleticism for a young big. He's another guy who's stock continues to grow each time he takes the court.
Speaking of stock growing, look no further than 6'5" Jr. SG Tony Nixon of Seton in Illinois. The long athletic sharpshooter looks to put yet another big time performance down this weekend as he and the Mac Irvin Fire 17U team heads to Ohio looking to build on their Elite 8 finish last weekend at the Kingwood Classic in Houston, Texas. Nixon collected an offer from Northern Illinois and Head Coach Ricardo Patton earlier this week but he really has some high major physical tools and the ability to catch and shoot as he displayed time and time again last week. This kid is a major "sleeper" in the 09 class nationally.
Staying with the fire, 6'0" So. PG Reggie Smith was sensational last weekend as both he and 6'8" Fr. F Mike Shaw took big time steps forward last weekend in Texas. Smith has explosive athleticism while Shaw continues to develop game after game. Both rock alonside Nixon, So. Crandall Head, Jr. Zeke Upshaw, Jr. Derek Needham, Jr. Terry Johnson, and a host of other solid prospects to form an extremely athletic, deep, and young Fire 17U squad.
6'2" So. SG Vander Blue of Madison Memorial gets back on the court this weekend as he and the Madison Spartans 17U team head to Ohio for the King James tournament. Blue recently picked up an offer from Wisconsin, which is the first of many to come as he is an exceptional young scoring threat who can really get it done. If he is recovered from an ankle injury suffered last weekend, 6'3" Jr. G David Brown of Rockford Hononegah (IL) will play alongside Blue to form one of the top 1-2 outside scoring punches in the tournament this weekend.
Indiana has some stars set to get it done to this weekend as one of our favorites, 6'1" PG Ray McCallum Jr. and the Indiana Elite 17U team looks to grab their second straight championship in Ohio this weekend. The Indiana Elite won last weekend's Pittsburgh Jam Fest and they feature another loaded squad with the likes of Jr. F Stephan Van Treese, Jr. F Jordan Prosser, and a host of others. Initially Indiana was the front runner to land McCallum but with the recent change in staff and the fact that his father recently landed the head job in Detroit, it should be interesting to see what happens over the next 6 months. McCallum is an exceptional talent and one of the very elite skilled PG's in the country in the Class of 2010.
Speaking of elite, look for 6'7" SF Jamil Wilson of Racine, Wisconsin to bounce back with a monster performance this weekend in Ohio. The top 10 national prospect told us emphatically that his recruitment is wide open and he isn't even close to narrowing his list at this time, despite erroneous and irresponsible reports to the contrary. This is the same exact weekend where Wilson took off nationally after leading his team to the 16U championship last weekend so it wouldn't be too much of a surprise if the same hold true this weekend in Ohio.
6'5" Jr. DeShawn Clay and 6'0" So. PG Xavier Jones will also look to continue their stellar performances again this weekend as each has shown some exceptional athleticism and ability to put the ball in the hole with the SYF Players. Clay rocks with the 17U while Jones heads up the 16U squad. Pound for pound, good luck trying to stop Jones because he can pretty much get to the rack on anyone, anytime, anywhere. They'll be in Ohio this weekend joining another loaded field at the King James Shooting Stars Classic.
Speaking of continuing their monster play, the quartet that is 6'6" So. Chip Rank, 6'9" So. F Kyle Kelm, 6'3" PG Josh Gasser, and 6'2" So. SG Brett Meinecke look to build on an already impressive spring resume in Ohio this weekend. All four have been sensational so far and each has seen his recruiting interest grow significantly this month with the Wisconsin Swing 16U team. Their definitely worth a look this weekend.
Also worth a look is the R.E.A.C.H. Legends out of Michigan who will feature one of the top Class of 2009 prospects and 2010 prospects in the King James tournament as 6'6' F Dion Sims and 6'2" PG Keith Appling take the floor in Ohio this weekend. Sims is a two sport start (i.e. football and basketball) who "wants to play basketball" according to longtime R.E.A.C.H. program director Marcus Webster. Sims is an excellent athlete who's already gotten interest from in state powers Michigan, Michigan State, and SEC power Tennesee. As for Appling, forget about it, the kid can flat out go and is arguably set to be a top 50 national prospect by the end of the summer.
6'11" C DeShonte' Riley and The Family also head to Ohio this weekend looking to put it down again. Riley is one of the top 09' big available and as always The Family is a tough out. They head to the King James tournament for the 3rd consecutive year with one of the major interior prizes left in the Class of 2009.
Speaking of interior prizes, get ready for the next big thing in Wisconsin, 6'6" Fr. F Cinmeon Bowers. Last weekend he helped lead Playground Elite 15U team to the Silver Division runner-up last weekend in Pittsburgh and he's the real deal all day long. He's not the only one though as 6'2" Fr. G Jalonnie Parks can score on anyone from anywhere anytime and he proved that again last weekend alongside Bowers where he popped for 20 plus each game. Those are two of the top freshman going right now.
Speaking of freshman, look no further than the Team Illinois Hawks 15U team which features the likes of PG George Marshall Jr, F/C Keith Gray, and F/C Kevin Gray. The Team Illinois Hawks are the business real talk and they'll be in Washington D.C. this weekend at the Charlie Webber Invitational. Marshall, Tolliver, KG I and KGII are going to be major forces in the coming years.
Speaking of freshman forces, 6'7" F Darnell Harris, 5'10" PG Charles Lee, and 6'4" SF Elgin Cook are three of the tops in Wisconsin and each hits the circuit again this weekend with the Milwaukee Running Rebels 15U team at the King James Shooting Stars Classic. Each has shown flashes of their potential and are three more of the strong young prospects in the Midwest.
6'3" SG Jake Thomas and the Next Level Elite 17U also take the floor again this weekend in Ohio. Thomas is a class catch and shoot SG prospect with some mid major ability and another in a long line of outside scoring threats in the Class of 2009 in the Midwest.
6'5" Sharpshooter Jr. Matt Vogrich and 7'0" Jr. C Kyle Rowley also head to Ohio this weekend as the Full Package Select 17U team is set to put it down. Vogrich can shoot the ball from anywhere inside the United States zip code (real talk) and Rowley is a big strong young interior prospect that has a host of high majors positioning for his services.
Speaking of sharpshooters, 6'5" SG Nik Garcia of the Illinois Rising Stars 17U will look to build on a monster performance last weekend in Houston, Texas. Garcia has some flavor to get to the rack and he can stroke it from anywhere on the court. He joins the likes of Vogrich, Thomas, David Brown, Nixon, Cowley, and a host of other strong outside shooting prospects in the Midwest.
Quick Hits
Congratulations to 6'0" G Derrick Washington of Brown Deer High School who will be playing basketball at Benedictine College in Illinois. Derrick is a quality young man both on and off the court.
The same can be said for 6'5" SF Jarvis Williams of Brown Deer who's headed to Kirkwood. Williams is a mature athlete with an awful lot of upside in the coming years. He's shown class both on and off the court. Congratulations Jarvis.
6'1" So. PG Creon Reed takes the court again this weekend with the D.T.A. 16U team and he's been an absolute beast on the court. Keep your eyes on him as well.
6'3" So. Trevor Haas is one of the pleasant surprises this spring. The sharpshooter from the P.C. Players 16U Blue team will head to Ohio this weekend looking to build on his resume that already includes an All-Tournament team finish earlier this spring at the Swish & Dish tournament. Haas can really shoot the rock!
E-mail us at info@ny2lasports.com
Note: Antonio Curro of NY2LA Sports is the editor of NY2LASports.com and the Midwest Editor (i.e. Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Wisconsin, and Minnesota) for the HoopScoop Online