By Shawn Siegel

shawn@collegehoops.net

July 12th, 2006

Reebok Summer Classic East: Day Two

The Reebok Summer Classic East wrapped up this afternoon with Team Philly coming out on top.  Here are player capsules of some top performers.  (Note that for sake of mixing it up, some other top players discussed yesterday will not be mentioned.)

Team Philly vs Sam Rines

While I mentioned Villanova recruit (heading to prep school this year though) Kraidon Woods woods yesterday, today was all about Lavoy Allen (6-9, 2007).  Lavoy was very effective on defense, blocking shots, and grabbing defensive rebounds.  Allen isn't the most talented guy out there, but he's improving, and looks like he's yet to reach his peak physical maturity.  With the size, strength, and mobility he already has, Allen can be a real find with added improvement and maturity.

New Jersey shooting guard Clarence Jackson (6-5, 2007) was playing quite well for Team Philly.  Jackson can shoot the three, but he was more impressive slashing to the basket and finishing.  Jackson's got a olid body for an off-guard and is hard to stop when he's assertive and going to the hoop. 

Finally, guard Josh Martin (6-2, 2007) showed some definite mid-major talent.  Despite handling the ball often, Martin is clearly more of a combo-guard and isn't much of a court-general.  On offense, he has a good looking three-point stroke, though he seems to want to settle for the jumper instead of attacking the rim.  Defensively, he's very solid, and was particularly effective against Playaz Gold point guard Anthony Nelson earlier in the day.  In the perfect world, Martin would be able to master the point guard role where he could be extremely effective.  If not, he does lack great size for a two, as well as the ability to beat his man one on one.

While Team Philly won the championship, Sam Rines deserves credit for getting this far with just 5 players on their roster (they even won a game playing with 4 guys at one point).  Then again this is a team whose roster seems older and more experienced than half the college teams out there.

Wing forward David Tairu (6-5, 200?..) was one of best shooters at the Classic.  What makes Tairu so dangerous is that unlike some other guys who just shoot threes, Tairu was money in the 15 foot range.  Tairu and shooting guard Mike Rhoads (6-0, 2008) kept Sam Rines in the game with their outside shooting. Rhoads, who was perhaps the only player who didn't look old enough to coach the team, hit a a multitude of three-point bombs.  Rhoads basically is a stand-still shooter who didn't do much outside of shooting the long ball.

Big man Matt Walden (6-8, 2006) was up against Lavoy Allen, and lost the battle in the end.  Walden's a really long lefty, who seems like he should be 50% better than he is.  Walden certainly had some moments and was productive with nice blocks here and there and one or two big finishes, but he lacks much skill and relies more on his physical tools.

Rhode Island Hawks vs Team Jersey Elite

For the Hawks, shooting guard David Rufful (6-4, 2007) was enjoyable to watch.  In their 2nd to last game, Rufful basically led the team to victory by dominating on the offensive end.  Rufful doesn't look like the most athletic player, but this kid has a little hop in his step, and does a great job of getting into the lane.  Every time he got into the lane, he either finished effectively or drew a foul.  His three-point shot is rather unattractive, but he was swishing them left and right earlier, before tiring in the game against the Elite.  I don't know much about the prep scene in Rhode Island, but Rufful has to be one of the best players in the state next year.

Wing forward Matt Glass (6-6, 2007), one of a few player on the team out of Northfield Mt Hermon in MA, is a solid D1 prospect.  Glass has an almost perfect frame for a wing-forward, and he plays with a lot of coolness and confidence.  He has a solid mid-range game, and the ball comes off his hand with a real soft touch that always looks like it will bounce in.  With his size and athleticism, Glass also does a fine job on the boards and can be a solid defender.  The only thing I would have liked to see out of Glass is for him to have been more assertive, and not settle for being a complimentary player.

For Team Jersey Elite, Idris Hilliard (6-7, 2007, #114 Rivals.com) stands out on pure physicality alone.  He's a very strong and mature kid, who has enough athleticism to play the three, even though he was playing more of the four this afternoon.  Big man Chris Samuels (6-9, 2007) has potential with his size, but lacks skill right now.  He's basically a less-talented version of Lavoy Allen mentioned above.  Samuels needs to use his body more (particularly in rebounding), and not just rely on his size to do everything.

On the perimeter, point guard Zach Rosen (6-2, 2007) showed off his impressive speed and athleticism.  Rosen did a nice job defending RI's solid but unspectacular point guard (Brian Gaffnney), and was effective driving to the hoop on offense.  Rosen showed the rare ability to beat his man off the dribble with both hands, and got into the lane often.

* Team Reports *

Broward Bobcats

Andres Irarrazabal (6-9, 2007) stood out for this Florida team.  He has a very thick and strong body and moves very fluidly for a big man.  He was able to rebound on the defensive end well, but was not really a big defensive presence despite his size advantage. Also, he was solid, but not dominant on offense despite being the biggest kid out there.  His go-to move seems to be a turnaround jumper, which he was consistently able to hit.

National Christian Academy

Big man Anthony McClain (7-1, 2007, #65 Rivals.com) has a ways to go, but you can't argue with his size.  On offense, he was slow to recognize the double team which was a problem once or twice, but he did flash a decent hook shot when one on one in the post.  Also, he needs to get much stronger in the arms and hands.  After grabbing rebounds, he was a victim twice of smaller guards coming in and slapping the ball away before he was able to pass it off.

Power forward Ramon Harris (6-7, 2006), who was the Alaska player of the year, has some serious high-major talent.  Harris is athletic enough and handles the ball well enough, that he can really play small forward.  He can also stroke it from long range, and is strong enough to finish on the inside even if guarded tightly.

New York Panthers

Heading to prep school this year, Daquan Cook (6-7, 2006), not to be confused with Daequan Cook heading to Ohio State, is a solid physical specimen who has some potential.  You have to take into account his added year, but Cook still is a good athlete that holds his own on all ends of the floor, and can finish on the inside.

Philadelphia Patriots

Point guard Sam Zeglinksi (6-1, 2007, Virginia) was making sweet passes left and right.  Zeglinski basically got into the lane at will and finds cutters and big men down low.  The only reason he didn't end up with 20 assists is that he inside players lacked skill.  Though only 6-1, Zeglinski is strong and carries himself like he's taller and bigger.  His outside shot needs work, as he did hit one three, but missed one or two other by a wide margin.

Center Korey Bauer (6-9, 2007) was sometimes the recepient of Zeglinski's nice passes, but needs to work on finishing with more strength.  Bauer is not the strongest kid, and looks like more of a wing-player though he only has strict big man skills.  He did do some damage scoring on the inside and was able to grab some boards, but I kept wanting to see him do more.

Chris Edwards (6-5, 2007), who looks young and might have room for added strength and size, is an athletic wing player that can handle the ball like a guard.  He showed some flashes, but lacks a particular wow skill.  On the flip-side, he has no major weaknesses either.

Playaz Gold

I always have a hard time figuring Corey Raji (6-6, 2007, #133 Rivals.com) out.  On the negative side, he's trying to improve the jumper but it's still somewhat inconsistent (and he faded away a few times which I couldn't understand), and though he often can drive into the lane, his finishes are rather weak.  On the flip side, Raji is always involved in the action, and he was noticeably trying harder than the rest of his teammates.  At the end of a close game the Playaz eventually lost to Team Philly, Raji did a nice job of getting on the floor hustling for the ball.

Also, though I discussed him yesterday, I was again a fan of off-guard Rashad Bishop (6-5, 2007).  Bishop kept on attacking the rim, and I noticed him doing positive things every time I looked up. The only negative was that as the Playaz tried to erase a big deficit and the game got tight at the end, Bishop forced up a few bad threes that he shouldn't have taken. 

Note, I mistakenly attributed the play of point guard Anthony Nelson to Antonio "Scoop" Jardine yesterday.  Jardine, who sometimes plays for Playaz wearing the same jersey, was not in attendance.

South Jersey Select

After watching at ABCD Camp last week, I expected more out of Anthony Raffa (6-0, 2007).  Raffa is a really quick player with track-star like jumping ability.  At ABCD, his lack of an outside shot hurt him, as he found it hard to score on the inside against the big boys. I expected him to be more of a go-to player for the Select but he was rather disappointing.  Raffa had some moments where he blew by opponents and he runs the wing well looking to score, but at his size, he lacks point guard skills and a consistent jump shot.  Worse though was that he seemed a bit temperamental.

Reebok Summer Classic East - Day One

Also, check out ABCD Camp stories and rankings from this past week.