By Shawn Siegel

shawn@collegehoops.net

July 9th, 2006

ABCD Camp: Day Three - Evening

Player capsules for the third evening of the ABCD Camp in Teaneck, NJ.  Final player rankings will be up later tonight. 

Players are listed alphabetically, with biographical information and a short scouting report. Each day different players are discussed, so check out previous days and upcoming days for other prospects. 

Teeng Akol - #140 – Rockets - #48 Rivals.com (#14 PF)

Centereach, NY – 6’11” – 2007

6’11” and athletic is good enough to be #48 in the country.  His skill level is about 450^th in the country though.  Akol is amazingly long and lean, yet despite the length, its not like he was really blocking or altering that many shots on defense. You also think he’d be a better offensive rebounder, but he corralled just one in the long stretch of time I watched.  Also, when Kori Augustus stepped Akol out on the perimeter, Akol had no chance.

Chris Allen - #46 – Bulls - #22 Rivals.com (#4 SG)

Lawrenceville, GA – 6’3” – 2007 – Michigan State

Allen was being guarded by Taylor King, and did a good job leaking out after King’s shots or while King was rebounding to get easy baskets on the other end.  On the flip side though, this enabled King to get lots of O-rebounds.  The fact is Allen did absolutely nothing all week outside of getting easy layups or shooting a three every 20 minutes.

Dante Anderson - #148 – Bulls

Gainesville, FL – 6’4” – 2008

I finally got a chance to focus on Anderson Saturday night.  This is a kid who has a knack for scoring, though he’s not necessarily a shooter at this point.  He also jumps quite well, seemingly hanging in the air with a lot of hang-time.  He has a lot of work to do on the rest of his game as he’s a mediocre rebounder and not much of a passer at this point.

Olu Ashaolu - #108 – Jazz – #19 Hoopmasters.com (’08)

Brampton, ON – 6’7” – 2008

Olu’s attitude was noticeable during the game, and not in a positive way.  He got a rare camp T for hanging on the rim, and also was giving the refs a hard time on a couple of his fouls.  Both are completely unnecessary in such a camp, and the last thing he needs is to get a bad rep with the coaches in attendance.

Kodi Augustus - #125 – Jazz - #97 Rivals.com (#26 SF)

Pearland, TX – 6’9” – 2007

There’s a reason Augustus didn’t make the camp All-Star game. Its because he’s in love with his jump shot.  Yes, he shot a nice 43% from three, and his stroke is improving, but he’d be more productive if he played on the inside right now.  The fact that he was more focused on showing off his shot instead of helping his team win games might say something about his personality.

Jonathan Baldwin - #68 – Pistons

Alquippa, PA – 6’5” – 2008

Baldwin is a solid prospect for only being a junior.  He’s listed as a wing forward, which I found odd at first, because he handles pretty well and runs like a guard. But then I saw him shoot, and you realize why he’s not an off-guard. His form edges on being ugly and needs some work.  He’s also not the fastest guy out there, and lacks the explosiveness of some of the wing players.  Still, he’s a good enough player to warrant attention from high-major teams.

Chris Braswell - #114 – Knicks

Temple Hills, FL – 6’8” – 2008

Its odd to see a player who is so effective on defense have such a weak offensive game. At one point, he spun in the post and threw the ball so high off the backboard that it almost went over the glass.  Still, he’s one of the few players who is noticeably good at reacting to shots, passes, etc and getting his hands on them.  Part of his struggles on offense might stem from the fact, that he runs awkwardly because he’s a bit pigeon-toed, and his feet look too small for his frame.

Tramaine Butler - #40 – Pistons

Detroit, MI – 6’2” – 2007

Didn’t see much out of Butler last night.  He made a few baskets, but he seemed like he was a dime a dozen player at this level.  With his lack of size here, he was noticeably unable to finish on the inside.

Anthony Crater - #32 – Jazz

Flint, MI – 6’2” – 2008

Crater was up against fellow ’08 guard Malcolm Lee, and Lee was basically unable to drive by or do anything against the quicker Crater.

James Dunleavy - #54 – Rockets

Los Angeles, CA – 6’4” – 2007

Dunleavy spends most of his time on offense running around, trying to run curls and come off screens looking to hit the three.  The problem is that even if he works hard for the three, his form isn’t particularly pretty and he missed a lot more shots than he attempted.

Braxton Dupree - #121 – Celtics - #82 Rivals.com (#21 PF)

Baltimore, MD – 6’8” – 2007 – Maryland

Dupree looked much better yesterday than he did when I watched earlier in the week.  Up against the higher rated Cole Aldrich, Dupree more than held his own, and he used his big strong arms to muscle offensive rebounds that Aldrich should have gotten.

Rashon Dwight - #33 – Pistons

Newark, NJ – 6’2” – 2007

I made a point of watching Dwight last night because he was putting up decent numbers all week.  But I wasn’t really a fan.  He was particularly fast and looks good slashing to the basket.  But the problem is that he’s not strong, and doesn’t jump very well, so he’s not really able to finish.  Despite the apparent weakness on offense, he did have a nose for the ball and was able to get some rebounds that I wouldn’t have expected.  Seems more like a mid-major prospect.

Devin Ebanks - #99 – Jazz – Scout.com #1 SF for ‘08

Long Island City, NY – 6’7” – 2008

Ebanks is a great physical talent, and he’s been an All-Star game MVP for two years in a row, but when I was watching him Saturday night I kept just thinking how overrated he is.  He was mostly just waiting for the ball, looking for chances to get easy hoops, etc and was not working hard on defense, rebounding, etc.  The kids physical attributes are top notch, but if I needed to win a game tomorrow, there are a whole bunch of underclassmen in camp I’d rather have on my team right now.

Kelvin Grady - #7 – Pistons - #18 PG Scout.com

Ada, MI – 5’11” – 2007 - Michigan

Grady was playing alright in a game against the Magic, those his teammates were not the most talented bunch.  He was trying to force three-pointers to go in, but they were just not falling.  He did a decent job of containing the talented Rico Pickett, but on the most part, Grady was unexceptional.

Blake Hoffarber - #150 – Magic

Minnetonka, MN – 6’4” – 2007

Hoffarber seems to have got more confident as the week went on, as he was really looking to score the ball more than earlier.  Leading the camp at 60% shooting and making the most threes by a wide margin will help confidence.

JuJuan Johnson - #133 – Magic - #85 Rivals.com (#6 C)

Indianapolis, IN – 6’10” – 2007 – Purdue

I finally got around to watching Johnson and was very disappointed. The fact anyone could think he’s the 6^th best center in the class is not so much the fault of Rivals as much as an indicator of the weakness of the center class.  Offensively, his post game was a mess.  He brings the ball low whenever he gets the ball and is a candidate to be blocked or have the ball stolen. 

Shaquille Johnson - #43 – Rockets

Jacksonville, FL – 6’3” – 2008

Johnson is a nice little player, who basically is a scoring guard.  He’s not the flashiest of players, but he simply hit shots from all over.

DeAndre Jordan - #139 – 76ers - #33 Rivals.com (#9 PF)

Houston, TX – 6”11 – 2007

I wasn’t really watching Jordan in the evening, but its hard to notice him when he’s out there.  He’s just so long and athletic that you can’t think he is a possible NBA player one day if he works hard and improves.

Taylor King - #154 – 76ers - #40 Rivals.com (#7 SF)

Huntington Beach, CA – 6’8” – 2007 – Duke

You have to give King credit for improving his all-around game.  He’s become quite effective at offensive rebounds, and blocks a surprising amount of passes.  Saturday evening was one of the best all-around games I’ve seen him play.

Sylven Landesberg - #78 – Pistons

Queens, NY – 6’6” – 2008

Landesberg is all about potential at this point.  He’s great driving to the hole and finishing, but he doesn’t have good range on his jumpers at this point.  If he wants to play shooting guard in college, then he simply needs to improve his jumper.  Once he can hit jumpers consistently, he’ll be an offensive force to be reckoned with.

Trey Lang - #90 – Rockets

Marietta, Ga – 6’7” – 2007

Lang was impressive last night despite not putting up big offensive numbers.  He impressed by playing good defense on Olu Ashaolu.  When Olu got the ball in the post, Lang got nice and wide in his stance and got his arms up high.  He also had a nice block on Kenny Boynton.

Alex Legion - #66 – 76ers - #38 Rivals.com (#11 SG)

Southfield, MI – 6’5” – 2007

I feel like I’ve picked on Legion a lot this week, but the fact is he just continued to take a lot of bad shots.  He has so much speed and moves, that I wanted him to take it all the way to the basket and finish, instead of flashing mid-range shots that clanked off the rim.

Malcolm Lee - #63 – Rockets

Moreno Vally, CA – 6’5” – 2008

The most noticeable thing about Lee is his great height for a point guard. Unfortunately, he was getting handled with east by Anthony Crater.  He was one of the few players of the day making noticeably more turnovers than good passes, and he shot the ball at a very low percentage in the few attempts he took. 

OJ Mayo - #85 – Hawks - #1 Rivals.com

Cincinnati, OH – 6’5” – 2007

Not Mayo’s best game last night (seems to be the story of his camp.)  He was most impressive on the defensive end, as he can be a real stopper with those long arms and even better foot speed.  Offensively, he was mediocre, trying to be a bit too flashy, and making some ill-advised passes.

J’Mison Morgan - #142 – Pistons

Dallas, TX – 6’11” – 2008

I knew nothing about this player before last night, but he was surprisingly effective.  He’s tall, big bodied, and despite being listed at 270 pounds, he does not look as out of shape as some other big men his age.  He’s also pretty well coordinated, got a decent array of post moves, and made a few blocks in this game, and averaged a good amount of blocks all week.  I haven’t heard his name much, but I definitely expect Morgan to be one the better centers in camp next year if he returns.

Aaron Pogue - #111 – Hawks

Dayton, OH – 6”9 – 2007

Pogue is a solid player, and one of the better players not in the national ranking. He’s like a lesser version of Braxton Dupree, a little slower, and not quite as polished on the offensive end.  Still, he’s efficient, and at one point he impressed me by having to step out and effectively help guard point guard Edwin Rios.

Hamidu Rahman - #144 – Rockets

Somerset, NJ – 7’0” – 2007

Rahman shows enough flashes that he seems like a worthy project for just about any team.  He blocked one or two shots, though they were weak attempts that such a big guy would have had to have blocked.  Offensively, he basically does the same thing every time, turning and shooting a little semi-hook over his left shoulder.  He’ll need to work on adding some variety, or at least being able to make his one shot successfully.  The fact is, he’s a very big boy with good enough coordination that he gets rebounds, clogs up space, and is not a liability on either end of the court.

D’walyn Roberts - #96 – Mavs - #128 Rivals.com (#36 SF)

Dallas, TX – 6’7” – 2007

It’s funny that Roberts and Evan Turner are on the same team, because the two look a like and play similarly.  Turner just does everything a bit better than Roberts does, particularly shooting from the outside.

Tracy Smith - #117 – Bulls - #96 Rivals.com (#24 PF)

Durham, NC – 6’8” – 2007

Smith was up against Tim Flowers, and easily got the best of him.  Even though he’s so tall, Smith can handle, and he blew by Flowers once or twice off the dribble.  He’s got a good touch on his short jumpers, and also from the line.  Smith is a legit high-major stud.

Antonio Topps - #22 – Magic

S.Holland, IL – 6’1” – 2007

Topps was not particularly good.  He missed the few long shots he took, and more importantly, his decisions handling the ball were not good.  On the break, he had made a few bad passes, and I did not feel comfortable with him leading the team.  The only positive was that he did a fine job defending Rashon Dwight, though Dwight isn’t much of an offensive player.

Darquavis Tucker - #45 – Mavs - #36 Rivals.com (#10 SG)

Saginaw, MI – 6’3” – 2007

Tucker was disappointing last night.  Yes, he finished one breakaway with a sick 360 jam, and yes, he hit a wide open three, but there wasn’t much going on in between.  You would think a player of his stature would have moves to beat people one on one, but despite trying, he was never able to go anywhere.

Alex Tyus - #151 – Mavs - #41 Rivals.com (#12 PF)

St Louis, MO – 6’8” – 2007

During the afternoon, Tyus’ jumper disappeared, though it reappeared in the night session.  Such is life at this point with Tyus, inconsistency with his shot, though now he’s on one of every two games, where at this point last year, it was only once every few days.

Storm Warren - #153 – Jazz

Monroe, LA – 6’8” – 2008

Kind of a forgotten man on the Jazz, who have a lot of offensive weapons.  At this point, he’s a nice athletic body without much talent to go with it. Still, he’s tall an athletic enough that he’s someone to watch in the coming year depending on how he develops.

Leonard Washington - #92 – Magic - #43 Rivals.com (#8 SF)

Breaux Bridge, LA – 6’7” – 2008

Washington played well last night, particularly on the defensive end.  He’s one of the stronger kids out there, and was really active on defense.  He had two steals and a pair of blocks in the little time I watched and his opposition wasn’t able to get by.  Offensively, he lags behind other top prospects, but he’s the type of guy you want on your team.

Elliot Williams - #58 – Rockets

Memphis, TN – 6’4” – 2008

I caught just barely enough of Williams to give him a plug in here.  He’s a very good athlete, and he was able to simply jump up above some people to get rebounds.  He plays bigger than you’d think and did a pretty good job defending the highly talented Kenny Boynton.

Teondre Williams – #59 – Rockets

Tucker, GA – 6’4” – 2008

Williams is similar to Shaquille Johnson who was his teammate in camp except that Williams is a bit more athletic while Johnson has a more refined shooting touch.  He did hit a pair of threes in the evening game. 

More ABCD Camp stories and archived coverage of previous years.

2006 ABCD - Day One

2006 ABCD - Day Two

2006 ABCD - Day Three-Afternoon

2006 ABCD - All-Star Games/All-ABCD

2006 ABCD - Final Player Ranking