School Daze

Trimming the Fat

CHN — Sun, 05 Apr 2009 10:07:15 -0700

by Aggrey Sam
Yesterday’s NHSI semifinal action at Georgetown Prep didn’t go quite as I expected, but one thing it did prove was who is at the head of the class when it comes to boys high school basketball teams this season. I’ll be brief.
Oak Hill vs. St. Benedict’s:
–While this game close early on (five-point game at the half), Oak Hill extends its cushion by the late stages, and despite St. Ben’s knocking down treys, the held off the Jersey squad, 74-66.
–St. Ben’s senior Tamir Jackson, a 6-3 guard, is going to be nice at Rice. While I definitely believe he could play at a higher level, I love it when kids go somewhere they can make an immediate impact. “Pops” can shoot it, both from deep and mid-range, he’s heady, defends well and handles it well enough to get to the bucket.
–One senior who hasn’t made his college choice yet (although he committed to Louisville as a sophomore and pledged to–and subsequently de-committed from–Virginia Tech this season) is Oak Hill’s Lamont Jones. More of a scoring point or a combo guard than a true floor general, “Momo” has been on tilt for certain stretches of this tourney. Whether it’s getting to the basket and finishing tough shots with contact or knocking down deep jumpers with a hand in his face, he’s certainly proved to be an explosive point producer. That said, I hope the NYC native makes the right decision in regards to selecting a college. I mean, he’s switched schools (Rice to American Christian to Oak Hill) so often, I don’t think anybody would be surprised if he transferred in college.
–Just as I jotted down how St. Ben’s sophomore point Myck Kabongo was doing a nice job taking care of the ball and making solid decisions despite tough D by Oak Hill junior Pe’Shon Howard, the opposite begins to occur. Pe’Shon (much-improved lateral quickness) wears down the thinner Kabongo, forcing im into some crucial mistakes down the stretch.
–Classy move by St. Ben’s coach Danny Hurley to sub out seniors Jackson and Pitt-bound Lamar Patterson in their final high school game for the school.
–”Momo” leads Oak Hill with 22, while Tiny Gallon chips in with 13 and 14. St. Ben’s was led by Jackson’s 20, junior wing Aaron Brown’s 18 and Kabongo’s 14, six boards and five dimes.
Montrose Christian vs. Findlay Prep:
–While I wasn’t shocked at the result of the first game, I expected the second semifinal to be more of a contest. I was wrong. Findlay used smothering D to subdue Montrose by the count of 60-43.
–When I used the phrase “smothering D,” you could substitute that for “Avery Bradley.” The Texas signee was extremely disruptive in the early going, amking it hard for Montrose’s ballhandlers to live, let alone get the ball past halfcourt. On top of that, he was unconscious on offense. His explosive transition finishes, no-fear drives to the cup and pure shooting from all over the court were outright sensational. Talking to my man Joey Whelan, we agreed that he has some Ben Gordon to him offensively (although his handle needs to improve and he penetrates more frequently than Ben), but defensively, he has a chance to be really special.
–Findlay’s perimeter D–while Bradley led the way, Illinois recruit DJ Richardson was almost his equal–forces Montrose to play to their strength, feeding their star big man, Mouphtaou Yarou. “Mouph” was simply too big for Findlay’s slimmer bigs to handle one-on-one, but constant double teams and eventually a zone, limited his effectiveness. Findlay junior Godwin Okonji, a 6-9 junior, was the most impressive individual defender, but he had a lot of help, as Montrose was held to an abysmal shooting performance. Still, I liked how “Mouph” passed out of double teams, something he may need to do during his ‘Nova (tough loss last night, fellas) career.
–The fact that Findlay’s Tristan Thompson and Montrose’s Justin Anderson, the two players with perhaps the highest long-term ceilings in this contest (and tournament), both come off the bench, is funny to me. So is the fact that Findlay only goes eight deep (hey, that’s their whole student body), but has fans who traveled from Vegas with signs and all. It’s likes Findlay’s been waiting for this game all season to officially put them on the map.
–Speaking of Anderson, while he didn’t have the same performance he did on Friday, I was just as, if not more, impressed by him yesterday. He was assigned the unenviable task of defending Bradley, and while Bradley cooked him just as thoroughly as he did the other Montrose defenders, he at least made him work for his shots by using his length. Shows just how highly Montrose coach Stu Vetter thinks of him. In addition, he used his top-notch athleticism to make a couple of huge blocks on Bradley (a high flyer himself, he reciprocated on the other end) and had a big-time put-back dunk.
–For Findlay, Bradley finishes with 27, six boards, three (spectacular) blocks and four steals, Richardson adds 12 and five and Thompson contributes eight and 10, with three steals. Villanova signee Isaiah Armwood leads Montrose with 10, eight boards and four blocks in a losing effort.
–Stay tuned for my recap of today’s chip, featuring Findlay and Oak Hill, or catch it on ESPN at 3 p.m. Eastern. Should be a good one.

Best of the Best

CHN — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 08:33:05 -0700

by Aggrey Sam
So I’m back in my old stomping grounds for the weekend to check out the ESPN/RISE National High School Invitational at Georgetown Prep, right outside DC. The NHSI is a post-season tourney pitting the nation’s top high school teams, serving as a de facto prep national tournament. Unfortunately, most high school state athletic association rules prevent teams from competing past a certain point in the season, so traditional powers like DeMatha, Mater Dei, St. Pat’s, etc., aren’t allowed to compete. Still, with star-studded squads like Oak Hill, St. Benedict’s, Montrose Christian and upstart Findlay Prep out of Vegas, there are still a lot of top prospects in attendance, including four McDonald’s All-Americans, the field isn’t too shabby.
Oak Hill vs. Pinewood Prep:
–On paper, this game is a complete mismatch. Although Pinewood features Clemson-bound McDonald’s All-American Milton Jennings, a 6-9 wing, Oak Hill counters with its own burger boy, Oklahoma-bound big (literally, at around 300 pounds) Keith “Tiny” Gallon, as well as a high-powered backcourt of top uncommitted senior guard, Lamont “Momo” Jones and consensus top-25 junior Doron Lamb, both NYC transplants, along with the always-steady (and polite) Pe’Shon Howard. On top of that, they bring junior West Virginia commit Bryon Allen off the bench, to go with frontliners Baye Moussa Keita, a 6-11 ‘junior ‘Cuse recruit, and high-flying Detroit native Glenn Bryant, an unsigned senior.
–Early on, Pinewood, out of South Carolina puts up a fight, but Oak Hill, led by Momo and his moxie, looks to be in control, despit Tiny picking up two fouls early. Speaking of Tiny, it’s a testament to how good he is that I’ve been hearing observers say he isn’t quite Blake Griffin, but Jeff Capel and Oklahoma can’t be mad that he’s coming in when BG’s departing.
–Jennings, one of the few top recruits I haven’t seen much of, looks good early. He’s hitting outside shots, he’s active on the boards (a must, being that he’s the only significant Pinewood player withany size) and is shifty enough to get to the bucket, evn though he’s clearly the focal point of Oak Hill’s defensive strategy.
–I really like Pinewood senior guard Kenny Manigault. A long, athletic slashing guard with good size (about 6-4 or so), he handles the ball well, plays hard and seemingly gets to the basket at will. Seeing him get up and put one down on the break, I wonder what most people have probably asked him throughout his life: Goat’s kin? Very nice pickup for Wichita State.
–Allen, a DC-area kid who started at DeMatha as a freshman, is pretty talented. A husky, 6-2 guard, he’s solidly built, yet very herky-jerky and has the ball on the string. He definiteloy has some toughness, so I think Bob Huggins will be happy with him, even if he has to rein him in a bit from time to time.
–Doron Lamb is the smoothest cat you’ll see. Stronger and now a legit combo, he’s a playmaker and never really forces the issue, despite being an extremely talented scorer. His mid-range game is a work of art for a high school kid. Turns out he’s pretty cool, too. After the game, him and Howard (who’s really improved since I first saw him as a freshman playing with Michigan State’s Delvon Roe) sit behind me and we talk about likely McDonald’s All-Americans from their class of 2010. Always interesting to get the players’ perspective.
–Anyway, back to the game. Pinewood keeps hanging around, and behind Jennings and Manigault (and some Oak Hill lapses), it’s 31 all at the half. Although Tiny picks up his third and fourth fouls early in the third, Oak Hill gets on a roll and starts running away with it, taking the game by a 83-64 score. Lamb ends up with 26, nine boards and four dimes, while Momo adds 20. Jennings puts up 24 and 12 for the losers.
St. Benedict’s vs. St. Frances:
–St. Frances, the Catholic league champs of B-More is coached by Mark Karcher, who also attended the school. Don’t know how many of y’all remember Karcher, but he played his final college season at Temple when I was a freshman there, and while he never found a spot in the League, I can remember him putting in work in college and before that, being a straight assassin as a prep star. Only 30, it’s good to see him on the bench.
–St. Frances has some talented underclassmen, but their star is 6-7 senior forward Terrell Vinson, a top unsigned prospect who transferred in from Montrose Christian. I was extremely high on Vinson as a youngster and while he hasn’t developed into the prospect I (and others) thought he would be, he’s a very solid player who can do a little bit of everything.
–St. Ben’s is coached by Danny Hurley, son of Bob Sr., of St. Anthony fame. If you’ve ever seen his father coach, you know that watching him stalk the sidelines is almost as entertaining as seeing one of his loaded squads put it on a helpless victim. Well, like father, like son. The make-up of Danny’s team is a little different than his pop’s, as he has a United Nations squad of international players and kids from all over the NYC region.
–I’m very impressed with 6-8 junior forward Gilvydas Biruta of St. Ben’s. A muscular kid who’s a force on the boards, he’s deceptively athletic and really attacks the basket to finish. On top of that, he can also step out to knock down treys. I’ll be keeping an eye on his development and recruitment.
–St. Frances started out down, 14-2, but comes back to lead by five at the half. Vinson has been his solid self, but Dante Holmes, a 6-3 junior, is making a lot of big plays. Holmes is tough, has a nice stroke and plays hard all the time. He’s another kid I’ll be watching in the future.
–Myck Kabongo, a sophomore point guard for St. Ben’s, has had his moments, but turnovers have been an issue for him. Still, I like the fact that the Canada native, a Texas commit gotten stronger, improved his jumper and is more of a ballplayer than a track star who can dribble now.
–Lamar Patterson, a senior Pitt signee, has struggled with foul trouble and is eventually DQ’d, but it’s really a blessing in disguise, as it allows 6-10 St. Ben’s junior John Paul Kambola to shine. I love how he runs the floor, blocks shots and plays the energy guy/drity work role to perfection. In reality, all of Hurley’s kids are willing to play that role.
–St. Ben’s plays solid down the stretch, hits their free throws, plays tough D and ends up coming away with a 74-65 win. Holmes dropped 23 and Vinson had 29 and seven for St. Frances in the loss.
Findlay Prep vs. Mountain State:
–Off the top, this was never really a contest. One of Mountain State’s top players, West Virginia signee Deniz Kilicli, a 6-9 Turkish bruiser who I first saw at adidas Nations last summer, picked up two fouls early, effectively ending the West Virginia prep school’s hopes of a win. One interesting sidenote: both schools are relatively new powers. In fact, I never heard of Mountain State until this season, and I consider myself someone in the know. Findlay is in its second year of existence and while the idea of having a prep school on the outskirts of Vegas sounds crazy, they’ve been pretty successful so far, only losing one game, including this year’s undefeated (so far) season.
–Findlay only has eight players, but one of them is Texas-bound McDonald’s All-American Avery Bradley, probably the nation’s top on-ball defender and a ridiculous athlete, to boot. They also have Illinois signee DJ Richardson, who, like Bradley, is a high-flying 6-3 guard who can both shoot it and defend. Carlos Lopez, a 6-11 UNLV signee, is their other senior. He’s the only one of the trio I haven’t seen, but he immediately catches my eye with his bounciness and aggressiveness, not to mention his eccentric look. Their underclassmen aren’t too shabby either, as Canadian junior point guard Cory Joseph (younger brother of Minnesota’s Devoe) and fellow 2010 prospect Tristan Thompson add to the strong group.
–Speaking of Thompson, a 6-9 Texas commit (think a smaller LaMarcus Aldridge with more perimeter skills), he’s playing alongside his second Grassroots Canada AAU teammate and Texas commit this season. Until a few months ago, he was at St. Ben’s (with Kabongo; Joseph also plays on his AAU squad and Bradley is also committed to Texas), until being dismissed by Hurley and resurfacing at Findlay. Rumor has it that Kabongo may join him at Findlay next season, but time will tell.
–This is my first extended look at Noah Cottrill, a 6-2 junior point guard at Mountain State and a West Virginia commit. Cottrill, an in-state kid, is doing his best to help his team not get embarrassed, but they’re clearly outmanned. Still, I like his competitiveness, his pure stroke, vision and unselfishness. He’s got his hands full with Bradley and Richardson taking turns guarding him, but he’s trying out there. Also, look out for Mountain State freshman Najee Whitehead.
–Findlay wins, 76-55. Thompson goes for 20 and eight, Lopez has 14, nine and three blocks, Bradley has 15, six and five dimes and Joseph puts up 13, five and four, while Cottrill has 23 (including six treys) and four dimes (with seven turnovers) in a losing effort.
Montrose Christian vs. Friends Central:
–Saying this game was never a contest is an understatement. I’m somewhat familiar with Friends Central, a Philly-area team (and alma mater of Mustafa Shakur and Hakim Warrick), and I know they have some nice young players, but there’s no way they were ready for Montrose. 6-10 Mouphtaou Yarou and 6-8 Isaiah Armwood, both Villanova signees, hold things down on the inside, while Oregon native Terrence Ross, a 6-5 junior swingman is their headliner on the perimeter.
–”Mouph” is a straight beast. A true post player, he could help the Wildcats in their Final Four game tonight. Built like a blacksmith, he has excellent footwork, runs the floor wel, has a nice touch and is a force on the inside.
–Armwood, like his former teammate Vinson, didn’t develop the way I expected when I first saw him as a sophomore, but Im like the strides he’s made. He’s forgotten about transforming into the next Kevin Durant (a Montrose alum) and focused on playing to his strengths (his superb athleticism) and improving his mid-range J.
–Ross is a kid I was immediately biased against because my mother saw a picture of him in the paper and said he looked like me at that age. All jokes aside, the kid can play. Smooth, athletic, a fluid ballhandler with a great stroke, look for him to continue the ascension to elite prospect he started on last summer.
–The kid who stole the show, however, was Montrose freshman Justin Anderson. I really try to not talk about kids until after their freshman year on varsity is over, but this kid has got something. A 6-5 guard, he has a frame a lot of seniors would be happy with, crazy athleticism, a dynamic handle and passing ability, and a solid stroke. In other words, he’s no ordinary freshman. Playing under Stu Vetter, one of the very best coaches in the high school game, I fully expect him to live up to the hype he’s already getting in the DC area.
–Friends Central kinda got demoralized after a while, but one kid who piqued my interest was another freshman, 6-6 Amile Jefferson. He desperately needs to add weight, but he has a good feel for the game, a great motor, plenty of length, finishes well and can already guard multiple positions. His poise, however, is what impressed me most. Also, 6-3 sophomore guard Devin Coleman, a smooth lefty, has a lot of potential, as well.
–Montrose won it, 88-45. No need for stats. It was cool to see Montrose’s bench players get a lot of burn and the starters going crazy for them. T. Jordan Omogbehin (great name!), a raw, 7-1 sophomore, might have stolen the show from Anderson toward the end, as he seemed to gain confidence by the minute.
–Back to the gym in a bit for the semis today. Catch them on TV, if you can.

The Domestic Duo

CHN — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 11:20:21 -0700

by Aggrey Sam
With Ricky Rubio and Brandon Jennings, this makes sense. Teenage pro phenoms, one an Olympian, the other a trailblazer (not literally, I hope—that would take “Pritch-slapped” to a new level), playing major roles on top European squads, blah blah blah. Yeah, SLAM is bold, cutting edge, whatever—but knowledgeable basketball fans in general won’t be shocked. Even the most devout high school hoops observers, however, couldn’t have predicted they’d see John Wall and Lance Stephenson on a cover. Not at this point, anyway.
Well, maybe Lance. He is from Coney Island, after all (third time’s the charm?), and graced this publication’s pages as a precocious point-producing phenom before he started the 10th grade. That was after he already took home a NYC PSAL (Public School Athletic League) title (the first of four consecutive; what up, Franklyn), after he faced off with then-rising senior OJ Mayo at ABCD Camp before he entered high school and after he was already a regular playing with and against grown men at the Rucker.
On the other hand, it was before the BK native’s well-publicized (blown out of proportion) off-court incidents, before he was (in)famously cut from the USA Under-18 National Team last summer, before his bornready.tv online documentary (which just moved onto real TV earlier this week) and before most talent evaluators (not this one) dropped him from the top spot in their rankings. Basically, people got tired of Lance Stephenson.
John Wall, though? That’s another story. A lot of casual observers of the prep scene have never even seen him play. Up until about two years ago, even the most ardent national scouts barely knew the kid’s name. So how did a skinny, unknown kid from Raleigh emerge as the most talked-about prospect in the nation? I feel almost privileged to explain his rise to stardom, as I was an eyewitness.
It started in Chicago, back in June of ‘07. Reebok held a tryout camp for lesser-known players and underclassmen to battle for the opportunity to be selected to their invite-only camp in Philly. Wall stole the show in the Chi, then repeated his performance with an encore at the big show a month later, alongside names like the aforementioned Jennings.
His unbelievable athleticism and mind-blowing were the attributes that immediately stuck out, but since then, he’s continued to hone his game. Last summer, his stock went through the roof, as he destroyed any and all comers on the AAU and camp circuit, leading many to rank him as the nation’s top prospect.
I last saw Wall play over the holidays in Florida, and his development was remarkable to me. Tighter ballhandling, an improved J (albeit streaky; still a work in progress, but it was non-existent before), even better playmaking ability and most importantly, newfound leadership skills are what caught my eye. Wall has transformed from a monster athlete into a real ballplayer, and possibly a future All-Star NBA point guard, to boot. The tools were always there, but these days, the production is starting to match the potential.
As for Lance, don’t believe the hate. “Born Ready” still dominates at will (ask the West squad about his second-half performance in Wednesday night’s McDonald’s Game; don’t get me started on why Wall wasn’t in it, or, for that matter, why Lance won’t be in the Jordan game in his hometown, in which Wall will participate), but, in my opinion, not enough people are noticing. Sure, they see the stats—as well as the four city chips, two state crowns and the all-time New York state scoring record—but all you hear is negativity. Remind you of anybody else’s prep career? A certain rookie on the Grizzlies, perhaps? Think about it. Both born scorers. Both nationally known since before the ninth grade. Both heavily criticized for on and off the court issues. Both determined as hell to succeed.
And despite his lack of hype prior to this point, that goes for Wall, too. I could go on and on about their individual games, but I’ve always been a proof-is-in-the-pudding type of dude and I’m pretty damn confident that in two years (if you think them killing their respective one-and-done years isn’t a foregone conclusion, you’re probably on the wrong site), these two will show and prove as NBA rookies. I’m not saying they’ll be better than OJ and Derrick Rose. But if comparisons aren’t being made, I’ll be very surprised. So, international intrigue aside (and believe me, I’m sold on Ricky and Brandon, too), these two homegrown and domestically-developed guards have a chance to be very special for years to come. Just don’t say you weren’t warned…