The July evaluation period begins this week and it has a different feel than in previous years as college coaches will be on the scene, seeing prospects for the first time since their high school seasons ended. Contact between the coaches and players is still prohibited, but previously they were allowed to evaluate prospects at the April tournaments instead of just July.
Nike’s LeBron James Skills Academy/King City Classic in Akron, Ohio, and will feature the largest number of top targets – those that have been recruited since early after making their reputations right out the gate as underclassmen in school and on the club circuit.
Reebok’s All-American Camp in Philadelphia, Pa., and Adidas’ It Takes Five Classic in Cincinnati, Ohio, each have a large pool of mostly uncommitted players. Expect college staffs from to be represented all over this week at one point or another as they do their recruiting diligence.
Harrison Barnes, Ames (Iowa)
Photo by Nicholas Koza
The week in Akron starts with player development workouts, headed by LeBron James, Sunday through Tuesday (closed to coaches).The King City Classic, a tournament with the campers divided into teams, takes place on Wednesday and Thursday in Cleveland (open to coaches).
Headlining the event from the rising senior class are the two who have risen to the top this spring and summer – Harrison Barnes (Ames, Iowa) and Jared Sullinger (Columbus, Ohio/Northland).
Barnes has been a cut above the rest with his progression, holding a state title and big spring to his credit after making a splash last year as a rising junior at the event. Barnes has visited Duke, North Carolina, Stanford and UCLA this spring, and has Florida, Iowa State, Kansas, Kentucky, Minnesota, Oklahoma and Texas Christian on his list as well.
Sullinger is a prospect that features big-time talent and always seems to be associated with – or leading – a winning team. Committed to Ohio State, his club team All-Ohio Red entered the spring as the defending national champs in their age group. Sullinger and All-Ohio Red have captured two major tournaments while reaching three championship games. It’s more than any other team except for the Team Final squad led by Michael Gilchrist (Elizabeth, N.J./St. Patrick) and Dion Waiters (Burlington, N.J./Life Center), who Sullinger and All-Ohio Red hold a victory over in April’s Boo Williams Invitational title game.
Sullinger even carried his NBA Players Association Camp team to the championship in Charlottesville, Va., falling short to Gilchrist’s team.
A select group of underclassmen make the invite list and topping them all is Gilchrist, who will draw a crowd of coaches after pushing some to make the argument that he is the best high school-aged prospect in America regardless of class.
His matchup with Barnes at NBA Camp was cut short when he went down with a shin injury that forced him to leave the game at the start of the second half, so there’s plenty of anticipation for the pair hooking up in Cleveland.
Class of 2011 prospects James McAdoo (Norfolk, Va./Norfolk Christian) and Adonis Thomas (Memphis, Tenn./Melrose) enter fresh off a gold medal with Team USA in the FIBA Under-16 games in Argentina. The underclassmen combo forwards will be joined by the rising seniors tops who are tops at the position in Ohio State commit DeShaun Thomas (Fort Wayne, Ind./Bishop Luers) and C.J. Leslie (Raleigh, N.C./Word of God), a one-time early North Carolina State verbal now wide open in his recruiting.
Top perimeter players include Jereme Richmond (Waukegan, Ill.), Will Barton (Wolfeboro, N.H./Brewster Academy), Andre Dawkins (Chesapeake, Va./Atlantic Shores Christian), Reggie Bullock (Kinston, N.C.), Doron Lamb (Mouth of Wilson, Va./Oak Hill Academy), Roscoe Smith (Mouth of Wilson, Va./Oak Hill Academy) and Cameron Clark (Sherman, Texas).
Richmond is committed to Illinois, Barton to Memphis, Dawkins to Duke and Bullock to North Carolina.
The top 2010 lead guards will have 2011’s best coming right at them. Kendall Marshall (Arlington, Va./Bishop O’Connell), Josh Selby (Baltimore, Md./Lake Clifton), Dion Waiters (Burlington, N.J./Life Center), Kyrie Irving (Elizabeth, N.J./St. Patrick’s) and Jelan Kendrick (Atlanta, Ga./Westlake) top the rising seniors while Marquis Teague (Indianapolis, Ind./Pike), Austin Rivers (Winter Park, Fla.) and Brad Beal (St. Louis, Mo./Chaminade Prep) lead the rising juniors.
Marshall is committed to North Carolina, Selby to Tennessee, Waiters to Syracuse, and Rivers to Florida.
Perry Jones (Duncanville, Texas), Terrence Jones (Portland, Ore./Jefferson), Adreian Payne (Dayton, Ohio/Jefferson) and 2011 prospect Rakeem Christmas (Philadelphia, Pa./Northeast Catholic) headline the bigs along with Sullinger.
Joe Jackson, White Station (Memphis, Tenn.)
Photo by Nicholas Koza
In Philadelphia, the players split into 10 teams with pool play games starting Wednesday and going through Friday. The final day features the playoff rounds leading to a camp championship game followed by the All-Star Game to end the week.
Brandon Knight, the nation's top guard and reigning Gatorade Player of the Year, has made the most of his spring, bouncing between two teams to get the most court time. He took Each One Teach One Elite to the semifinals of the Boo Williams’ Invitational and fell short in the championship of the Nike Memorial Day Classic.
With Southeast Elite, Knight had big games at the Real Deal on the Rock in Arkansas and the Wallace Prather Memorial in Georgia. He’s been firing away at his push toward being considered the best overall in the class and and he’ll enter the week with some added fire after his team went winless at NBA Camp.
Knight recently visited Connecticut and lists Clemson, Duke, Florida, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Kansas, Kentucky, Miami and Syracuse.
Joe Jackson (Memphis, Tenn./White Station) is in the upper tier of potent scorers among the rising senior guards and rivals only Knight as the most lethal at Reebok. He attended Memphis’ elite camp and is being pursued as a top priority by Tennessee, Ohio State, UCLA and Kansas among others.
Teammates on the summer circuit Patric Young (Jacksonville, Fla./Paxon) and Aaron Bowen (Jacksonville, Fla./Wolfson) join Tony Chennault (Philadelphia, Pa./Neumann-Goretti), Noah Cottril (Beckley, W.Va./Mountain State Academy), Royce Woolridge (Phoenix, Ariz./Sunnyslope) and Lenzelle Smith (Zion, Ill./Benton) lead the camp as the top committed talents.
Young is set for Florida, Bowen for Marquette, Chennault for Wake Forest, Cottril for West Virginia, Woolridge for Kansas and Smith for Ohio State.
After Knight and Jackson, the top uncommitted players in attendance enter off solid outings at the NBA Players Association camp.
Stacey Poole (Jacksonville, Fla./Andrew Jackson) finished third in the camp in scoring. He’s listing Clemson, Florida, Indiana, South Carolina and Xavier with new interest recently from Georgia Tech and Louisville.
Memphis natives Tarik Black (Ridgeway) and Mardracus Wade (Mitchell) helped their teams to the camp championship game and Michael Cobbins (Amarillo, Texas/Palo Duro) comes off an impressive week as well.
Luke Cothron (Red Springs, N.C./Flora McDonald) was one of the few top rising seniors in the country to miss the event but is being nationally recruited and will be back in action in Philly.
Jelani Hewitt (Fort Lauderdale, Fla./Northeast) posted a big 45-point game back at May’s Tournament of Champions.
The 2011 class is well represented with top talent in Mississippi’s LaQuinton Ross (Jackson Murrah) and Rodney Hood (Meridian), New Jersey’s Myles Davis (Jersey City/St. Peter’s Prep), Myles Mack (Paterson Catholic) and Sterling Gibbs (West Orange’s Seton Hall Prep) and Texas’ LeBryan Nash (Dallas Lincoln).
2012 prospects Kyle Anderson (Paterson, N.J./Paterson Catholic) and Wannah Bail (Houston, Texas/Village School) will draw their share of coaches as well.
Ryan Harrow, Walton (Marietta, Ga.)
Photo by Nicholas Koza
Staying true to the team concept, the three stripes hosts a traditional tournament allowing for more players to be seen throughout Cincinnati-area gyms. Expect some new names to emerge here.
The chase is on for the top true center in the rising senior class in Fabricio de Melo (Weston, Fla./Sagemont) as he headlines the uncommitted talent. Connecticut, Florida, Florida State, Louisville, Miami and Syracuse all make the cut while others are sure to try and get involved by showing face this week.
Ryan Harrow (Marietta, Ga./Walton), Jordan McCrae (Hinesville, Ga./Liberty County) and Trae Golden (Powder Springs, Ga./McEachern) have led their Atlanta Celtics squad to two final fours of tournaments with national fields – April’s Real Deal in the Rock and May’s Tournament of Champions. Harrow is committed to North Carolina State, McCrae to Tennessee and Golden is open after being a one-time early Ohio State verbal.
Other favorites would be Nate Lubick (Southborough, Mass./St. Mark’s), committed to Georgetown, and one of the top 2011 point guard prospects Naadir Tharpe (Wolfeboro, N.H./Brewster Academy) leading the New England Playaz.
Josh Hairston (Spotsylvania, Va./Courtland), Tyler Thornton (Washington, D.C./Gonzaga), Eric Atkins (Columbia, Md./Mount St. Joseph’s) and Max Esho (Lee, Maine/Lee Academy) lead DC Assault. Hairston and Thornton are committed to Duke, Atkins to Notre Dame and Esho to Massachusetts.
2011 forwards Marshall Plumlee (Arden, N.C./Christ School) and Cody Zeller (Washington, Ind.) have been establishing themselves this spring on the U16 circuit and are sure to draw crowds playing for Indiana Elite.
* Notable talents not in action this week include Josh Smith (Covington, Wash./Kentwood), Tony Wroten (Seattle, Wash./Garfield), and teammates Tristan Thompson and Cory Joseph at Findlay Prep of Henderson, Nev. Smith is recovering from having his tonsils removed, Wroten is in summer school, and Thompson and Joseph are in New Zealand playing for the Canadian U19 National Team.
