Archive for October, 2011
Clarence Willard Interview
Before the NJCAA Regular Season officially opens up, we wanted to take the time out to announce a full fledged sleeper.
Clarence Willard, no relation to Ralph, out at Dodge City CC is a 6’3 combo guard, who jumped on the scene out at Coffeyville’s jamboree.
He has a lot of interest from LM’s, but no offers yet; is one of those kids, you can just tell he is going to be a nice pick up for whatever school he ends up at.
A few knowledgeable facts about Clarence are below:
2011 All Salt Lake Jamboree Team
We thought we had posted this All Jamboree Team that same weekend, but upon further review, I had just saved it as a draft.
This is from Friday night only of the event, and some of the teams that were scheduled to be there that weekend did not start playing until Saturday.
The MVP of the night was Duvaughn Maxwell, who avg 21.5 & 11 in the 2 games W. Nebraska played.
Here are some more studs from the night.
2011 All Littlefield Team
This past weekend at All Tournament Players Park in Marietta, GA saw a slew of teams with quite a bit of talent come together to play at least three games in the Littlefield Hoops Jamboree.
It is safe to say every team that participated played hard, did some great things, but also saw areas that they can definitely and will improve on.
The headliner for the day was obviously Chipola. Coach Jake Headrick’s team came fresh off the bus to take on Lawson St, and settled in to beat them by 10. With the officiating over the course of the day being so horrid, it was almost not possible to get a solid eval on these kids.
Thankfully though, Jamboree Director Ken Littlefield had a pow-wow w/ the officiating crew at halftime of the Chipola/Lawson St game and let them know Joey Crawford & Dick Bavetta were not here evaluating them, so settle in & let the kids play.
The message was heard loud and clear, and thus allowed Chipola to easily handle the Lawson St Rams.
There were a few other big games throughout the day, and the surprise team of the day, if they can be called that, was Roane St. The whole team is filled w/ marksman, and they were all connecting over the course of the day.
Below is a list of the 2011 All Littlefield Team, which is comprised of the studs of the day. Each kid that you see on the list will be put in a typical RecruitDirt.com formatted report, with evaluation and contact #’s available to members.
Desmond Lee Interview
We saw Desmond Lee in prep school and knew he was a stud.
But, instead of us raving about him, lets let a current HM D1 Assistant shout out Mr. Lee from what he saw out in Dallas:
“Desmond Lee looked like a million bucks out there this weekend. He is extremely polished and seemed to make all the right plays w/ the ball. His stroke is effortless, and he has NBA range.”
Prior to attending New Mexico JC, Lee signed w/ UTEP.
Here is some more juicy info on the 6’5 2 guard.
Terrance Motley Interview
If there was a basketball version of Disney’s the Mighty Ducks 2 movie, Terrance Motley would be the other bash brother to teammate Duvaughn Maxwell.
Motley is a graceful bruiser, standing 6’6/225 pounds, Motley has an inside/out game that most coaches covet bc of the versatility he can provide.
While his strength is driving to the basket and finishing thru contact, Motley has nice touch out to 17′, and the ability to be a mismatch against most every team.
We saw him score 16pts and grab 9 rebounds against CSI last Friday at the Salt Lake Community College Jamboree, who has some of the most talented bigs we’ve seen during this fall evaluation period.
It was on that night we decided to catch up w/ Motley and see exactly what he had going basketball wise.
Antwon Oliver Interview
Antwon Oliver is a kid who out of high school had a little bit of fan fare, but was mainly a regionally known player to most.
Basketball heads had seen him on the circuit, and came to appreciate his skills, specifically his ability to score the basketball.
The knock on him was he could not handle the ball, and was more of a shooter, then scorer, but we are here to attest that Oliver has refined his game, and is now putting the ball on the floor just as easy as he shoots his NBA “3.”
After sitting down with Antwon, we came to the realization that people are defnitely sleeping on him, so allow us to get you caught up with the young stud.
Oak Hill/Massanutten Scrimmage
There was quite a bit of energy in the gym last night at Christiansburg High School in anticipation of the Oak Hill Warriors vs the Massanutten Colonels. The standing room only crowd was buzzing during warm ups, and it got the player’s from both teams pulling out more than a few tricks in layup lines.
Massanutten answered the bell, and played well early, but eventually Oak Hill’s depth and talent took over after the first 5 minute stretch.
Salt Lake City Jamboree (Friday Night)
Salt Lake CC Jamboree Recap – Friday Night:
College of Southern Idaho – There is a championship aura that surrounds the CSI men’s program after last years Championship run. From the way they walk into the gym, to the custom fit Under Armour gear they wear, this team has a little bit of that “it” factor going on. Coach Ghosar & the boys are loaded up for another run at that title, and this year their strength lies in their frontcourt. Even w/ Paul Bunch not playing, the horses were dominating the paint and kept CSI in each game. Anthony Allen is still raw all the way around, but he is a defensive presence. Fellow freshman Greg Sequele showed flashes of how good he will be at times with his ability to finish above the rim & cover space off the bounce. Luke Cothron is no doubt skilled enough, and really played with effort everytime he was in. To me, their toughest player on both ends is Rafriel Guthrie. A D.C. kid, his ability to get to the cup, opened up the floor for the shooters, and allowed the bigs to get some easy buckets. The key to CSI’s success though will be how unselfish their guards, specifically their PG’s are. When they pushed the ball and hit the open man, they scored at will. When they got to pounding the ball and waiting for a ball screen in the half court set, things got stagnant and mistakes tended to occur.
Western Nebraska – Having never seen a Coach Russell Beck team play live, but hearing how tough and hard they went, I had lofty expectations for the WN squad in their first game Friday night. And, by no means did they disappoint. It wasn’t the prettiest showing by Coach Beck’s team, but it wasn’t suppose to be. What it was, was organized chaos mixed with guys who genuinely care about each other, going as hard as they can for as long as they can. And, Duvaughn Maxwell is the ring leader. Traditional scouts & coaches will say he isn’t skilled enough to play the “3″ or big enough to play the “4″, and will overlook him. Shame on them, Maxwell is long enough and active enough to guard a “2″ thru “5,” and did just that at different points in the game against CSI. It is hard not to love Maxwell w/ the effort he puts out, & how smart of a player he is. Someone will get a steal when they take him, and be rewarded handsomely for doing so.
The other guy on the team that made play after play was Terrance Motley. Motley, a 6’6 4/3, is a bully on the block, and is fearless attacking the rim. He tracks rebounds well, and his effort is always there.
Laramie CC – One thing that was clear when watching Laramie play both their games tonight was they believe in Coach Ficca! Those boys ran his system in mid season form, and showed no let up on “D.” Coach Ficca trusts his team though, and is not out there worrying them about mistakes, there is a mutual trust between player and coach, and it helped them in both their games Friday. Under the radar PG Philp Freeman is Laramie’s most important player. He imposed his will on Snow CC in the first game, and was just as good against Salt Lake CC in the second. Freshman Julian Chiera is their hybrid player, and once he gets used to the juco game, he will be the team stat stuffer because of his size & skill combination. Rodrigo Silva is a skilled “4″ man for Laramie with range out to “3″ and nice touch on the inside. The future is bright for Coach Ficca though as a bulk of his team is made up of freshman, and talented ones st that. 2 is arguably their best freshman.
Central Wyoming – Absolutely loved watching these guys. Severely outmatched by CSI’s 2nd unit, yet believed in themselves & what they do and got the W in their first game. Don’t know that they have a single D1 player, but have a bunch of guys that wherever they land will do the same thing they did tonight–hustle, hit tough 3′s, share the ball, and protect the paint. Freshman Anthony Strickland is a horse! You look at him & think he’s the film guy, then he comes down hits 2 big 3′s, sneaks in for a few momentum swinging offensive rebounds, takes a charge, takes your ball. One of those kids who gets picked last in pickup, but is the reason his team never comes off the floor.
Salt Lake CC – Could tell this was their home tourney. Came out the gates playing so hard to where there was no possible way they could sustain it. Look better on paper right now then they do on the court, still gelling as a unit. Showed flashes though, and have quite a bit of talent. Even with a broken nose, was easy to see Marquis Horne is their best/most important player. Undersized “4″ strong on the block, nice bounce, strong body. Gabe Kindred doesn’t do any one thing well, but plays so hard, you have to respect him. Really is a quality D2 player.
Snow CC – didnt see enough of them for a good evaluation.
Kevin Johnson Interview
At first glance, people may see the title of this interview and say, “huh?”
Coaches who favor politics or are from the west coast (only 3 schools) may think we caught up w/ the governor of Sacramento, false.
We are referring to Kevin Johnson from Summit Country Day in Cincinnati, OH.
Johnson is a 6’3/185 combo guard who has a great body and presence on the floor.
What makes Johnson so unique is the fact that despite how talented he is, he has not really blown up nationally.
He feels people are sleeping on him, we agree.
Here’s what else we learned about the Semaj Christon, Geron Johnson clone.
Aaron Moore Interview
Coaches who like basketball players that can do a little bit of everything will love Aaron Moore.
Moore is a 6’7 mismatch that can play & guard the “2″ “3″ and “4″ effectively night in and night out. What makes him so tough, is the fact that he is throwback tough. A kid who, w/ a slender build, still finds a way to get to the line and mix it up in the paint.
Add to that his ability to shoot the ball out to 3′ and you have an offensive threat capable of putting a team on his back.
Moore is currently playing at San Bernardino Valley College in California, and will be a stat stuffer this upcoming year for the Wolverines.
During our West Coast hiatus we were able to see Moore practice, and go through an individual workout all in one day, so while shortness of breath was a factor during the interview, Moore gave us 35 quality minutes of access.