Editor's note: Recruiting USA will be filing daily updates from the Nike and adidas/ABCD camps. Here is the fourth installment.
Nike no longer has all-star games at its camp, but adidas/ABCD caps its event with two games (a seniors-only game and one for underclassmen) following its playoffs. Since recruiting is fluid by nature, it is always interesting to watch the underclassmen all-star game and take a look into the future.
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Early commitments
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As expected, recruiting has been in high gear since the start of the Nike and adidas/ABCD camps.
On Sunday, 6-foot-5 senior swingman Jackie Manuel (Cardinal Newman H.S./Boca Raton, Fla.) had a list of prospective schools. A day later, he has made up his mind.
Manuel, who made the senior all-star game, is a done deal for Florida. He joins 6-11 Kwame Brown (Glynn Academy/ Brunswick, Ga.), one of the premier players at ABCD, as part of the early recruiting bounty for Billy Donovan. Both Floridians made the senior all-star game, adidas/ABCD's grand finale on Monday night.
Back at Nike in Indianapolis, 6-2 off guard Rashaad Carruth (Oak Hill Academy/Mouth of Wilson, Va.) committed to Kentucky, giving the Wildcats one of the nation's top shooters and better talents in the class.
-- David Benezra
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ABCD selects 30 underclassmen to participate, and more than a few caught the eye of everyone in attendance -- starting with the youngest freshman-to-be Sebastian Telfair (Lincoln H.S./Brooklyn, N.Y.).
Telfair's idol is Stephon Marbury, and the two also happen to be cousins. One of Marbury's best friends back in high school when Marbury attended Lincoln was Jamel Thomas, who later attended Providence. Thomas, who was rookie of the year in the CBA last season, is Telfair's brother.
Telfair (who should change his name to Tel-flair) provided most of the game's excitement with his hesitation and change-of-pace penetration moves that led to creative and effective passes. In addition, Telfair hit a buzzer-beating 35-footer that was disallowed because a teammate touched it in the cylinder.
This kid has great basketball instincts and has a chance to be special. Look for him to be the adidas centerfold in about two years' time. He could have been named MVP, which would have given him the chance to be a three-time winner in the underclassmen game before attempting to continue the streak in the senior game three summers from now.
He did, however, get schooled once -- by 6-foot-1 junior point guard Gerry McNamara (Bishop Hannah H.S./Scranton, Pa.) in the open floor. Telfair tried the fake behind-the-back pass, and kept his dribble, wrapping the ball around his body. McNamara recognized it and picked him clean of the ball. McNamara then went the other way on a 3-on-1 break and tried the same play. He successfully completed it and then dished it to a teammate for a dunk. He had a smile, akin to a wink, as if to say, "I've seen that and this is how you do it, kid" as he ran back up the floor.
It was a very good week for New York City kids. Junior Lenny Cooke, a 6-6 native New Yorker who will be attending school in Connecticut next year, had a great week. Cooke, who is very mature for his grade, was named the MVP of the all-star game for his team.
Cooke has a tremendous ability to get to the ball and to finish in traffic. His long arms and quickness don't hurt him either. He hasn't really been playing the sport all that long, but he has good ball skills and is a hustler.
Sani Ibrahim (W.D. Mohammed H.S./Atlanta, Ga.) didn't get to touch the ball much on offense in the all-star game, but the 6-9 junior altered and/or blocked his share at the other end and will be one of the nation's top recruits next year. In transferring to W.D Mohammed, he is going to a small school that doesn't have its own gym, but coaches will know where to find him.
Sophomore Sean Dockery (Julian H.S./Chicago, Ill.) is another of the underclass elite. The 6-2 Dockery, who possesses a strong handle and great floor vision, distinguished himself by playing solid, unselfish basketball, thereby bucking the trend of the new millennium.
Cooke, Ibrahim, and Dockery were well known before ABCD and they did not disappoint. But the real fun at an event like this is stumbling onto some talent that is relatively unknown -- something akin to finding a rich, chocolate rum ball hidden behind some stale bread on the bottom shelf of the fridge. You didn't expect to find it, and although you know it's going to be good, it seems so much more satisfying since you had no expectations about its existence.
Filling that confectionery description is 6-3 junior Daniel Horton (Cedar Hill H.S./Cedar Hill, Texas), who had consistently good games during the week and was a blur pushing the ball down the court. Horton can play either guard spot, and was more than just a strong jump-shooter.
The biggest rum ball was 6-7, 260-pound junior Mario Boggan (Southern Durham H.S./Durham, N.C.). Boggan showed surprising agility in being able to get around his man and go to the basket, in addition to taking up a lot of space in the post and getting plenty of putbacks.
We further indulged our sweet tooth with 6-9 junior combo forward Steve Novak (Brown Deer H.S./Brown Deer, Wis.) and 6-10 Chris Hunter (West Side H.S./Gary, Ind.).
Novak might have been the best-looking shooter (form, accuracy and consistency) in the entire camp. Even on a rare miss, he was right around the cup.
Hunter, if he works hard in the weight room, could emerge as one of the top post players in the country next year. He is very athletic and can face or play with his back to the basket. As an added bonus, Hunter works hard at both ends of the court.
Junior Jason Fraser (Amityville H.S./Amityville, N.Y.) showed good basketball IQ. At 6-8, Fraser is a long-armed forward who can pass the ball, rebound and finish. He stays within himself by playing to his current strengths but still has a good upside.
Of course, any list of underclassmen from ABCD should include 6-1 junior Anthony Roberson (Saginaw H.S./Saginaw, Mich.). Michigan state rules, however, forbid Michigan preps from playing in the camp all-star games, which meant the top point guard in the Class of 2002 had to sit it out.
Junior Charlie Rodriguez (Clovis West H.S./Fresno, Calif.) was the other MVP of the underclass game. Rodriguez is a bull at 6-7, taking it right at his opposition.
The MVPs of the senior game were 6-2 combo guard Billy Edelin (Oak Hill Academy/Mouth of Wilson, Va.), who has committed to Syracuse, and 6-1 Maurice Williams (Murrah H.S./Jackson, Miss.), who has committed to Alabama. Edelin was the game's leading scorer, while Williams showed his propensity for hitting deep treys.
The end of the Nike and adidas camps -- also known as the "Shoe Wars" -- pretty much ends the "me-first" part of the summer for a lot of the players. The adidas Big Time Tournament in Las Vegas (the biggest tournament of the summer) and the Nike Peach Jam in Augusta, Ga. (the first stop on the Nike tournament circuit) are about to begin the "we" part as everyone starts playing for their travel teams.
Mark Mayemura and David Benezra are the editors of the Recruiting USA website (www.recruitingusa.com).
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