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LOOKBACK AT HOOP GROUP ELITE CAMP

BY JEFF BORZELLO

READING, Pa. – The most important – and busiest – period of the recruiting calendar kicked off back on Monday July 6th, as high school prospects and college coaches began their month-long journey around the country. The Hoop Group Elite Camp also had its share of talent in attendance at Albright College. The player pool was watered-down because of the other tournaments and camps going on around the country – Reebok U All-American Camp, Lebron James Skills Academy, adidas It Takes 5IVE Classic – but that does not take away from the dozens of quality prospects in attendance. With all-star nominations on the line and a multitude of coaches watching closely, the games were more hotly-contested and intense than the normal camp atmosphere.

Here’s a look at some of the top players – out of about 700 – that NBE checked out on the first two days Division-I coaches were allowed to attend:

Khalil Murphy, 6-7, APEX Academies (N.J.): It was the tale of two performances for Murphy. When I first saw him play, he seemed out-of-shape and the sort of guy who could definitely improve his conditioning. However, after a few possessions, he showed how versatile and talented he is. He can handle the ball fairly well, makes excellent outlet passes and can defend multiple positions. He’s also quicker than he looks and can finish down low.

Tyler Harris, 6-5, Half Hollow Hills West (N.Y.): Tobias’ younger brother showed a better stroke than I saw from him at the St. John’s Elite Camp on Wednesday, and demonstrated his range. He also pump-faked defenders who didn’t respect his dribble-drive enough. Tyler could use some work on this quickness and explosiveness, the same area that has transformed his older brother to among the handful of elite players in the 2010 class. On the other side of the ball, he is a good defender because of his length.

Mike Buffalo, 6-2, Wings Academy (N.Y.): Buffalo was very impressive offensively, scoring the ball in a variety of ways. He does have an awkward-looking jump shot because of its rotation, but he knocked down a long-range three as well as a mid-range pull-up. He was at his best driving to the basket, though, finishing well at the rim. On one occasion, he drove past Tyler Harris and used his body to completely knock Harris out of the play and clear the way for an easy deuce.

Malik Thomas, 6-7, Wadleigh (N.Y): The lanky wing recently visited Seton Hall, but he will need to play better if he wants to make an impact at the Big East level. He is extremely skinny and needs to put on a lot of muscle. He seemed timid at times and got beat off the dribble and outmuscled defensively. On the positive side of things, he is long and has athleticism, and also showed a solid pull-up.

Thomas told NBE that he is being recruited by Seton Hall, Drexel, Niagara, Hofstra, Siena and Quinnipiac. He visited Seton Hall recently, enjoyed his trip, met with Bobby Gonzalez and several of the players. Thomas plans to visit Drexel in August.

James Bourne, 6-6, Bishop O’Connell (Va.): The big man from the mid-Atlantic showed a great drop step and very solid footwork with his back to the basket. He gets very good post position and makes himself available for entry passes. Bourne has good hands and can finish effectively.

De’Mon Brooks, 6-6, Hopewell (N.C.): The athletic forward from North Carolina can finish very well, and showed an impressive reverse lay-up right off the bat. He is a good rebounder and gets second opportunities for himself. Furthermore, he had a couple of nice blocks defensively and demonstrated solid handle.

Marcus Romain, 6-3, Thomas Jefferson (N.Y.): Romain seems like he can be a very, very good player if he gets a little more seasoning. He is very thin and did not get pushed around a little bit, but his offensive game is well-rounded and impressive. He has good one-on-one moves, and can beat defenders off the dribble. Romain also hit a nice pull-up jumper while getting fouled, and also showed the ability to finish at the rim with contact.

Aishon White, 6-2, Nia School (N.J.): With DeShaun Wiggins on his team, he did not have a chance to touch the ball that much – and no, that’s not a compliment to Wiggins. However, he had several nice cuts to the basket and ran the floor very well for transition baskets. He ran the pick-and-roll well and showed good hustle. White also gets good lift on his jumpers, and has a good-looking stroke.

Mike Poole, 6-6, St. Benedict’s (N.J.): Poole struggled throughout much of the contest NBE watched him in, getting to the basket on several occasions but failing to finish. He beat his defender and got open shots, he just couldn’t knock them down. As usual, Poole showed off very solid versatility and all-around game, but nothing in particular stood out.

Devin Brooks, 6-0, St. Raymond’s (N.Y.): An extremely quick point guard, Brooks has tremendous handle and can get past his defender with an assortment of dribbling moves. He finished at the rim once getting into the lane. However, he did seem out of control at times, and turned it over too often.

Shane Southwell, 6-6, Rice (N.Y.): When perusing the 60-plus team rosters at the camp, arguably the top player on paper was Southwell. However, while he did demonstrate his versatility and all-around game, he was not as aggressive at either end as he is with his AAU team, the New York Gauchos. He did show his ability to defend multiple positions, but did involve himself too often offensively.

St. John’s, Xavier, South Carolina, Marquette, Providence, Kentucky, Georgetown, Cincinnati, Miami and Kansas were programs mentioned by Southwell to NBE at the Rumble in the Bronx.

Ishaq Pitt, 6-3, Ridge (N.J.): A player who certainly made his presence felt offensively was Pitt, who had a handful of basket-and-fouls during the course of the first half. He got to the basket at will and finished with contact on multiple occasions. He has a strong body for a guard and uses it well.

Aquil Younger, 5-10, West Catholic (Pa.): Another very quick point guard, Younger was very difficult to stay in front of. He has a great handle and gets into the lane often. Younger has good vision and is a very solid and flashy passer. However, he struggled to finish and missed multiple open opportunities at the rim.

Joel Brokenborough, Hodgson Votech (Del.): The versatile swingman played well at both ends of the floor, defending solidly on-the-ball and also finishing offensively. He had an impressive dunk in one of the games and can score. He is active and aggressive at each end. Brokenborough also showed a flash of his pull-up, mid-range jumper.

Melsahn Basabe, 6-7, St. Mark’s (Mass.): Had hoped to tune in to his match-up with big man Shaq Duncan, but Duncan did not show up until the later session. Still, Basabe rebounded the ball well and had a good follow at the rim. He cut well to the basket and caught the ball for chances around the rim. However, he needed to be more aggressive at both ends, as he missed several chances to block shots and also did not actively try to score. Furthermore, he’s clearly not comfortable handling the ball and was beaten off the dribble by smaller but quicker opponents.

Basabe had a strong week at the camp overall and at the Peach jam he told NBE he has picked up 11 new offers since, including one from St. John’s.

Naofall Folahan, 6-10, Notre Dame Prep (Mass.): The first center drafted at the camp, Folahan could very well end up being the best player at the camp. Extremely tall and long, Folahan is very athletic and finished two alley-oops in impressive fashion. He can run the floor well and has good hands. He has decent post moves and showed off a turnaround jumper. Folahan also showed a nice free-throw touch and had a couple of outstanding blocks. On the other hand, he needs to finish better.

Kareem Thomas, 5-11, Christ the King (N.Y.): Although Thomas does not seem much time playing behind Corey Edwards at CTK, he was impressive in Reading. He is very quick and an adept dribbler who can get past defenders. Thomas has an excellent pull-up jumper and is a steady floor general. He has a smooth game and is a very solid passer. Thomas can also finish with both hands once he gets to the rim.

Matt Miller, 6-3, Mount St. Joseph’s (Md.): An impressive shooter, Miller showed deep range and got hot early on from beyond the three-point line. He has decent handle as well. However, he failed to box out a couple of times and also was beaten defensively.

Mustafa Jones, 6-0, Neumann-Goretti (Pa.): Another excellent shooter, Jones showed a better off-the-dribble game than we’ve seen from him previously. He has a quick dribble and can create his own shot. Jones also moves very well without the ball, looking to get free for shots.

Khalid Lewis-El, 6-2, Trenton Catholic (N.J.): Lewis-El didn’t get much of an opportunity to show all of his skills, but he had solid handle and made a couple of nice passes. He was not overly aggressive and was out of control on his one fast break attempt.

Dwaun Anderson, 6-3, Sutton’s Bay (Mich.): The athletic lefty reportedly showed his explosiveness on Sunday, but he looked a step slow on Tuesday. He was beaten defensively and was out-hustled to a loose ball. Offensively, he took it well to the basket and finished strong at the rim. Furthermore, he posted up well for a guard. He was not as aggressive as we would have liked to see, though.

Daniel Stewart, 6-6, Neumann-Goretti (Pa.): Did not see as much running and dunking as we did at the Hoop Group Showcase in Neptune, N.J. last week, but he did show off a good face-up game – something he needs to develop to be effective at the next level. He beat defenders off the dribble and finished with contact.

Vaughn Allen, 6-7, TBD: One of the best offensive rebounders I’ve seen this summer, Allen had several second chance points to keep himself involved and active throughout the game. He is very athletic and is hungry for the ball – on multiple occasions, he leaped over and around defenders to get rebounds. Allen runs the floor very well and can finish around the basket. He also has a pretty good handle and shields the ball well when driving to the rim.

Austin Colbert, 6-8, St. Patrick’s (N.J.): A very long and athletic forward, Colbert is going to get better as he matures and gets older (class fo 2013). Still, he is a good rebounder and shot-blocker who can also dribble the ball a bit. Colbert also runs the floor well.

Eli Carter, 6-1, St. Anthony (N.J.): At the Rumble in the Bronx, Carter lit up Team NJABC for Sports University, but he did not have the same sort of impact here. He did have a nice pull-up in transition and a crafty drive to the basket, but he did not get much of a chance to do anything else.

NBE has learned that Rutgers has increased their pursuit of the New Jersey guard.

Jayon James, 6-6, TBD: The versatile Paterson product is undecided on where he will be headed next year, but hopefully he is more consistent than he was today. As always, he handled the ball very well for his size, and showed off his point guard skills. However, he forced too many shots and did not pass the ball enough. James turned it over too often when driving to the basket. On the positive side, he boxed out well and got offensive rebounds and put-backs.

Theo Boyomo, 6-8, Kent School (Conn.): Boyomo was impressive in the chances he had today. He showed several nice post moves, including back-to-back jump hooks in the early going. He did not show if he could go over his right shoulder as well, but he was effective turning to the left. He also had a nice face-up jumper and a good up-and-under finish at the rim.

Deon Jones, 6-4, TBD: The brother of Virginia’s Jeff Jones, Deon has a good all-around game. He plays – and looks – bigger than 6-4, as he blocks shots and rebounds well around the rim. Furthermore, he can handle the ball and had a nice drive and dish to an open teammate. Jones also ran the floor well.

Shaq Duncan, 6-8, Frankford (Pa.): Duncan was one of the more impressive players today, as he completely dominated the intriguing 7-3 Blake Vedder. He is a face-up big man who can drive to the basket and had several nice reverse lay-ups, using the rim as a shield against Vedder. He runs the floor very well and can catch the ball and finish at the basket. Duncan has a mid-range jumper and is not afraid to take defenders off the dribble. Defensively, he was solid and he also rebounded well.

Blake Vedder, 7-3, Impact Basketball Academy (Nev.): One of the more interesting prospects at the camp, Vedder struggled against the much quicker and more athletic Shaq Duncan. He was constantly beat for baskets, and did not take advantage of his edge in size. However, he does do a good job of keeping the ball up and made a nice pass to an open cutter. Vedder needs to learn how to use his size better, at both ends of the floor.

Coaching Notes:

- Big East schools were represented on on the first two days by staff members from Georgetown, St. John’s, Pittsburgh, Seton Hall, Rutgers and Villanova, checking out the talent on hand.

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