Michigan Recruiting

HOOPHALL CLASSIC 2012: SUNDAY RECAP

By Brian Bosworth, National Recruiting Analyst

While the action at the Hoophall Classic was terrific on Saturday, the overall atmosphere jumped to a new level on Sunday. College coaches who had been busy coaching their own teams in action Saturday were out in full force. John Calipari (Kentucky), Jim Calhoun (Connecticut), Steve Lavin (St John’s), Mark Gottfried (NC State), Ed Cooley (Providence) and Mick Cronin (Cincinnati) all made appearances along with assistants from Florida, Texas, North Carolina, West Virginia, Virginia Tech, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Oregon, Utah and DePaul. These coaches witnessed a large collection of highlight performances none more impressive than that by a player with the nation’s best haircut.

Top Performer:

Nerlens Noel (Tilton School 2013) – Noel and his high top fade put on a show worthy of the #1 2013 ranking I dubbed him with in my preview podcast of the event. Long considered the top shot blocker in America, Noel proved to be that and more in his nationally televised showdown with Mitch McGary and Brewster Academy. His final stat line reads 22 points, 8 rebounds, and 7 blocks with just about everyone in attendance agreeing that the 7 blocks is an extremely conservative estimate. I had one longtime scout tell me that Noel is the best shot blocker he has ever evaluated on the high school level. While his defense was as amazing as ever, Noel’s offensive progression continued its steady climb from the past year. He drove baseline and made a floater over Mitch McGary. He used a spin move and finished a lefty hook in the lane. He hammered down multiple tip dunks flying from out of nowhere to grab them. He drew contact at the rim repeatedly eventually fouling out Jakarr Sampson. Noel put on a virtuoso performance which stands up against the absolute best I’ve seen from him in the past. He looks like a future all-American, future lottery pick, future NBA all-star.

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BOSWORTH: NATIONAL PREP SCHOOL SHOWCASE WRAP-UP (TOP PERFORMERS)

By Brian Bosworth, National Recruiting Analyst

Now that the National Prep Showcase has concluded it’s time to take a moment and digest everything that I witnessed in New Haven this weekend. One thing that jumps out is that the talent level in New England is at an all time high. While many players are imports from other areas of the country a large part of rosters on New England prep times are made up of local talent. Most notably, Nerlens Noel in 2013 and Noah Vonleh in 2014 both have a chance to become the top player in their class nationwide. These two separated themselves from everyone else at this event both with their current production and with their long term potential.

Past those top two, Ricardo Ledo deserves more recognition for his performance on Friday night. Ledo’s ability to score has never been questioned but his intangibles and whether or not he is a winner have long been debated. Against La Jolla Prep he not only scored from everywhere on the floor but he proved to be the vocal leader of a talent rich South Kent team. He specifically seems to have taken on somewhat of a mentor role for talented junior Chris Thomas. According to South Kent head coach Kelvin Jefferson Ledo has been everything he could have asked for and more both on the floor and in the locker room. He has taken Thomas under his wing in a sense and has been an incredible positive influence. If this progression continues, Ed Cooley landed an even bigger star than already thought.
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BOSWORTH: SUNDAY’S NATIONAL PREP SHOWCASE BREAKDOWN

By Brian Bosworth, National Scouting Analyst

The National Prep Showcase was back in full swing on Sunday with top teams like Brewster Academy, New Hampton Prep, and the Tilton School all in action. While the rosters of most prep schools in this event are dominated by seniors and post-graduate players it was a pair of underclassmen that stole the show on Sunday.

Co-Headliners of the Day:

Nerlens Noel (Tilton School 2013) – With college coaches such as John Calipari (Kentucky), Steve Lavin (St. John’s), and Ed Cooley (Providence) on hand to watch him play Noel put on quite a show Sunday night. Having already established himself as the premier defensive big man in America during the summer with BABC, Nerlens showcased an expanding offensive game that brings his upside to a new level. He played on the wing for much of the first half and repeatedly used a deadly right to left crossover to attack the rim and finish with his left hand. Despite being right handed he seems to prefer using his left to finish around the basket and did so with startling efficiency in this game. If Noel can continue to develop his offensive skills to complement his defensive brilliance he will give Jabari Parker a serious challenge for the spot of #1 overall player in the class of 2013.
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TOP 15 RECRUITING CLASSES FOR 2012 NATIONALLY

By Brian Bosworth, National Recruiting Analyst

After providing early signing period recruiting class highlights from the BIG EAST, ACC, Big 10, Big 12, Pac 12 and SEC, as well as the top Non-BCS Schools, it is time to sum everything up and release our list of the Top 15 Men’s Basketball Recruiting Classes through the early signing period.

The recruiting classes are well-balanced throughout the country. The BIG EAST and Big 10 lead the early going with each conference placing three schools in the rankings. The Pac 12, ACC and Big 12 each have two schools cracking the top 15 and the SEC has one. There are two programs from ‘non-BCS’ conferences also on the list.

Five different conferences placed schools in the Top 5 so far. Here are the classes…ranked 1-15…

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EARLY SIGNING PERIOD CONFERENCE HIGHLIGHTS – BIG 10

By Brian Bosworth, National Recruiting Analyst

Today we continue our look at the early recruiting classes nationally with a look at the Big 10 where three programs can clearly make a case for the top class in the conference to date…

Top 5 Big 10 Recruiting Classes:

1) Michigan
Commits – Mitch McGary (PF/C), Glenn Robinson (SF), Nik Stauskas (SF)
–McGary is without a doubt the top prospect that John Beilein has ever landed in his time at Michigan.

2) Indiana
Commits – Hanner Perea (PF), Kevin “Yogi” Ferrell (PG), Jeremy Hollowell (SF), Ron Patterson (SG), Peter Jurkin (C)
–Tom Crean landed a group of five pieces that all fit together and could eventually be the starting lineup for Indiana.

3) Michigan State
Commits – Gary Harris (SG), Kenny Kaminski (PF), Matt Costello (C), Denzel Valentine (SF)
–Already an impressive 3 man class, Gary Harris chose the Spartans over Kentucky, Indiana, and Purdue pushing Michigan State among the nation’s elite classes.

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JAREN SINA OPEN TO ANYTHING IN SECOND RECRUITING GO-ROUND

Jaren Sina looked like he had ended the recruiting process early and was off the board before college basketball fans across the country really had a chance to begin to follow his recruitment. Sina, a 6-foot-2, 175-pound point guard from Gill St. Bernard in New Jersey verbally committed to the Crimson Tide last January, during his sophomore season. Now as he is preparing for his junior season the Class of 2013 prospect is back on the open market and looking forward to going through the complete recruiting process.

“I have a great relationship with the coaching staff at Alabama, but I just wanted to have the opportunity to go through the recruiting process again and make sure that I am making the right decision and that I am 100% sure on my choice,”Sina told NBE Sports earlier this evening.

That relationship with the Alabama staff is especially true with head coach Anthony Grant and Sina is definitely still considering the SEC program.

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NOW AT VERMONT ACADEMY, DOMINIC WOODSON IS AN UNKNOWN COMMODITY NO MORE

by Alex Schwartz

Entering July, not many people outside of his part of Texas knew who Dominic Woodson was.

After breaking out during AAU Nationals in Orlando, Fla., the 6-foot-9 class of 2013 center is now a high-major priority.

Woodson transferred to Vermont Academy for his junior season. NBE caught up with Jesse Bopp, his coach at the New England prep school, to discuss Woodson’s recruitment, game and more.

“Vermont Academy was a great opportunity for him to be in a very controlled environment that resembles what life will be like for him as a college basketball player and he is a kid who talks about being the best and hopefully this environment gives him the opportunity at that,” Bopp said of why Woodson made the move, adding, “He has done a great job adjusting to all aspects of life here.”
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RECRUITMENT OF ISAIAH WATKINS CONTINUES TO GAIN STEAM

There are a lot of new faces within the St. Benedict’s Prep basketball program in Newark (NJ) this season. From new head coach Mark Taylor to Class of 2015 must-see point guard Isaiah Briscoe and more new talent on the Gray Bees’ roster it is an exciting new era for the program in Newark. One player that still seems to be under the radar nationally is Isaiah Watkins, another member of the Canadian AAU program CIA Bounce that will look to excel this year for Taylor’s squad.

“What drew me to St. Benedict’s was the goal of becoming better,” Watkins told NBE earlier this evening. “Improving every day and hopefully being able to win at the highest level possible.”

The improvement of Watkins has been ongoing through the spring and summer according to Nolan Shulman, National Recruiting Analyst of Flagrant Fouls and Editor-in-Chief of the Ultimate Recruiting Handbook which is the authority on Canadian basketball prospects. Shulman also noted that Watkins will come to work every single day at St. Benedict’s, which should only enhance his goal of improving.
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TANVEER BHULLAR POISED FOR A BIG RECRUITMENT

College basketball is becoming more and more of a guard’s game. So when a prospect comes along standing 7-foot-3 and weighing 315 pounds entering his junior year of high school plenty of debate ensues in regard to his place in the game. This is nothing new to Tanveer Bhullar who actually saw his older (and bigger) brother Sim go through the process. Like his brother, expect Tanveer to be one of the most evaluated, and debated, prospects in the country in the 2013 class.

“Obviously with the similarities in body type it’s natural that people are going to compare Tanveer to Sim,” Nolan Shulman, National Recruiting Analyst of Flagrant Fouls and Editor-in-Chief of the Ultimate Recruiting Handbook which is the authority on Canadian basketball prospects, told NBE this morning. “They both have very similar strengths. Great hands, great touch, and great size.”
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2013 C/PF CHINONSO OBOKOH SEEING MORE COLLEGE INTEREST; PLANNING VISITS

One of the intriguing big men in the Class of 2013 is Rochester (NY) product Chinonso Obokoh. The 6-foot-10, 220-lb center attends Bishop Kearney High School where he plays for coach Jon Boon. He is still a relative unknown in many recruiting circles since he only came to the United States from Nigeria in the spring of 2010 and has had limited exposure on the AAU circuit the last two summers. In the early July evaluation period he attended the Hoop Group Team Camp with his Bishop Kearney teammates and drew a lot of attention from scouts and coaches anxious to get a look at him on the floor.

Obokoh saw some time with the City Rocks AAU program and his highlight of the summer was getting the chance to play against another highly touted big man in the Class of 2013.

“Playing against Nerlens Noel of BABC,” said Obokoh of his highlight of the summer. “I thought I held my own.”
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SUMMER SHOOTOUT NOTEBOOK

By Alex Schwartz

ALLENTOWN, N.J. — Although the Summer Shootout is not necessarily well-known outside of New Jersey, the event is filled with quality teams and talented players on a yearly basis. The 2011 edition was no different, as NBE Basketball Report took in some of the action on Saturday and got to catch up with a handful of Big East recruits.

Isaiah Watkins, a 6-foot-8, 215-pound power forward, really saw his stock increase this summer. A class of 2013 prospect who hails from Toronto and is in his first year at St. Benedict’s (NJ), Watkins already lists a number of high-major offers.

Watkins said that Santa Clara, Missouri, Arkansas, Cincinnati and Virginia have all extended scholarship offers to him. In addition, he is hearing from Harvard, Ohio State, Georgetown, Michigan, Elon, Lafayette, Niagara, Villanova, Rutgers, Seton Hall, Temple, West Virginia, Kansas and more.
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STEFAN JANKOVIC Q&A: 6’10 2012 CANADIAN FORWARD SET TO VISIT WAKE FOREST

NBE was able to catch-up with Stefan Jankovic earlier this weekend. After originally attending The Kiski School in Saltsburg (PA) when coming into the States from Canada, Jankovic not always got much publicity because he was overshadowed by the Bhullar brothers (7’4 Sim and 7’2 Tanveer). However, he consistently showed to be the best player on Kiski and his move to Huntington (WV) Prep last December only helped in development and exposure. He is an absolute match-up nightmare due to his versatile offensive game and 6-foot-10 size. Jankovic can stroke it consistently from the arc and is also capable of posting up and finishing with a jump hook. He can get past his defender off the dribble and has a nice mid-range pull-up. He rebounds the ball well at both ends, and is very fundamentally sound.

Jankovic has been a little bit of a forgotten prospect this summer as an injury kept him out of action for much of July. Still, his recruitment is moving forward and he took the time to chat with NBE about the injury, the year ahead at Huntington and his recruitment…

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INTRODUCING LAMONTA STONE II — YOUNG POINT GUARD ENTERING HIGH SCHOOL ALREADY HAS D-1 OFFERS

By Ray Mernagh

LaMonta Stone II is the son of a coach — his father LaMonta is a long-time assistant coach at Bowling Green.

The younger Stone has shown this summer that he probably isn’t going to get overlooked the way some coaching offspring tend to.

Stone, who will enter Bowling Green High School this fall, is a traditional point guard according to those that have seen him this summer.

Stone did work at the Jr. Phenom Camp in San Diego at the start of the summer where he was ranked the #1 point guard in the camp, and continued to impress throughout the July period. So much so that he’s already garnered his first two D-1 scholarship offers from Central Michigan and Eastern Michigan. Stone is also getting interest from Michigan State, Iowa State, Michigan, Cincinnati and Duquesne.

Young Stone is definitely a player NBE will track over the next few years as he matures physically and will no doubt receive intense looks from even more programs nation-wide as he steps right into the Varsity level as a 9th grader.

For now here’s a little taste of his skills in the open court.

Let me be the first to dub the move the “Stone Cold” crossover.

2011 ORLANDO AAU NOTEBOOK (PART 9): BRANNEN GREENE, TYLER CAVANAUGH, LANDRY NNOKO & THEO PINSON

By Alex Schwartz

BRANNEN GREENE SETS LOUISVILLE VISIT; PLANNING OTHER TRIPS

Pushing 6-foot-7, Brannen Greene is a mismatch on the wing due to his height and refined skill set. The Monroe (GA) native is a solid athlete with a good build who can do quite a bit with the ball in his hands. Greene has a high basketball IQ and good court vision, allowing him to hit the open man in position to score. His handle is superb and he can get through the defense on the way to the rack. Greene finishes pretty well at the rim and is crafty down low against the big bodies. He has nice form on his jumper, though he has yet to become a truly consistent shooter from deep. Greene puts in effort at the defensive end and can cause problems on the perimeter due to his length.

Greene has seen his stock explode as much as anyone in the Class of 2013 this summer and he a school list to prove it. He said that he has offers from Louisville, Georgia Tech, Georgia, Alabama, Marquette, Florida State, Florida, Connecticut, Kansas, Ohio State, Memphis, South Carolina, the equivalent of such from Harvard as well as “a lot more.”
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2011 ORLANDO AAU NOTEBOOK (PART 4): ARCHIE GOODWIN UPDATES RECRUITING, MCGARY, NOEL CONTINUE TO DOMINATE & MORE

By Alex Schwartz

Ian Baker, a native of the DC-area now attending Arlington Country Day School in Florida, told NBE he has a top five school list he is working off of.

“I’d say my top four are Miami, South Carolina, Providence and Tennessee and you could say Marshall,” he said in Orlando where he is playing in AAU Super Showcase. “That’s my top five.”

Baker said Miami is his leader right now with South Carolina second and Tennessee third.

Baker has offers from four of his top five schools, with Tennessee as the only one who has not offered.

Asked if that is definitely his final five he cut his list to, Baker replied, “That’s about it. I wanna see how it’s gonna be after the tournament, who’s interested, who’s not, but as of now that’s how it’s gonna be.”

At one point Providence was his co-favorite with Miami, but Baker said he has not heard from PC as much of late and noted, “I’m not sure if I’m a top priority to them or not.”
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2011 NIKE EYBL PEACH JAM REPORT (FINAL REPORT)

By Brian Bosworth

The single elimination playoffs got underway Thursday night at the Peach Jam with four quarterfinal match-ups. The run-and-gun acrobatic show of the Oakland Soldiers against Kyle “slow-mo” Anderson and his New Jersey Playaz Club was too much to pass up so that’s where I planted myself. “Slow-mo” gave a Herculean effort ending up just 1 rebound shy of a triple double but in the end the Soldiers athleticism was simply too much to overcome and they advanced to the semifinals. Players from both teams showcased their talents for the bevy of college coaches in attendance.

Dominic Artis (Oakland Soldiers/2012) – Artis is a short statured point guard who has been getting reviews this spring as potentially the best point that the West coast has to offer. His play in this game made it easy to see why. He drained deep three pointer after deep three pointer both of the catch and off the dribble finishing 6-9 from behind the arc. In addition Artis is quick and crafty with the ball constantly working his way into the paint and creating scoring chances for teammates. He served as the engine that made this high powered Soldiers offense go leading his team both vocally and with his play on the floor.

Kyle Anderson (Playaz Basketball Club/2012) – What more can be said about Kyle Anderson that hasn’t been said already? He was brilliant against every defender on the Soldiers roster. They threw bigger guys at him and he used his deadly crossover to get into the paint. They threw shorter, quicker defenders at him and he went down to the right block and went to work. It seemed like every player on the Oakland Soldiers got a chance at stopping Kyle Anderson and every one came away shaking their head. Scouts can critique Anderson’s foot speed all they want. He is a winning basketball player who with excel at any college he chooses thanks to his toughness, basketball IQ, and leadership.
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CLASS OF 2013 INTRO: CHINONSO OBOKOH

By Matt Whitfield

Watching Chinonso Obokoh for the first time Saturday night at Hoop Group Elite Team Camp on the Albright College campus in Reading (PA) I saw a youngster whose defensive tenacity in the paint reminded me of a young Dennis Rodman . While many adolescents get ranked high in scouting services because of their potential based on size and athleticism, Obokoh actually uses his size and athletic ability to his advantage as he really battles his heart out on both ends of the floor.

“I’m kind of a defensive player. I try and work myself to [do] a lot of defensive stuff the players on the court can’t do like the guard, and the shooters. I just want to do everything,” said Obokoh.

Impressively, Obokoh has only been playing basketball for four years, as he only came over from Nigeria in the spring of 2010.
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HOOP GROUP ELITE TEAM CAMP RECRUITING UPDATES: PART I

With the Hoop Group’s Elite Camp Session I concluding on Friday evening, the action continued on the campus of Albright College in Reading (PA) on Saturday with the Elite Team Camp, also hosted by Hoop Group, tipping off. A break from the norm of camps and AAU competitions, this July live period event features high school teams going head to head in front of very interested college coaches. The games certainly have a different feel than the normal summer contests and an impressive field only increased the interest of scouts, media, coaches and fans to come by the Albright campus on this beautiful summer day.

Just perusing the names of the schools in the national bracket and you knew you were in for a treat. Traditional Philadelphia powers Neumann-Goretti and Roman Catholic are in the field as well as Friends Central, Westtown and Penn Wood from the eastern half of the Keystone State. Upstate New York was represented by Jamesville-Dewitt outside of Syracuse and Rochester’s Bishop Kearney High School. The DC-area came strong with Gonzaga, St. John’s, Bishop McNamara, Largo, Paul VI, Patterson and more. New Jersey powers St. Anthony’s and Hudson Catholic came to play and New York City had Xaverian and South Shore. That is just a fraction of the teams on hand…

Matt Whitfield spent most of the day in Reading and will have plenty to report on. Below are just a few of the recruiting updates he accrued on this busy Saturday of basketball action…
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JAVONTAE HAWKINS ON THE RISE AND ON THE MOVE

Motivated by the shooting deaths of two older siblings, JaVontae Hawkins keeps his eyes on the prize in life

One of the more impressive players on the spring AAU circuit that has cemented his name among the top players in the Class of 2012 has been JaVontae Hawkins. The 6-foot-5, 202-lb shooting guard has turned in some very impressive performances with the Michigan Mustangs, officially breaking out in a big way back in April at the King James Shooting Stars event in Akron.

“This spring I just showed everyone that I can play against top talent and broke [out of] my shell by making athletic plays on both ends of the court and playing the shooting guard position at my best,” Hawkins told NBE earlier this week.

College coaches on the road in July will get a chance to see Hawkins at events such as the ScoutsFocus International Elite 80 Showcase July 10th and 11th in Greensboro (NC) and during AAU basketball’s Vegas week to close the live evaluation period. In the meantime Hawkins will continue to hone his skills for his moment to shine.
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PANGOS CAMP: DAY TWO RECAP

By Raphielle Johnson

While the showcase matchup on Friday night was the battle between big men Isaiah Austin and Andre Drummond, there were two rounds of play on Saturday and some players took full advantage of the opportunity. Two of those players would be Jordan Bell and Alex Caruso, both of whom have played well in each session of the event.

Bell, a 2013 prospect from Long Beach, CA (Long Beach Poly), was outstanding on both ends of the floor. Bell’s an athletic finisher offensively while being a solid defender as well. His block count in the first game approached eight, an impressive number for a 6’7″ three. But the offensive skill set will need to expand if he’s to be an impact high-major player at the collegiate level.

As for Caruso, it’s reached a point of “what can’t he do” at this stage in the event. The 6’6″ 2012 prospect from College Station, Texas, who according to ESPN’s Dave Telep earned an invite to this month’s NBPA Top 100 camp, can do a number of things on the floor to help his team win. Whether it’s scoring from the perimeter, finishing above the rim or setting up the open teammate Caruso gets it done.

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