Texas Tech Recruiting

2011 ORLANDO AAU NOTEBOOK (PART 11): KEITH FRAZIER UPDATE; KASEY HILL; DOMINIC WOODSON; AARON HARRISON

By Alex Schwartz

KEITH FRAZIER IN AN ELITE TARGET IN ’13; PLANS LONG RECRUITMENT

Keith Frazier is one of the Class of 2013 elite prospects. The 6-foot-4 shooting guard out of Irving (TX) High School mentioned Georgia, Kentucky, Baylor, Texas, Houston, Marquette, Texas Tech, Texas A&M, North Carolina, Kansas and Memphis. He said each of those schools have offered except for UK and UNC.

On whether he has any favorites: “I like A&M a little bit, I like–actually, I like all of them I just named to be honest with you.”

Frazier, who said he will no longer be playing with Dream Vision and will just be with Houston Hoops, has visited Baylor, Texas and Kansas.

Although he has no visits planned, he did say of who he would like to visit, “I want to visit Georgia [and visit] Kansas some more. Who else do I wanna visit? Memphis, that’s all I can think of.”

On who is coming at him the hardest: “I would have to say either Baylor, Texas, A&M a little, Georgia, [and] Marquette,” Frazier said.
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BIG SHOTS – DCA RECRUITING NOTEBOOK

By Matt Whitfield

On the last two days of the July live evaluation period some of the top AAU programs on the East Coast converged near the nation’s capitol for the Big Shots – DC Assault event. Many college coaches used the chance to get one last look at their top recruiting targets as well. Below are some of the recruiting updates NBE gathered during their time Sunday at the event…

Long Island Lightning forward Daniel Dingle continues to be a player many programs are keeping a close eye on. The 6-foot-6 combo forward out of St. Raymond’s in NYC also added a new scholarship offer recently.

“Right now my recruitment is going good,” Dingle said Sunday. “I just got a scholarship offer from Maryland. [As well as interest and offers from] Arizona, Temple, Dayton, Miami, Florida and Texas.

Dingle is starting to think about where he will visit in the coming month.
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2011 DESERT DUEL MEMORIAL FINAL DAY RECAP: NJ PLAYAZ STORM BACK FOR TITLE

By Raphielle Johnson

The only thing better than the two best teams in an event playing in the title game is those teams putting forth a game for the ages. And that’s exactly what happened when the Mac Irvin Fire and New Jersey Playaz 17U teams met in Tuesday’s title game at the Desert Duel Memorial. Despite trailing by as many as 26 points early in the second half the Playaz found a way back, ultimately winning the game in overtime by the final score of 70-62.

Things most certainly didn’t look good for the Playaz at the start as Mac Irvin jumped them out of the gate thanks to the combination of solid offensive execution and the Playaz’s inability to make shots. The squad from Chicago had everything rolling, especially 2013 stud Jabari Parker who hit just about any shot imaginable in the first twenty minutes.

Steve Taylor (2012) was able to slash to the basket, DePaul commit Billy Garrett Jr. (2013) and Derrick Randolph (2012) made plays in the backcourt and Aaric Armstead (2012) was also a factor. A dunk just before the halftime buzzer made the score 43-20, and a Parker three in the first minute of the second half pushed the lead out to 26. To say the least things did not look good for the Playaz was an understatement.

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2011 ORLANDO AAU UPDATE (PART 6): HOUSTON DEFENDERS TAKE 17U SHOWCASE TITLE

By Alex Schwartz

It was a busy day in Orlando on Wednesday as the 17U AAU Super Showcase came to a close. The Houston Defenders earned the crown with an impressive 55-45 victory over BABC. Class of 2013 twins Aaron and Andrew Harrison led the Defenders as Aaron scored 18 points and grabbed seven rebounds, while Andrew finished with eight points and 10 assists. Earlier in the afternoon the Defenders got past Team Takeover, rallying from a halftime deficit to advance to the championship game. For their part, BABC survived a stiff challenge in the semis from Hoop Heavan Elite out of NJ to advance to the televised championship game.

Now the full focus will shift to the AAU National Championships. The 16U is in full swing and the 17U championships are also getting going in pool play as well. Still plenty of basketball left these next four days as the second July live evaluation period closes out.

Below we have some additional player evaluations and recruiting information from yesterday’s action with a heavy concentration on the Houston Defenders (Derrick Griffin), Team Takeover (Jerami Grant), BABC (Jaylen Brantley, Jake Layman, Goodluck Okonoboh) and more (Bobby Portis)…

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UA SUMMER JAM PRESENTED BY NY2LA SPORTS — TOP PERFORMERS

By Alex Jesswein

Standout Seven: Top Players from the UA Summer Jam last week

Robert Carter–6-8 Power Forward–Atlanta Xpress: Although he was hobbled by an ankle injury, Atlanta Xpress Robert Carter really impressed us with his ‘old school’ approach. He won’t wow you with his athleticism or finesse, he just gets down to work in the block and is very adept at finishing with either hand. He did show an ability to step out and hit an open jumper but he will make his money doing the dirty work on the inside.
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Chris Thomas–6-5 Guard–Colorado Hawks: Thomas is an extremely talented player. He reminds me of former Memphis guard Chris Douglas-Roberts because of his ability to play multiple positions. He seems to be very comfortable playing with the ball in his hand and because of his size and length should be able to defend multiple positions at the collegiate level.
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JELON HORNBEAK PICKS UP NEW OFFERS; READY TO CLOSE JULY STRONG

It is becoming pretty clear that the Adidias Super 64 will be the place to be to start the final 10-day evaluation period of July. One player that wil lbe there and NBE is excited to get a look at is Jelon Hornbeak, a Class of 2012 guard out of Grace Prep in Arlington (TX). For much of the summer Hornbeak has been playing with Texas PRO but he will step out on the circuit this weekend with Family First in Las Vegas. He will not be doing it alone as his Grace Prep teammate and Baylor-commit Isaiah Austin will be along with him. Early highlights from the opening 10-day evaluation period in July for Hornbeak included connecting with his high school teammate in front of a plethora of college coaches and putting a beating on one of the top AAU programs at the NY2LA Sports Summer Jam in Milwaukee.

“Putting the mercy rule on Dream Vision,” said Hornbeak when asked of an early July highlights, “and throwing lobs to Isaiah and one game in Dallas I went 6 for 8 from three-point [range, making] five of them in a row.”
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UA SUMMER JAM PRESENTED BY NY2LA SPORTS RECRUITING NOTES (PART II)

By Alex Jesswein

The UA Summer Jam Presented by NY2LA Sports was a rousing success this past week. A loaded field converged on Mequon (WI), just outside Milwaukee at Homestead High School. Talented players and teams from across the country competed over the course of July 12th through the conclusion of the first live evaluation period on July 15th. A who’s who of college coaches came through Homestead to take in the action and in the end it was the SYF Players taking the gold title led by Mitch McGary.

Below are a few more recruiting notes from the event as NBE got the opportunity to speak with McGary, Danuel House of Texas PRO and Ishmail Wainright of the KC 76ers for the latest on their recruitment….

Texas PRO Wing Danuel House has been a hot name on the recruiting scene this spring.

His ability to finish in traffic and knock down open shots has impressed coaches across the country.
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2011 NIKE EYBL PEACH JAM REPORT (PART II)

By Brian Bosworth

After a lunch break for teams, college coaches, and scouts alike, the 17U tournament got back in swing on Tuesday evening with jaw dropping performances becoming commonplace.

Peach Jam 2nd Session Scoreboard:
Team Takeover 85, Athletes First 54
Oakland Soldiers 69, Texas Titans 51
Memphis YOMCA 71, City Rocks 62
BABC 79, Meanstreets 70
All-Ohio Red 73, Houston Hoops 69
Baltimore Elite 78, Boo Williams 71
NJ Playaz 72, California Supreme 60
CIA Bounce 55, All-Iowa Attack 53
Georgia Stars 78, Arkansas Wings 71
Indy Spiece 62, Louisiana Select 61
CP3 66, The Family 61
Mac Irvin Fire 60, Howard Pulley Panthers 53

Here are the highlights from some of the top performances NBE caught in action on Tuesday:
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LEBRON JAMES SKILLS ACADEMY RECRUITING FOCUS: JAMES ROBINSON & WILLIE CAULEY

By Lauren Kirschman

The Lebron James Skills Academy took it up another notch on Thursday as college coaches were allowed to watch the action at the James A. Rhodes Arena on the University of Akron campus. After getting their feet wet with several workouts and the opportunity to play with and against King James himself in their first day and a half of the camp, now the players are playing for scholarships.

Right out of the gates the big name coaches arrived. By the time the first morning high school workout had finished names and faces we all know populated the viewing areas like Tom Izzo, Coach K, Jim Calhoun, Jim Boeheim, Billy Donovan, John Thompson III, Thad Matta, Bill Self, Matt Painter, Lorenzo Romar, Anthony Grant, Josh Pastner, Bruce Weber and many more with others planning to be here before the day is done.

After the morning workout Willie Cauley (’12) and James Robinson (’12) spent time with NBE Basketball Report to fill our readers in on the latest with their recruitment…

James Robinson (DeMatha HS/Team Takeover DC)
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FOR NERLENS NOEL THE DEFENSE NEVER RESTS

By Ron Bailey

Nerlens Noel – 6’10”, 215 lb junior center, Tilton School (NH) – When discussing Noel’s game, defense is front and center. Just ask him.

“I think the strong part of my game is my defense, just anchoring the defense, trying to be as vocal as I can” he said between games at the recently concluded National Basketball Player’s Association Top 100 Camp in Charlottesville, VA. “Blocking shots, rebounding. Defense wins championships and that’s what I strive to do.”

And that’s what he did, rejecting shots at a prodigious rate. When he did not send them awry, he pressured shooters, thereby forcing them into difficult attempts and/or missing. Noel’s a fly swatter, one with long arms and the ability to get off the ground quickly.
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JELON HORNBEAK BECOMING HIGHLY SOUGHT ’12 SHOOTING GUARD

While somewhat overshadowed both with his Grace Prep High School squad in Arlington (TX) and his Texas PRO AAU basketball team because of Isaiah Austin, the consensus top 5 player in the Class of 2012, Jelon Hornbeak is giving college recruiters a reason to continue to show up this summer to see Texas PRO in action. The 6-foot-4, almost 200-pound guard has long been considered a special offensive talent coming out of the Lonestar State. His recruitment is anticipated to be hot and heavy as well and the list of schools are impressive.

“Pitt, Oklahoma, Arizona, Providence, Marquette, Texas Tech, Oregon, Cal, Miami and West Virginia,” replied Hornbeak to a message asking what schools he was currently considering that are actively recruiting him. He is planning to visit a few schools in the coming months as well.

“Texas Tech sometime this month [and] Pitt hopefully in August,” said Hornbeak when asked of upcoming visits. “That’s all I know of [now].”

Hornbeak admits he is “pretty much open” in the recruiting process at this time. Always a player that excels offensively with the ball in his hands to create offense, either with a jumper off the dribble or attacking the rim, he is working this summer to broaden his game and improve on the little things.

“Improvements [in] the physical aspect of course,” said Hornbeak when asked what he will work on the most in the summer and prior to college, adding “ball-handling and spot up shooting. Before college I want to increase my range a little bit more, become more of a vocal leader and touch up on my on [mid-range] game.”

Hornbeak will continue to hit the road hard this summer with Texas PRO as well as Family First, a team made up of players from Grace Prep. He is looking forward to just playing basketball. He does not have any timeframe in mind on when he will decide on a college, just looking to play is what he told NBE this weekend.

“No timeframe as of now, said Hornbeak when asked when he might decide on a college. “I just want to be able to play.”

College recruiters certainly know that Jelon Hornbeak can play and they will be watching him this July. Expect the recruitment for this very capable scoring guard in the Class of 2012 to become very hot in the coming months.

RUMBLE IN THE BRONX REPORT – PART I

By Brian Bosworth

The Rumble in the Bronx got underway Friday night with a slightly different feel than in years past. Fordham University has traditionally been the epicenter of the action for the boys tournament but this year the girls took over at Fordham and the boys tournament was spread out at different sites in the greater NYC area. The main site for the 17U bracket was Manhattan College and the action can be described in one word, hot. While the gym itself reached sauna-like conditions, the action on the floor didn’t disappoint. A host of high profile teams were in action including the Long Island Lightning, Connecticut Basketball Club, Albany City Rocks and the Metro Hawks but the New York Panthers were unquestionably a cut above the rest. In addition to being the most impressive unit on this steamy Friday night in the Bronx, the Panthers had the best individual performance of the evening as well.

Top Performer of the Day

Malik Nichols (New York Panthers 2012) – The former Hofstra commit as a member of the 2011 class confirmed after the game that he would be attending a yet to be determined prep school and re-classifying to 2012. Offensively, Nichols was literally perfect in this contest. He made all 10 shots he attempted totaling 22 points and scored every way imaginable. Nichols made 3 pointers off catch and shoot situations. He made a pull-up 16 foot jumper. He drove to the rim with both hands and finished. He finished in transition. He converted a tip-in on the offensive glass. Simply put, Nichols was unstoppable on the offensive end of the floor and led his Panthers club to a blowout victory. If he can string more performances like this together, Nichols should see his recruitment skyrocket when the July live period rolls around.

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NIKE BALTIMORE ELITE INVITATIONAL RECRUITING NOTEBOOK

Last weekend many of the top teams on the AAU scene in the Mid-Atlantic region invaded Baltimore to participate in the Nike Baltimore Elite Invitational. Most of the 17U action took place at Annapolis Area Christian School and that is where NBE Basketball Report’s Matt Whitfield spent his time Friday night and much of the day on Saturday. Below are some of the key recruiting notes he was able to pick up on in his time at the event.

Mike Owona: 6-foot-9; Class of 2013; Baltimore Elite – College physique already and just finished his sophomore season at John Carroll in Bel Air (MD). The native of Cameroon has decent agility and athletic ability for a young big man, moving well for a player his size. Battles on the boards, but still has a very raw offensive game with little in low post moves to score with back to the basket. While Owona definitely needs to work on his basketball fundamentals, he definitely has a shot to play basketball at the high-major level in the future as he has only been playing the game for four years.

As for his recruiting, he told NBE he has interest from Oklahoma, Old Dominion, Virginia Tech, Xavier and Maryland.
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Kameron Williams: 6-foot-2; Class of 2013; Baltimore Elite – Williams is an exciting scorer that starred in his sophomore season for Mount St. Joseph coach Pat Clatchey. He has continued to see his stock rise early this AAU season with some high scoring outbursts this spring. Williams told NBE over the weekend he is on the radar of progrms such as Providence, Miami, George Mason, VCU, Richmond and Maryland.
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FINAL KING CITY CLASSIC PLAYER EVALS & UPDATES

BY JEFF BORZELLO

CLEVELAND – After a fairly lackluster experience at the LeBron James Skills Academy – aside from the hype of having James there, of course – the 75 or so players from that camp traveled about 40 minutes north to Cleveland State University for two days of tournament-style games. The players, broken into eight teams, competed in two games each before entering the playoffs. It was far easier to evaluate the prospects in the game-setting than it was in the drills and the controlled scrimmages.

While our attention is now squarely on the finals of the Nike Elite Yough Basketball League being played at the Peach Jam in North Augusta (SC), we take our final look back at last week’s King City Classic. Previously, in our King City Classic Update (Part A) we took a look at Big East commits such as Wayne Blackshear, Tyrone Johnson, Michael Carter-Williams and James Price and their performances when we were watching. In King Citty Classic Update (Part B) NBE updated notes on mega-prospect Anthony Davis as he discussed his three finalists, talked with LaQuinton Ross about offers and visits and spent time with Myles Davis as he discusses the new offer from ‘Nova and the impact of friend Tyrone Johnson committing to the Wildcats recently. Desmond Hubert, Myles Mack and Ben McLemore also chat about their recruiting. Earlier today in Part C of our King City Classic Recap we touched base with players such as Rodney Hood, Kedren Johnson, Bernard Silluvan, Cedric McAfee, Jahii Carson, LJ Rose, J-Mychal Reese, Trey McDonald and more.

In this last edition we take a look at Rodney Purvis, DaJuan Coleman, JaKarr Sampson, Nick Faust, Jabarie Hinds, Nick Johnson, jabari Brown, Anrio Adams, Kyle Wiltjer, Deng Leek and recruiting updates from Sam Thompson, Mike Shaw, Josiah Turner, Julian Royal, Alex Poythress, Victor Nickerson, Jelon Hornbeck and many, many more…

You can log-in or sign up for NBE Premium access by SUBSCRIBING (HERE) for as low as $2.08 a month with our annual introductory membership to read more of our coverage from Cleveland and the King City Classic. Also, any of our Premium Content Articles & Event Coverage is available to subscribers.

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KING CITY CLASSIC EVALS & UPDATES (PART C)

by JEFF BORZELLO

CLEVELAND – After a fairly lackluster experience at the LeBron James Skills Academy – aside from the hype of having James there, of course – the 75 or so players from that camp traveled about 40 minutes north to Cleveland State University for two days of tournament-style games. The players, broken into eight teams, competed in two games each before entering the playoffs. It was far easier to evaluate the prospects in the game-setting than it was in the drills and the controlled scrimmages.

In our King City Classic Update (Part A) we took a look at Big East commits such as Wayne Blackshear, Tyrone Johnson, Michael Carter-Williams and James Price and their performances when we were watching. In King Citty Classic Update (Part B) NBE updated notes on mega-prospect Anthony Davis as he discussed his three finalists, talked with LaQuinton Ross about offers and visits and spent time with Myles Davis as he discusses the new offer from ‘Nova and the impact of friend Tyrone Johnson committing to the Wildcats recently. Desmond Hubert, Myles Mack and Ben McLemore also chat about their recruiting. Now we move into part C below and touch base with players such as Rodney Hood, Kedren Johnson, Bernard Silluvan, Cedric McAfee, Jahii Carson, LJ Rose, J-Mychal Reese, Trey McDonald and more…

You can log-in or sign up for NBE Premium access by SUBSCRIBING (HERE) for as low as $2.08 a month with our annual introductory membership to read more of our coverage from Cleveland and the King City Classic. Also, any of our Premium Content Articles & Event Coverage is available to subscribers.

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ADIDAS INVITATIONAL EVALUATIONS & RECRUITING UPDATES (PART A)

by RAY MERNAGH

The Adidas Invitational threatened to turn into the New Heights Invitational — that will happen when a team full of tough, NYC-area ballers takes out a juggernaut full of “high-major” prospects like New Heights did to Indiana Elite/Team Indiana in the quarterfinals early Thursday morning. New Heights then repeated the performance in the semifinals, where it fought back from a double digit deficit to defeat the New England Playaz. Alas, the run ended in the final when New Heights lost to the LeBryan Nash-led Dallas Mustangs 69-58. It was an impressive run by a New Heights squad not expected to challenge for the title this week and plenty of college coaches were here to witness it.

Earlier in our Adidas Invitational Day One Standouts article we went into (long) detail on the impressive performance of Shabazz Muhammad, who was the talk of the event Tuesday and plenty of top coaches were watching his EVERY move, as well as our thoughts and updates on Wannah Bail, Cody Zeller, Gabe York, recent UC-verbal Ge-Lawn Guyn and more that stood out on Tuesday.

Now here’s some evaluations and updates from the past two days (wed/Thurs) of action, including Winston Shepard, Lebryan Nash, Jermaine Sanders, Jeremiah Davis, Kenny Kaminsky and more…

You can log-in or sign up for NBE Premium access by SUBSCRIBING (HERE) for as low as $2.08 a month with our annual introductory membership to read more of our first day coverage from Indianapolis and the Adidas Invitational. Also, any of our Premium Content Articles & Event Coverage is available to subscribers.

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GIBBONS TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS: THE TALL AND SHORT OF IT…

and NBE covered it everywhere in between!

The Bob Gibbons’ Tournament of Champions was another success this past weekend in North Carolina. The annual Memorial Day weekend event was well run, well stocked with quality players and teams and the setting of Tobacco road is second to none. In case you missed it, here was our coverage through the weekend by Jeff Borzello…

- Day One Recap: Player evaluations and recruiting notes – Features scouting reports on J.P. Tokoto, B.J. Young, Montrezl Harrell, Jeremiah Davis, Damion Leonard and many more, as well as recruiting updates on Nick Jacobs, Damion Leonard, Kaleb Tarczewski, Adjehi Baru and more.
- Day One Recruiting Notes: Features updates from J.P. Tokoto, Montrezl Harrell, Marshall Plumlee, Cody Zeller, Jeremiah Davis and more.
- Day Two Recap: Player evaluations and recruiting notes – Jam-packed article has scouting reports and recruiting updates on Ryan Arcidiancono, D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera, Hanner Parea, Shabazz Muhammad, Angelo Chol, Cezar Guerrero, Adonis Thomas, Andre Drummond, Norvel Pelle, Chane Behanan and plenty more.
- Day Three Recap: Player evaluations and recruiting notes – Features evaluations and recruiting updates for Chasson Randle, Quinn Cook, Jordan Tebbutt, Xavier Johnson, Peter Jurkin and more.
- Final Recruiting Notebook: Nothing but updates from the likes of Amile Jefferson, Savon Goodman, Madison Jones, Jeremy Hollowell, Ge-Lawn Guyn, Trashon Burrell, Kamari Murphy and many more

While most of our attention was spent covering the top players in the event from the class of 2011 and 2012, Alex Schwartz caught up with a pair of big names in the class of 2013 that truly represented the Tall (Tanveer Bhullar) and Short (Aquille Carr) of the 2010 Gibbons TOC event…

2013 Standouts Carr and Bhullar with High-Major Looks

by Alex Schwartz

There is at least a foot and a half difference in their height, but class of 2013 prospects Aquille Carr of Patterson (MD) and Tanveer Bhullar of Kiski School (PA) both have high-major schools on their trail.

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