Not since athletic power forwards Rasheed Wallace, Joe Smith and Antonio McDyess ran the court with such ease in the Class of 1993 has there been such an assemblage of skill at the position. Six of FastBreak's top 15 national prospects are power forwards, most in the mold of 6-foot-9 Eddie Griffin, our top player at the position and in the class.
| |
FASTBREAK RECRUITING |
|
FastBreak Recruiting provides exclusive interviews, highlight footage and an extensive database of the top prep players in the country as well as hosting the official sites of the National Basketball Players Association Camp, the adidas ABCD Camp, and the adidas Big Time Tournament. Sports America, Inc., produces FastBreak and is the founder of the McDonald's All American Game and the Reebok Capital Classic.
|
Griffin is not only a fluid big man in the full-court game, but is one of the most fundamentally sound shot-blockers and passers in the nation. He chose Seton Hall over North Carolina, giving Tommy Amaker an early lead for the nation's top recruiting class. He was followed a week later by FastBreak No. 9 national prospect PG Andre Barrett of Manhattan (N.Y.) Rice. Earlier in the summer Amaker earned a commitment from FastBreak's No. 30 prospect, WF Marcus Toney-El, and just last week, WG Rashid Dunbar (6-3) of Marist, N.J. Dunbar is a Top 75-100 national prospect who is recovering from a serious auto accident last spring.
Cut from the same mold as Griffin is Bloomington, Ind.'s Jared Jeffries, another 6-9 run-and-jump athlete who can do it all. Jeffries was one of the top performers at Nike Camp this summer in Indianapolis, and is the key recruit for Bobby Knight. Jeffries recently eliminated Kentucky and Arizona, and this could come down to another epic Duke-Indiana recruiting battle. Duke got his first in-home visit Sept. 9, and Jeffries will visit Durham for Midnight Madness next month. He has been to Indiana unofficially several times. Iowa, Florida State and Southern Cal are also somewhat in the mix.
FastBreak's No. 3 power forward is Houston's Alton Ford (6-8), a manchild whom many rated as the nation's No. 1 prospect a year ago and is in most pollsters' top 10. Ford, who committed to Houston early but may test the waters this fall, is the purest of power forwards, with a massive 240-pound frame and a take-no-prisoners mentality when he roams the lane snatching rebounds and put-backs.
At No. 4 is another Indiana standout, Marion's Zach Randolph (6-8). Randolph has given Michigan State a claim for one of the nation's top classes. Randolph, another power player similar to Ford, committed to the Spartans three weeks ago on the heels of FastBreak No. 1 PG Marcus Taylor's commitment last month. Randolph is a wide body and one of the class' best rebounders.
FastBreak's No. 5 power forward prospect is talented South Carolinian Rolando Howell (6-9) of Hopkins Lower Richland High. Howell, who hosted his first in-home visit with Kentucky on Sept. 9, will visit Lexington for Midnight Madness on Oct. 15-16. Duke and South Carolina have also pursued Howell this summer, and his brother plays at USC. He is the top student among our power forwards with a 3.8 GPA. Howell is quick and agile for someone of his stature, and finishes with the best of them.
Raleigh, N.C.'s Chris Wilcox (6-9) is our pick as the No. 6 prospect, and he hosted Maryland on Sept. 9 for his first in-home visit. Wilcox, who played at Whiteville High last year, is a combo forward prospect with the full-court game. He has the ability to put the ball on the floor and shoot from 12-15 feet like the Terps' junior All-American candidate Terence Morris. Maryland will be looking to replace Morris after next year because he will likely go pro. Wilcox would be the perfect candidate with his array of skills, and Maryland could lead Tennessee and N.C. State.
Not far behind Wilcox at No. 7 is Senegal native Abdou Diame (6-8½) of Oak Hill (Va.) Academy. Diame is one of the quickest and best shot-blocking PF/C prospects in the nation. Diame is still new to the game (he's only been playing for three years) but has a vast upside and coaches love his hops and work ethic. He spent most of the summer at Oak Hill working on his grades, game and English. Auburn, Maryland and Virginia could lead for his signature. Diame hopes to lead Oak Hill to another national prep title this year after serving as sixth man last year.
At No. 8 is FastBreak's only West Coast prospect, Long Beach, Calif.'s Travon Bryant (6-8) of Jordan High School. Bryant, like Diame, is a thin, rangy power forward prospect who runs the court and blocks shots. Bryant has a long list of schools, but likes Kansas, Cal, Missouri and Utah, among others. Kansas got his first in-home visit Sept. 10.
Mississippi's Darius Rice (6-9) is our No. 9 prospect. He's a combo swing/power forward who shoots the ball and blocks shots. He's also a top student, with a 3.7 GPA. Rice has some top schools to consider, with Duke, Arkansas, Mississippi State, FSU and others in the mix. He visits Duke on Sept. 24 with top 10 PG Chris Duhon of Louisiana, and Arkansas for Midnight Madness.
At No. 10, T.J. Cummings (6-8) of Flossmoor, Ill., is the son of former DePaul great Terry Cummings. T.J., who has a similar build and game as his dad, lists DePaul, Iowa, Michigan and Marquette, among others. Cummings can go inside or out with his power and finesse skills.
Recruiting tidbits
The commitments have slowed of late, but Texas added to its early, in-state big-man riches last week with PF/C Jason Klotz (6-10) of Houston's Klein Forest High School. Klotz is a Top 100 prospect, and joins fellow in-state talents PF James Thomas (6-8) and PF/C Brian Boddicker (6-9) already in the fold for Rick Barnes.
New Pittsburgh coach Ben Howland landed two guards this month, Pennslyvania WG Jay Joseph and New York WG Julius Page.
Cal got developing prep school PF/C Gabriel Hughes (6-9) of N. Bridgston (Maine) Academy, the younger brother of current Cal center Solomon Hughes.
Look for more commitments next week as home visits began Sept. 9. The visitation period runs Sept. 9-26, while prospects are beginning to set up their campus visits this month as well.
The Cincinnati Bearcats received good news this week from the NCAA, as prize recruit DerMarr Johnson is expected to be cleared to play after some transcript issues.
In junior recruiting news, UCLA gained an early commitment from one of California's top prospects, WG Cedric Bozeman.
|
|
|
