SI.com Seth Davis' Hoop Thoughts
Names to know
The skinny on 15 stars to be as recruiting heats up
Posted: Thursday July 5, 2007 1:27PM; Updated: Thursday July 5, 2007 2:50PM
The more things change, the more they stay the same.
For all the hullabaloo surrounding the news last fall that Nike was dismantling its All-America camp and Sonny Vaccaro was folding up his tent at the ABCD Camp, the summer evaluation period that begins on Friday will look an awful lot like the dozen or so summers that came before. There are still three main players in the sneaker game -- Nike, Adidas and Reebok -- and a player's schedule still depends mostly on which company is forking over cash and graft to that player's summer program. (Incidentally, while most of those summer teams are often characterized as "AAU teams," that is a misnomer since most of them in fact have no real relationship with the Amateur Athletic Union.)
The changes that did occur will be mostly cosmetic and will only affect the first week of events. Instead of holding its All-American camp in Indianapolis, Nike will stage the LeBron James Skills Academy in Akron, Ohio, during the first four days of the period. That gathering was preceded by a series of position camps around the country hosted by Nike athletes such as Steve Nash, Vince Carter, Kobe Bryant and Amare' Stoudemire, but because they occur before the evaluation period begins, college coaches may not attend. Instead of sponsoring Vaccaro's ABCD Camp in Teaneck, N.J., Reebok will have a similar event in Philadelphia. The rest of the calendar remains pretty much intact.
With a deft assist from recruiting maven Bob Gibbons, whose annual calendar of July events is the most indispensable document in the recruiting game, I've identified the most significant events in the adjoining sidebar. There are dozens of other lesser events going on around the country this month, and college coaches may only attend those that have been officially certified by the NCAA. If you'd like to see a complete list of NCAA-certified summer events, click here.
It's good to know the summer's main events, but what's really important is to know the summer's main players. I took a preseason tour in June to two outstanding events: the NBA Players Association Camp in Charlottesville, Va., and USA Basketball's Youth Development Festival in Colorado Springs. Between those two events I got a chance to see nearly 150 of the top high school players in America. I've selected 15 players to highlight in advance of the recruiting whirlwind.
March Madness is all well and good, but real Hoop Thinkers like us know that July Madness is really where it's at. Only in this case, the big prize at the end is One Shining Scholarship. Herewith, my Fab Fifteen:
Farouq Aminu, 6-8, F, Norcross, Ga.
Summer team: Georgia Stars (Nike)
Schedule: LeBron Academy, AAU Super Showcase, AAU 19-and-unders
Skinny: Aminu is a highly ranked prospect who is currently deciding between Georgia Tech and Wake Forest, but in Colorado Springs he seemed a bit overmatched. Aminu moves very well for a player his size and he was one of the better-passing big men at the festival, but he struck me as a player who was not used to going up against guys his size or bigger. Even so, he is very bright and outgoing and I can see why so many experts anticipate he will thrive in a college setting.
Devin Ebanks, 6-8, F, Queens, N.Y.
Summer team: Team Takeover (Adidas)
Schedule: It Takes Five, Super 64
Skinny: Every kid growing up in Queens dreams of playing his college ball in ... Bloomington, Indiana? That's where Ebanks is headed next season, and the Hoosiers faithful will love what they're getting. Ebanks reminds me of a young Rudy Gay, but mentally he's ahead of where Gay was at this point. For example, the gold medal game at the USA Basketball Festival tipped off at 8:30 in the morning. Most of the players were barely awake when the game began, but Ebanks put himself through a hard warmup routine (he listened to an iPod as he went through the paces) and was the only guy ready to go when play started. As IU coach Kelvin Sampson likes to say, that shows he's got a little mud in his blood.
Tyreke Evans, 6-5, G, Aston, Pa.
Summer team: Team Final (Nike)
Schedule: LeBron Academy, Peach Jam, AAU 19-and-unders
Skinny: This is clearly the most exciting player in the senior class. Evans was a scoring machine in Colorado Springs (he averaged 29.8 points in five games), but he did most of his scoring with one-on-one moves. Often times he'd go one-on-five and still score. I thought it was a good sign that, when I asked Evans what he needed to improve on, he said he needed to learn to play a team game better. Louisville and Villanova have long been at the top of Evans' list, but considering the fact that William Wesley, the famed king of the hoops underworld, has taken a close interest in Tyreke, the smart money is on Memphis. That's the team coached by Worldwide Wes' good buddy, John Calipari.
Derrick Favors, 6-9, C, Atlanta
Summer team: Atlanta Celtics (Adidas)
Schedule: It Takes Five, Super 64.
Skinny: Favors may only be a junior, but he was the strongest inside player at the NBA camp. Like most kids his age he doesn't play as hard as he could all the time, but every time he gets the ball near the rim he finishes, no matter how many guys are hanging on him. It's rare to see a player that young with that strength and the toughness to use it.
JaMychal Green, 6-9, C, Montgomery, Ala.
Summer team: Alabama Challenge (Nike)
Schedule: Peach Jam, Super Showcase, and AAU 19-and-unders
Skinny: Green really shined at the NBA camp. He was especially pumped to go up against fellow big man Samardo Samuels, who found many of his shot attempts against Green being sent the other way. Besides being a force on defense, Green has an array of scoring moves in the paint, and his coach raved about his attitude. Green's recruitment is pretty wide open right now, but it's a pretty safe bet that he'll wind up somewhere in the SEC, most likely Alabama.
Jrue Holiday, 6-4, G, Chatsworth, Calif.
Summer team: Pump 'n Run (Adidas)
Schedule: It Takes Five, Super 64
Skinny: Holiday was the focus of one of the most intriguing recruiting battles of the summer before committing to UCLA on July 3. In my opinion the Bruins are getting the best point guard in the country. He's bigger than Brandon Jennings, which makes a difference, especially at the defensive end, and he's much more advanced when it comes to running a team.
Scotty Hopson, 6-6, F, Hopkinsville, Ky.
Summer team: Mid-State Ballers (no sponsor)
Schedule: LeBron Academy, AAU 19-and-unders
Skinny: Hopson may have been the player who raised his stock the most at the USA Basketball Festival. He's a dynamic swingman who jumps out of the gym and has both long-range and mid-range touch. (That mid-range game is a dying art, but Hopson is an artist at it.) Hopson has committed to Mississippi State, and I'm guessing that by the end of the summer he will have positioned himself to be a McDonald's All-American. He's that good.
Brandon Jennings, 6-foot, G, Los Angeles
Summer team: Belmont Shore (Reebok)
Schedule: Reebok U Camp, Big Time
Skinny: It's easy to see why Jennings, who committed to Arizona this spring after de-committing from USC, has generated so much buzz over the years. He's a super-quick, diminutive lefty, most often compared to Kenny Anderson. Still, Jennings has a lot to learn about being a floor general. He's one of those point guards who has to have the ball in his hands all the time, and it's obvious that he's used to taking whatever shot he wants. I'll say this about him, though: If he gets a good outlet pass or a long rebound, all he needs is a smidgen of daylight and he's gone.
Greg Monroe, 6-10, F, Gretna, La.
Summer team: Louisiana Select (Nike)
Schedule: LeBron Academy, Peach Jam, AAU 19-and-under
Skinny: If you read my column last week from Colorado Springs on Monroe, you know I consider him the best player in the class of '08. He was dominant at the festival, but given his laid-back nature I can see why people would question his intensity in lesser settings. Monroe appears to be the type of player who can play both up and down to his level of competition. For the most part he'll be going up against good competition this summer, so I'm confident he'll remain everybody's No. 1 prospect when it's all said and done. His recruitment is pretty wide open (look for Georgetown as a possible sleeper), but in the end I think LSU is going to be awfully tough to beat.
Delvon Roe, 6-7, F, Lakewood, Ohio
Summer team: King of the Court Shooting Stars (Nike)
Schedule: LeBron Academy, Main Event, AAU 19-and-unders
Skinny: I'm not quite ready to say that Roe is the best frontcourt player Tom Izzo has recruited to East Lansing, but it may not be too long before that becomes conventional wisdom. There's almost nothing this kid can't do. He has the size and athleticism to be a factor underneath, but he shoots and slashes like a two-guard. Roe was the leading scorer at the USA Basketball festival (30.3 ppg), and overall I thought he was the second-best player behind Monroe. The fact that Roe played so hard so consistently leads me to believe that he's the type of player who will work hard to make himself better.
Samardo Samuels, 6-9, F, Newark, N.J.
Summer team: Metro Hawks (Nike)
Schedule: LeBron Academy, Peach Jam, AAU 19-and-unders
Skinny: Samuels' decision to attend Louisville was the biggest commitment so far in the class of '08. He is definitely a hoss, but during the games I watched him play at the NBA camp he seemed disinterested, which I'm told is something of a pattern with him. However, I have seen him play inspired in the past, and I know how devastating he can be. Once he gets into good condition he'll be ready to make an impact in college.
Andrew Steele, 6-3, G, Birmingham, Ala.
Summer team: Alabama Challenge (Nike)
Schedule: Peach Jam, Super Showcase, and AAU 19-and-unders
Skinny: Steele's brother, Ron, is the starting point guard at Alabama, and from what I can tell Andrew is every bit as good, if not better, than his big bro. He can play either guard spot and does a great job jumping into the passing lanes on defense. All the coaches at the NBA Camp raved about his character, as well. He took the skills sessions seriously and answered every instruction with "yes, sir." Trust me, this kid is a gem.
Lance Stephenson, 6-5, G, Brooklyn, N.Y.
Summer team: Juice All-Stars (Adidas)
Schedule: It Takes Five, Super 64.
Skinny: When you're a precocious point guard at Lincoln High on Coney Island, you get scrutinized beginning at a young age. When I watched Stephenson play in Colorado Springs, I was impressed with how much bigger he has gotten. As one of the few juniors at the festival, Stephenson definitely showed that he belonged, but he was also the most immature player there. He carped at the refs, he chastised his teammates and he even had to sit out the first quarter of the gold medal game because he blew a curfew the night before. Stephenson clearly has the talent to be a big-time player, but like most juniors in high school he has a lot of growing up to do.
Elliott Williams, 6-4, G, Collierville, Tenn.
Summer team: M33M Magic (Adidas)
Schedule: Rbk U Camp, Super 64, Best of the Summer.
Skinny: Williams has been under the radar the past two years, but at this point the secret is out. He was originally discovered by Virginia coach Dave Leitao when he was a sophomore, but now Leitao has to fend off a number of schools, including Duke and Tennessee. An excellent student, Williams is a skinny, lefty combo guard with great quickness. I especially like the way he's always seeking to initiate the action.
Tyler Zeller, 7-1, C, Washington, Ind.
Summer team: Indiana Elite (Adidas)
Schedule: It Takes Five, Super 64, Best of the Summer.
Skinny: Tyler, whose older brother, Luke, is a rising junior at Notre Dame, is the most intriguing big man in the senior class. He is extremely tall and long, and, though he is rail-thin, he is quite skilled and runs extremely well for a player his size. There's none of that youthful awkwardness you often see in 7-foot teenagers. Tyler told me he is considering nine schools (including Notre Dame, Purdue and Indiana) but hopes to pare down the list in the next couple of months.
Monday, July 09, 2007
Sunday, July 08, 2007
Tigers to Open College Basketball Season Nov. 5th on ESPN
Tigers will be season opener
2k College Hoops Classic matchup is first of '07-'08
By Dan Wolken
July 8, 2007
John Calipari isn't shy espousing his belief the Tigers are talented enough to play in the last college basketball game of the season. If they do, it would provide some interesting symmetry, since Memphis will also be playing in the first game of the 2007-08 season.
Gazelle Group president Rick Giles, whose company puts on several major early season tournaments, said college basketball will officially begin in Memphis on Nov. 5 when the Tigers host the first round of the 2k College Hoops Classic benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer in an ESPNU-televised game.
"We've got the arena on Nov. 5 and 6, and nobody else is playing games before that," Giles said.
The opponents for the Memphis region of the tournament won't be finalized for a few days, but Giles confirmed Appalachian State won't be one of them. Originally, the Memphis coaching staff thought they would play Appalachian State in the first round, but those plans fell through. Don't be surprised if an Atlantic 10 team is placed in Memphis instead.
Should Memphis and fellow regional hosts Kentucky, Connecticut and Oklahoma win their first two games, they will advance to New York for the semifinals. Giles said tournament organizers and ESPN still haven't decided how to set the semifinal bracket.
ESPN would probably prefer to guarantee a Memphis-UConn matchup because it involves two high profile coaches who feuded when Calipari was at UMass going head-to-head with Jim Calhoun. On the other hand, a UConn-Kentucky semifinal would be very attractive, with the winner potentially playing a No. 1-ranked Memphis in the final.
"We always go back and forth on that," Giles said. "In 1999, we had UConn and Duke, and Connecticut had just defeated Duke in the national championship game. We debated that for a long time and decided to put them opposite.
"So what happened? Duke lost the first semifinal to Stanford and UConn lost to Iowa, so we had Duke-UConn in the consolation game. No matter what, we'll have four great games in New York regardless of how the bracket plays out."
Giles also pointed out that three of the last six national champions have started their seasons in the Coaches vs. Cancer event: Florida in 2005-06, Syracuse in 2002-03 and Maryland in 2001-02. Memphis would love to oblige Giles in making it four out of seven.
"It's great to have them this year," Giles said. "Coming in ranked No. 1 or No. 2 is terrific. That adds a little buzz to the whole event."
Confidence boost
Antonio Anderson's free throws with 3.1 seconds left to push Memphis past Texas A&M and into the Elite Eight was named the year's most memorable sports moment by readers of Memphis Sport magazine.
Anderson remembers, too. And that's a good thing for the Tigers, since nobody was more in need of a good memory from the 2006-07 season than Anderson.
Though Anderson played more minutes than any Tiger and led the team with 130 assists, it was a strange season to say the least. Across the board, Anderson's shooting numbers were down from the year before: 39 percent from the field, 24.5 percent from the 3-point line and 63.4 percent on free throws.
Why did Anderson's jump shot abruptly stop going in, especially after a solid start in Maui? Nobody really knows. But it continued to snowball, affecting Anderson to the point where he didn't even want to shoot.
"As a freshman, I shot it good. This year, I shot it bad," Anderson said. "I'm trying to get it back. Freshman year, I don't know, I was confident. I was confident at the beginning this year, but when I started missing a lot, I couldn't get my confidence back. That's all it was."
Anderson has spent a large part of the offseason in the gym shooting jumpers, hoping to rediscover the touch that helped him finish among the top 12 in Conference USA in 3-point percentage as a freshman.
Just as important, Anderson said making those free throws in a pressure-packed situation went a long way toward healing his psyche.
"Definitely, it should," he said. "It would be a confidence boost for anybody."
Early commitment?
One of the top 13-year-old basketball players in the country told the Philadelphia Inquirer he wants to play college basketball at Memphis. In a story about Michael Gilchrist, a 6-6 wing from Somerdale, N.J., Gilchrist casually told reporter Keith Pompey that he wanted to "play (college basketball) at Memphis for two or three years. I don't want to do only one year in college, because I want to get an education. And after two or three years, hopefully, I can go to the NBA."
Reached by phone Friday, Gilchrist's mother, Cindy Richardson, declined to clarify what he meant or to explain her son's interest in Memphis. Gilchrist was not available for comment.
"He's a mature 13-year-old," Richardson said.
Though Gilchrist is by all accounts a legitimate prospect -- yes, there are recruiting services that rank 13-year-olds -- it's a little early for Tiger fans to get excited. But it is a situation worth following, especially given his comments.
To reach reporter Dan Wolken, call 529-2365; e-mail: wolken@commercialappeal.com
2k College Hoops Classic matchup is first of '07-'08
By Dan Wolken
July 8, 2007
John Calipari isn't shy espousing his belief the Tigers are talented enough to play in the last college basketball game of the season. If they do, it would provide some interesting symmetry, since Memphis will also be playing in the first game of the 2007-08 season.
Gazelle Group president Rick Giles, whose company puts on several major early season tournaments, said college basketball will officially begin in Memphis on Nov. 5 when the Tigers host the first round of the 2k College Hoops Classic benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer in an ESPNU-televised game.
"We've got the arena on Nov. 5 and 6, and nobody else is playing games before that," Giles said.
The opponents for the Memphis region of the tournament won't be finalized for a few days, but Giles confirmed Appalachian State won't be one of them. Originally, the Memphis coaching staff thought they would play Appalachian State in the first round, but those plans fell through. Don't be surprised if an Atlantic 10 team is placed in Memphis instead.
Should Memphis and fellow regional hosts Kentucky, Connecticut and Oklahoma win their first two games, they will advance to New York for the semifinals. Giles said tournament organizers and ESPN still haven't decided how to set the semifinal bracket.
ESPN would probably prefer to guarantee a Memphis-UConn matchup because it involves two high profile coaches who feuded when Calipari was at UMass going head-to-head with Jim Calhoun. On the other hand, a UConn-Kentucky semifinal would be very attractive, with the winner potentially playing a No. 1-ranked Memphis in the final.
"We always go back and forth on that," Giles said. "In 1999, we had UConn and Duke, and Connecticut had just defeated Duke in the national championship game. We debated that for a long time and decided to put them opposite.
"So what happened? Duke lost the first semifinal to Stanford and UConn lost to Iowa, so we had Duke-UConn in the consolation game. No matter what, we'll have four great games in New York regardless of how the bracket plays out."
Giles also pointed out that three of the last six national champions have started their seasons in the Coaches vs. Cancer event: Florida in 2005-06, Syracuse in 2002-03 and Maryland in 2001-02. Memphis would love to oblige Giles in making it four out of seven.
"It's great to have them this year," Giles said. "Coming in ranked No. 1 or No. 2 is terrific. That adds a little buzz to the whole event."
Confidence boost
Antonio Anderson's free throws with 3.1 seconds left to push Memphis past Texas A&M and into the Elite Eight was named the year's most memorable sports moment by readers of Memphis Sport magazine.
Anderson remembers, too. And that's a good thing for the Tigers, since nobody was more in need of a good memory from the 2006-07 season than Anderson.
Though Anderson played more minutes than any Tiger and led the team with 130 assists, it was a strange season to say the least. Across the board, Anderson's shooting numbers were down from the year before: 39 percent from the field, 24.5 percent from the 3-point line and 63.4 percent on free throws.
Why did Anderson's jump shot abruptly stop going in, especially after a solid start in Maui? Nobody really knows. But it continued to snowball, affecting Anderson to the point where he didn't even want to shoot.
"As a freshman, I shot it good. This year, I shot it bad," Anderson said. "I'm trying to get it back. Freshman year, I don't know, I was confident. I was confident at the beginning this year, but when I started missing a lot, I couldn't get my confidence back. That's all it was."
Anderson has spent a large part of the offseason in the gym shooting jumpers, hoping to rediscover the touch that helped him finish among the top 12 in Conference USA in 3-point percentage as a freshman.
Just as important, Anderson said making those free throws in a pressure-packed situation went a long way toward healing his psyche.
"Definitely, it should," he said. "It would be a confidence boost for anybody."
Early commitment?
One of the top 13-year-old basketball players in the country told the Philadelphia Inquirer he wants to play college basketball at Memphis. In a story about Michael Gilchrist, a 6-6 wing from Somerdale, N.J., Gilchrist casually told reporter Keith Pompey that he wanted to "play (college basketball) at Memphis for two or three years. I don't want to do only one year in college, because I want to get an education. And after two or three years, hopefully, I can go to the NBA."
Reached by phone Friday, Gilchrist's mother, Cindy Richardson, declined to clarify what he meant or to explain her son's interest in Memphis. Gilchrist was not available for comment.
"He's a mature 13-year-old," Richardson said.
Though Gilchrist is by all accounts a legitimate prospect -- yes, there are recruiting services that rank 13-year-olds -- it's a little early for Tiger fans to get excited. But it is a situation worth following, especially given his comments.
To reach reporter Dan Wolken, call 529-2365; e-mail: wolken@commercialappeal.com
Former Tiger Tim Duncan Takes Over as Director of M Club
Ex-Tiger Duncan takes over as director of M Club
By Phil Stukenborg
July 6, 2007
Tim Duncan isn't afraid to admit it.
A small business owner, the former University of Memphis basketball player didn't envision working for anyone but himself again. That, he said, was before a job at his alma mater opened.
Duncan, a teammate of Penny Hardaway's in the early 1990s, was named the director of the M Club, a 250-member group of former Tiger letter-winners, last week.
"I thought it was a wonderful opportunity," said Duncan, a member of the U of M's Elite Eight team in 1992. "I thought I'd love the opportunity to work for my alma mater. I've been a fan since the days of (former basketball stars) Otis Jackson and Alvin Wright."
Duncan, 37, graduated from Melrose High before becoming a reserve for the Tigers under former coach Larry Finch. Duncan graduated from the school with a degree in business administration before pursuing and completing his master's degree in sports administration from Grambling State University in 1997.
"This job is a combination of my two loves: sports and marketing," Duncan said. "I hope to use those passions to grow the membership."
Duncan said there are thousands of former athletes who are unfamiliar with the M Club and its benefits. Among the perks for the $25 membership fee is access to purchasing a Tiger basketball season ticket in one of three designated sections. Duncan said there are 500 seats available, including 200 in the lower section.
Duncan owns the PR Store, which helps small business owners with their marketing needs, near Poplar and Ridgeway and hopes to bring the experience he has gained to the M Club operation. He said among his priorities are to make the M Club Web site more interactive and to expand membership.
"We are very fortunate to have him," said associate athletic director Bill Lansden. "He has brought a sense of vision and direction that we need.
"And it's great to have a former player who understands the viewpoints of most of our former players."
By Phil Stukenborg
July 6, 2007
Tim Duncan isn't afraid to admit it.
A small business owner, the former University of Memphis basketball player didn't envision working for anyone but himself again. That, he said, was before a job at his alma mater opened.
Duncan, a teammate of Penny Hardaway's in the early 1990s, was named the director of the M Club, a 250-member group of former Tiger letter-winners, last week.
"I thought it was a wonderful opportunity," said Duncan, a member of the U of M's Elite Eight team in 1992. "I thought I'd love the opportunity to work for my alma mater. I've been a fan since the days of (former basketball stars) Otis Jackson and Alvin Wright."
Duncan, 37, graduated from Melrose High before becoming a reserve for the Tigers under former coach Larry Finch. Duncan graduated from the school with a degree in business administration before pursuing and completing his master's degree in sports administration from Grambling State University in 1997.
"This job is a combination of my two loves: sports and marketing," Duncan said. "I hope to use those passions to grow the membership."
Duncan said there are thousands of former athletes who are unfamiliar with the M Club and its benefits. Among the perks for the $25 membership fee is access to purchasing a Tiger basketball season ticket in one of three designated sections. Duncan said there are 500 seats available, including 200 in the lower section.
Duncan owns the PR Store, which helps small business owners with their marketing needs, near Poplar and Ridgeway and hopes to bring the experience he has gained to the M Club operation. He said among his priorities are to make the M Club Web site more interactive and to expand membership.
"We are very fortunate to have him," said associate athletic director Bill Lansden. "He has brought a sense of vision and direction that we need.
"And it's great to have a former player who understands the viewpoints of most of our former players."
From GQ.com William Wesley a.k.a. Worldwide Wes - Is This the Most Powerful Man in Sports?
From GQ.com
IS THIS THE MOST POWERFUL MAN IN SPORTS?
In the NBA, all roads lead to one man, whom you’ve probably never heard of: William Wesley—a.k.a. Worldwide Wes—the most connected, most discreet, most influential man on and off the court
Auburn Hills, Michigan, November 2004. William Wesley, a middle-aged mortgage broker, runs onto the court to shield Ron Artest from a uniformed police officer wielding a can of pepper spray. Artest’s teammates are trading haymakers with fans; coaches and referees are struggling to restore order. The mortgage broker lunges forward and throws his hands in the cop’s face, and in the next instant, Pacers teammates Austin Croshere and Reggie Miller rush to restrain Artest. Through a tempest of tossed soda and popcorn, Wesley moves on to shepherding the Pacers’ Jermaine O’Neal on the court. Once in the tunnel, O’Neal breaks free, but Wesley wraps him in a bear hug and drags him to the locker room.
Two years later, when I ask Reggie Miller about Wesley’s presence on the court, he’ll say: “What the hell is he doing out there in the middle of all that? I mean, what is he doing? He has no business out there! He injects himself into the middle of everything!”
Others weren’t quite so surprised to see William Wesley—or Wes, as he’s known—in the middle of the fray. “At any given time, if you look at any sporting event, there’s a very good chance you’re going to see Wes,” says NBA analyst David Aldridge. Over the years, Wes has been spotted hugging Jerry Jones on the field after a Cowboys Super Bowl win, high-fiving University of Miami football players after a national championship win, and embracing Joe Dumars after the Pistons won the NBA Finals. He’s been spotted sitting next to Jay-Z at the NBA All-Star Game, with Nike czar Phil Knight at the Final Four, and trolling the sidelines of Team USA practices in Las Vegas and Japan. “People who really know Wes,” says superagent David Falk, Wes’s longtime friend, “know that he’s one of the two or three most powerful people in the sport.”
In his March 2005 ESPN “Page 2” column, the well-known basketball writer Scoop Jackson wrote, “I believe Phil Knight is the most powerful man in sports next to Wes Wesley.” Eight months after Jackson’s column, New Jersey-based basketball journalist Henry Abbott mounted an obsessive open-source investigation on his blog, TrueHoop, that brilliantly illustrated how, if you look closely at the various forces at work in basketball at every level of the sport—the AAU programs that funnel players to college programs, the agents looking to land players as early as NBA rules allow, the shoe companies, coaches, franchise owners, front-office executives, players—it eventually dawns on you that they have one thing in common: William Wesley.
So why have you never heard of him? Whenever I told journalists, players, agents, and NBA executives the subject of this article, the common reaction was an amused chuckle and then “Good luck.” Very few people, even Wes’s friends, are able to describe his role. Chicago Sun-Times writer Lacy Banks recalls his confusion upon meeting Wes twenty years ago: “I thought he worked for the Secret Service or the FBI or the CIA. Then I thought he was a pimp, providing players with chicks, or a loan shark or a bodyguard or a vice commissioner to the league.” The few people who know what Wes is really up to aren’t talking. And that’s the way Wes likes it.
Many of the stories circulating about Wes are sensationalistic: He was a guest at Frank Sinatra’s funeral. He worked as an operative for his close friends Bill and Hillary Clinton. Spike Lee is planning a movie about his life. Of all the rumors, the movie seems to make the most sense, because the story of how William Sydney Wesley, the child of a middle-class family from southern New Jersey, turned himself into Worldwide Wes is such a perfect realization of the modern American dream—full of old-fashioned wheel-greasing, hustling, and social climbing—that it feels like it was written for the big screen.
The story begins in the early 1980s at Pro Shoes, a lunchbox-sized store in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, that serviced hoops stars from all over the Delaware River Valley—from local high school stars to 76ers like Darryl Dawkins and Doug Collins. William Wesley, age 16, was the preternaturally suave salesman who knew all about the clientele. He knew the pro players from TV, and he knew the high schoolers from bumping shoulders with them on the court—there was Leon Rose, the crafty point guard from Cherry Hill East, and those two juggernauts from Camden named Billy Thompson and Milt Wagner.
“Wes was my best friend,” Wagner says. “My whole career, he followed me everywhere I went.”
In 1981, Milt headed to Louisville, where he made three trips to the Final Four and won a national championship. In 1987, when Milt went on to the Los Angeles Lakers, Wes was there, too, taking it all in, learning that young men, as they make the transition from college to the NBA, have needs. “If a player needs a custom-clothing designer, Wes can help you with that,” Banks says. “Need a hairstylist who knows how to do complicated cornrows? Wes can do that.”
In 1989, Kenny Payne, one of Milt’s former Louisville teammates, introduced Wes to fellow 76er Rick Mahorn, who in turn gave Wes a job as the doorman at his Cherry Hill nightclub, a favorite bump-and-grind spot for Philly’s pro athletes. It wasn’t long before Wes was running the place.
Recalling that early period, 2 Live Crew frontman Luther Campbell tells me, “My claim to fame is that I took Wes on his first flight on a jet. We went to the NBA All-Star Game, we went to the University of Miami games, we went everywhere. We were at a Mike Tyson fight in Atlantic City, and Wes took me back into the casino vault! With the money! You only get to go back there if you’re an employee or you’re one of the boys. I said, ‘Oh, my God! Who the hell are you, Wes? What’d you do?’ And Wes said, ‘I just know everybody.’ ”
Wes’s big break came in the late 1980s or early 1990s, when Milt Wagner put him in a room with Michael Jordan. Jordan ended up giving Wes a job at his basketball camp. After that, according to Lacy Banks, “Wes just popped up out of nowhere. You’d see him in locker rooms, courtside at games, in the hotels, restaurants, everywhere.” By late 1993, Wes had taken up residence in Chicago. Being close to Jordan and the Bulls was good for business.
Chicago is where Wes became friends with, among others, the Clintons, Phil Knight, and Reebok exec Tom Shine. He made allies in the media, providing inside information and facilitating interviews with difficult-to-reach stars, and he gained a reputation as a trustworthy adviser/fixer for at-risk athletes. “I know of a particular NBA player who got into a staggering gambling situation,” says Shine. “The people this guy lost money to, they were not nice guys. Wes saved him from getting killed.”
In 1997, when Allen Iverson was arrested for possessing marijuana and a concealed weapon, Wes stepped in to clean up the mess. According to Reebok executive Que Gaskins, Iverson’s constant companion during that period, “After Allen got in trouble, Wes called to check in on us and make sure we had the right resources and the right people to get in touch with. He was very close with Billy Hunter [head of the National Basketball Players Association] and wanted to make sure that if Allen wanted his voice heard, he and Billy had a conversation.”
Numerous sources also told me that Wes played a significant role in mediating peace between Iverson and his coach, Larry Brown. One well-circulated anecdote tells of Wes urging A.I. over speakerphone to quit bitching and get his ass to practice. Coaches around the league took notice of the sway Wes had with players. “Put it this way,” says Cleveland Cavaliers coach Mike Brown. “If I have a problem and I need an outside influence, I know I can call him. We talk all the time.”
*****
In 2001, Wes’s godson and Milt’s son, Dajuan Wagner, was the consensus best high school basketball player in the world. If Dajuan had entered the NBA draft after his junior year at Camden High, he might have been the number one pick. But Wes persuaded him to let the NBA wait and spend a year or two playing for John Calipari at the University of Memphis. The deal came with plenty of strings attached: Wes made it clear to Calipari that Dajuan was more inclined to sign with a school that also gave a free ride to his best friend, Arthur Barclay, an all-state player who’d been passed over because of poor test scores. (Done.) Then Milt, despite lacking a college degree, was hired to be Memphis’s head of basketball operations. When news of the deal leaked out, the media crucified Calipari, painting it as nothing more than legalized graft. Wes answered accusations that something shady had gone down, saying, “Man, I’ve heard the second-guessing. It’s simple: Juanny needed to improve his defense and prove that he can play on the next level. Coach Cal can help him do that. What do I have to gain by him going to Memphis?”
Wes had been managing Dajuan’s career since the boy was 11, and so when it came time for Dajuan to head to Memphis, Wes went along. After only one season—in which Dajuan averaged twenty-one points a game—Calipari called Milt and Dajuan into his office. “I tore up Dajuan’s scholarship in front of him to make sure he understood he wasn’t coming back,” Calipari says. Dajuan was ready for the NBA. The Cavaliers selected him in the first round of the 2002 draft, and as Dajuan made his move from college to the pros, Wes was there to ease the transition. In his first year, Dajuan was among NBA rookie leaders in scoring, assists, and minutes played.
Injuries and illness derailed Dajuan’s career after a few seasons, but Wes already had another, more lucrative reason to stick around Cleveland: Less than an hour away, in Akron, a teenage phenom named Le-Bron James was capturing imaginations.
*****
My first in-the-flesh glimpse of Wes is through binoculars during halftime of a Cavaliers game at Quicken Loans Arena as he stands on the end line kibitzing with Cavs GM Danny Ferry. With the break winding down, Wes shakes Ferry’s hand and starts walking up the sideline, stopping along the way to man-hug security guards and high-five ball boys. His seat is center court, first row, next to a brunet in a tight pink T-shirt. He sits back, arms folded across his chest, legs extended. Every couple of minutes, he plucks a cell phone from a belt holster; sometimes he has a phone pressed against each ear. When LeBron slashes to the hoop and throws down a two-handed slam, I detect a trace of a grin. Otherwise, he remains expressionless.
Earlier in the week, when the Toronto Raptors were in town, I spotted LeBron’s agent, Leon Rose, a close friend of Wes’s from back in the Pro Shoes days. (Rose also happens to be Wes’s attorney.) Ten years ago, Rose’s client list consisted of the itinerant scrub Rick Brunson and a handful of foreign players. Then, in 2002, seemingly out of nowhere, Rose somehow bagged Dajuan Wagner and Allen Iverson. Soon after, he was hired by Richard Hamilton. And then, in 2005, he landed the most desired client in the world, LeBron James.
Rose is coy about his relationship with Wes, but according to many sources, it’s no coincidence that nearly all of Rose’s clients are Wes’s “nephews.” LeBron James was 15 when Wes started attending games at Akron’s St. Vincent–St. Mary. Wes befriended Eddie Jackson, LeBron’s surrogate father, then became acquainted with LeBron’s family and eventually won over LeBron himself by introducing him to his idol, Jay-Z.
But Leon Rose never formally entered the LeBron sweepstakes. Ultimately, West Coast agent Aaron Goodwin won the right to represent him. His first order of business was structuring more than $120 million in endorsement contracts before LeBron ever set foot on NBA hardwood. Still, Goodwin’s hold on LeBron was tenuous. Wes tells me everybody had a hunch the relationship wouldn’t last. Goodwin has a history of being fired by superstar clients. And although Wes was already acting as LeBron’s adviser, insiders speculate that he was really seeking to pry the young star from Goodwin: In 2003, Wes moved into an apartment just across the hall from LeBron’s downtown-Cleveland digs.
Two years later, in May 2005, LeBron severed ties with Goodwin. (Wes insists that he had nothing to do with the decision.) And two months after that, LeBron hired Leon Rose.
Although they missed out on the millions in commission money that Goodwin pocketed from LeBron’s endorsements, the benefit to Wes and Rose was astounding. (Wes denies any financial quid pro quo with Rose.) Rose recently brought his practice to the Hollywood talent agency CAA, putting at his disposal multifaceted promotional services and nearly unlimited resources. And his sudden clout was showcased during the first round of the 2006 NBA draft, when the New York Knicks selected six-foot-eight-inch swingman Renaldo Balkman, a pick that caused ESPN’s Chad Ford to say, “Renaldo Balkman?… He averaged fewer than ten points per game…. No other team would’ve taken him in the first round…. Wow.” Greg Anthony called the selection of Balkman “befuddling” and later hypothesized that Isiah Thomas had selected Balkman and Temple University guard Mardy Collins because both were clients of Leon Rose, and that taking these players in the first round might help them in the pursuit of free agent LeBron James.
A month later, LeBron signed a three-year contract with the Cavs. And the Knicks still suck. But the implication was out there: Leon Rose has the power to influence the NBA draft and the larger marketplace.
When I present this theory to David Falk, he stops me and says, “Leon Rose doesn’t have any clout. Wes has clout.”
*****
As I stand outside the locker room last December, a Cavs media liaison grants me five minutes with LeBron for a postpractice chat. “Can you describe your relationship with Wes?” I ask. “Friend? Adviser? Both? What kind of advice does he provide? What services?”
He looks down at me and says softly, “He’s a great guy. I met him a few years back. He’s been a great role model to me. I can only say good things about him.”
“As a role model,” I ask, “what’s he in your ear about?”
He adjusts the giant silver earphones fixed above his temples and says, “That’s kind of personal information, honestly. What’s said, what goes on with, you know, our family, stays with our family. But as far as him being a good person—he’s always been good to me. He’s never asked me for anything. He’s always been trustworthy to me, and I respect him for that.”
He’s never asked me for anything. According to Reebok executive Tom Shine, “Wes doesn’t have a hidden agenda, unlike a lot of other people in the grass roots and the college- basketball business and the agent business and all of the other businesses that attach themselves like barnacles to these players.” Luther Campbell: “He doesn’t come o¬n as no salesman. You know, Wes never asks for nothing.” John Calipari: “Why would a pro player shun everybody else but bring this guy into the fold? Because he never asks for anything.”
He never asks because the players already provide him with what he needs most: access. Wes’s relationships with the NBA’s elite players give him access to the owners and general managers of every team in the league. (Not to mention agents, media, and corporate execs.) In 2004, Reebok sent Wes to Athens with Team USA to manage Allen Iverson. Wes stayed in the players’ quarters on the Queen Mary 2, placing him in close proximity to LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony, and other superstars. He was granted access to Team USA practices and functions that were off¬-limits to players’ families and entourages during last summer’s World Championships, landing him alongside twenty-three other players Leon Rose covets. (Wes’s presence caused quite a commotion. As Henry Abbott reported on TrueHoop, “Two independent sources confirm that one, if not more, NBA agent was livid at USA Basketball for letting William Wesley into closed sessions with the young and impressionable stars of Team USA. It’s an agent’s worst nightmare to have someone like that hanging around your player in a closed session.”) Nike also provides Wes with access to the nation’s premier prep players at their summer basketball camps. And access to these kids means access to college coaches. William Wesley’s world is integrated to the max. Working for nobody allows him to work for everybody.
*****
What’s it like to meet William Wesley? What’s it like to be sucked into his vortex of power and connectivity? In January, Henry Abbott sends me the phone number for a man named Gregory Dole. Dole, he says, has a story he wants to share. A story that will tell me what it’s like to meet William Wesley.
Dole lives in Brazil, where he works as a basketball coach and scout. In the winter of 2003, he tells me, he accompanied a then unknown Brazilian guard named Leandro Barbosa to the States. Barbosa, who spoke not one word of English, was determined to play in the NBA, so Dole arranged showcases with a number of NBA teams. Their tour passed through Cleveland, where they met Ron Harper—a fifteen-year NBA veteran and longtime friend of Wes’s. After seeing Barbosa’s highlight tape and declaring that the 20-year-old Brazilian was good enough to play in the NBA, Harper invited Barbosa and Dole to watch the Cavaliers take on the Knicks. When the game was over, according to Dole, “We were chatting with Ron and LeBron and his crew, when this guy makes a beeline for Leandro. Wes knew everybody else in the group, so he made a point of getting to know who we were. He peppered us with questions: Who was Leandro? Where did he play? He found out we were visiting from Brazil and joked, ‘I’m going to come to Brazil, and I want you to organize for me to have sex with a di¬fferent woman every day.’ ” Then Wes said, I want you to meet my close friend Allan. Allan was former Knicks star Allan Houston. Barbosa’s knowledge of the NBA was limited. He knew about Michael, Magic, and Larry. But Allan Houston? Dole leaned in and told him about Houston’s seven-year, $100 million contract. Barbosa, who was making $3,000 a month in Brazil, was awestruck. Before long, Barbosa and Dole were sitting in the back of Wes’s Mercedes.
Wes asked Barbosa who his favorite player was.
“Michael Jordan,” Barbosa said.
Wes activated the keypad on his steering wheel. And in an instant, the car’s speakers filled up with the sound of a ringing phone. No answer. But then a voice: Michael Jordan asking the caller to leave a message. Dole had no clue who Wes was, but he and Leandro were blown away. The show was on.
What kind of music do you like?
“Jay-Z.”
Wes pounded away at the keypad, there was the sound of a phone ringing, and this time there was an answer. Jay-Z. He and Beyoncé were working late in the studio. There were a few moments of conversation, and Leandro attempted to sing Jay-Z’s hit song “Hard Knock Life.” Beyoncé laughed. Jay-Z laughed.
Wes called Nike’s global director of basketball, Lynn Merritt. He called Scott Perry, director of player personnel for the Detroit Pistons. “Barbosa’s going to be a big star,” Perry said.
Then Wes drove them to Blue Point Grille, one of Cleveland’s finer restaurants, where, according to Dole, he boasted about how he’d arranged Dajuan Wagner’s contract with Nike and pressed Barbosa on his business dealings.
Which sneaker companies are courting you?
Reebok, Adidas, And-1.”
And-1 is no good, and stay away from that three-stripe shit. Nike and Reebok are the best. Who’s your agent?
Dole said he’d set Leandro up with a small-time guy named Michael Coyne. Wes just scoff¬ed.
“On our way out of the restaurant,” Dole told me, “Wes said, ‘See that man over there? He’s the president of the Cleveland Browns. He just paid for our dinner. Let’s go say hello.’ ”
William Wesley is the best MySpace page in the NBA’s universe. Get on his friends list and just like that you’ll be introduced to Le-Bron, D-Wade, Carmelo, Jay-Z, Phil Knight, Michael Jordan. You’ll be connected to heads of industry, politics, and entertainment. You’ll be given a key to the club. You’ll be taken care of. But mainly, if you’re a middling agent from New Jersey or a 15-year-old kid from Akron or a 20-year-old unknown from Brazil, what William Wesley off¬ers is pretty simple: He can pluck you from obscurity and turn you into a (very, very wealthy) somebody.
*****
I know what it’s like to meet William Wesley. In Cleveland I had attempted to dive headlong into his world, but he spit me out. So I fly to Detroit the day after Christmas to try to talk to Wes again. When he struts through the security door of the Palace, home of the Pistons, I nod at him, trying to get his attention. He stops. “How you doin’?”
“All right. All right.”
“Where you from, again?”
“GQ.”
“I’ve been hearing about you. That you’ve been misleading people. Asking a lot of questions about me. I’m not a story. I’m just a nice guy. I’m not powerful; that’s a myth.”
“I think you are—”
“Telling people that you’re writing a story about one thing and then asking a lot of questions about me.” He’s angry that I’ve been looking into his association with high school players. “That’s a land mine you sittin’ on, boss.”
“You going to be around this week?”
“Nah. I’m out of here.”
“We should talk.”
And then his tone changes. From slightly annoyed to confrontational. “Why should I talk to you? You should have come to me first.”
“I wanted to do my homework first.”
“If you’ve done your homework, then you’ll know that there’s a lot of sensational stuff¬ out there. I’m not going to talk to you now.” He turns and begins walking away, then he stops, spins on a heel to face me. He extends a finger in my direction and says, “Because the moment you write one wrong thing…”
*****
The Nike Super 6, a mid-January extravaganza of high school hoops staged at the World’s Most Famous Arena, is exactly the type of event that Wes marks on his calendar. It’s a chance for the next generation of superstars to put their talent on display in front of a crowd of thousands. Rick Pitino is here. Rumor is that John Calipari is in attendance. And Wes is here, too, seated courtside between a man named Reggie Evans and Eric Goodwin, the muscle-bound brother of LeBron’s former agent, Aaron Goodwin. It’s surreal to see Wes sitting next to Goodwin; by all accounts he loathes Wes. Between games, Wes mockingly waves to me.
This afternoon’s main attraction is one Derrick Rose, a six-foot-three-inch blisteringly fast point guard from Chicago’s Simeon Career Academy. Journalists and insiders who have followed Rose’s career also noted Wes’s presence on the sideline of Derrick’s AAU games last summer. Rose’s college choices came down to Memphis, Illinois, and Indiana. One journalist told me, “When I saw the list, I knew Derrick was going to Memphis.” The prediction was correct.
When I talk to John Calipari, he says it makes sense that Wes would recommend Memphis to Derrick Rose. “It’s the right fit,” he tells me, and then adds, “Wes is a goodwill ambassador to our program.”
In addition to Rose, another of Wes’s “nephews” is showcasing his talents this afternoon: Tyreke Evans, Reggie Evans’s brother. Scouting service Rivals.com ranks Evans among the best juniors in the country. It’s easy to see why: Even when he’s warming up, Tyreke has a stunning array of pull-up jumpers and fallaway jumpers and leaners and floaters. At one point, Tyreke stops to show Wes some love. By the fall, Tyreke will decide on a college, maybe UNC, U Conn, Louisville, Villanova, or Memphis.
Tyreke was 12 when Que Gaskins took notice of him at a basketball tournament. His coach hardly let him play, so Que and Allen Iverson started an AAU team called the Raiders. And Tyreke was the star. When his brother Reggie started believing the hype that Tyreke was NBA material, Que reached out to Wes: “They had so many people coming at them, and they were so green. They needed somebody who had the wisdom, a surrogate uncle who wouldn’t have any vested interest in seeing Tyreke succeed or fail—would just do it out of love.” Wes said to Que, “Send him to me. You know Uncle Wes got it.”
“I like to call Wes a school without walls,” Que says. He describes Wes connecting young players with their role models, guys like A.I. and LeBron. “They’ve already gone down that path. They’ve already made a lot of the mistakes that a kid like Tyreke is going to make. He gets the truth directly from their mouth. What kid wouldn’t be motivated? What kid wouldn’t want to work hard?”
Tyreke dominates the second half of the game, finishing with thirty-three points and six assists. It’s a good day for Wes’s nephews, and there are better days to come. Chances are good that a year from now, after one season at Memphis, Derrick Rose will be an NBA lottery pick. And a year after that, Tyreke Evans will follow suit. For now, though, Tyreke stands at center court, gripping his MVP plaque, trying not to blink at the flashbulbs. Wes stands five feet out on the court in a circle of people. A few feet away, Reggie Evans stands on the Garden floor, too, with his hands in his pockets, taking in the moment. Wes drapes an arm over Reggie’s shoulder and pulls him closer. I think I can read Wes’s lips: “Come here. There’s somebody I want you to meet.”
Alex French is a GQ researcher.
IS THIS THE MOST POWERFUL MAN IN SPORTS?
In the NBA, all roads lead to one man, whom you’ve probably never heard of: William Wesley—a.k.a. Worldwide Wes—the most connected, most discreet, most influential man on and off the court
Auburn Hills, Michigan, November 2004. William Wesley, a middle-aged mortgage broker, runs onto the court to shield Ron Artest from a uniformed police officer wielding a can of pepper spray. Artest’s teammates are trading haymakers with fans; coaches and referees are struggling to restore order. The mortgage broker lunges forward and throws his hands in the cop’s face, and in the next instant, Pacers teammates Austin Croshere and Reggie Miller rush to restrain Artest. Through a tempest of tossed soda and popcorn, Wesley moves on to shepherding the Pacers’ Jermaine O’Neal on the court. Once in the tunnel, O’Neal breaks free, but Wesley wraps him in a bear hug and drags him to the locker room.
Two years later, when I ask Reggie Miller about Wesley’s presence on the court, he’ll say: “What the hell is he doing out there in the middle of all that? I mean, what is he doing? He has no business out there! He injects himself into the middle of everything!”
Others weren’t quite so surprised to see William Wesley—or Wes, as he’s known—in the middle of the fray. “At any given time, if you look at any sporting event, there’s a very good chance you’re going to see Wes,” says NBA analyst David Aldridge. Over the years, Wes has been spotted hugging Jerry Jones on the field after a Cowboys Super Bowl win, high-fiving University of Miami football players after a national championship win, and embracing Joe Dumars after the Pistons won the NBA Finals. He’s been spotted sitting next to Jay-Z at the NBA All-Star Game, with Nike czar Phil Knight at the Final Four, and trolling the sidelines of Team USA practices in Las Vegas and Japan. “People who really know Wes,” says superagent David Falk, Wes’s longtime friend, “know that he’s one of the two or three most powerful people in the sport.”
In his March 2005 ESPN “Page 2” column, the well-known basketball writer Scoop Jackson wrote, “I believe Phil Knight is the most powerful man in sports next to Wes Wesley.” Eight months after Jackson’s column, New Jersey-based basketball journalist Henry Abbott mounted an obsessive open-source investigation on his blog, TrueHoop, that brilliantly illustrated how, if you look closely at the various forces at work in basketball at every level of the sport—the AAU programs that funnel players to college programs, the agents looking to land players as early as NBA rules allow, the shoe companies, coaches, franchise owners, front-office executives, players—it eventually dawns on you that they have one thing in common: William Wesley.
So why have you never heard of him? Whenever I told journalists, players, agents, and NBA executives the subject of this article, the common reaction was an amused chuckle and then “Good luck.” Very few people, even Wes’s friends, are able to describe his role. Chicago Sun-Times writer Lacy Banks recalls his confusion upon meeting Wes twenty years ago: “I thought he worked for the Secret Service or the FBI or the CIA. Then I thought he was a pimp, providing players with chicks, or a loan shark or a bodyguard or a vice commissioner to the league.” The few people who know what Wes is really up to aren’t talking. And that’s the way Wes likes it.
Many of the stories circulating about Wes are sensationalistic: He was a guest at Frank Sinatra’s funeral. He worked as an operative for his close friends Bill and Hillary Clinton. Spike Lee is planning a movie about his life. Of all the rumors, the movie seems to make the most sense, because the story of how William Sydney Wesley, the child of a middle-class family from southern New Jersey, turned himself into Worldwide Wes is such a perfect realization of the modern American dream—full of old-fashioned wheel-greasing, hustling, and social climbing—that it feels like it was written for the big screen.
The story begins in the early 1980s at Pro Shoes, a lunchbox-sized store in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, that serviced hoops stars from all over the Delaware River Valley—from local high school stars to 76ers like Darryl Dawkins and Doug Collins. William Wesley, age 16, was the preternaturally suave salesman who knew all about the clientele. He knew the pro players from TV, and he knew the high schoolers from bumping shoulders with them on the court—there was Leon Rose, the crafty point guard from Cherry Hill East, and those two juggernauts from Camden named Billy Thompson and Milt Wagner.
“Wes was my best friend,” Wagner says. “My whole career, he followed me everywhere I went.”
In 1981, Milt headed to Louisville, where he made three trips to the Final Four and won a national championship. In 1987, when Milt went on to the Los Angeles Lakers, Wes was there, too, taking it all in, learning that young men, as they make the transition from college to the NBA, have needs. “If a player needs a custom-clothing designer, Wes can help you with that,” Banks says. “Need a hairstylist who knows how to do complicated cornrows? Wes can do that.”
In 1989, Kenny Payne, one of Milt’s former Louisville teammates, introduced Wes to fellow 76er Rick Mahorn, who in turn gave Wes a job as the doorman at his Cherry Hill nightclub, a favorite bump-and-grind spot for Philly’s pro athletes. It wasn’t long before Wes was running the place.
Recalling that early period, 2 Live Crew frontman Luther Campbell tells me, “My claim to fame is that I took Wes on his first flight on a jet. We went to the NBA All-Star Game, we went to the University of Miami games, we went everywhere. We were at a Mike Tyson fight in Atlantic City, and Wes took me back into the casino vault! With the money! You only get to go back there if you’re an employee or you’re one of the boys. I said, ‘Oh, my God! Who the hell are you, Wes? What’d you do?’ And Wes said, ‘I just know everybody.’ ”
Wes’s big break came in the late 1980s or early 1990s, when Milt Wagner put him in a room with Michael Jordan. Jordan ended up giving Wes a job at his basketball camp. After that, according to Lacy Banks, “Wes just popped up out of nowhere. You’d see him in locker rooms, courtside at games, in the hotels, restaurants, everywhere.” By late 1993, Wes had taken up residence in Chicago. Being close to Jordan and the Bulls was good for business.
Chicago is where Wes became friends with, among others, the Clintons, Phil Knight, and Reebok exec Tom Shine. He made allies in the media, providing inside information and facilitating interviews with difficult-to-reach stars, and he gained a reputation as a trustworthy adviser/fixer for at-risk athletes. “I know of a particular NBA player who got into a staggering gambling situation,” says Shine. “The people this guy lost money to, they were not nice guys. Wes saved him from getting killed.”
In 1997, when Allen Iverson was arrested for possessing marijuana and a concealed weapon, Wes stepped in to clean up the mess. According to Reebok executive Que Gaskins, Iverson’s constant companion during that period, “After Allen got in trouble, Wes called to check in on us and make sure we had the right resources and the right people to get in touch with. He was very close with Billy Hunter [head of the National Basketball Players Association] and wanted to make sure that if Allen wanted his voice heard, he and Billy had a conversation.”
Numerous sources also told me that Wes played a significant role in mediating peace between Iverson and his coach, Larry Brown. One well-circulated anecdote tells of Wes urging A.I. over speakerphone to quit bitching and get his ass to practice. Coaches around the league took notice of the sway Wes had with players. “Put it this way,” says Cleveland Cavaliers coach Mike Brown. “If I have a problem and I need an outside influence, I know I can call him. We talk all the time.”
*****
In 2001, Wes’s godson and Milt’s son, Dajuan Wagner, was the consensus best high school basketball player in the world. If Dajuan had entered the NBA draft after his junior year at Camden High, he might have been the number one pick. But Wes persuaded him to let the NBA wait and spend a year or two playing for John Calipari at the University of Memphis. The deal came with plenty of strings attached: Wes made it clear to Calipari that Dajuan was more inclined to sign with a school that also gave a free ride to his best friend, Arthur Barclay, an all-state player who’d been passed over because of poor test scores. (Done.) Then Milt, despite lacking a college degree, was hired to be Memphis’s head of basketball operations. When news of the deal leaked out, the media crucified Calipari, painting it as nothing more than legalized graft. Wes answered accusations that something shady had gone down, saying, “Man, I’ve heard the second-guessing. It’s simple: Juanny needed to improve his defense and prove that he can play on the next level. Coach Cal can help him do that. What do I have to gain by him going to Memphis?”
Wes had been managing Dajuan’s career since the boy was 11, and so when it came time for Dajuan to head to Memphis, Wes went along. After only one season—in which Dajuan averaged twenty-one points a game—Calipari called Milt and Dajuan into his office. “I tore up Dajuan’s scholarship in front of him to make sure he understood he wasn’t coming back,” Calipari says. Dajuan was ready for the NBA. The Cavaliers selected him in the first round of the 2002 draft, and as Dajuan made his move from college to the pros, Wes was there to ease the transition. In his first year, Dajuan was among NBA rookie leaders in scoring, assists, and minutes played.
Injuries and illness derailed Dajuan’s career after a few seasons, but Wes already had another, more lucrative reason to stick around Cleveland: Less than an hour away, in Akron, a teenage phenom named Le-Bron James was capturing imaginations.
*****
My first in-the-flesh glimpse of Wes is through binoculars during halftime of a Cavaliers game at Quicken Loans Arena as he stands on the end line kibitzing with Cavs GM Danny Ferry. With the break winding down, Wes shakes Ferry’s hand and starts walking up the sideline, stopping along the way to man-hug security guards and high-five ball boys. His seat is center court, first row, next to a brunet in a tight pink T-shirt. He sits back, arms folded across his chest, legs extended. Every couple of minutes, he plucks a cell phone from a belt holster; sometimes he has a phone pressed against each ear. When LeBron slashes to the hoop and throws down a two-handed slam, I detect a trace of a grin. Otherwise, he remains expressionless.
Earlier in the week, when the Toronto Raptors were in town, I spotted LeBron’s agent, Leon Rose, a close friend of Wes’s from back in the Pro Shoes days. (Rose also happens to be Wes’s attorney.) Ten years ago, Rose’s client list consisted of the itinerant scrub Rick Brunson and a handful of foreign players. Then, in 2002, seemingly out of nowhere, Rose somehow bagged Dajuan Wagner and Allen Iverson. Soon after, he was hired by Richard Hamilton. And then, in 2005, he landed the most desired client in the world, LeBron James.
Rose is coy about his relationship with Wes, but according to many sources, it’s no coincidence that nearly all of Rose’s clients are Wes’s “nephews.” LeBron James was 15 when Wes started attending games at Akron’s St. Vincent–St. Mary. Wes befriended Eddie Jackson, LeBron’s surrogate father, then became acquainted with LeBron’s family and eventually won over LeBron himself by introducing him to his idol, Jay-Z.
But Leon Rose never formally entered the LeBron sweepstakes. Ultimately, West Coast agent Aaron Goodwin won the right to represent him. His first order of business was structuring more than $120 million in endorsement contracts before LeBron ever set foot on NBA hardwood. Still, Goodwin’s hold on LeBron was tenuous. Wes tells me everybody had a hunch the relationship wouldn’t last. Goodwin has a history of being fired by superstar clients. And although Wes was already acting as LeBron’s adviser, insiders speculate that he was really seeking to pry the young star from Goodwin: In 2003, Wes moved into an apartment just across the hall from LeBron’s downtown-Cleveland digs.
Two years later, in May 2005, LeBron severed ties with Goodwin. (Wes insists that he had nothing to do with the decision.) And two months after that, LeBron hired Leon Rose.
Although they missed out on the millions in commission money that Goodwin pocketed from LeBron’s endorsements, the benefit to Wes and Rose was astounding. (Wes denies any financial quid pro quo with Rose.) Rose recently brought his practice to the Hollywood talent agency CAA, putting at his disposal multifaceted promotional services and nearly unlimited resources. And his sudden clout was showcased during the first round of the 2006 NBA draft, when the New York Knicks selected six-foot-eight-inch swingman Renaldo Balkman, a pick that caused ESPN’s Chad Ford to say, “Renaldo Balkman?… He averaged fewer than ten points per game…. No other team would’ve taken him in the first round…. Wow.” Greg Anthony called the selection of Balkman “befuddling” and later hypothesized that Isiah Thomas had selected Balkman and Temple University guard Mardy Collins because both were clients of Leon Rose, and that taking these players in the first round might help them in the pursuit of free agent LeBron James.
A month later, LeBron signed a three-year contract with the Cavs. And the Knicks still suck. But the implication was out there: Leon Rose has the power to influence the NBA draft and the larger marketplace.
When I present this theory to David Falk, he stops me and says, “Leon Rose doesn’t have any clout. Wes has clout.”
*****
As I stand outside the locker room last December, a Cavs media liaison grants me five minutes with LeBron for a postpractice chat. “Can you describe your relationship with Wes?” I ask. “Friend? Adviser? Both? What kind of advice does he provide? What services?”
He looks down at me and says softly, “He’s a great guy. I met him a few years back. He’s been a great role model to me. I can only say good things about him.”
“As a role model,” I ask, “what’s he in your ear about?”
He adjusts the giant silver earphones fixed above his temples and says, “That’s kind of personal information, honestly. What’s said, what goes on with, you know, our family, stays with our family. But as far as him being a good person—he’s always been good to me. He’s never asked me for anything. He’s always been trustworthy to me, and I respect him for that.”
He’s never asked me for anything. According to Reebok executive Tom Shine, “Wes doesn’t have a hidden agenda, unlike a lot of other people in the grass roots and the college- basketball business and the agent business and all of the other businesses that attach themselves like barnacles to these players.” Luther Campbell: “He doesn’t come o¬n as no salesman. You know, Wes never asks for nothing.” John Calipari: “Why would a pro player shun everybody else but bring this guy into the fold? Because he never asks for anything.”
He never asks because the players already provide him with what he needs most: access. Wes’s relationships with the NBA’s elite players give him access to the owners and general managers of every team in the league. (Not to mention agents, media, and corporate execs.) In 2004, Reebok sent Wes to Athens with Team USA to manage Allen Iverson. Wes stayed in the players’ quarters on the Queen Mary 2, placing him in close proximity to LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony, and other superstars. He was granted access to Team USA practices and functions that were off¬-limits to players’ families and entourages during last summer’s World Championships, landing him alongside twenty-three other players Leon Rose covets. (Wes’s presence caused quite a commotion. As Henry Abbott reported on TrueHoop, “Two independent sources confirm that one, if not more, NBA agent was livid at USA Basketball for letting William Wesley into closed sessions with the young and impressionable stars of Team USA. It’s an agent’s worst nightmare to have someone like that hanging around your player in a closed session.”) Nike also provides Wes with access to the nation’s premier prep players at their summer basketball camps. And access to these kids means access to college coaches. William Wesley’s world is integrated to the max. Working for nobody allows him to work for everybody.
*****
What’s it like to meet William Wesley? What’s it like to be sucked into his vortex of power and connectivity? In January, Henry Abbott sends me the phone number for a man named Gregory Dole. Dole, he says, has a story he wants to share. A story that will tell me what it’s like to meet William Wesley.
Dole lives in Brazil, where he works as a basketball coach and scout. In the winter of 2003, he tells me, he accompanied a then unknown Brazilian guard named Leandro Barbosa to the States. Barbosa, who spoke not one word of English, was determined to play in the NBA, so Dole arranged showcases with a number of NBA teams. Their tour passed through Cleveland, where they met Ron Harper—a fifteen-year NBA veteran and longtime friend of Wes’s. After seeing Barbosa’s highlight tape and declaring that the 20-year-old Brazilian was good enough to play in the NBA, Harper invited Barbosa and Dole to watch the Cavaliers take on the Knicks. When the game was over, according to Dole, “We were chatting with Ron and LeBron and his crew, when this guy makes a beeline for Leandro. Wes knew everybody else in the group, so he made a point of getting to know who we were. He peppered us with questions: Who was Leandro? Where did he play? He found out we were visiting from Brazil and joked, ‘I’m going to come to Brazil, and I want you to organize for me to have sex with a di¬fferent woman every day.’ ” Then Wes said, I want you to meet my close friend Allan. Allan was former Knicks star Allan Houston. Barbosa’s knowledge of the NBA was limited. He knew about Michael, Magic, and Larry. But Allan Houston? Dole leaned in and told him about Houston’s seven-year, $100 million contract. Barbosa, who was making $3,000 a month in Brazil, was awestruck. Before long, Barbosa and Dole were sitting in the back of Wes’s Mercedes.
Wes asked Barbosa who his favorite player was.
“Michael Jordan,” Barbosa said.
Wes activated the keypad on his steering wheel. And in an instant, the car’s speakers filled up with the sound of a ringing phone. No answer. But then a voice: Michael Jordan asking the caller to leave a message. Dole had no clue who Wes was, but he and Leandro were blown away. The show was on.
What kind of music do you like?
“Jay-Z.”
Wes pounded away at the keypad, there was the sound of a phone ringing, and this time there was an answer. Jay-Z. He and Beyoncé were working late in the studio. There were a few moments of conversation, and Leandro attempted to sing Jay-Z’s hit song “Hard Knock Life.” Beyoncé laughed. Jay-Z laughed.
Wes called Nike’s global director of basketball, Lynn Merritt. He called Scott Perry, director of player personnel for the Detroit Pistons. “Barbosa’s going to be a big star,” Perry said.
Then Wes drove them to Blue Point Grille, one of Cleveland’s finer restaurants, where, according to Dole, he boasted about how he’d arranged Dajuan Wagner’s contract with Nike and pressed Barbosa on his business dealings.
Which sneaker companies are courting you?
Reebok, Adidas, And-1.”
And-1 is no good, and stay away from that three-stripe shit. Nike and Reebok are the best. Who’s your agent?
Dole said he’d set Leandro up with a small-time guy named Michael Coyne. Wes just scoff¬ed.
“On our way out of the restaurant,” Dole told me, “Wes said, ‘See that man over there? He’s the president of the Cleveland Browns. He just paid for our dinner. Let’s go say hello.’ ”
William Wesley is the best MySpace page in the NBA’s universe. Get on his friends list and just like that you’ll be introduced to Le-Bron, D-Wade, Carmelo, Jay-Z, Phil Knight, Michael Jordan. You’ll be connected to heads of industry, politics, and entertainment. You’ll be given a key to the club. You’ll be taken care of. But mainly, if you’re a middling agent from New Jersey or a 15-year-old kid from Akron or a 20-year-old unknown from Brazil, what William Wesley off¬ers is pretty simple: He can pluck you from obscurity and turn you into a (very, very wealthy) somebody.
*****
I know what it’s like to meet William Wesley. In Cleveland I had attempted to dive headlong into his world, but he spit me out. So I fly to Detroit the day after Christmas to try to talk to Wes again. When he struts through the security door of the Palace, home of the Pistons, I nod at him, trying to get his attention. He stops. “How you doin’?”
“All right. All right.”
“Where you from, again?”
“GQ.”
“I’ve been hearing about you. That you’ve been misleading people. Asking a lot of questions about me. I’m not a story. I’m just a nice guy. I’m not powerful; that’s a myth.”
“I think you are—”
“Telling people that you’re writing a story about one thing and then asking a lot of questions about me.” He’s angry that I’ve been looking into his association with high school players. “That’s a land mine you sittin’ on, boss.”
“You going to be around this week?”
“Nah. I’m out of here.”
“We should talk.”
And then his tone changes. From slightly annoyed to confrontational. “Why should I talk to you? You should have come to me first.”
“I wanted to do my homework first.”
“If you’ve done your homework, then you’ll know that there’s a lot of sensational stuff¬ out there. I’m not going to talk to you now.” He turns and begins walking away, then he stops, spins on a heel to face me. He extends a finger in my direction and says, “Because the moment you write one wrong thing…”
*****
The Nike Super 6, a mid-January extravaganza of high school hoops staged at the World’s Most Famous Arena, is exactly the type of event that Wes marks on his calendar. It’s a chance for the next generation of superstars to put their talent on display in front of a crowd of thousands. Rick Pitino is here. Rumor is that John Calipari is in attendance. And Wes is here, too, seated courtside between a man named Reggie Evans and Eric Goodwin, the muscle-bound brother of LeBron’s former agent, Aaron Goodwin. It’s surreal to see Wes sitting next to Goodwin; by all accounts he loathes Wes. Between games, Wes mockingly waves to me.
This afternoon’s main attraction is one Derrick Rose, a six-foot-three-inch blisteringly fast point guard from Chicago’s Simeon Career Academy. Journalists and insiders who have followed Rose’s career also noted Wes’s presence on the sideline of Derrick’s AAU games last summer. Rose’s college choices came down to Memphis, Illinois, and Indiana. One journalist told me, “When I saw the list, I knew Derrick was going to Memphis.” The prediction was correct.
When I talk to John Calipari, he says it makes sense that Wes would recommend Memphis to Derrick Rose. “It’s the right fit,” he tells me, and then adds, “Wes is a goodwill ambassador to our program.”
In addition to Rose, another of Wes’s “nephews” is showcasing his talents this afternoon: Tyreke Evans, Reggie Evans’s brother. Scouting service Rivals.com ranks Evans among the best juniors in the country. It’s easy to see why: Even when he’s warming up, Tyreke has a stunning array of pull-up jumpers and fallaway jumpers and leaners and floaters. At one point, Tyreke stops to show Wes some love. By the fall, Tyreke will decide on a college, maybe UNC, U Conn, Louisville, Villanova, or Memphis.
Tyreke was 12 when Que Gaskins took notice of him at a basketball tournament. His coach hardly let him play, so Que and Allen Iverson started an AAU team called the Raiders. And Tyreke was the star. When his brother Reggie started believing the hype that Tyreke was NBA material, Que reached out to Wes: “They had so many people coming at them, and they were so green. They needed somebody who had the wisdom, a surrogate uncle who wouldn’t have any vested interest in seeing Tyreke succeed or fail—would just do it out of love.” Wes said to Que, “Send him to me. You know Uncle Wes got it.”
“I like to call Wes a school without walls,” Que says. He describes Wes connecting young players with their role models, guys like A.I. and LeBron. “They’ve already gone down that path. They’ve already made a lot of the mistakes that a kid like Tyreke is going to make. He gets the truth directly from their mouth. What kid wouldn’t be motivated? What kid wouldn’t want to work hard?”
Tyreke dominates the second half of the game, finishing with thirty-three points and six assists. It’s a good day for Wes’s nephews, and there are better days to come. Chances are good that a year from now, after one season at Memphis, Derrick Rose will be an NBA lottery pick. And a year after that, Tyreke Evans will follow suit. For now, though, Tyreke stands at center court, gripping his MVP plaque, trying not to blink at the flashbulbs. Wes stands five feet out on the court in a circle of people. A few feet away, Reggie Evans stands on the Garden floor, too, with his hands in his pockets, taking in the moment. Wes drapes an arm over Reggie’s shoulder and pulls him closer. I think I can read Wes’s lips: “Come here. There’s somebody I want you to meet.”
Alex French is a GQ researcher.
From ESPN.com True Hoop by Henry Abbott
From ESPN.com
True Hoop by Henry Abbott
Young Players Who Want to be Good Teammates
July 3, 2007 5:49 PM
Maybe I'm still awash in the glow of the NBA draft, where I really got a good feeling from a lot of the young draftees I met.
There are some social ills in the NBA, for sure. But the more you talk to young players these days, the less that seems so.
And, come to think of it, that was part of the story at the NBA playoffs, too, where LeBron James showed us that (despite all the stories about selfish high school to pros superstars) being a good teammate is high on his agenda.
It's happy news.
Then, there's a story in today's Philadelphia Inquirer that kind of blows my mind. It's about 6-6 New Jersey eighth grader Michael Gilchrist, who has been pegged as one of the nation's great young players. Keith Pompey writes:
Gilchrist said he did not aspire to be just as good as Oden, Durant and Mayo.
"My goal is to the best [swingman]" on his high school team, he said. "Then I want to play [college basketball] at Memphis for two or three years. I don't want to do only one year in college, because I want to get an education. And after two or three years, hopefully, I can go to the NBA."
For now, he is one of the nation's top incoming high school freshmen. Make that a quiet and assuming freshman. Even with his superior skills, Gilchrist doesn't like receiving extra attention and is prone to shy away from discussions about his talent.
He's 13! And he's thinking about serving the needs of his team, and getting an education. He has interim goals, between here and the All-Star Game MVP trophy. He says the word "hopefully." Either he was born special, or somebody has been nurturing this guy, or both.
And there's another twist to this tale.
First of all, Gilchrist is from Camden County, New Jersey, stomping grounds of William Wesley, Milt Wagner, Billy Thompson, and practically every other major figure in my long-term William Wesley investigation.
In fact, Michael Gilchrist's father, who had the same name, was a high school teammate of Wagner and Thompson, two of Wesley's closest friends and earliest contacts in professional sports. Tragically, the elder Gilchrist was murdered more than a decade ago.
Put that all together, and there is almost no chance William Wesley does not know Michael Gilchrist.
And then ... you probably noticed ... that the younger Gilchrist has already set his sights on Memphis, where the coach is John Calipari is famously tight with Wesley. (Alex French of GQ talked to Calipari about it.) Doesn't take a genius to wonder about his relationship with Wesley, and any effect that might have had on his college of choice.
A friend who grew up in Camden, however, says it needn't be so: Dajuan Wagner was the heart and soul of Camden a few years ago. When he went from Camden to Memphis, the whole basketball-loving heart of that hard-luck city went with him. Memphis became the light at the end of the tunnel, when Gilchrist was young and impressionable. He'd want to go there whether he knows Wesley or not.
More to come on this, I expect.
True Hoop by Henry Abbott
Young Players Who Want to be Good Teammates
July 3, 2007 5:49 PM
Maybe I'm still awash in the glow of the NBA draft, where I really got a good feeling from a lot of the young draftees I met.
There are some social ills in the NBA, for sure. But the more you talk to young players these days, the less that seems so.
And, come to think of it, that was part of the story at the NBA playoffs, too, where LeBron James showed us that (despite all the stories about selfish high school to pros superstars) being a good teammate is high on his agenda.
It's happy news.
Then, there's a story in today's Philadelphia Inquirer that kind of blows my mind. It's about 6-6 New Jersey eighth grader Michael Gilchrist, who has been pegged as one of the nation's great young players. Keith Pompey writes:
Gilchrist said he did not aspire to be just as good as Oden, Durant and Mayo.
"My goal is to the best [swingman]" on his high school team, he said. "Then I want to play [college basketball] at Memphis for two or three years. I don't want to do only one year in college, because I want to get an education. And after two or three years, hopefully, I can go to the NBA."
For now, he is one of the nation's top incoming high school freshmen. Make that a quiet and assuming freshman. Even with his superior skills, Gilchrist doesn't like receiving extra attention and is prone to shy away from discussions about his talent.
He's 13! And he's thinking about serving the needs of his team, and getting an education. He has interim goals, between here and the All-Star Game MVP trophy. He says the word "hopefully." Either he was born special, or somebody has been nurturing this guy, or both.
And there's another twist to this tale.
First of all, Gilchrist is from Camden County, New Jersey, stomping grounds of William Wesley, Milt Wagner, Billy Thompson, and practically every other major figure in my long-term William Wesley investigation.
In fact, Michael Gilchrist's father, who had the same name, was a high school teammate of Wagner and Thompson, two of Wesley's closest friends and earliest contacts in professional sports. Tragically, the elder Gilchrist was murdered more than a decade ago.
Put that all together, and there is almost no chance William Wesley does not know Michael Gilchrist.
And then ... you probably noticed ... that the younger Gilchrist has already set his sights on Memphis, where the coach is John Calipari is famously tight with Wesley. (Alex French of GQ talked to Calipari about it.) Doesn't take a genius to wonder about his relationship with Wesley, and any effect that might have had on his college of choice.
A friend who grew up in Camden, however, says it needn't be so: Dajuan Wagner was the heart and soul of Camden a few years ago. When he went from Camden to Memphis, the whole basketball-loving heart of that hard-luck city went with him. Memphis became the light at the end of the tunnel, when Gilchrist was young and impressionable. He'd want to go there whether he knows Wesley or not.
More to come on this, I expect.
From SBRForum.com "Tar Heels Top Futures Board"
From SBRForum.com
Tar Heels top futures board
07/03/2007 08:09 AM
By: Chance Harper | sbrforum.com
Though most fans are just now getting into gear for the upcoming college and pro gridiron season, NCAA hoops is off and running on futures boards across the land. The Florida Gators will be hard-pressed to three-peat after losing the bulk of their double championship squad while the North Carolina Tar Heels are picked as the team most likely to succeed them.
Now that the NBA draft has thinned the ranks a bit, college basketball futures bettors have a sharper view of the impending 2007-08 handicapping landscape. Of course, the guys who make the lines have done their homework, too.
Last March, a season after the NCAA tournament saw a two-seed, a three, a four and a real longshot in an 11 seed (George Mason) make the Final Four, the final weekend of the 2006-07 college basketball season revolved around two number one seeds and two number twos. The Florida Gators, the defending and eventual champs last season, began the campaign as the favorites on NCAA championship betting boards at right around 6/1. The Ohio State Buckeyes, the eventual runner-ups, began their trek to the finals as 12/1 shots to win it all.
The UCLA Bruins, the runner-ups of the previous season, started out at 15/1 to win the title. And the Georgetown Hoyas, while a surprise to some to reach the Final Four, nonetheless began last season as 18/1 picks to win the championship. So each Final Four team was listed among the top ten oddsmakers' choices to win the NCAA title before last season started.
The landscape has changed a little, though, over these recent few months. Florida is now minus all the key figures -- Except their head coach -- that powered the Gators to back-to-back national championships. Coach Billy Donovan is back after flirting with the NBA, and he welcomes in a top-notch batch of recruits. But Florida is listed at right around 75/1 to win its third consecutive NCAA title, and for good reason; it'll be damn hard to do.
Ohio State got almost everything it could out of its one season with Greg Oden and Mike Conley. But last week that potent combo went No. 1 and No. 4 in the NBA draft. Now the Buckeyes go on, with another young but very talented team. But this year OSU is listed at upwards of 50/1 to win the national title.
UCLA and Georgetown are given the best chances by the oddsmakers of winning the championship among last season's Final Four teams. The Bruins, sans team leader Arron Afflalo but with super-quick guard Darren Collison back, are listed right near the top of most championship betting boards at about 7/1. And the Hoyas, with everybody but Jeff Green back, are posted at about 10/1 to win it all this season.
The North Carolina Tar Heels top most championship betting boards at odds of around 5/1. UNC lost a good one in Brandan Wright, who left for the NBA after just his freshman season. But with Tyler Hansbrough and Ty Lawson (pictured) back, this may be the most talented team in the land.
The Louisville Cardinals, a Final Four team three seasons ago, are listed at about 10/1 to win it all this season. The 'Ville has got the horses, and a jockey who knows how to ride 'em. This team, if it can avoid the injury bug that's bitten it the last couple of years, is a favorite to win the Big East and looms as very capable of making a run late into March.
The Memphis Tigers have gone 66-8 the last two seasons combined. Unfortunately, two of those losses have come in regional finals. This year, Memphis returns almost everybody, and is an early choice to top the polls when November rolls around. At the moment, the Tigers are listed at about 9/1 to win the national title this season.
Others listed in the upper reaches of NCAA men’s basketball championship betting boards include the Kansas Jayhawks at 12/1 and the Duke Blue Devils at 15/1. In the 20/1 range are the Syracuse Orangemen, USC Trojans and Kentucky Wildcats. And the Michigan State Spartans, Indiana Hoosiers, Arizona Wildcats, Stanford Cardinal and Tennessee Volunteers are proffered at right around 25/1.
Tar Heels top futures board
07/03/2007 08:09 AM
By: Chance Harper | sbrforum.com
Though most fans are just now getting into gear for the upcoming college and pro gridiron season, NCAA hoops is off and running on futures boards across the land. The Florida Gators will be hard-pressed to three-peat after losing the bulk of their double championship squad while the North Carolina Tar Heels are picked as the team most likely to succeed them.
Now that the NBA draft has thinned the ranks a bit, college basketball futures bettors have a sharper view of the impending 2007-08 handicapping landscape. Of course, the guys who make the lines have done their homework, too.
Last March, a season after the NCAA tournament saw a two-seed, a three, a four and a real longshot in an 11 seed (George Mason) make the Final Four, the final weekend of the 2006-07 college basketball season revolved around two number one seeds and two number twos. The Florida Gators, the defending and eventual champs last season, began the campaign as the favorites on NCAA championship betting boards at right around 6/1. The Ohio State Buckeyes, the eventual runner-ups, began their trek to the finals as 12/1 shots to win it all.
The UCLA Bruins, the runner-ups of the previous season, started out at 15/1 to win the title. And the Georgetown Hoyas, while a surprise to some to reach the Final Four, nonetheless began last season as 18/1 picks to win the championship. So each Final Four team was listed among the top ten oddsmakers' choices to win the NCAA title before last season started.
The landscape has changed a little, though, over these recent few months. Florida is now minus all the key figures -- Except their head coach -- that powered the Gators to back-to-back national championships. Coach Billy Donovan is back after flirting with the NBA, and he welcomes in a top-notch batch of recruits. But Florida is listed at right around 75/1 to win its third consecutive NCAA title, and for good reason; it'll be damn hard to do.
Ohio State got almost everything it could out of its one season with Greg Oden and Mike Conley. But last week that potent combo went No. 1 and No. 4 in the NBA draft. Now the Buckeyes go on, with another young but very talented team. But this year OSU is listed at upwards of 50/1 to win the national title.
UCLA and Georgetown are given the best chances by the oddsmakers of winning the championship among last season's Final Four teams. The Bruins, sans team leader Arron Afflalo but with super-quick guard Darren Collison back, are listed right near the top of most championship betting boards at about 7/1. And the Hoyas, with everybody but Jeff Green back, are posted at about 10/1 to win it all this season.
The North Carolina Tar Heels top most championship betting boards at odds of around 5/1. UNC lost a good one in Brandan Wright, who left for the NBA after just his freshman season. But with Tyler Hansbrough and Ty Lawson (pictured) back, this may be the most talented team in the land.
The Louisville Cardinals, a Final Four team three seasons ago, are listed at about 10/1 to win it all this season. The 'Ville has got the horses, and a jockey who knows how to ride 'em. This team, if it can avoid the injury bug that's bitten it the last couple of years, is a favorite to win the Big East and looms as very capable of making a run late into March.
The Memphis Tigers have gone 66-8 the last two seasons combined. Unfortunately, two of those losses have come in regional finals. This year, Memphis returns almost everybody, and is an early choice to top the polls when November rolls around. At the moment, the Tigers are listed at about 9/1 to win the national title this season.
Others listed in the upper reaches of NCAA men’s basketball championship betting boards include the Kansas Jayhawks at 12/1 and the Duke Blue Devils at 15/1. In the 20/1 range are the Syracuse Orangemen, USC Trojans and Kentucky Wildcats. And the Michigan State Spartans, Indiana Hoosiers, Arizona Wildcats, Stanford Cardinal and Tennessee Volunteers are proffered at right around 25/1.
Tuesday, July 03, 2007
It Must Kill Long Time Vol and Cardinal Fans to See Memphis #1 Over Tennessee and Louisville
NBADraft.net
Early 2007-08 NCAA Top 10
By Adi Joseph
NBADraft.net
7/2/07
Welcome back. No college coach would ever admit it, but a key player deciding to return can mean huge things for a school’s hopes. And with Roy Hibbert returning to Georgetown and Brandon Rush returning to Kansas a few weeks ago, those hopes have NCAA Championship written all over them.
Billy Donovan lost four juniors from his National Championship team, and Florida won’t be able to rebound completely from such losses. Neither will Ohio State from losing four of their top six players. So while a championship rematch is highly unlikely, other teams, such as Kansas, Georgetown, UCLA and UNC will all have renewed hopes of winning their own Championships.
Let’s take an early look at the top teams in the nation.
1. Memphis Tigers
We may be looking at the best team John Calipari has ever coached. Adding top recruits Derrick Rose and Jeff Robinson to a team that is only losing sixth man Jeremy Hunt makes the Tigers the deepest team in the nation, and quite possibly the most talented as well. Rose will supplant Andre Allen and Willie Kemp’s inconsistent play at the point and Chris Douglas-Roberts is a rising star on the wing. The Tigers had one of the nation’s top defenses and nothing should change in that regards, as Rose is an outstanding man-to-man defender. Robert Dozier, Joey Dorsey and Kareem Cooper (nevermind Coop has flown the coop, ed.) are a quality group of big men, and this team should certainly be in the hunt for the title.
2. Kansas Jayhawks
With the return of Brandon Rush, the Jayhawks are poised to be a title favorite again in 2008. With most of his pieces returning, Bill Self should have strong depth and a great group of stars. Darrell Arthur showed great promise last season, and the athletic big man will be counted on to replace Julian Wright’s rebounding at the power forward spot. If Rush returns to full health after ACL surgery, the Jayhawks should be a force to be reckoned with. Russell Robinson and Sherron Collins should split time at point guard, and Mario Chalmers will likely continue his ascendance as a rising star in college basketball.
3. North Carolina Tar Heels
As with the two teams ahead of them, the Tar Heels saw their season end in the Elite Eight last year, but are now amongst the favorites to push beyond that. Despite losing Brandan Wright, ReyShawn Terry and Wes Miller, Carolina has great depth and skill. Bobby Fraser, Danny Green and Alex Stephenson should provide outstanding compliments to a great starting lineup. And Tyler Hansbrough is the best player in the nation, to top it all off. Ty Lawson showed great strides in the NCAA Tournament, and his return means another fun season of high-paced that should be able to run lesser teams off the court.
4. UCLA Bruins
Losing a player like Arron Afflalo is a major loss for any team. But overall, Ben Howland should be happy with his off-season. Keeping Darren Collison and Luc Richard Mbah a Moute for at least one more season, along with adding prized recruit Kevin Love should enable the Bruins to potentially even improve from last season’s Final Four appearance. Darren Collison is the best returning point guard in the country, and Josh Shipp could develop into a top scoring option as he picks up some of Afflalo’s slack.
5. Georgetown Hoyas
Roy Hibbert was the biggest name to withdraw his name from the draft. And John Thompson III’s summer immediately became a little brighter. Returning the majority of a Final Four team, the Hoyas should be the class of the Big East once again. Dajuan Summers is on the verge of a breakout and incoming freshmen Austin Freeman and Chris Wright will provide great backcourt depth behind returnees Johnathan Wallace and Jesse Sapp. Add into the mix Hibbert, who has made drastic improvement’s each season of his career, and the Hoyas may be able to exceed last season’s end results.
6. Louisville Cardinals
Entering last season with a major identity crisis, Rick Pitino guided his team into the NCAA Tournament as one of the nation’s hottest teams, only to fall to Texas A&M in a tough, intense loss. Now, most of the pieces return for Pitino and freshman Edgar Sosa, who emerged late last season as a prime-time-player, will look to build on his developing stardom. Sosa is a gunner in the mold of a mini-Gilbert Arenas, and Louisville is filled with aggressive offensive weapons including another riser, small forward Terrence Williams. If they can control the ball and take smart shots, the Cardinals should push Georgetown for the Big East crown.
7. Tennessee Volunteers
Tennessee’s season ended with heartbreak, as they blew a massive lead against Ohio State. Chris Lofton and crew return, and the fun-and-gun Vol’s should be back in session. With Florida losing so much to the NBA, Tennessee should be the favorites in the SEC, a conference that may experience a down year this season. Duke Crews and Wayne Chism are a strong young post duo with great potential, and Ramar and JaJuan Smith provide excellent support for Lofton. Glue-guy Dane Bradshaw will be severely missed though, and the Volunteers will need to find another top defender and playmaker if they want to really push through the tournament field.
8. Michigan State Spartans
Once again, the Big 10 is muddled in a down year. However, Michigan State should have big hopes with star sparkplug and, as you know if you read my weekly column last season, one of my favorite players in the nation, senior point guard Drew Neitzel. Neitzel exploded last season and showed the grit and skill that made him a dark horse candidate for Big 10 Player of the Year. He’ll be the frontrunner for that award this season, and Tom Izzo has a very real chance to return to the Final Four after two seasons away. If sophomore Raymar Morgan can continue developing after a strong freshman year, the Spartans could wind up competing for a national championship.
9. Washington State Cougars
The big surprise of last season, Tony Bennett’s Cougars won’t be sneaking up on anyone this season. And while some believed Washington State was an overachiever last season, it seems that with all the key parts returning there is no reason to expect any real fall off from last season. The Cougars should be a real threat in the very strong Pac-10, and while they aren’t very fun to watch, they are so well coached in the fundamentals that the Cougars could prove dangerous in the tournament. Kyle Weaver and Daven Harmeling are intriguing players who may be poised for breakout seasons.
10. Gonzaga Bulldogs
By Mark Few’s standards, last season was a down year for the Zags. But Josh Heytvelt’s return, Matt Bouldin’s continuing maturation and Micah Downs’ full season of integration into Few’s system mean big expectations can return to Spokane. Jeremy Pargo is a star waiting to happen and Bouldin should provide an improvement from Derek Raivio in terms of defense and passing. Gonzaga should definitely be more than capable of returning to the nation’s elite after a season on the bubble.
That’s all for this week, but check back in a week for a look at some of the key players of next season.
Monday, July 02, 2007
FoxSports.com's Jeff Goodman Picks Derrick Rose as Top NBA Prospect for Next Year
Freshmen to dominate top of '08 draft
Jeff Goodman
FOXSports.com
With Greg Oden and Kevin Durant in the rear-view mirror, FOXSports.com gives you a sneak peak at next year's NBA Draft. Oden and Durant were a pair of freshmen chosen 1-2. We'll do you one better — we've got the first three picks as incoming freshmen.
Here are the top 30 picks.
1) Derrick Rose, 6-2, 180, PG, Fr., Memphis — The Simeon High (Ill.) product will be an immediate star for John Calipari. He knows how to make people better, can get into the lane and finish — and also is able to knock down shots from the perimeter.
2) Michael Beasley, 6-8, 225, PF, Fr., Kansas State — Beasley's talent is undeniable. He's a versatile and skilled forward who can dominate a game — when he wants to. The Maryland native played at Notre Dame Prep (Mass.) last season and should be one-and-done in Manhattan.
3) Eric Gordon, 6-3, 190, SG, Fr., Indiana — Kelvin Sampson won a battle with Illinois for the North Central High (Ind.) standout. Gordon is a big-time scorer who can fill it up in just about every way possible.
4) Roy Hibbert, 7-2, 270, C, Sr., Georgetown — The Hoyas big man opted to return for his senior season, and if he continues his rapid improvement, Hibbert could turn into a top-five pick because of his size.
5) Darrell Arthur, 6-9, 215, PF, Soph., Kansas — "Shady" is extremely talented, and fans will see it even more this season with Julian Wright in the NBA and Brandon Rush recovering from a torn ACL. Arthur is multi-dimensional and athletic.
6) Brook Lopez, 7-0, 230, PF, Soph., Stanford — He wasn't at 100 percent for much of his freshman campaign due to a back injury. He's skilled and has tremendous potential. Can step out and shoot the ball, block shots and run the floor.
7) Chase Budinger, 6-7, 190, SF, Soph., Arizona — Extremely athletic and probably could have been a first-rounder this past year. Needs to work on becoming a better defender — and also needs to learn to take over a game. However, he can shoot the ball from the perimeter and also put it on the floor.
8) O.J. Mayo, 6-4, 190, G, Fr., USC — Mayo is the most highly touted of all the freshmen, but he's got some baggage. It's unlikely he'll play at the Galen Center for more than a year. The former Huntington High (W.Va.) star is extremely talented and can play either backcourt spot.
9) DeVon Hardin, 6-11, 230, C, Sr., California — Hardin was injured for most of his junior campaign and was torn whether to remain in the draft. He made a smart move and will have an opportunity to go in the lottery next year because of his athleticism on the frontline.
10) Hasheem Thabeet, 7-2, 265, C, Soph., UConn — The Tanzanian thought about coming out after his freshman season, but made the right choice heading back to Storrs for another year. He's a big-time shot-blocker, but needs to learn the game — especially on the offensive end.
11) Nicolas Batum, 6-8, 210, SG-SF, France — The 18-year-old wing had 23 points against the USA at the Nike Hoop Summit this past April. He is long and can shoot it from long range. He is arguably the best European prospect in next year's draft.
12) Darren Collison, 6-1, 165, PG, Jr., UCLA — Collison may not be quite as quick with the ball as Ty Lawson, but he's still pretty darn fast — and he's a better shooter from the perimeter.
13) Victor Claver, 6-10, 220, PF, Spain — Plays for Parmesa Valencia and is a skilled power forward who can step out and make shots. He's athletic, handles the ball well and runs the court.
14) Robin Lopez, 7-0, 235, C, Soph., Stanford — Not quite as skilled as his twin brother, Robin is more of an inside presence. He's still got a ways to go offensively, but he's an athletic 7-footer who can rebound and block shots.
15) DeAndre Jordan, 7-0, 235, C, Fr., Texas A&M — The Houston-area big man didn't play against much competition in high school at Episcopal, but he'll have NBA folks drooling because of his length and athleticism.
16) D.J. Augustin, 5-11, 175, PG, Soph., Texas — It wasn't just Kevin Durant in Austin last season. D.J. Augustin had a terrific season, too. He shoots the ball well and knows how to run a team. Not quite as athletic as Mike Conley Jr., but is a better shooter.
17) Shawn James, 6-10, 225, PF, Jr., Duquesne — The former Northeastern star bulked up this past season while sitting out due to transfer rules. He's extremely athletic and is arguably the best shot-blocker in the country. If Sean Williams can be chosen 17th with his baggage, why can't James?
18) Ron Steele, 6-2, 185, PG, Sr., Alabama — Last year was a wash-out for Steele, who battled through knee problems. Steele should be at 100 percent for next season and he'll reclaim his status among the elite point guards in America.
19) Paul Harris, 6-5, 220, SG, Soph., Syracuse — Harris has a year under his belt and the Orangemen lose their entire frontcourt. He'll need to make better decisions and improve his shot, but there's no one out there with more toughness in the backcourt.
20) Ty Lawson, 5-11, 175, PG, Soph., North Carolina — The ultra-quick floor leader still needs to work on his perimeter shot, but it wouldn't be much of a surprise if he bolted Chapel Hill after his sophomore season next year.
21) Donte Greene, 6-8½, 220, PF, Fr., Syracuse — He's a poor man's Kevin Durant, is long and can really shoot it from long range. He needs to add strength so he can score around the basket, but he's intriguing because of his skill set for his size.
22) Tyler Hansbrough, 6-9, 230, PF, Jr., North Carolina — "Psycho T's" stock will be the same whenever he comes out, but this year's draft is certainly not as loaded up front as this past year's. He won't be able to overpower people in the pros as he consistently does in college, but NBA execs love him for his motor.
23) Danilo Gallinari, 6-9, 210, SF, Italy — Plays for Armani Jeans Milano in Italy and is a complete player who has a high basketball IQ. Think Toni Kukoc. Can get to the basket and passes the ball well, but isn't a big-time athlete.
24) Taj Gibson, 6-9, 220, PF, Soph., USC — The Trojans' long and athletic big man is older than his peers, so don't be shocked to see him leave after two years at USC. He's a New York native who can run the court well, block shots and rebound the ball. His offense is still a work in progress.
25) Earl Clark, 6-7, 215, SG, Soph., Louisville — Don't be shocked to see the multi-dimensional Clark, who sat on the bench for the first part of last season, shoot up the charts. He's long, can handle the ball and his shot has improved.
26) Derrick Caracter, 6-9, 270, PF, Soph., Louisville — You can question his work ethic and his attitude, but it's impossible to question his ability.
27) Jerryd Bayless, 6-2, 180, G, Fr., Arizona — He's a big-time scorer who will need to improve his decision-making with the ball in his hands. It'll be somewhat of a surprise if he sticks around Tucson for more than one season.
28) Anthony Randolph, 6-11, 220, PF, Fr., LSU — Long and extremely athletic, Randolph is an exceptional talent who is raw, but NBA scouts could grab him based on potential. He is still rail-thin and will need to play hard all the time.
29) Ante Tomic, 7-2, 230, C, Croatia — The Croatian big man who plays for KK Zagreb withdrew from this past draft. He's skilled, but needs to become a better rebounder and more physical. He's just not strong enough to make an impact just yet in the NBA.
30) Bill Walker, 6-6, 215, SF, Soph., Kansas State — Walker is one of the most athletic players anywhere. He suffered a torn ACL after just a handful of games last season at K-State, but he'll still be someone who is drafted fairly high because of his explosiveness.
Jeff Goodman
FOXSports.com
With Greg Oden and Kevin Durant in the rear-view mirror, FOXSports.com gives you a sneak peak at next year's NBA Draft. Oden and Durant were a pair of freshmen chosen 1-2. We'll do you one better — we've got the first three picks as incoming freshmen.
Here are the top 30 picks.
1) Derrick Rose, 6-2, 180, PG, Fr., Memphis — The Simeon High (Ill.) product will be an immediate star for John Calipari. He knows how to make people better, can get into the lane and finish — and also is able to knock down shots from the perimeter.
2) Michael Beasley, 6-8, 225, PF, Fr., Kansas State — Beasley's talent is undeniable. He's a versatile and skilled forward who can dominate a game — when he wants to. The Maryland native played at Notre Dame Prep (Mass.) last season and should be one-and-done in Manhattan.
3) Eric Gordon, 6-3, 190, SG, Fr., Indiana — Kelvin Sampson won a battle with Illinois for the North Central High (Ind.) standout. Gordon is a big-time scorer who can fill it up in just about every way possible.
4) Roy Hibbert, 7-2, 270, C, Sr., Georgetown — The Hoyas big man opted to return for his senior season, and if he continues his rapid improvement, Hibbert could turn into a top-five pick because of his size.
5) Darrell Arthur, 6-9, 215, PF, Soph., Kansas — "Shady" is extremely talented, and fans will see it even more this season with Julian Wright in the NBA and Brandon Rush recovering from a torn ACL. Arthur is multi-dimensional and athletic.
6) Brook Lopez, 7-0, 230, PF, Soph., Stanford — He wasn't at 100 percent for much of his freshman campaign due to a back injury. He's skilled and has tremendous potential. Can step out and shoot the ball, block shots and run the floor.
7) Chase Budinger, 6-7, 190, SF, Soph., Arizona — Extremely athletic and probably could have been a first-rounder this past year. Needs to work on becoming a better defender — and also needs to learn to take over a game. However, he can shoot the ball from the perimeter and also put it on the floor.
8) O.J. Mayo, 6-4, 190, G, Fr., USC — Mayo is the most highly touted of all the freshmen, but he's got some baggage. It's unlikely he'll play at the Galen Center for more than a year. The former Huntington High (W.Va.) star is extremely talented and can play either backcourt spot.
9) DeVon Hardin, 6-11, 230, C, Sr., California — Hardin was injured for most of his junior campaign and was torn whether to remain in the draft. He made a smart move and will have an opportunity to go in the lottery next year because of his athleticism on the frontline.
10) Hasheem Thabeet, 7-2, 265, C, Soph., UConn — The Tanzanian thought about coming out after his freshman season, but made the right choice heading back to Storrs for another year. He's a big-time shot-blocker, but needs to learn the game — especially on the offensive end.
11) Nicolas Batum, 6-8, 210, SG-SF, France — The 18-year-old wing had 23 points against the USA at the Nike Hoop Summit this past April. He is long and can shoot it from long range. He is arguably the best European prospect in next year's draft.
12) Darren Collison, 6-1, 165, PG, Jr., UCLA — Collison may not be quite as quick with the ball as Ty Lawson, but he's still pretty darn fast — and he's a better shooter from the perimeter.
13) Victor Claver, 6-10, 220, PF, Spain — Plays for Parmesa Valencia and is a skilled power forward who can step out and make shots. He's athletic, handles the ball well and runs the court.
14) Robin Lopez, 7-0, 235, C, Soph., Stanford — Not quite as skilled as his twin brother, Robin is more of an inside presence. He's still got a ways to go offensively, but he's an athletic 7-footer who can rebound and block shots.
15) DeAndre Jordan, 7-0, 235, C, Fr., Texas A&M — The Houston-area big man didn't play against much competition in high school at Episcopal, but he'll have NBA folks drooling because of his length and athleticism.
16) D.J. Augustin, 5-11, 175, PG, Soph., Texas — It wasn't just Kevin Durant in Austin last season. D.J. Augustin had a terrific season, too. He shoots the ball well and knows how to run a team. Not quite as athletic as Mike Conley Jr., but is a better shooter.
17) Shawn James, 6-10, 225, PF, Jr., Duquesne — The former Northeastern star bulked up this past season while sitting out due to transfer rules. He's extremely athletic and is arguably the best shot-blocker in the country. If Sean Williams can be chosen 17th with his baggage, why can't James?
18) Ron Steele, 6-2, 185, PG, Sr., Alabama — Last year was a wash-out for Steele, who battled through knee problems. Steele should be at 100 percent for next season and he'll reclaim his status among the elite point guards in America.
19) Paul Harris, 6-5, 220, SG, Soph., Syracuse — Harris has a year under his belt and the Orangemen lose their entire frontcourt. He'll need to make better decisions and improve his shot, but there's no one out there with more toughness in the backcourt.
20) Ty Lawson, 5-11, 175, PG, Soph., North Carolina — The ultra-quick floor leader still needs to work on his perimeter shot, but it wouldn't be much of a surprise if he bolted Chapel Hill after his sophomore season next year.
21) Donte Greene, 6-8½, 220, PF, Fr., Syracuse — He's a poor man's Kevin Durant, is long and can really shoot it from long range. He needs to add strength so he can score around the basket, but he's intriguing because of his skill set for his size.
22) Tyler Hansbrough, 6-9, 230, PF, Jr., North Carolina — "Psycho T's" stock will be the same whenever he comes out, but this year's draft is certainly not as loaded up front as this past year's. He won't be able to overpower people in the pros as he consistently does in college, but NBA execs love him for his motor.
23) Danilo Gallinari, 6-9, 210, SF, Italy — Plays for Armani Jeans Milano in Italy and is a complete player who has a high basketball IQ. Think Toni Kukoc. Can get to the basket and passes the ball well, but isn't a big-time athlete.
24) Taj Gibson, 6-9, 220, PF, Soph., USC — The Trojans' long and athletic big man is older than his peers, so don't be shocked to see him leave after two years at USC. He's a New York native who can run the court well, block shots and rebound the ball. His offense is still a work in progress.
25) Earl Clark, 6-7, 215, SG, Soph., Louisville — Don't be shocked to see the multi-dimensional Clark, who sat on the bench for the first part of last season, shoot up the charts. He's long, can handle the ball and his shot has improved.
26) Derrick Caracter, 6-9, 270, PF, Soph., Louisville — You can question his work ethic and his attitude, but it's impossible to question his ability.
27) Jerryd Bayless, 6-2, 180, G, Fr., Arizona — He's a big-time scorer who will need to improve his decision-making with the ball in his hands. It'll be somewhat of a surprise if he sticks around Tucson for more than one season.
28) Anthony Randolph, 6-11, 220, PF, Fr., LSU — Long and extremely athletic, Randolph is an exceptional talent who is raw, but NBA scouts could grab him based on potential. He is still rail-thin and will need to play hard all the time.
29) Ante Tomic, 7-2, 230, C, Croatia — The Croatian big man who plays for KK Zagreb withdrew from this past draft. He's skilled, but needs to become a better rebounder and more physical. He's just not strong enough to make an impact just yet in the NBA.
30) Bill Walker, 6-6, 215, SF, Soph., Kansas State — Walker is one of the most athletic players anywhere. He suffered a torn ACL after just a handful of games last season at K-State, but he'll still be someone who is drafted fairly high because of his explosiveness.
Two Memphians on Grizzlies Summer League Roster
Two Memphians on Griz summer league roster
July 2, 2007
Jeremy Hunt and Scooter McFadgon, a pair of Memphis-bred shooting guards, will be part of the Grizzlies' summer league team in Las Vegas this summer.
Hunt, who finished his University of Memphis career by helping the Tigers to their second straight Elite Eight appearance in March, played his high school basketball at Craigmont. McFadgon played two years at Memphis after graduating from Raleigh-Egypt, then transferred and played two years at Tennessee. He played in the NBA's development league last year and averaged 18 points for Bakerfield.
‘‘It’s a good situation for me, with me being a hometown guy,’’ Hunt said. ‘‘I’ve just got to go out and just play my game. I can’t try to do something I normally don’t do. I’m just going to play how they want me to play."
Said McFadgon: ‘‘Jeremy, he’s like a brother to me. ‘We grew up together, stayed together, but when we get out on the court, I know he’s not going to take it light on me and I’m not going to take it light on him. It’s nothing personal, but when we get out there, it’s business. We’re going to compete. He’s a competitor and I’m a competitor.’’
The Grizzlies will hold a two-day minicamp before leaving Thursday for Las Vegas.
July 2, 2007
Jeremy Hunt and Scooter McFadgon, a pair of Memphis-bred shooting guards, will be part of the Grizzlies' summer league team in Las Vegas this summer.
Hunt, who finished his University of Memphis career by helping the Tigers to their second straight Elite Eight appearance in March, played his high school basketball at Craigmont. McFadgon played two years at Memphis after graduating from Raleigh-Egypt, then transferred and played two years at Tennessee. He played in the NBA's development league last year and averaged 18 points for Bakerfield.
‘‘It’s a good situation for me, with me being a hometown guy,’’ Hunt said. ‘‘I’ve just got to go out and just play my game. I can’t try to do something I normally don’t do. I’m just going to play how they want me to play."
Said McFadgon: ‘‘Jeremy, he’s like a brother to me. ‘We grew up together, stayed together, but when we get out on the court, I know he’s not going to take it light on me and I’m not going to take it light on him. It’s nothing personal, but when we get out there, it’s business. We’re going to compete. He’s a competitor and I’m a competitor.’’
The Grizzlies will hold a two-day minicamp before leaving Thursday for Las Vegas.
Former Tiger Jeremy Hunt and Former Vol (and Tiger Transfer) Scooter McFadgon to Play for Memphis Grizzlies Summer League Team
Memphis Grizzlies Summer League Roster
2007 Summer Camp Roster
PLAYER POS HT WT DOB SCHOOL/COUNTRY YRS.
Rod Benson F/C 6-10 220 10/10/84 California R
David Bluthenthal F 6-7 225 7/18/80 USC R
Mike Conley, Jr. G 6-1 180 10/11/87 Ohio State R
Winsome Frazier G/F 6-4 180 8/2/82 Mississippi State R
Rashaun Freeman F/C 6-9 255 12/15/84 Massachusetts R
Rudy Gay G/F 6-9 220 8/17/86 Connecticut 1
James Hughes C 6-10 217 10/30/83 Northern Illinois R
Jeremy Hunt G 6-5 210 8/18/83 Memphis R
Alexander Johnson F 6-9 240 2/8/83 Florida State 1
Tarence Kinsey G 6-6 189 3/21/84 South Carolina 1
Sergei Lishouk F 6-11 232 3/31/82 Ukraine R
Kyle Lowry G 6-0 175 3/25/86 Villanova 1
Scooter McFadgon G/F 6-6 212 5/6/82 Tennessee R
Mike Nardi G 6-2 170 1/30/85 Villanova R
Roger Powell F 6-6 220 1/15/83 Illinois 1
NBA Summer League Schedule (Las Vegas, NV)
Date Opponent Time (CT)
Friday, July 6 vs. China 7:00 p.m.
Monday, July 9 vs. Detroit 5:00 p.m.
Thursday, July 12 vs. Cleveland 5:00 p.m.
Friday, July 13 vs. LA Clippers 5:00 p.m.
Saturday, July 14 vs. Minnesota 5:00 p.m.
2007 Summer Camp Roster
PLAYER POS HT WT DOB SCHOOL/COUNTRY YRS.
Rod Benson F/C 6-10 220 10/10/84 California R
David Bluthenthal F 6-7 225 7/18/80 USC R
Mike Conley, Jr. G 6-1 180 10/11/87 Ohio State R
Winsome Frazier G/F 6-4 180 8/2/82 Mississippi State R
Rashaun Freeman F/C 6-9 255 12/15/84 Massachusetts R
Rudy Gay G/F 6-9 220 8/17/86 Connecticut 1
James Hughes C 6-10 217 10/30/83 Northern Illinois R
Jeremy Hunt G 6-5 210 8/18/83 Memphis R
Alexander Johnson F 6-9 240 2/8/83 Florida State 1
Tarence Kinsey G 6-6 189 3/21/84 South Carolina 1
Sergei Lishouk F 6-11 232 3/31/82 Ukraine R
Kyle Lowry G 6-0 175 3/25/86 Villanova 1
Scooter McFadgon G/F 6-6 212 5/6/82 Tennessee R
Mike Nardi G 6-2 170 1/30/85 Villanova R
Roger Powell F 6-6 220 1/15/83 Illinois 1
NBA Summer League Schedule (Las Vegas, NV)
Date Opponent Time (CT)
Friday, July 6 vs. China 7:00 p.m.
Monday, July 9 vs. Detroit 5:00 p.m.
Thursday, July 12 vs. Cleveland 5:00 p.m.
Friday, July 13 vs. LA Clippers 5:00 p.m.
Saturday, July 14 vs. Minnesota 5:00 p.m.
ESPN Insider "Top Prospects for Next June's NBA Draft"
Indiana has a gem in Eric Gordon
By Fran Fraschilla
Special to ESPN Insider
Updated: June 29, 2007
Although there are varying opinions on what the one-and-done rule will do for the college game and the NBA, it's been a roaring success so far. Not only did Greg Oden and Kevin Durant headline an electric NBA draft, considered one of the deepest in recent years, but six other freshmen were taken in the first round. Clearly, a season of college basketball branded them as household names and turned them into can't-miss NBA prospects.
What better examples of the success of this than Durant's sweep of the national Player of the Year awards and the NCAA Tournament performances of Oden and Mike Conley Jr. en route to the title game.
And with the NBA rule firmly in place, this trend is showing no sign of slowing. Get ready for some more precocious freshmen dominating the college landscape and leading their teams to top-10 status.
So here are my top prospects for next June's NBA draft.
1. Eric Gordon, Fr., G, Indiana
Has the size and strength to be a combo guard from Day 1 in the NBA. Look for him to have a monster one-and-done freshman year for Kelvin Sampson's revitalized Hoosiers.
2. Derrick Rose, Fr., G, Memphis
If all goes well for Rose in Coach Cal's up-tempo system, he should be the 2008 draft's version of Conley. No one comes into college basketball this season with a better reputation as a passer.
3. O.J. Mayo, Fr., G, Southern California
Already a household name, Mayo will replace departed Trojans draft picks Nick Young and Gabe Pruitt in Tim Floyd's USC backcourt next season. A do-it-all guard who is physically ready for the league, he just needs to tighten up his game to hear his name called early in next year's draft.
4. Roy Hibbert, Sr., C, Georgetown
The definition of a late bloomer, Hibbert will continue to flourish in JT3's pass-first offensive system. Although he might not be Ewing or Mourning, he will continue a long line of Hoyas centers who go early in the draft.
5. Darrell Arthur, Soph., F, Kansas
Although Arthur would have been a top-10 pick this year, his continued improvement under Bill Self as a Jayhawks sophomore could land him in the top three next June. He is a skilled power forward who is 15 pounds and a little more experience from being an impact rookie.
And because I couldn't help myself, here's one international player to watch, as well.
6. Victor Claver, 6-10, PF, Spain
This upcoming class of internationals, born in 1988, might be one of the best ever. Claver is the poster child for this group, although we might not see him in the league for two or three more seasons.
Fran Fraschilla, a college basketball analyst for ESPN, is a regular contributor to Insider.
By Fran Fraschilla
Special to ESPN Insider
Updated: June 29, 2007
Although there are varying opinions on what the one-and-done rule will do for the college game and the NBA, it's been a roaring success so far. Not only did Greg Oden and Kevin Durant headline an electric NBA draft, considered one of the deepest in recent years, but six other freshmen were taken in the first round. Clearly, a season of college basketball branded them as household names and turned them into can't-miss NBA prospects.
What better examples of the success of this than Durant's sweep of the national Player of the Year awards and the NCAA Tournament performances of Oden and Mike Conley Jr. en route to the title game.
And with the NBA rule firmly in place, this trend is showing no sign of slowing. Get ready for some more precocious freshmen dominating the college landscape and leading their teams to top-10 status.
So here are my top prospects for next June's NBA draft.
1. Eric Gordon, Fr., G, Indiana
Has the size and strength to be a combo guard from Day 1 in the NBA. Look for him to have a monster one-and-done freshman year for Kelvin Sampson's revitalized Hoosiers.
2. Derrick Rose, Fr., G, Memphis
If all goes well for Rose in Coach Cal's up-tempo system, he should be the 2008 draft's version of Conley. No one comes into college basketball this season with a better reputation as a passer.
3. O.J. Mayo, Fr., G, Southern California
Already a household name, Mayo will replace departed Trojans draft picks Nick Young and Gabe Pruitt in Tim Floyd's USC backcourt next season. A do-it-all guard who is physically ready for the league, he just needs to tighten up his game to hear his name called early in next year's draft.
4. Roy Hibbert, Sr., C, Georgetown
The definition of a late bloomer, Hibbert will continue to flourish in JT3's pass-first offensive system. Although he might not be Ewing or Mourning, he will continue a long line of Hoyas centers who go early in the draft.
5. Darrell Arthur, Soph., F, Kansas
Although Arthur would have been a top-10 pick this year, his continued improvement under Bill Self as a Jayhawks sophomore could land him in the top three next June. He is a skilled power forward who is 15 pounds and a little more experience from being an impact rookie.
And because I couldn't help myself, here's one international player to watch, as well.
6. Victor Claver, 6-10, PF, Spain
This upcoming class of internationals, born in 1988, might be one of the best ever. Claver is the poster child for this group, although we might not see him in the league for two or three more seasons.
Fran Fraschilla, a college basketball analyst for ESPN, is a regular contributor to Insider.
Sunday, July 01, 2007
Orlando Sentinel "Former Tiger Darius Washington Still Hoping for NBA Shot"
Washington still hoping for shot at the NBA
After a year in Europe, the former Edgewater standout hasn't lost sight of his dream.
Shannon J. Owens | Sentinel Staff Writer
June 27, 2007
A year later, and there still are no regrets.
The flashy Edgewater High point guard who chose college instead of the NBA, then led Memphis to an Elite Eight appearance, then cut college short two years by entering the 2006 NBA draft only to go undrafted -- he doesn't apologize for a single moment.
That's the kind of brashness that make some consider Darius Washington Jr. incredibly gutsy. How the next two weeks play out for Washington, who's hoping to break into the NBA after playing a year in Europe, is anyone's guess. But regrets?
"No," he said. "Once you make a decision, you stick it through. I'm not going to let one night mess up my dream I've had for 10 or 11 years."
Last year, each of the 30 NBA teams passed on Washington after he signed with an agent at the end of his sophomore season at Memphis. It was a gamble to leave early. Many scouts thought he was better as a shooting guard than at the point. But most NBA shooting guards are at least 6 feet 4. Washington, who is 6-2, still made the call to leave.
"If he stayed, he would have thought I was holding him back," Memphis Coach John Calipari said. "He's got time to get his stuff in order, and I believe he will.
"You can't tell me he made a mistake; it's too early."
Last summer, Washington signed a one-year contract with Greece PAOK, where he averaged 10.6 points in seven games before switching to Basketball Nymburk, a smaller league in the Czech Republic.
Washington left the Greek team because he grew frustrated with his playing time, which he said dropped after a car accident that left him with minor hip and wrist injuries.
"They thought I was in pain, but I was fine," Washington said.
With just two days to learn the offense, he guided his new team to its fourth consecutive Czech League title -- beating out seven other teams.
"They pass the ball a lot, sometimes 15 times in one play," Washington said. "There's a lot of team unity on the court."
But will that be enough to impress NBA types?
Point guard is the toughest position to learn and even tougher to fill, said former NBA forward Ronald "Popeye" Jones. Jones heads the player development staff for the Dallas Mavericks, a team for which Washington played summer-league ball last year in Las Vegas.
"We were really impressed with his athleticism, his ability to score, his one-on-one skills," Jones said. "But somewhere along the way, when he got with the vets, I don't think he really knew what to expect with guys that had just been in the NBA Finals.
"From a point-guard standpoint, he struggled a little bit with his decision-making. He has to find his niche with a team that wants a shooting point guard."
NBA draft analyst Chris Monter said he expected Washington to play in a summer league, "but I've not heard of any teams yet. A lot will depend on which teams will draft a point guard."
Washington's father, Darius Sr., said four teams have shown interest but declined to name the teams. "This is just a part of his story," said Darius Sr., an assistant recreation chief at the Winter Park Community Center. "Everybody has to go through something."
Washington helped Memphis reach the NCAA Tournament's Elite Eight in 2006, but critics long have questioned whether he could lead a team. Is a year overseas enough?
"I think anything is possible," Jones said. "I'm a guy that was drafted 41st in the NBA, played overseas, improved my game and played 11 years [in the league]."
That's the ending Washington wants, but he hasn't been wading in self-pity in the meantime. He fired his former agent, Roger Montgomery, in December and now is represented by a European-based agency, Wasserman Media Group.
While playing in the Czech Republic, he and his teammates often would take a 30-minute drive to Prague on their free days to party and shop. On one trip, he negotiated with a shopkeeper over a white gold hoop earring, which he often wears in his left earlobe. He bought it for $1,000.
"I was too cheap to buy the other one," joked Washington.
But his finances were no laughing matter last December. His son's mother, Bianca Brunetti, told the Memphis Commercial Appeal that Washington wasn't providing financially for their 1-year-old son, Darius III. Brunetti petitioned the Shelby County Juvenile Court for child support and received public assistance, $95 a month, the paper reported.
Washington said the situation has been taken care of, but didn't go into details. Brunetti didn't return calls from the Sentinel.
"It really wasn't over anything," Washington said. "Just a spur-of-the-moment-type thing. We both realized it's not about us; it's about our son. I'm doing it all for him."
Perhaps that explains Washington's sense of urgency. Whether an NBA team shares his fervor remains to be seen.
Shannon J. Owens can be reached at sjowens@orlandosentinel.com.
I've Got My Season Tickets, How About You?
While I probably contributed more to the Tiger Scholarship Fund than I originally planned to, it will be nice upgrading my tickets this year. I have had season tickets along with my dad since I was 10 years old (1978). I have seen many head coaches (Wayne Yates, Dana Kirk, Larry Finch, Tic Price, Johnnie Jones and John Calipari). I have sat in three different buildings (the Mid-South Coliseum, the Pyramid and the FedEx Forum).
The nice thing about having tickets for a lot of years is the priority points you build up. That is the only thing that keeps you ahead of other donors contributing the same amount of money you do.
I am scheduled to select my new seats on July 14th.
The nice thing about having tickets for a lot of years is the priority points you build up. That is the only thing that keeps you ahead of other donors contributing the same amount of money you do.
I am scheduled to select my new seats on July 14th.
FedEx Forum Re-Seating Reinvigorates Scholarship Fund
Re-seating reinvigorates fund
By Dan Wolken
July 1, 2007
For University of Memphis athletic director R.C. Johnson, hardly a day has gone by this summer without somebody calling or e-mailing him questions about the upcoming re-seating of FedExForum.
And those questions are understandable, since every basketball season ticket holder will have to go through the process of selecting new seats beginning July 12.
"Our ultimate objective is to be as fair as we possibly can," Johnson said. "We try very hard to please everybody, but it's very difficult when you go to re-seat as many people as we re-seat."
Re-seating is the athletic department's primary vehicle for increasing donations to the Tiger Scholarship Fund (TSF), which essentially pays for athletic scholarships for all sports.
By making an annual TSF donation, the donor acquires the rights to buy basketball season tickets. Donors who give more money will have priority in the seat selection process over donors who give less. And spurred in large part by the buzz surrounding the 2007-08 team, which will likely be ranked No. 1 or No. 2 in every preseason poll, TSF has already taken in a record $5.6 million in donations.
Bill Lansden, the associate athletic director who oversees TSF donations, sat down with The Commercial Appeal to answer some questions about the re-seating process.
CA: How does the process work?
BL: Nobody has any seats down there. It's a clean slate. We have about 3,000 accounts, and we rank them 1 through 3,000. We have eight giving levels, anywhere from $100 to $25,000. We rank you within the giving levels. That is very beneficial to us because it means if Dan Wolken wants to come in as a new donor, if there's somebody at the $5,000 level who has been giving since 1983, if you come in at $10,000 brand new, you'll pick over them. That's good for us because it's an incentive for people to come in and pay the high dollar.
CA: How has it impacted people's donation levels?
BL: The last two or three re-seatings have brought in an extra $300,000 to $400,000 of just new money, people upgrading. We set a goal of $455,000 of people upgrading, and we've taken in $940,000 from people going from $100 to $250 or somebody just going from $25,000 to $28,000. We had 435 accounts that upgraded at least one level. That's almost 15 percent, and I'd say the majority of that would be in the top four giving levels."
CA: If somebody wanted to jump in today, how could they get seats downstairs?
BL: $2,500 is the minimum donation to be down on the club level, on that middle level, or in the end zone of the lower level.
CA: How many season tickets do you expect to sell?
BL: We probably sold 11,000 last year, not counting students. If you take out students and suites, we have about 15,000 seats to sell. I think we'll sell about 13,000 or 14,000, which is great.
CA: Explain the process of selecting seats.
BL: The Ambassadors ($500,000 donors) start July 12 from 5 to 7 p.m., and then we start July 13 and 14 with the Platinums ($25,000). Saturday (July 14) is a mixed bag. We have faculty/staff coming and the M Club from 9 a.m. to noon. Then we go Monday the 16th through Thursday the 19th, and then we skip a week and come back July 30 through Aug. 2. The first group comes in at 9 a.m., and the last group comes in at 5 p.m. those days.
CA: How long do people have to select?
BL: We usually bring in about 20 to 25 people per hour, so they have upwards of two or three minutes. It doesn't sound like much, but when people come down on the floor they start eyeing where they want to go. You have the occasional ones that want to walk from side to side and sit in it, but most likely these people know where they want to go. The $2,500 and above; they know where they want to sit.
Recruiting news
DeAndre Liggins, one of the top point guards in the 2008 class, was supposed to be on the Memphis campus this weekend for an official visit. And there was quiet confidence within the program that once Liggins got here, he'd strongly consider becoming a Tiger.
But Memphis never a chance to make its pitch to Liggins, as he committed to Kentucky on Wednesday night. Liggins' decision was a huge surprise considering he had indicated just one day earlier he was still planning to visit Memphis.
The Liggins development certainly stung worse than losing out on center Kenny Kadji, who committed to Florida on Friday. Though Kadji was in Memphis two weeks ago for Calipari's elite camp, it was understood by everyone with knowledge of the situation that getting him away from Florida would be difficult.
Despite losing out on two of their top targets, there's no reason to fret about Memphis' 2008 recruiting class. The Tigers already have the Morris twins from Philadelphia in the fold and still have a strong chance to land 6-11 forward Angel Garcia, who visited the same weekend Kadji did. The Tigers are also recruiting Terrence Jennings, a top-10 power forward from North Carolina.
Though Memphis would certainly like to add an elite guard like St. George's Elliot Williams to the mix, one factor possibly working against the Tigers is the number of underclassmen in their backcourt. In 2008-09, Memphis projects to have Willie Kemp, Andre Allen, Doneal Mack and Jeff Robinson, plus perhaps Antonio Anderson and Chris Douglas-Roberts if they come back for their senior years.
To reach reporter Dan Wolken, call 529-2365
By Dan Wolken
July 1, 2007
For University of Memphis athletic director R.C. Johnson, hardly a day has gone by this summer without somebody calling or e-mailing him questions about the upcoming re-seating of FedExForum.
And those questions are understandable, since every basketball season ticket holder will have to go through the process of selecting new seats beginning July 12.
"Our ultimate objective is to be as fair as we possibly can," Johnson said. "We try very hard to please everybody, but it's very difficult when you go to re-seat as many people as we re-seat."
Re-seating is the athletic department's primary vehicle for increasing donations to the Tiger Scholarship Fund (TSF), which essentially pays for athletic scholarships for all sports.
By making an annual TSF donation, the donor acquires the rights to buy basketball season tickets. Donors who give more money will have priority in the seat selection process over donors who give less. And spurred in large part by the buzz surrounding the 2007-08 team, which will likely be ranked No. 1 or No. 2 in every preseason poll, TSF has already taken in a record $5.6 million in donations.
Bill Lansden, the associate athletic director who oversees TSF donations, sat down with The Commercial Appeal to answer some questions about the re-seating process.
CA: How does the process work?
BL: Nobody has any seats down there. It's a clean slate. We have about 3,000 accounts, and we rank them 1 through 3,000. We have eight giving levels, anywhere from $100 to $25,000. We rank you within the giving levels. That is very beneficial to us because it means if Dan Wolken wants to come in as a new donor, if there's somebody at the $5,000 level who has been giving since 1983, if you come in at $10,000 brand new, you'll pick over them. That's good for us because it's an incentive for people to come in and pay the high dollar.
CA: How has it impacted people's donation levels?
BL: The last two or three re-seatings have brought in an extra $300,000 to $400,000 of just new money, people upgrading. We set a goal of $455,000 of people upgrading, and we've taken in $940,000 from people going from $100 to $250 or somebody just going from $25,000 to $28,000. We had 435 accounts that upgraded at least one level. That's almost 15 percent, and I'd say the majority of that would be in the top four giving levels."
CA: If somebody wanted to jump in today, how could they get seats downstairs?
BL: $2,500 is the minimum donation to be down on the club level, on that middle level, or in the end zone of the lower level.
CA: How many season tickets do you expect to sell?
BL: We probably sold 11,000 last year, not counting students. If you take out students and suites, we have about 15,000 seats to sell. I think we'll sell about 13,000 or 14,000, which is great.
CA: Explain the process of selecting seats.
BL: The Ambassadors ($500,000 donors) start July 12 from 5 to 7 p.m., and then we start July 13 and 14 with the Platinums ($25,000). Saturday (July 14) is a mixed bag. We have faculty/staff coming and the M Club from 9 a.m. to noon. Then we go Monday the 16th through Thursday the 19th, and then we skip a week and come back July 30 through Aug. 2. The first group comes in at 9 a.m., and the last group comes in at 5 p.m. those days.
CA: How long do people have to select?
BL: We usually bring in about 20 to 25 people per hour, so they have upwards of two or three minutes. It doesn't sound like much, but when people come down on the floor they start eyeing where they want to go. You have the occasional ones that want to walk from side to side and sit in it, but most likely these people know where they want to go. The $2,500 and above; they know where they want to sit.
Recruiting news
DeAndre Liggins, one of the top point guards in the 2008 class, was supposed to be on the Memphis campus this weekend for an official visit. And there was quiet confidence within the program that once Liggins got here, he'd strongly consider becoming a Tiger.
But Memphis never a chance to make its pitch to Liggins, as he committed to Kentucky on Wednesday night. Liggins' decision was a huge surprise considering he had indicated just one day earlier he was still planning to visit Memphis.
The Liggins development certainly stung worse than losing out on center Kenny Kadji, who committed to Florida on Friday. Though Kadji was in Memphis two weeks ago for Calipari's elite camp, it was understood by everyone with knowledge of the situation that getting him away from Florida would be difficult.
Despite losing out on two of their top targets, there's no reason to fret about Memphis' 2008 recruiting class. The Tigers already have the Morris twins from Philadelphia in the fold and still have a strong chance to land 6-11 forward Angel Garcia, who visited the same weekend Kadji did. The Tigers are also recruiting Terrence Jennings, a top-10 power forward from North Carolina.
Though Memphis would certainly like to add an elite guard like St. George's Elliot Williams to the mix, one factor possibly working against the Tigers is the number of underclassmen in their backcourt. In 2008-09, Memphis projects to have Willie Kemp, Andre Allen, Doneal Mack and Jeff Robinson, plus perhaps Antonio Anderson and Chris Douglas-Roberts if they come back for their senior years.
To reach reporter Dan Wolken, call 529-2365
Donations to Tiger Fund Reach Record High
Donations to Tiger fund reach record high
By Dan Wolken
July 1, 2007
With anticipation for the 2007-08 University of Memphis men's basketball season at a fever pitch, the school has collected a record $5.6 million in Tiger Scholarship Fund donations for the current fiscal year.
The donations, which fund athletic scholarships for all varsity sports, are based primarily on the high demand for basketball season tickets in the club level and lower level, which can only be purchased with a TSF donation.
The $5.6 million represents a 12 percent increase over TSF donations from the 2005-06 fiscal year. The TSF office also generated $2 million in gift-in-kind donations for the year.
"This is a tribute to our fans, supporters, the Memphis coaches and the staff of the Tiger Scholarship Fund," athletic director R.C. Johnson said in a written statement. "When we arrived at the university, we had donations of less than $1 million annually. We thought that $5 million was an achievable mark for our fund raising efforts. Now we have surpassed that figure for the second consecutive year but must continue to raise the bar in order to keep pace with the rising cost of higher education."
Associate athletic director Bill Lansden, who oversees the TSF donations, said the increase comes from both new donors and longtime donors who have increased their giving.
Out of 3,200 TSF accounts -- which could represent more donors, since several people can comprise one joint account -- roughly 500 of them made their first donations within the past year.
Plus, Lansden said, 435 existing accounts upgraded at least one donor level to secure a better seat location at FedExForum. Though some upper-level seats can be purchased without a donation, the best upper-level season tickets require donations ranging from $100 to $1,000.
All season tickets in the lower levels require donations from $2,500 to $25,000.
"It's because of John (Calipari) and the success and the popularity of our team," Lansden said. "But I will say, the guys in our office have done a great job. This staff is the reason we're bringing this money in. We've done a good job of preparing for success. These guys have been very aggressive over the last 18 months, of going out and finding new people. I want to give John all the credit in the world, but these six people in here have done an outstanding job."
Lansden said the $5.6 million in unrestricted donations represents the most for a Conference USA school.
-- Dan Wolken: 529-2365
--------------------
Tigers cash in
The following shows the approximate dollar amounts (in millions) raised by the Tiger Scholarship Fund (formerly the Tiger Clubs) each year since 1993:
Year / $$$
1993 / 2.3
1994 / 2.1
1995 / 2.1
1996 / 1.8
1997 / 2.5
1998 / 2.5
1999 / 2.2
2000 / 3.1
2001 / 3.8
2002 / 4.0
2003 / 4.5
2004 / 4.6
2005 / 4.9
2006 / 5.0
2007 / 5.6
By Dan Wolken
July 1, 2007
With anticipation for the 2007-08 University of Memphis men's basketball season at a fever pitch, the school has collected a record $5.6 million in Tiger Scholarship Fund donations for the current fiscal year.
The donations, which fund athletic scholarships for all varsity sports, are based primarily on the high demand for basketball season tickets in the club level and lower level, which can only be purchased with a TSF donation.
The $5.6 million represents a 12 percent increase over TSF donations from the 2005-06 fiscal year. The TSF office also generated $2 million in gift-in-kind donations for the year.
"This is a tribute to our fans, supporters, the Memphis coaches and the staff of the Tiger Scholarship Fund," athletic director R.C. Johnson said in a written statement. "When we arrived at the university, we had donations of less than $1 million annually. We thought that $5 million was an achievable mark for our fund raising efforts. Now we have surpassed that figure for the second consecutive year but must continue to raise the bar in order to keep pace with the rising cost of higher education."
Associate athletic director Bill Lansden, who oversees the TSF donations, said the increase comes from both new donors and longtime donors who have increased their giving.
Out of 3,200 TSF accounts -- which could represent more donors, since several people can comprise one joint account -- roughly 500 of them made their first donations within the past year.
Plus, Lansden said, 435 existing accounts upgraded at least one donor level to secure a better seat location at FedExForum. Though some upper-level seats can be purchased without a donation, the best upper-level season tickets require donations ranging from $100 to $1,000.
All season tickets in the lower levels require donations from $2,500 to $25,000.
"It's because of John (Calipari) and the success and the popularity of our team," Lansden said. "But I will say, the guys in our office have done a great job. This staff is the reason we're bringing this money in. We've done a good job of preparing for success. These guys have been very aggressive over the last 18 months, of going out and finding new people. I want to give John all the credit in the world, but these six people in here have done an outstanding job."
Lansden said the $5.6 million in unrestricted donations represents the most for a Conference USA school.
-- Dan Wolken: 529-2365
--------------------
Tigers cash in
The following shows the approximate dollar amounts (in millions) raised by the Tiger Scholarship Fund (formerly the Tiger Clubs) each year since 1993:
Year / $$$
1993 / 2.3
1994 / 2.1
1995 / 2.1
1996 / 1.8
1997 / 2.5
1998 / 2.5
1999 / 2.2
2000 / 3.1
2001 / 3.8
2002 / 4.0
2003 / 4.5
2004 / 4.6
2005 / 4.9
2006 / 5.0
2007 / 5.6
Friday, June 29, 2007
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Article on St. George's (Memphis) H.S. Star Elliott Williams (U of M, One of Five Finalists)
St. George's star on recruiting fast track
Jason Smith, Commercial Appeal
June 27, 2007
If ESPN basketball recruiting analyst Bob Gibbons' latest assessment of him is on point, St. George's rising senior guard Elliot Williams can forget about maintaining a low profile any time between now and November, when he finally signs with a college.
One of several standouts nationwide invited to participate in last week's National Basketball Players Association's Top 100 Camp in Charlottesville, Va., the 6-4 Williams was so astounding offensively during the camp that Gibbons told a local Virginia basketball beat writer Williams has "emerged as being one of the top five players in the nation."
That's a pretty big jump for a player currently ranked the No. 20 overall prospect in the class of 2008 by Rivals.com, though Williams' stock is clearly soaring, as evidenced by his recent visit with Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski.
Williams, who two months ago said he'd cut his college list to a "main five" of Tennessee, Memphis, Clemson, Virginia and Vanderbilt, said Tuesday he'll reveal a new list of "four to five" schools within the next week.
"I'm going to talk to my family and hopefully get it down to four or five by the beginning of next week," said Williams, who added his experience in Virginia was "the best camp I've been to."
"(Washington-bound guard) Isaiah Thomas was primarily the point guard for our team, so I had a chance to play off the ball and he just kept giving it to me and I just kept scoring. ... It was great, getting a chance to talk to NBA players about life during and after basketball."
Bringing home gold
Williams wasn't the only local hoopster turning heads on a national stage last week.
Briarcrest Christian rising junior guard Leslie McDonald and Evangelical Christian School basketball coach Terry Tippett recently returned to Memphis with gold medals for their Red Team's 112-109 overtime win in the gold-medal game of last week's USA Basketball Men's Youth Development Festival in Colorado Springs, Colo.
"It was a great experience for me," said McDonald, a 6-4 combo guard ranked the No. 11 overall prospect in the class of 2009 by Rivals.com.
"All the talent out there, you didn't know who was going to win the gold. But as we started playing together, I kind of noticed that (the Red Team) could go all the way."
Playing on a Red Team that included 6-8 Indiana commitment Devin Ebanks and class of 2009 standout guard Lance Stephenson (Brooklyn, N.Y.), McDonald averaged 12.8 points on .571 shooting and 2.4 assists in five tournament games, helping his Red Team to a 5-0 mark.
Tippett, one of six prep coaches nationwide selected to participate in the Festival and a Red Team assistant, praised McDonald for his decision-making and ballhandling, noting his Festival-best 4.5 assist-to-turnover ratio.
"I was just amazed at the talent that was out there. These kids are gonna be on TV, either in college or the pros, shortly," Tippett said.
"(McDonald) was very dependable and very reliable. ... We knew he'd come in and would play good defense, make good decisions and take good shots, which is kind of a rarity in those kind of games."
McDonald's high school coach, John Harrington, was simply happy his star player returned home injury-free. McDonald will participate next in this weekend's Steve Nash/Nike point guard camp in New Jersey, which will host the nation's top 20 point guard prospects. In July, he'll attend the LeBron James/Nike camp in Akron, Ohio.
"I was glad to see him be first in the Festival with that assist-to-turnover ratio," Harrington said. "He didn't shoot it quite as well (from 3-point range) as I thought he would have, but he did a little bit of everything."
Jason Smith, Commercial Appeal
June 27, 2007
If ESPN basketball recruiting analyst Bob Gibbons' latest assessment of him is on point, St. George's rising senior guard Elliot Williams can forget about maintaining a low profile any time between now and November, when he finally signs with a college.
One of several standouts nationwide invited to participate in last week's National Basketball Players Association's Top 100 Camp in Charlottesville, Va., the 6-4 Williams was so astounding offensively during the camp that Gibbons told a local Virginia basketball beat writer Williams has "emerged as being one of the top five players in the nation."
That's a pretty big jump for a player currently ranked the No. 20 overall prospect in the class of 2008 by Rivals.com, though Williams' stock is clearly soaring, as evidenced by his recent visit with Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski.
Williams, who two months ago said he'd cut his college list to a "main five" of Tennessee, Memphis, Clemson, Virginia and Vanderbilt, said Tuesday he'll reveal a new list of "four to five" schools within the next week.
"I'm going to talk to my family and hopefully get it down to four or five by the beginning of next week," said Williams, who added his experience in Virginia was "the best camp I've been to."
"(Washington-bound guard) Isaiah Thomas was primarily the point guard for our team, so I had a chance to play off the ball and he just kept giving it to me and I just kept scoring. ... It was great, getting a chance to talk to NBA players about life during and after basketball."
Bringing home gold
Williams wasn't the only local hoopster turning heads on a national stage last week.
Briarcrest Christian rising junior guard Leslie McDonald and Evangelical Christian School basketball coach Terry Tippett recently returned to Memphis with gold medals for their Red Team's 112-109 overtime win in the gold-medal game of last week's USA Basketball Men's Youth Development Festival in Colorado Springs, Colo.
"It was a great experience for me," said McDonald, a 6-4 combo guard ranked the No. 11 overall prospect in the class of 2009 by Rivals.com.
"All the talent out there, you didn't know who was going to win the gold. But as we started playing together, I kind of noticed that (the Red Team) could go all the way."
Playing on a Red Team that included 6-8 Indiana commitment Devin Ebanks and class of 2009 standout guard Lance Stephenson (Brooklyn, N.Y.), McDonald averaged 12.8 points on .571 shooting and 2.4 assists in five tournament games, helping his Red Team to a 5-0 mark.
Tippett, one of six prep coaches nationwide selected to participate in the Festival and a Red Team assistant, praised McDonald for his decision-making and ballhandling, noting his Festival-best 4.5 assist-to-turnover ratio.
"I was just amazed at the talent that was out there. These kids are gonna be on TV, either in college or the pros, shortly," Tippett said.
"(McDonald) was very dependable and very reliable. ... We knew he'd come in and would play good defense, make good decisions and take good shots, which is kind of a rarity in those kind of games."
McDonald's high school coach, John Harrington, was simply happy his star player returned home injury-free. McDonald will participate next in this weekend's Steve Nash/Nike point guard camp in New Jersey, which will host the nation's top 20 point guard prospects. In July, he'll attend the LeBron James/Nike camp in Akron, Ohio.
"I was glad to see him be first in the Festival with that assist-to-turnover ratio," Harrington said. "He didn't shoot it quite as well (from 3-point range) as I thought he would have, but he did a little bit of everything."
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Las Vegas Review-Journal - Tre'Von Willis Transfers to UNLV
Jun. 15, 2007
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal
Rebels land Memphis shooting guard Willis
By MATT YOUMANS REVIEW-JOURNAL
UNLV Basketball
Memphis transfer says UNLV a perfect fit
One day in Las Vegas was enough to convince TreVon Willis to commit to UNLV for the next four years.
The 6-foot-4-inch shooting guard wrapped up his campus visit Thursday and informed Rebels coach Lon Kruger of his decision. Willis is transferring from Memphis, where he rarely played as a freshman.
"I felt comfortable with everything. It's a perfect fit for me," Willis said. "I felt like it was the right thing, and I had to do what's best for me."
Willis must sit out next season but he will be on scholarship. He has three years of eligibility remaining, beginning with the 2008-09 season.
UNLV has a scholarship available because 6-8 sophomore center Jerome Johnson will not be returning to the team. Doctors have determined Johnson, who had knee surgery and sat out last season, is not physically able to play.
Johnson, from Baltimore, appeared in 10 games as a freshman.
Willis played in only 17 games and averaged 2.6 points per game in his one season with the Tigers. He said he was unhappy with his playing time and wanted to return to the West Coast.
Willis scored 23.4 points per game as a senior at Washington Union High School in Fresno, and his 2,842 career points were the fifth most in California prep history. He was ranked by Rivals.com as the No. 37 shooting guard.
After high school, he chose Memphis over UNLV. This time, he picked the Rebels over Fresno State and San Diego State.
Willis is the first member of UNLV's 2008-09 recruiting class. He is permitted to practice with the team next season.
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal
Rebels land Memphis shooting guard Willis
By MATT YOUMANS REVIEW-JOURNAL
UNLV Basketball
Memphis transfer says UNLV a perfect fit
One day in Las Vegas was enough to convince TreVon Willis to commit to UNLV for the next four years.
The 6-foot-4-inch shooting guard wrapped up his campus visit Thursday and informed Rebels coach Lon Kruger of his decision. Willis is transferring from Memphis, where he rarely played as a freshman.
"I felt comfortable with everything. It's a perfect fit for me," Willis said. "I felt like it was the right thing, and I had to do what's best for me."
Willis must sit out next season but he will be on scholarship. He has three years of eligibility remaining, beginning with the 2008-09 season.
UNLV has a scholarship available because 6-8 sophomore center Jerome Johnson will not be returning to the team. Doctors have determined Johnson, who had knee surgery and sat out last season, is not physically able to play.
Johnson, from Baltimore, appeared in 10 games as a freshman.
Willis played in only 17 games and averaged 2.6 points per game in his one season with the Tigers. He said he was unhappy with his playing time and wanted to return to the West Coast.
Willis scored 23.4 points per game as a senior at Washington Union High School in Fresno, and his 2,842 career points were the fifth most in California prep history. He was ranked by Rivals.com as the No. 37 shooting guard.
After high school, he chose Memphis over UNLV. This time, he picked the Rebels over Fresno State and San Diego State.
Willis is the first member of UNLV's 2008-09 recruiting class. He is permitted to practice with the team next season.
Monday, June 25, 2007
ESPN.com's Andy Katz, "Memphis Holds on to #1"
Memphis holds on to No. 1
By Andy Katz, ESPN.com
Updated: June 19, 2007
The early-entry decisions affected a few teams in my Top 25, notably Georgetown and Marquette.
Still, it's hard to move Memphis. So in my fourth pre-preseason Top 25, the Tigers hold on to the top spot for the second time. (Florida was No. 1 immediately after the Final Four. Kansas moved up to No. 1 in a revised ranking nine days later. Memphis was No. 1 the first time after the NBA draft declaration deadline.) This should be the final pre-preseason ranking until the preseason edition in October/November.
Get those comments ready for our community editors:
1. Memphis
2006-07 Record: 33-4, 16-0
Look, the Tigers still haven't lost anyone of significance from an Elite Eight team. They still added Derrick Rose to the mix, which gives them one of the top talents coming in this season. Chris Douglas-Roberts and Joey Dorsey are a one-two punch that can allow John Calipari's squad to press, run and score in bunches. Memphis just locked up Georgetown for a home game and already had Arizona, Gonzaga and Tennessee at home, and USC and possibly Kentucky in neutral games in New York. This squad is loaded. The schedule is popping with RPI points. And the Tigers have the one coach who isn't afraid to say anything.
2. North Carolina
2006-07 Record: 31-7, 11-5
Brandan Wright didn't hesitate to say that Deon Thompson and Alex Stepheson will be better than he was this past season. If that's the case, look out for the Tar Heels. Sure, this squad lost Wright, Reyshawn Terry and a pesky 3-point shooter in Wes Miller, but the rest of the crew is loaded up with Tyler Hansbrough, the likely ACC Player of the Year, and a backcourt in Wayne Ellington and Tywon Lawson that is pumped to produce. The Tar Heels got a sniff of the Elite Eight but are determined to get to the Final Four.
3. Kansas
2006-07 Record: 33-5, 14-2
Let's assume that Brandon Rush makes a normal comeback from an ACL injury. If that's the case, the Jayhawks shouldn't have an issue winning the Big 12 and being a favorite to make it to San Antonio. Bill Self still hasn't reached a Final Four, but he may have his best shot with Rush, Darrell Arthur and a host of guards led by Sherron Collins and Russell Robinson. There is depth at every position and plenty of purpose with this group after losing to UCLA in the Elite Eight.
4. UCLA
2006-07 Record: 30-6, 15-3
The Bruins did lose Arron Afflalo, but there is too much returning to move the Bruins out of the top five. And you cannot ignore the impact of Kevin Love on this squad. He could be the top low-post scoring threat in the West. If Love can keep up with Darren Collison's jet speed at the point, the rest of the role players should help the Bruins once again reign out West and go for their third straight Final Four appearance.
5. Georgetown
2006-07 Record: 30-7, 13-3
Losing Jeff Green knocks the Hoyas out of the top four. But you may be surprised to see the Hoyas still in my top five. That's because few teams will have a low-post threat like Roy Hibbert. He continues to improve and could play himself into a top-four pick in 2008. And the importance of Jonathan Wallace on last season's team was way underplayed. The guards are all back and the expected rise in production out of the forwards like DaJuan Summers and Vernon Macklin makes the Hoyas a legit Final Four contender again.
6. Louisville
2006-07 Record: 24-10, 12-4
Let's assume that Derrick Caracter will be just fine after knee surgery this spring. If he is, the Cardinals will be one of the toughest frontcourts to match up with in the country. Caracter, Earl Clark, David Padgett and Juan Palacios give Rick Pitino plenty of options. Edgar Sosa makes the Cards move quickly and the overall defensive intensity that was seen during the NCAA Tournament should make the Cards the chic pick to get to San Antonio. Don't be surprised to see Louisville get tabbed ahead of Georgetown in the Big East by some.
7. Washington State
2006-07 Record: 26-8, 13-5
I know it looks odd to see Washington State in the top 10 in basketball. It just does. But deal. The Cougars are going to be that good this season with the core of this team intact, led by Derrick Low and my favorite, Robbie Cowgill, who better not cut the big hair. The gangly Cowgill is a throwback player who fits Tony Bennett's style perfectly. This squad understands how to play the game and is a joy to watch. Did I just say that about a Washington State team? There's no question times have changed in Pullman.
8. Michigan State
2006-07 Record: 23-12, 8-8
Drew Neitzel. Drew Neitzel. Drew Neitzel. How many times can I type his name to show how important he is to this squad? Seriously, Tom Izzo has the pieces around Neitzel to ensure that the Spartans are a Final Four contender yet again. The Spartans don't have as much talent as Indiana, but something tells me that they will defend better and win a few more tight games.
9. Indiana
2006-07 Record: 21-11, 10-6
The Hoosiers are back. Indiana's relevance is no longer a question. D.J. White's decision to stay and Eric Gordon's decision to come make the Hoosiers one of the toughest inside-out teams next season. The Indiana-Michigan State games should be must-see TV next season. Kelvin Sampson has his best shot to get to a Final Four since taking Oklahoma in 2002.
10. Tennessee
2006-07 Record: 24-11, 10-6
The Vols are the class of the SEC this season. That sentence alone seems odd. But it's true. The Vols return too much, notably Chris Lofton, who chose to come back, for anyone else to be the favorite in the SEC. Bruce Pearl has quite simply done wonders for the Vols nation in his brief tenure. The interesting dynamic now is how the Vols will handle the pressure of being the favorite, something they haven't had to deal with too often.
11. Duke
2006-07 Record: 20-11, 8-8
Losing Josh McRoberts just means the Blue Devils will rely on Brian Zoubek more in the post. But McRoberts' overall loss is made up by the arrival of Kyle Singler, Nolan Smith and Taylor King, three heralded recruits who -- combined with the return of Jon Scheyer, DeMarcus Nelson, Greg Paulus and Gerald Henderson -- make the Blue Devils the second-most talented team in the ACC outside of Carolina (and we didn't even get to Lance Thomas and David McClure).
12. Oregon
2006-07 Record: 29-8, 11-7
Yes, I know Aaron Brooks is gone. But I fell for the Ducks during the Pac-10 tournament with Tajuan Porter, Bryce Taylor, Malik Hairston and Maarty Leunen making for one of the more entertaining teams to watch last season. The Ducks will score in bunches and as long as they can score in the low post and defend in the same area, expect this squad to be a factor in the Pac-10 race throughout the season.
13. Marquette
2006-07 Record: 24-10, 10-6
The Eagles got great news when Dominic James came to his senses and decided to return to school. That means the Eagles essentially have the same team as last season. That team was good enough to be a season-long pest, a Big East threat and an NCAA Tournament team. The same should occur next season, with maybe the chance to do even more in March.
14. Pitt
2006-07 Record: 29-8, 12-4
The Panthers lose big men Aaron Gray and Levon Kendall but add Dejuan Blair, who might be another under-the-radar superstud coming to Pitt. The Panthers return the core of their perimeter as well as their wings and Jamie Dixon quite simply doesn't lose too often. This team will move quicker, play defense perhaps a bit tighter and will not lose too many, if any, home games. Expect the Panthers to be in the thick of the Big East race.
15. Gonzaga
2006-07 Record: 23-11, 11-3
Josh Heytvelt will be ready to go next season. The suspension (for a felony drug possession charge, to which he later pleaded not guilty) will be lifted. So if you put Heytvelt back on this squad with a loaded recruiting class and the return of Jeremy Pargo, Matt Bouldin and Micah Downs, you have yet another top-15 Zags team. This squad will win some high-profile, nonconference games before disappearing a bit in the WCC. The Zags should be a factor for a decent seed yet again in March. Sorry, this program is not going away.
16. Kentucky
2006-07 Record: 22-12, 9-7
Billy Gillispie's timing was perfect. He gets the Kentucky job right when there is a major, power-playing talent nearby in Patrick Patterson. Patterson might have gone to Kentucky even if Tubby Smith had stayed, but he's perfect for Gillispie. He'll work his tail off rebounding and running the floor for Billy Clyde. That's great, considering that the Wildcats want to run with a guard-heavy lineup led by Derrick Jasper, Jodie Meeks, Ramel Bradley and Joe Crawford. The addition of Patterson makes this team a likely enjoyable watch.
17. Texas A&M
2006-07 Record: 27-7, 13-3
Acie Law is gone. So too is the ultimate glue guy in Antanas Kavaliauskas and the guy who coached them (now with the No. 16 team in this poll). But fear not Aggies fans, because Mark Turgeon is no slouch and the addition of DeAndre Jordan, the return of Joseph Jones and a solid backcourt led by 3-point threat Josh Carter mean the Aggies are the second-best team in the Big 12 and a legit pick to make the Sweet 16 again.
18. Texas
2006-07 Record: 25-10, 12-4
Yes, I understand Kevin Durant isn't going back to Texas. Yes, I understand that he was the go-to player for the Longhorns. But I also know that D.J. Augustin and A.J. Abrams can score as well as any guard tandem in the country. If the Longhorns can get some balance up front, this squad will be just fine in the Big 12 and beyond.
19. Stanford
2006-07 Record: 18-13, 10-8
OK, I'll admit I messed up big-time thinking that the Cardinal could beat Louisville in the NCAA first round and saying it on television and radio. That was wrong, way wrong. Still, the Cardinal return nearly the entire team intact, including the Lopez twins, two of the toughest post players in the West. If the Cardinal can shirk off the embarrassment of losing badly to the Cardinals, this squad should be a legit top-20 team throughout the season.
20. Arizona
2006-07 Record: 20-11, 11-7
Putting Arizona in the top 20 might seem like a stretch to some after the way the Cats finished the season and with the departures of Mustafa Shakur, Ivan Radenovic and Marcus Williams. But the Wildcats still have Chase Budinger, Jawann McClellan and Jordan Hill, and added guard Jerryd Bayless and assistant coach Kevin O'Neill, the latter for some nastiness on defense. That's enough with Lute Olson still trolling the sidelines to secure a place in my top 20.
21. USC
2006-07 Record: 25-12, 11-7
I can already hear some of the trusted USC faithful I converse with wondering how I could drop the Trojans so low. As much as the top recruiting class -- led by O.J. Mayo -- makes the Trojans a viable top-15 team, the fact that they are losing two first-round draft picks in Nick Young and Gabe Pruitt cannot be overlooked. Taj Gibson is a dynamite talent and Daniel Hackett is a serviceable starter, but there will be some early-season growing pains before this group blossoms in March.
22. Xavier
2006-07 Record: 25-9, 13-3
The last time I saw this squad, the Musketeers were beating Ohio State and should have won the game. Not much has changed from that team, and Sean Miller continues to produce the team to beat in the Atlantic 10 until someone else proves otherwise. Xavier will be a formidable foe no matter the locale. Miller and the Musketeers win.
23. Davidson
2006-07 Record: 29-5, 17-1
Don't really care if you think this pick is crazy. Davidson has one of the hidden gems in Stephen Curry. Bob McKillop is one of the top coaches who gets zero pub. This team will win 28 to 29 games and be a tough out in the NCAAs. So deal with Davidson in the Top 25.
24. Wisconsin
2006-07 Record: 30-6, 13-3
Bo Ryan is a lot like new Michigan coach John Beilein. They're simply not going to finish low. Ryan lost Alando Tucker and Kammron Taylor, but the Badgers were hardly a two-man squad. The Badgers will win games because of their system. They will have more balance, defend and win plenty of home games.
25. Florida
2006-07 Record: 35-5, 13-3
Look, I know you could put a lot of other teams here, teams like Providence, NC State, Clemson, UAB, Notre Dame, Kansas State, Washington, Syracuse, Connecticut, Ohio State or even the next-best SEC team. But I thought about this one for a while and it was clear to me that the Gators, now that Billy Donovan is back, won't slip out of the top 25 and out of contention for an NCAA berth. He's proved to be too good a coach, and the talent of Marreese Speights and Nick Calathes is too high for this squad to drop too low. The Gators will win their home games, steal some on the road and be in the Dance. You watch.
Andy Katz is a senior writer for ESPN.com.
By Andy Katz, ESPN.com
Updated: June 19, 2007
The early-entry decisions affected a few teams in my Top 25, notably Georgetown and Marquette.
Still, it's hard to move Memphis. So in my fourth pre-preseason Top 25, the Tigers hold on to the top spot for the second time. (Florida was No. 1 immediately after the Final Four. Kansas moved up to No. 1 in a revised ranking nine days later. Memphis was No. 1 the first time after the NBA draft declaration deadline.) This should be the final pre-preseason ranking until the preseason edition in October/November.
Get those comments ready for our community editors:
1. Memphis
2006-07 Record: 33-4, 16-0
Look, the Tigers still haven't lost anyone of significance from an Elite Eight team. They still added Derrick Rose to the mix, which gives them one of the top talents coming in this season. Chris Douglas-Roberts and Joey Dorsey are a one-two punch that can allow John Calipari's squad to press, run and score in bunches. Memphis just locked up Georgetown for a home game and already had Arizona, Gonzaga and Tennessee at home, and USC and possibly Kentucky in neutral games in New York. This squad is loaded. The schedule is popping with RPI points. And the Tigers have the one coach who isn't afraid to say anything.
2. North Carolina
2006-07 Record: 31-7, 11-5
Brandan Wright didn't hesitate to say that Deon Thompson and Alex Stepheson will be better than he was this past season. If that's the case, look out for the Tar Heels. Sure, this squad lost Wright, Reyshawn Terry and a pesky 3-point shooter in Wes Miller, but the rest of the crew is loaded up with Tyler Hansbrough, the likely ACC Player of the Year, and a backcourt in Wayne Ellington and Tywon Lawson that is pumped to produce. The Tar Heels got a sniff of the Elite Eight but are determined to get to the Final Four.
3. Kansas
2006-07 Record: 33-5, 14-2
Let's assume that Brandon Rush makes a normal comeback from an ACL injury. If that's the case, the Jayhawks shouldn't have an issue winning the Big 12 and being a favorite to make it to San Antonio. Bill Self still hasn't reached a Final Four, but he may have his best shot with Rush, Darrell Arthur and a host of guards led by Sherron Collins and Russell Robinson. There is depth at every position and plenty of purpose with this group after losing to UCLA in the Elite Eight.
4. UCLA
2006-07 Record: 30-6, 15-3
The Bruins did lose Arron Afflalo, but there is too much returning to move the Bruins out of the top five. And you cannot ignore the impact of Kevin Love on this squad. He could be the top low-post scoring threat in the West. If Love can keep up with Darren Collison's jet speed at the point, the rest of the role players should help the Bruins once again reign out West and go for their third straight Final Four appearance.
5. Georgetown
2006-07 Record: 30-7, 13-3
Losing Jeff Green knocks the Hoyas out of the top four. But you may be surprised to see the Hoyas still in my top five. That's because few teams will have a low-post threat like Roy Hibbert. He continues to improve and could play himself into a top-four pick in 2008. And the importance of Jonathan Wallace on last season's team was way underplayed. The guards are all back and the expected rise in production out of the forwards like DaJuan Summers and Vernon Macklin makes the Hoyas a legit Final Four contender again.
6. Louisville
2006-07 Record: 24-10, 12-4
Let's assume that Derrick Caracter will be just fine after knee surgery this spring. If he is, the Cardinals will be one of the toughest frontcourts to match up with in the country. Caracter, Earl Clark, David Padgett and Juan Palacios give Rick Pitino plenty of options. Edgar Sosa makes the Cards move quickly and the overall defensive intensity that was seen during the NCAA Tournament should make the Cards the chic pick to get to San Antonio. Don't be surprised to see Louisville get tabbed ahead of Georgetown in the Big East by some.
7. Washington State
2006-07 Record: 26-8, 13-5
I know it looks odd to see Washington State in the top 10 in basketball. It just does. But deal. The Cougars are going to be that good this season with the core of this team intact, led by Derrick Low and my favorite, Robbie Cowgill, who better not cut the big hair. The gangly Cowgill is a throwback player who fits Tony Bennett's style perfectly. This squad understands how to play the game and is a joy to watch. Did I just say that about a Washington State team? There's no question times have changed in Pullman.
8. Michigan State
2006-07 Record: 23-12, 8-8
Drew Neitzel. Drew Neitzel. Drew Neitzel. How many times can I type his name to show how important he is to this squad? Seriously, Tom Izzo has the pieces around Neitzel to ensure that the Spartans are a Final Four contender yet again. The Spartans don't have as much talent as Indiana, but something tells me that they will defend better and win a few more tight games.
9. Indiana
2006-07 Record: 21-11, 10-6
The Hoosiers are back. Indiana's relevance is no longer a question. D.J. White's decision to stay and Eric Gordon's decision to come make the Hoosiers one of the toughest inside-out teams next season. The Indiana-Michigan State games should be must-see TV next season. Kelvin Sampson has his best shot to get to a Final Four since taking Oklahoma in 2002.
10. Tennessee
2006-07 Record: 24-11, 10-6
The Vols are the class of the SEC this season. That sentence alone seems odd. But it's true. The Vols return too much, notably Chris Lofton, who chose to come back, for anyone else to be the favorite in the SEC. Bruce Pearl has quite simply done wonders for the Vols nation in his brief tenure. The interesting dynamic now is how the Vols will handle the pressure of being the favorite, something they haven't had to deal with too often.
11. Duke
2006-07 Record: 20-11, 8-8
Losing Josh McRoberts just means the Blue Devils will rely on Brian Zoubek more in the post. But McRoberts' overall loss is made up by the arrival of Kyle Singler, Nolan Smith and Taylor King, three heralded recruits who -- combined with the return of Jon Scheyer, DeMarcus Nelson, Greg Paulus and Gerald Henderson -- make the Blue Devils the second-most talented team in the ACC outside of Carolina (and we didn't even get to Lance Thomas and David McClure).
12. Oregon
2006-07 Record: 29-8, 11-7
Yes, I know Aaron Brooks is gone. But I fell for the Ducks during the Pac-10 tournament with Tajuan Porter, Bryce Taylor, Malik Hairston and Maarty Leunen making for one of the more entertaining teams to watch last season. The Ducks will score in bunches and as long as they can score in the low post and defend in the same area, expect this squad to be a factor in the Pac-10 race throughout the season.
13. Marquette
2006-07 Record: 24-10, 10-6
The Eagles got great news when Dominic James came to his senses and decided to return to school. That means the Eagles essentially have the same team as last season. That team was good enough to be a season-long pest, a Big East threat and an NCAA Tournament team. The same should occur next season, with maybe the chance to do even more in March.
14. Pitt
2006-07 Record: 29-8, 12-4
The Panthers lose big men Aaron Gray and Levon Kendall but add Dejuan Blair, who might be another under-the-radar superstud coming to Pitt. The Panthers return the core of their perimeter as well as their wings and Jamie Dixon quite simply doesn't lose too often. This team will move quicker, play defense perhaps a bit tighter and will not lose too many, if any, home games. Expect the Panthers to be in the thick of the Big East race.
15. Gonzaga
2006-07 Record: 23-11, 11-3
Josh Heytvelt will be ready to go next season. The suspension (for a felony drug possession charge, to which he later pleaded not guilty) will be lifted. So if you put Heytvelt back on this squad with a loaded recruiting class and the return of Jeremy Pargo, Matt Bouldin and Micah Downs, you have yet another top-15 Zags team. This squad will win some high-profile, nonconference games before disappearing a bit in the WCC. The Zags should be a factor for a decent seed yet again in March. Sorry, this program is not going away.
16. Kentucky
2006-07 Record: 22-12, 9-7
Billy Gillispie's timing was perfect. He gets the Kentucky job right when there is a major, power-playing talent nearby in Patrick Patterson. Patterson might have gone to Kentucky even if Tubby Smith had stayed, but he's perfect for Gillispie. He'll work his tail off rebounding and running the floor for Billy Clyde. That's great, considering that the Wildcats want to run with a guard-heavy lineup led by Derrick Jasper, Jodie Meeks, Ramel Bradley and Joe Crawford. The addition of Patterson makes this team a likely enjoyable watch.
17. Texas A&M
2006-07 Record: 27-7, 13-3
Acie Law is gone. So too is the ultimate glue guy in Antanas Kavaliauskas and the guy who coached them (now with the No. 16 team in this poll). But fear not Aggies fans, because Mark Turgeon is no slouch and the addition of DeAndre Jordan, the return of Joseph Jones and a solid backcourt led by 3-point threat Josh Carter mean the Aggies are the second-best team in the Big 12 and a legit pick to make the Sweet 16 again.
18. Texas
2006-07 Record: 25-10, 12-4
Yes, I understand Kevin Durant isn't going back to Texas. Yes, I understand that he was the go-to player for the Longhorns. But I also know that D.J. Augustin and A.J. Abrams can score as well as any guard tandem in the country. If the Longhorns can get some balance up front, this squad will be just fine in the Big 12 and beyond.
19. Stanford
2006-07 Record: 18-13, 10-8
OK, I'll admit I messed up big-time thinking that the Cardinal could beat Louisville in the NCAA first round and saying it on television and radio. That was wrong, way wrong. Still, the Cardinal return nearly the entire team intact, including the Lopez twins, two of the toughest post players in the West. If the Cardinal can shirk off the embarrassment of losing badly to the Cardinals, this squad should be a legit top-20 team throughout the season.
20. Arizona
2006-07 Record: 20-11, 11-7
Putting Arizona in the top 20 might seem like a stretch to some after the way the Cats finished the season and with the departures of Mustafa Shakur, Ivan Radenovic and Marcus Williams. But the Wildcats still have Chase Budinger, Jawann McClellan and Jordan Hill, and added guard Jerryd Bayless and assistant coach Kevin O'Neill, the latter for some nastiness on defense. That's enough with Lute Olson still trolling the sidelines to secure a place in my top 20.
21. USC
2006-07 Record: 25-12, 11-7
I can already hear some of the trusted USC faithful I converse with wondering how I could drop the Trojans so low. As much as the top recruiting class -- led by O.J. Mayo -- makes the Trojans a viable top-15 team, the fact that they are losing two first-round draft picks in Nick Young and Gabe Pruitt cannot be overlooked. Taj Gibson is a dynamite talent and Daniel Hackett is a serviceable starter, but there will be some early-season growing pains before this group blossoms in March.
22. Xavier
2006-07 Record: 25-9, 13-3
The last time I saw this squad, the Musketeers were beating Ohio State and should have won the game. Not much has changed from that team, and Sean Miller continues to produce the team to beat in the Atlantic 10 until someone else proves otherwise. Xavier will be a formidable foe no matter the locale. Miller and the Musketeers win.
23. Davidson
2006-07 Record: 29-5, 17-1
Don't really care if you think this pick is crazy. Davidson has one of the hidden gems in Stephen Curry. Bob McKillop is one of the top coaches who gets zero pub. This team will win 28 to 29 games and be a tough out in the NCAAs. So deal with Davidson in the Top 25.
24. Wisconsin
2006-07 Record: 30-6, 13-3
Bo Ryan is a lot like new Michigan coach John Beilein. They're simply not going to finish low. Ryan lost Alando Tucker and Kammron Taylor, but the Badgers were hardly a two-man squad. The Badgers will win games because of their system. They will have more balance, defend and win plenty of home games.
25. Florida
2006-07 Record: 35-5, 13-3
Look, I know you could put a lot of other teams here, teams like Providence, NC State, Clemson, UAB, Notre Dame, Kansas State, Washington, Syracuse, Connecticut, Ohio State or even the next-best SEC team. But I thought about this one for a while and it was clear to me that the Gators, now that Billy Donovan is back, won't slip out of the top 25 and out of contention for an NCAA berth. He's proved to be too good a coach, and the talent of Marreese Speights and Nick Calathes is too high for this squad to drop too low. The Gators will win their home games, steal some on the road and be in the Dance. You watch.
Andy Katz is a senior writer for ESPN.com.
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