2010 Mongreltopia Top 50

1. Deshawn Thomas - OSU commit from Ft Wayne, IN will likely finish his career as Indiana's highest scorer in state history. 6'8 forward is a bit of a tweener in college but more ideally suited as an NBA 3. He is the best player I've seen nationally in the class, but didn't see him playing with the kind of passion I'm used to this last summer in AAU. He's been committed for a long time and has proven his passion in more meaningful games though. National Rankings: Hoopscoop #8, ESPN #13,

2. Jared Sullinger - OSU commit and Ohio native Sullinger has outplayed every big man he's come up against. He's the quintessential winner, and shows leadership from the power forward spot, not as flashy as some other top big kids but strong, smart and consistent. National Rankings: Hoopscoop #1, ESPN #2,

3. Keith Appling - MSU commit and Michigan native gets the the hoop with ease and will be a big time scorer in college. I want to see a little more point out of him to be a better pro prospect and maybe a little more defensive acumen but he's quick and always attacking. National Rankings: ESPN #36,

4. Adreian Payne* - Michigan State commitment is a pretty strong 6'9 kid with great length and athleticism. He's a long power forward from Ohio and is not as consistent as Sullinger but shows more upside. National Rankings; Hoopscoop #100, ESPN #24,

5. Ray McCallum Jr - I saw a lot more of him when he was younger but was reminded this summer just how savvy the kid is. He's athletic enough to be a pro but he plays with the kind of coach's-son heady nature that he'd make it if he had a prosthetic foot. He's a bit of a combo guard and is considering Detroit, UCLA, and a few other schools. National Rankings: ESPN #37,

6. Trey Zeigler - Zeigler is also the son of a mid major coach and like McCallum is considering UCLA, Michigan, and a few other schools. Zeigler has a natural fit at the 2 and is a deadly outside shooter with some strength to finish inside. National Rankings: ESPN #27,

7. Myers Leonard - This Robinson HS (IL) star and Illinois commit is a very athletic 6'11. He plays with some inconsistency still but is versatile while still having the frame to get it done on the low blocks. He'll continue to fill out and bulk up and have a huge career for Bruce Weber. National Rankings: ESPN #53,

8. Jerome Richmond - UI commit was very inconsistent as his loaded Mac Irvin Fire team leaned more heavily on other guards quite often in July. But Richmond is a big time athlete and has the kind of tangibles that are significant even when the intangibles aren't quite as far along. National Rankings: ESPN #18,

9. Terone Johnson - Purdue commit is the best guard in Indiana in his class. He's only about 6'2 and I was once worried he would be between positions in college but his good 3 point shot has become outstanding and his effort on the defensive side is almost college ready right now. The North Central product plays with the strength of a bull much like former NC alum Eric Gordon but lacks the kind of explosion Gordon had. He'll be a good 2 guard in the big ten. National Rankings: ESPN #116,

10. Cameron Wright* - 6'3 Cleveland Benedictine star and Pittsburgh commitment was once committed to Ohio State, but he got the cold shoulder from Matta in the year he sat out recovering from an injury so he opened it up and found himself pursued by Michigan State, Wisconsin, Indiana, and Pittsburgh. The Cleveland product made a huge splash in July as his explosion has finally returned and looked a lot better than the other guards still committed to OSU. He's a shooting guard with the quickness to guard the 1 or 2. Edit to add that Anonymous in the comments added " I like the fact that you have Cameron Wright at #10 he deserves it. hard working on both ends of the floor and one of the quickest first steps I've seen in a while. very good midrange shooter. at 6-5 210 has the ability to guard and play the 1-3 positions. PITT really has a unique player that will just keep getting better and better. YOUR LOSS OHIO STATE!" National Rankings: Hoopscoop #131, ESPN #112,

11. Crishawn Hopkins is a 6'0 Butler commit who moved up from 14 to 11 on the back of some Mongrel readers getting threatening. Anonymous makes a good point saying they are both freakishly athletic (comparing Hopkins to Smith) but Hopkins is a better point but I think some people underestimate how much point Reggie has. I have to give Hopkins seperation over Smith because his outside shot is awesome too. Hopkins plays high school for Manual (Indianapolis).

12. Reggie Smith Mac Irvin point is great athlete with some pg skills (seen above in ST shot).
13. Travis Carrol Danville HS (IN) star is a Purdue commitment that is fundamentally sound and tough. He's a 6'8 power forward that works hard. National Rankings: ESPN #122,
14. Jesse Berry high flying Dayton commit is sensational scorer, explosive personality. He's a 6'2 star from Laffayette (IN) who scored over 45 six seperate times last year. National Rankings: ESPN #173,
15. Ge'lawn Guyn is a 6'2 point for Scott County who has long arms and wonderful athleticism and is looking at some impressive schools after re-opening his recruitment (read my reader comments he has a legion of fans making some really good arguments so I gave him a big jump from 24 to 15). National Rankings: ESPN #166,
16. Juwan Staten is a standout guard from Dayton who committed to Dayton. National Rankings; Hoopscoop #109
17. Josh Sewell Miami commit is athletic off guard with good ball skills.
18. Russell Byrd Michigan State commit is a sensational shooter for Ft Wayne Blackhawk at 6'6 but skinny. National Rankings: ESPN #58,
19. Curtis Washington 6'10 forward is a long, athletic late developer committed to USC. * Had to edit to add some reader input, anonymous says "He's not even the fifth best player on his own AAU team." and I had another suggest Rick Bolus and I were the only ones who liked him. Well, just to remind my readers about late blooming big men its for a reason he's the only high major commitment in KY from 2010. National Rankings: Hoopscoop #130,
20. Justin Martin Xavier commit is a 6'7 forward with great range can play inside and out. He was an outstanding defender for Lawrence North High School (Indianapolis) as well. National Rankings: Hoopscoop #122
21. Lenzelle Smith is an Ohio State commit. He is also a combo guard for Zion-Benton Township High who gets by with strength, guile more than quickness. National Rankings: ESPN #78,
22. Ahmad Starks is commited to play for Oregon State next year. He was an excellent floor leader for the Warriors and Fire over the summer. He's a 5'8 point for state champ Whitney Young (Chicago). National Rankings: ESPN #170,
23. Griffin McKenzie 6'9 Xavier commit is a big man from Cincinnati who can stroke the 3. He missed almost a year with a broken back but came up big in July. Ask him about his phone bill. National Rankings: Hoopscoop #163
24. Jon Horford* 6'9 forward prospect from Gran Ledge (MI) is the younger brother of former Florida star Al. National Rankings: ESPN #115,
25. Brandon Spearman is a 6'3 shooting guard for Simeon (Chicago) who is a Dayton commit. National Rankings: ESPN #152,
26. JD Weatherspoon is a 6'6 kid who played for All-Ohio Red in the summer. He is committed to the Buckeyes after initially committing to Xavier. He's also an athletic wing who is from Northland HS (OH). National Ranking: Hoopscoop #146, ESPN #169,
27. Ricardo Johnson Ohio commit is a winner, cut down the nets in KY state tournament for Covington Holmes. He made waves shutting people down, scoring, rebounding, and with leadership last year in the tournament. Thanks to reader who corrected me I thought I remembered Johnson verballing to Miami. National Rankings: ESPN #185,
28. Levonte Dority* Chicago Foreman point is big time 6'2 scoring pg with nice three point shot. He is going to play in the Big East for Stan Heath's South Florida squad. National Rankings: ESPN #198,
29. Aaron Craft former Tennessee commit now with Ohio State as long awaited point. He's 6'2 and plays for Liberty Benton HS (OH). National Rankings: Hoopscoop #129, ESPN #124,
30. Anthony Johnson Purdue commit is fine off guard for state champ Chicago Whitney Young. His ranking is a bit guesswork as he was an obviously talented prospect and got hurt at the wrong time to make a splash with the rankings.
31. Ben Brust Iowa commitment is one of the best shooters in his class.
32. Jordan Sibert* This 6'4 wing played for All-Ohio Red in the summer and Princeton HS (OH) for school. He is an Ohio State commit coming off an injury. National Rankings: Hoopscoop #50, ESPN #72,
33. Ethan Jacobs 6'11 Ohio commit has put on a lot of strength last year making strides. He was rail thin in school last year for Tipton (IN) but was clearly stronger in the summer.
34. Khristian Smith is a nice 6'5 athlete with good size on the wing is a late blooming kid for Pike. He played summer with the Spiece Indy Heat squad that sported several four and five star kids and looked like he belonged with them in July.
35. Roy Marble Jr* Iowa commit and 6'4 wing is son of former Hawkeye star.
36. Chad Jackson is a 6'4 point guard for Scott County (KY) with nice size plays upright and plays well off the ball.
37. Rayvonte Rice led his Rising Stars teams to some big time finishes in July.
38. Dre McCamey* Baby brother of Illinois star Mike is fine point in his own right.
39. Alex Guana is a 6'8 Michigan State commitment from Eaton Rapids (MI). He has great length, good shot blocking instincts but can be stiff. National Rankings: ESPN #188,
40. Xavier Jones emotional defensive minded point guard can attack the rim. He's a tough kid might need to work on the outside shot a little but can hit it. Transfered from Gary, Indiana to Wayne HS in Ohio for his senior year. National Rankings: Hoopscoop #119, ESPN #110,
41. Eric Fromm Butler commit is versatile 6'7 forward who can put the ball on the floor.
42. Nick Kellog youngest son of Clark is nice shooting wing guard.
43. Alex Dragecevich* Notre Dame commit is sweet shooting 6'6 wing.
44. Crandal Head is a Rich South (IL) star and Illinois commit. He is younger brother of Luther and fine scorer. National Rankings: ESPN #75,
45. Duje Dukan is a 6'8 sweet shooting forward who played with Dority on Chicgao Elite. He committed to Bo Ryan's Wisconsin program where he seems like a great fit. http://ilprepbullseye.com/page24.html
46. Kennis White is a 6'2 WMU wing talent with big time athleticism and leadership skills.
47. Walter Pitchford* is a 6'9 power forward committed to Depaul from Team Detroit.
48. Jordan Manual is a 6'8 skinny forward from Indianapolis with a sweet three point shot.
49. Mike McCall* Chicago Foreman guard is selfless point guard.
50. Jordan Threloff* 6'9 strong forward anchored Rising Stars last July.
50. Elijah Pittman is a 6'7 forward and jumping jack for Kentucky state champs. He has outstanding talent but might be heading for juco as he's behind academically. National Rankings: ESPN #199,
50. Eric Gaines 6'3 Kent State commit has good balance, athleticism, and works baseline well.
50. Donnie Hale is a 6'7 forward from New Albany, Indiana who is committed to Purdue. He's a traditional post up and has outstanding reach and shot blocking ability but will need to learn to guard laterally and be quicker with his developing outside shot in college. National Rankings: Hoopscoop #39, ESPN #149,
50. Dakotah Euton is a 6'8 forward for Scott County, Kentucky who had originally been committed to UK under Billy Gillespie but wound up committing to Akron after the coaching change. Euton is a strong forward with good passing ability.

Honorable Mention:

Julian Boatner,
Ian Chiles,
Brian Fabrizius,
Donovan Gibbs,
Kevin Gray is a 6'3 guard from Reynoldsburg HS (OH) who was once Hoopscoop top ranked 7th grader. He signed an LOI with Morehead St. http://buckeyeprep.blogspot.com/2009/11/kevin-gray-signs-national-letter-of.html
Andre Hampton,
Jay Harris is a 6'0 pg from Oswego East (IL). National Rankings: ESPN #69,
Jon Harris,
Michael Harris,
Ralph Hill,
Juann Howard,
PJ Hubert,
Jack Isenberger,
Phillip Jackson,
John Michael Jarvis,
Garon Johnson is an outstanding wing from Dayton. Hoopscoop #139, ,
Maurice Jones is a 5'7 point for Arthur Hill HS (MI) who is committed to USC. National Rankings: ESPN #134,
Elisha Justice,
Matt Kaminiecki,
Jake Kitchel,
Kenny Knight,
Karl Madison,
Enique Mason,
Devin Oliver,
Allen Payne is an outstanding 6'6 wing from Winton Woods HS (Cincinnati) who committed to Auburn. http://highmajorscoop.com/2009/11/auburn-picks-up-payne/ National Rankings: ESPN #193, Hoopscoop #178,
Corey Petros,
Quinten Rollins,
Ronald Ross,
Alex Rossi is a 6'5 guard from New Trier (IL). National Rankings: ESPN #117,
Storm Stanley,
Isiahh Sykes,
Colin Voss,
Nate VanArendonk

Let me know what you think, I'll include your comments on whomever you advocate for weather or not I move the rankings for the player in question. I think a lot of these players are close calls, the difference in most of these players is less their own potential and more the work ethic and attitude since they are so close in terms of talent. I'll be getting to work on 2011 this week also.

August Commitments and Recruting Updates:

Hillcrest star shooting guard Eric Gaines committed to Gino Ford's Kent State program. http://www.chicagohoops.com/articles1/gainesksu.html The Good Mongrel had some kind words to say about his game from the Hoosier Shootout and I believe this is a steal for the Golden Flashes. Gaines is a long athletic 6'4 wing player who can drive and plays hard on defense and is one of the most underrated kids in Illinois in my opinion.

Chicago Hoops' Brian Stinnette also has a trove of recruiting nuggets in this article http://www.chicagohoops.com/articles1/brianstinnette600.html Alex Dragecevich is visiting Notre Dame on Monday the 3rd. Stinnette says Brey was front and center for Dragecevich's games at the Adidas Super 64 and the End of Summer Classic and that Travis Ford flew in special to see him in the End of Summer Classic. He also mentions 2010 recruit Patrick Miller of Old Gold picking up a Tennessee State offer, updates the Mike McCall recruitment as Indiana State and St Louis head coaches watched him at Merrillville for the End of Summer Classic as well as California and Illinois State coaches and updates Nevada's pursuit of Ravonte Rice and other players.

Austin Etherington committed to Indiana University today. He is a 6'6 wing forward known for his excellent shooting stroke and big time leaping ability. He has been up and down some this summer in AAU playing with a new squad (Indiana Elite Team Indiana) and coming off micro-fracture surgery. Etherington is ranked #57 on scout.com. Fox Sports Jeff Goodman likes Etherington's game. http://community.foxsports.com/goodmanonfox/blog/2009/08/03/north_carolina_iu_bama_all_snag_commitments

While we're linking up Chicagohoops we can't leave out the link to their update on 2012 Rockford Auburn point guard Fred Van Vleet who is being recruited by Depaul and Illinois at the End of Season Showdown where the 5'11 point guard was with Prymetime. Also included is an update on 6'4 Austin Angel who plays for Rockford Boylon and is being recruited by Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. http://www.chicagohoops.com/articles1/rockford.html

Switching rust belt states from Illinois to Ohio, ESPN's Paul Biancardi has some nice words about several players for the All Ohio Red program which dominated the summer circuit this year at the 17U level and had strong finishes with the younger kids too. Biancardi also has a shoutout to Chad Jackson from Scott County, Kentucky who has impressed the humble Mongrel on more than one occasion. http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/recruiting/basketball/mens/news/story?id=4373610

Last week I mentioned the play of the NEO Ballers at the USSSA Nationals. They were outstanding and ended up winning the Division 2 bracket in the 16U age group. A Michigan State assistant was on hand to watch 6'7 athletic big man Anton Grady. Grady blocked a lot of shots and really seemed to get into the defensive dominance the Ballers were applying to the Illinois Predators when I was watching. Grady led Cleveland Central Catholic high school to the D3 state championship (Plain Dealer photo above from championship victory) and has excellent length and defensive presence. He's being recruited by Ohio State, Michigan State, Akron, Xavier, Ohio, and other fine programs. I'd read an article on Bucknuts about him after the Adidas Takes Five (unfortunately link is down) and he was playing with Friends for Life in Cincinnati. It was my first look at the NEO Ballers and I messed up a couple of the roster names on the blog post the other day but now I have it right. The kid I suspected was drawing Michigan State interest initially is named Jazel Garrett. He is a 6'0 combo guard from Akron Buchtel HS with crazy athleticism and excellent balance. He was all over the passing lanes and went in for the kill. Right now he's being recruited by Akron, Kent State, Wright State, IPFW, and Morehead State among others. I look forward to seeing these guys play again, it was my first look at them and they outclassed their opponents enough that I need to see them play some more but I was extremely impressed with my first viewing. The Lutheran East backcourt duo of Brian Burdine and Marques Coleman also impressed.

Mac Irvin Fire coming up big at Desert Duel and other updates.

Desert Duel

* The Mac Irvin Fire had two squads in the final eight of the Desert Duel in Phoenix. The 17U squad made it to the semi-finals and the 16U squad played up and made the final eight in a brutal field. Several players came up big for the Fire on the road trip out west to Vegas and Phoenix. The 17U squad is led by Ahmad Starks at point guard. Starks is an Oregon State commitment and has been arguably the most consistently good player on the squad this July. Uncommitted super athlete Reggie Smith is being recruited by Marquette, Butler, and Indiana among others. He's a 6'0 point who can jump out of the gym and shoot some. The Sun-Times named him first team all state this year, that is their photo on the right from January of 08. Illinois commitments Myers Leonard and Jerome Richmond are among the Fire's better players and are even better college prospects. Its a pretty loaded team who had a chance to go out to Vegas and answer some critics by playing hard and making their mark on some good tournaments and they did exactly that. No hardware for the Fire on the west coast swing, but coming off fine efforts where they competed very well the Fire are set up well to finish strong at the End of Summer Classic in Merrillville this weekend. They can join the Illinois Warriors, Illinois Titans, Rising Stars, and maybe one or two other squads as the best from Illinois this summer. The Illinois Wolves have a lot of talent and will be at the End of Summer Classic also.

* Here's a nice feature from the Hendrickson Blog in the Sun Times on the Fire, particularly 2011 big wing Wayne Blackshear who is being recruited by Louisville, Illinois, Indiana, and other teams. http://blogs.suntimes.com/hoopsreport/

* Petersberg Elite (Justin Coleman) defeated Nike Team Florida to win the tournament.

USSSA Nationals:

* Team Southern Indiana Red 17U went 1-1 in Pool play, beating Lithuania and losing to Spiece Gym Rats (Tolson). TSI was led by Garret Ross who scored 15. Hoosierhills twittered earlier that the 2012 squad lost to Northwest Ohio basketball Club 64-58 despite 14 from Max Clemons.

* The TSI 2011 squad includes 2013 star Daryl Baker. Jody Demling's blog said he had 28 points in a pool game yesterday. Hoosierhillshoops twittered that an Indiana assistant was on hand for one of his games yesterday. http://www.courier-journal.com/blogs/demling/blog.html

* I'll be up in Ft Wayne Thursday morning and afternoon and either back there on Friday or in Merrillville for the End of Summer Classic on Friday depending on the brackets. Let me know if there is someone I need to see. I'll be taking photos for the blog and might get some video.

Double Pump Best of Summer (LA)

* Ohio Basketball Club 17U went undefeated in pool play at the Double Pump tournament in LA per Buckeye Prep twitter. The 17U club is being watched by Akron, Bowling Green, Cleveland State, Ohio, Notre Dame, and other schools.

* Indiana Elite (Fox) is 3-0 in pool play without Ge-lawn Guyn who hurt his ankle. No word on the injury yet other than it is getting x-rayed. Best of luck to a Mongrel favorite. Guyn is a long armed competitive athlete who will be a good player at Charlotte in the Mongrel's opinion. Indiana Elite (Fox) will probably focus more on the inside game with 6'8 Bloomington South forward Eric Fromm. Fromm is versatile and has a little range and will be a lot of fun for Butler fans to watch for four years.

* The Derek Smith All Stars 16U team (Abel, Fant, others) went 3-0 in pool play per Demling blog (link above).

Orlando Nationals:

* Shining Star MacFarland went undefeated in pool play yet again. They did not loose a pool game all summer long, a unique but cool accomplishment. Shiningstarsportsblog has results from several Shining Star games from different squads and age groups. Josh Sewell and Chad Jackson are the two most impressive players on the team in the good Mongrel's opinion. They are both big guards who can score and distribute the ball and both have the athleticism to help a team in a lot of ways. Miami got a steal in Sewell.

* Coach Blevins got a good look at Elisha Justice, he's one of Kentucky's hidden gems at point guard. He is playing for Derek Smith All Stars and the link says he is interested in Morehead State and other schools. Hoopsreport.com has rundown on several players including him. Something is amiss with my cut and paste function so I'll have to remember to come back and edit in the link but chase it down if you have to. Entry is called "Tuesday Morning and Afternoon Notes".

Desert Duels, Double Pumps, and more AAU action.

Double Pump Best of Summer

Several notable teams are participating in the Adidas Double Pump tournament being held in LA (the town not the bayou in case I had you craving crawfish etoufee...). Some big national names are there like I-5 Elite, Memphis Select, Louisiana Future, Playaz Basketball Club, DC Assault, I Can All-Stars, Pump N Run Elite, and many more. There will be plenty of mid-west-rust-belt-southish region teams are participating as well. Illinois Old School, Team Kentucky, D1E Derek Rose All Stars, Indiana Elite, Ohio Basketball Club, Derek Smith All STars, Reach Legends, and more.

Hoosierhillshoops is twittering that Evan Maschmeyer of Jeffersonville, Indiana had 15 in a pool victory over the West Coast All Stars. Maschmeyer is playing for the Derek Smith All Stars and is being recruited by Wright State and other solid programs. The photo is from a Courier Journal story that includes Evansville, Wisconsin, and Eastern Illinois as schools of interest for Maschmeyer as well. http://www.courier-journal.com/blogs/demling/labels/Evan%20Maschmeyer.html

Buckey Prep says D1E All Stars have added Kenny Knight 2010 from Ohio along with Ryan Taylor and Michael Chandler who have also played with Spiece Indy Fastbreak squads this summer.

Desert Duel

Mac Irvin fire 16U opened with a 61-53 win against Full Court Athletes.

NBE blog has the scoop on several high profile kids including Dominique Fergeson, Trey Zeigler, Reggie Smith, and Brandon Kearney who has offers from Michigan, Michigan State, and Ohio State already. http://w3.nbebasketball.com/2009/07/27/nbe-live-from-desert-duel-memorial/

Orlando Updates

Nationals have started and Shining Stars McFarland 17U won their first pool game and Scott County combo guard Chad Jackson had 15 points. They bounced back from a tough loss to end a nice Super Showcase run to the final eight.

Meanwhile the Super Showcase is wrapped up as Team Takeover won at the 17U and 16U level according to northstarblog.

Illinois Titans won the 17U Silver Bracket. They are mostly younger kids but have several big strong athletic kids such as Ochenje and Siakhem.

Here is a link to an article from NBE blog wrapping up the Super Showcase. It has some notes on Rising Stars games, including updates on Alex Rossi and Ravonte Rice. Rice has a long list of offers from mid-majors and a couple of high majors but is catching the attention of several Big Ten schools now (Illinois, Indiana, Northwestern, Minnesota) among other schools. http://w3.nbebasketball.com/2009/07/27/sunday-at-the-aau-super-showcase/ There is also updates on Illinois and Purdue target Bradley Beal.

Look Back at Vegas (Yes the Town Turned off the Lights Sunday Night):

Hoopsreport has some updated school lists and scouting reports from Wayne Blackshear, Xavier Jones, Mike Shaw, Trey Zeigler, and several other top national prospects. http://www.hoopsreport.com/news/eventreports/vivalasvegasnewsandnotes

They also have a nice rundown on Sterling Gibbs recruitment (Indiana and Depaul offers per this article) and also Bishop Daniels who is a Xavier target. Both are 2011 recruits. Gibbs is planning on doing unofficial visits to Kentucky and Indiana among others this August. http://www.hoopsreport.com/news/eventreports/recruitingnewsandnotesfromreebok

More Tournaments Underway this week:

The Price Chopper gets underway Tuesday and will feature All-Iowa Attack Red, Meanstreets, Illinois Warriors, St Louis Eagles, and other fine squads.

USSSA Nationals in Fort Wayne will have a loaded field as will the End of Summer Shootout in Merrillvillle. Look for Hoopsmongrel to get some pictures and some game reports from Ft Wayne on Thursday and Merrillville on Friday.

Day 2 Standouts at Kentucky Hoopfest

Here are just a few of the standout performers of day 2 at the Ky Hoopfest. I didn't get a chance to see most of the best talent and will do some updates tomorrow on other action from the tournament but here are a few brief observations from today.

2010:

Curtis Washington is well worth his short lived hype for Shooting Stars McFarland. He is every bit of 6'9 and has long arms and good hands. He can handle the ball some and has wonderful balance and a soft touch on his inside buckets. How on Earth did this kid sneak by under the radar so long? USC got a steal.

Josh Sewell and Chad Jackson get to share an entry from the efficient Mongrel. Sewell is a 6'5 shooting guard who recently made a verbal commitment to Miami of Ohio. He plays for Louisville Trinity high school and I love his game. He can handle, shoot, defend, and plays hard. He could easily be a good player for a high major if he chose to wait it out. I was impressed with how good his handle was today. Normally he is off the ball but he took care of the ball most of the game when he was in and did great with it. Conversely Chad Jackson was someone I was looking at as a mid-major point guard even though he has some high major interest. But he showed a really pretty perimeter shot in this game that I wasn't expecting from watching him against Lexington Catholic a few months ago. I really like him off the ball and I really like Sewell on the ball more.

Kadeem Green for Team Takeover was the best player on the floor for the Team Takeover vs Florida Future match and that in itself is quite an accomplishment. He is long and skinny and had some blocks, several great drives down the middle in traffic, he finished with his left hand off balance on one of those. He took the ball coast to coast and knows how to draw contact. He's probably about 6'7 and is a rangy wing with an exceptional handle for his size. According to Hoopstars Canada he has interest from Iowa State and George Washington and has a standing reach of 9'2. http://www.hoopstarscanada.com/news.pl?nid=44

Maurice Walker is a 6'10 powerful center from Toronto who also was impressive. He didn't have a huge offensive game but he is really big and unlike a lot of kids his size he uses every ounce of that 270 pound frame and really beats on guys. He has interest from Texas AM, Depaul, and Iowa State among others.

Allen Payne for Queen City Prophets was really strong. He had over 20 points in an overtime one point victory against Common Bond-Hicks and saved his best for the end of the game. He had a crucial late bucket then got a steal on an inbounds and brought it up strong on the baseline. He is probably 6'6 and very quick.

Brandon Crane is a 6'11 center for Common Bond-Hicks. He has reported in the past that he has Michigan State, Purdue, and Indiana interest but he wasn't starting for his squad today and only had about 3 buckets. He is very skinny but long and moves well and has some potential but that frame is pretty slight for Big Ten ball.

2011:

Jeremiah Davis from Muncie Central is a very impressive player. His stock has fallen a little bit since BillyClyde Gillespie offered him as an 8th grader. He is a 6'4 big time athlete and a wonderful handler and passer who has good range and explosive athleticism. He has had a knock against him for a while for being a bit wild and dominating the ball too much but I didn't see anything like that today and he really guards people well.

Austin Etherington is a 6'5 wing who has a nice stroke and can jump. I jinxed him, this was the third time I've seen him and he didn't do much each time. Considering he is considering offers from Xavier and Indiana and has been told by Steve Alford that he is New Mexico's top priority in the class I'm assuming he usually plays a lot better. You can't be too cautious about assuming a kid who doesn't do much in an AAU game doesn't have it. The games are short and they often have so many good teammates. On the rumor-mongering front I hear from someone in the know that he really likes Indiana and Xavier right now but is a little freaked out by the pressure Crean is puting on him to commit right now and he thinks he will wind up with an offer from his dad's old friend Thad Matta eventually and has been told Purdue will offer him if they don't get a certain prospect at his position they are in good shape with. Hmmm... one to watch at any rate...

Justin Gant 6'8 forward Indiana Elite Orange really played well this evening. He didn't look real comfortable with Indiana Elite this spring but fills a great role for Indiana Elite Orange. He is a tough kid who is a deceptively good athlete and has good length at 6'8 and a nice perimeter shot. Iowa and Michigan have been all over him.

Cody Zeller is up to 6'10 now and puting on some definition from working on the weights. He made a couple of entry passes that were hard to fathom from a big kid his age that ended up being converted into Plumlee dunks in two cases and a Gant layup in another. But Zeller can score and put the ball on the floor too. He is one of the faster big kids I've seen in the age group. He really has gotten a lot better from the school year to May where he more than held his own head to head against Deshawn Thomas to today. I like him more than Plumlee and that is saying a lot because Plumlee is 6'11 and seems to like being a center and is really good too. But he just isn't the kind of athlete as Zeller and isn't as versatile.

Isiah McCullar was very effective against Indiana Elite and their twin towers of Leek and Ajou. He wasn't flashy but is probably 6'9 and very strong and co-ordinated and even though the big African kids had some blocks they probably didn't have more buckets.

Job Jennings and Alex McGlothlin were both impressive for Club-Ohio (Callahan). Jennings is a 6'3 guard who handled the ball a lot and shows the ability to drive, score, and play some defense. He and McGlothlin both had about 15 points.

2012:

Mongrel favorite Ken Kaminski was good but not exactly dominant for Team Pride in the evening session. He has a pretty shot and is quite an athlete but didn't get a lot of offense in the evening session. Tom Izzo and Tom Crean saw him play among other coaches.

A 6'0 guard who I mistakenly identified with a 6'8 forward's name (Tommy McCune) was outstanding for Team Pride as well. He had a couple of 3's and a great dunk and an assist on a wrap around underneath and showed a lot of versatility. He is about a 6'0 guard. I'll have to find my notes and dig around to find out the correct name for the fine player.

Ron Patterson played a great game on both ends of the floor against Wisconsin Blizzard 15U. He has such long arms and really gets in people's faces.

Brandon Tyler for the Wisconsin Blizzard was outstanding. He is about 6'4 and can handle, shoot, defend, and rebound. I caught him after losing a competitive game against the otherwise dominant Spiece Indy Heat sitting in the crowd watching the dunk show put on by JP Tokoto and Popcorn Morris before their game. Their less flashy counterpart might be as good a prospect in game action as those two impressive players and superb athletes. His teammate Jason Miller was a wonderful player as well and hit a lot of big time perimeter shots.

JP Tokoto was a treat to watch. He and teammate Popcorn Morris have great athleticism and Morris seems to hang in the air when he goes up for a jump. One of the highlights of the day was watching the Wisconsin Playground Warriors 2012 team go through warmups. There were 360 degree spins, tomahawk jams, and about everything you could think of and Tom Crean stood at rapt attention to watch the display. On the floor they were excellent players as well. Tokoto is very active and picked several passes off and handles the ball really well and Morris uses his superior athleticism to get up and over people and they both look like future college stars.

Nick Arenz is a 6'8 center from Onalaska, Wisconsin who had about 13 points including stroking a really nice 3 pointer and finishing off a Tokoto assist in traffic. He seems like a Bo Ryan type of player if he grows a little and keeps working hard.

2013:

Daryl Baker is every bit what he is cracked up to be. The kid can get to the basket and never disappoints when he does get there. He is a 2013 playing on 2011 Team Southern Indiana coached by former Jeffersonville star Sherron Wilkerson and there are some similarities to their games. Baker seems to be on track to me more of a dominant scorer but he is extremely quick and plays some swarming defense. In the late game at Hoops TSI was down a couple of baskets in the final minute of the game but Baker and #13 (will edit after some sleep and find his name) put heavy pressure on the ball and forced several turnovers and Baker got to the line with a chance to tie it up with about 4 seconds left. He missed the first and hit the second and forced a turnover on the inbound and collected the ball and turned and missed a tough layup where he changed directions in the air for the win. Baker was devastated after missing the potential game winning layup and his famously emotional coach was right in his face to tell him to keep his chin up and he'll knock it down next time. Baker is without question one of the best players in Indiana high school basketball and he's just going to be a freshman.

There is a mountain playing for a 2013 team out of Team Takeover named Taveer Bhullar. I didn't stick around to see much of the game as it was not in view from the crowd gathered for the Indiana Elite (Carlino, Zeller, Plumlee, Gant) game. But he had to be 7'1 and 300 pounds and I saw him catch the ball on a couple of tough passes. 2013 and he'd cast a shadow on Bryant Reeves!

Hoosier Shootout to Kick off July (Part 1).

The Hoosier Shootout begins at 8 AM sharp on Monday, July 6. Much of the national spotlight will be on Cincinnati this week for the Adidas Take Five tournament which is loaded. But the nearby Hoosier Shootout will draw the Mongrel out of his June cave. Every national scout worth his salt will be in Cincinnati telling the Mongrel the same news, meanwhile a deep and impressive field will be on hand in Indianapolis and the Mongrel will be there with about a million college coaches.

Indiana is a known hotbed of hoops talent and the Hoosier state will be well represented as usual with several Speice, Indiana Elite, Team Southern Indiana, and other programs well represented. Part 2 of the Mongrel's Hoosier Shootout preview will discuss some of the Indiana talent. For now, lets look at just a sample of some of the talent descending on Indianapolis with out of state plates.

Wisconsin Playground Warriors are one of the top AAU programs in the midwest and this year is no different. The 17U team is filled with D1 talent. Evan Anderson (UW), Noah Cotrill (WVU), and Kameron Cerroni (UW-GB) have committed to D1 programs and rugged Dakota Euton was committed to UK before Billy Gillespie was ousted. The Warriors boast one of the most formidable front courts on the circuit with Euton and twin 7'0 towers Anderson and Ben Mills. Mills has offers from Indiana State, Ball State, and UW-GB along with interest from Marquette, Indiana, and Minnesota.

The Warriors younger squads are strong as well. According to Wishoops.net, the two best players in the Warriors system are 2011 Quevyn Winters and JP Tokoto. Winters is a 2011 6'4 wing who has offers from Marquette and Wisconsin and is considering Purdue University and plans to attend the late August elite camp there http://www.wissports.net/sports/hoopsb/blog/blog.aspx?f=123. Tokoto has offers from Kansas, Marquette, and Wisconsin and has been spotted at the Marquette elite camp recently by the JS Online Golden Eagles blog. Both Tokoto and Winters have played up before so check your program the Warriors brought teams in all three divisions. Brett Vandenburgh is another fine 2012 player but he is listed on rosters for both the Wisconsin Playground Warriors and the Wisconsin Blazers.

Georgia Stars are yet another of the country's elite travelling teams, the Georgia Stars are sending their premier 17U team but not the rest of their fleet. The 17U team will be one of the favorites at the Shootout and have several of their own D1 players. Marcus Thornton has already committed to Clemson. According to their Rivals.com profiles, 6'7 power forward Adrian Hubbard has a Clemson offer and is looking at ACC and SEC programs, 6'0 pg Devonte White is looking at ACC and SEC programs, 6'5 Jeremy Burgess is looking at Minnesota, Indiana, Georgia and others, and 6'4 Chris Grier is looking at SEC and ACC programs as well.

Illinois Titans are only sending their 17U team, but they have two outstanding younger players who have been playing up. Watch for 2011's 6'7 power forward James Siakham or even 2012's 6'9 Emanual Ochenje who Chicagohoops has #1 in the class of 2012 in Illinois. Siakham already has offers from Depaul and Southern Illinois and Ochenje has already landed an Illinois offer.

Randolph Boys Club are sending 15, 16, and 17U teams. Look for 2010's 6'3 gritty combo guard Austin Armga and 6'0 Kevin Hurd from Portage to lead the way. Sam Mader and Avery Hinz lead the way for their 15U team but watch out for Duke Vander Galien if he makes the trip. He's been playing up 3! years with this team. They keep getting younger, but its like a car wreck and the Mongrel can't look away!!

Peoria Irish are sending 3 teams although their 16U and 17U teams will both compete at the 17U division. One of the Irish's top 17U players is James Johnson, a 6'8 forward whom Chicagohoops gave good reviews to at the Chicago Tip Off classic. The 16U team beat the Mac Irvin Fire to win the title in the same event and will compete up with the 17U teams this time around. Jordan Nelson from Lincoln and Hayden Hordeman pair up to make for a deadly shooting duo. Hordeman is a 6'3 shooting guard from Bloomington Central Catholic who has offers from Northern Illinois and Eastern Illinois and jumped on the radar screen for several Big Ten programs after his MVP performance in the Tip Off classic including Illinois, Iowa, Penn State, and Indiana.

Illinois Old School is sending four teams to the tournament. 6'1 Oswego East guard Jay Harris is ranked #53 in the class of 2010 by ESPN and he will be leading the Old School's 17U team. He teams with 6'0 point guard Hollis Hill who recently committed to UW-Milwuakee.

Other players of note: The Tennessee Travelers 17U team will feature Jalen Steele, who is a 6'2 highly recruited guard from Knoxville the Mongrel blogged about in some recent Dayton entries. The Shining Stars have five teams in the field so once again check your program, but watch for 17U point guard Chad Jackson from Scott County who claims offers from Xavier and West Virginia. The Mongrel has watched a couple of Jackson's games and likes his ability to get to the rim but he might need a little tweak or two to be a high major point guard. His shooting is ok and he's not super quick but has great length if he can be a point guard. Donovan Gibbs from Iriquois is a good point guard as well. On the 16U squad Austin Flannery can light it up from deep quickly. Terry Porter Elite has 3 teams at the event. Their most anticipated prospect might be Deonte Burton who some have called a top 20 player nationally in the class of 2013 but he'll be playing with TP Elite's 15U team. 15U Birmingham Storm made the trip but not the older teams. 6'6 JaCorey Williams is one of the players to watch for them. 17U Wisconsin Force will feature 6'1 Josh Cameron who is a fine scorer and getting mid-major looks from schools such as Akron. Waterloo's 6'6 Sam Gage is also getting mid-major interest, hearing from Old Dominion and Northern Iowa among others.

This is only a small sample of the talent at the Hoosier Shootout. The website for the tournament is http://www.hoosiershootout.com/ and the Mongrel will provide some updates from some of the most impressive talent in the building and a second part of the preview focusing on the many Indiana squads at the tourney and a few out of state teams we overlooked the first time around.

10 Most Underrated Kids in Kentucky

For this post, I'm omitting anyone I've seen on top 100 lists. Let me know if someone is on a legit top 100 list.

1. Ricardo Johnson 2010
2. George Fant 2011
3. Josh Sewell 2010
4. Ge'Lawn Guyn 2010
5. Tommy Knipp 2011
6. Elijah Pittman 2010
7. Vinnie Zollo 2011
8. Tameron Manning 2012
9. Chad Jackson 2010
10. Dakotah Euton 2010

The diligent Mongrel found Jaylen Beckham ranked #36 on ny2la's national list and dropped him from the #1 spot. Its a pay site the frugal Mongrel hasn't perused yet but this link to one of my favorite blogs had the low down. http://www.courier-journal.com/blogs/demling/2009/06/lexcath-sophomore-tabbed.html We will be linking Mr Demling as a matter of course on matters relating to the sacred Golden Triangle schools (UL, IU, and UK) who own more titles and have more coming than anybody you'll find on Tobacco Road. This ny2la was sharp as a tack to include some of the kids it did (Jeremy Holowell for example will be awesome but is a bit of a secret) so it might be worth a look. It almost made us not include Manning at #8 but at least we got workhorse forward Dakota Euton on the updated list.