If this pair of sneakers looks at all familiar to you, it may be because we have seen it before in some images that were scanned out of a catalog way back in the month of September. What we didn’t know back then however though is that these shoes will actually be a NFW design, which is an all time first for the Nike Hyperize series. This shoe features a few really cool things that we are going to take a closer look at right now.
First off this one abandons the woven section that was found on the LeBron Vii NFW’s in favor of a simpler nylon design with faux Fly wire impressions. As an added treat, these ones will receive red speckles all over the white midsole which help even more to bring out the color of the already bright red upper. Stay tuned for info on a release date.
I found a article on one of the best big men to ever step foot on a basketball court, Columbia, South Carolina own Stanley Roberts. Shaq gives Stanley credit for helping him develop as the most dominating center ever. I could have wrote a book on Stanley Roberts basketball journey, Slam Magazine wrote a nice article on apart of Stanley Roberts journey that I felt gives a great insight on obstacles that can put your dreams on hold or take you down a longer path to success.
The Cautionary Tale of Stanley Roberts
It was November 24, 1999, and Stanley Roberts was early for practice. Timeliness had never been one of Roberts’ calling cards, but Philadelphia 76ers’ head coach Larry Brown, who had a special relationship with the big man, asked Roberts to arrive early for a meeting. And so he did.
Roberts was there. Brown was there. And, surprisingly, a disciplinary officer from the NBA who worked under Rod Thorn was also there. The officer produced an envelope, cracked it open and withdrew a letter. He read aloud the few sentences and handed the paper to Roberts. Stanley’s eyes confirmed what his ears had heard: Stanley Roberts had tested positive for high levels of amphetamines. And with that, Stanley Roberts became the first player banned under the NBA’s new anti-drug program.
“I loved the game. I didn’t like everything else that came with it,” Roberts says now. “You know, I enjoyed going out and playing in front of the fans, but everything else, I coulda did without. The autographs signings, the money—I didn’t care about that. And that’s why I gave most of it away.”
Stanley Roberts was a legit seven-footer, a hulking giant with the soft hands of a professional wide receiver. His talent gave him everything—cash, clothes, security. But his indulgences—eating, smoking and spending—would cost him millions and, ultimately, his NBA career.
Today, nearly a decade after flunking that drug test and washing out of the NBA, Roberts is in good spirits.
“I’m happy,” Roberts says from his dorm room in Baton Rouge, LA. He’s attempting to complete the college degree he abandoned at LSU nearly 20 years ago. “I got a house in Houston, my lady, a few cars and I have my four children. I am even happier now than I was with $30 million.”
Roberts was born a big kid in 1970, in the close-knit town of Hopkins, SC. It was the kind of place where neighbors had the authority to discipline neighbors’ kids. Roberts was a homebody. Despite having an older brother who played JuCo ball and uncles who balled at Coastal Carolina and for Bobby Cremins at Appalachian State, Roberts didn’t start hooping until the 8th grade.
“My first year, my concept of the game was zero,” Roberts recalls. “I didn’t go outside and play sports. In my first game, I didn’t realize you switched baskets after halftime. I scored six points for the other team shooting at the wrong basket.”
Roberts’ brother, Wayne, played at Lower Richland High School and asked the school’s varsity coach, Jim Childress, to look after his younger brother, an incoming sophomore. Roberts was already 6-7 but not serious about hoops and without the grades to play in ninth grade. Childress didn’t need much convincing to help the truck-sized youngster find his calling.
“Coach’s eyes got real big,” says Roberts. “He wanted me to play JV and work my way up. He wanted to take me to basketball camp and I said that if my mom said OK, I’d try. I went to camp and I found out I really sucked.”
Roberts never played on the JV team. After that first camp, his family took him to a playground and toughened him up. At a second camp, Lower Richland won the camp championship and Roberts was selected MVP. By his senior year, he was named to both the Dapper Dan and McDonald’s All-American teams.
“He had that brontosaurus rex body and soft hands. Body of a blacksmith, touch of a surgeon,” says Tom Konchalski. The legendary prep scout considered Roberts a Top-10 player in the class of ’88. “Good touch, was a good passer, but he was never in shape. More have been slain by suppers than by the sword.”
In April 1987, Roberts’ junior year, his brother Wayne shot and killed an 18-year-old and wounded two others in self-defense. The hearings coincided with Stanley’s recruitment. He had narrowed his choices to three schools: the University of SouthCarolina, Georgia Tech and LSU. “The judge was a South Carolina graduate and basically said that if I didn’t sign with SC, my brother would to go to jail for life,” Roberts says. “My mom worked at SC and received threats, which weren’t proven. My mother said not to commit until the trial ended, but it kept getting pushed back.”
Roberts chose LSU and Wayne was still cleared of all charges in early 1988. A state investigation couldn’t prove any wrongdoing against Roberts or his family. Lower Richland won a second straight state title, and Roberts finished his high school days being escorted by FBI agents for safety. He flew straight to LSU after graduating.
“I think what sold me on LSU was when Coach Dale Brown visited my home, sat down and said that I would be his friend and a part of his family, before I was an athlete,” said Roberts, who was joined by Chris Jackson (later Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf) in that year’s Tiger recruiting class.
Roberts didn’t qualify academically to play as a freshman. By the time he was eligible for the ’89-90 season, the Tigers had signed a second seven-footer to complement their sleeping giant: Shaquille O’Neal. “He was an excellent teammate, a good friend and was hard to stop. He had it all,” Shaq says ofRoberts now. “He was unstoppable.” During their one season together, the Tigers went 23-9 and lost in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Roberts earned Third-Team All-SEC honors from the Associated Press and was second on LSU in scoring (14.1 ppg) and rebounding (9.8), to go along with 60 blocked shots. However, after two years of school and only one season of college ball, Roberts turned pro. “LSU said I left because of academics, and I’ll leave it at that. I was supposed to carry a 2.0 [grade point average]; I had a 1.7. I would have had to sit out that fall semester, and I didn’t want to. I decided to leave.”
Roberts missed the deadline to declare hardship and put his name in the NBA Draft, but he signed with an agent, Oscar Shoenfelt, who had a tryout lined up with Real Madrid. Roberts says Real made him the highest-paid player in Europe at 19, but he racked up more than $150,000 in fines during his one season there. “It was different. The two-a-days taught me that it was a job and you had to treat it like it was a business,” Roberts recalls. “All of the fun that you enjoyed in high school and college kind of left. The only time I felt it was fun was playing in front of fans.”
When he got back to the States, Roberts toured numerous NBA cities to showcase himself for the ’91 Draft. Because he was rapidly gaining weight, he slipped from the Lottery and was selected by the Orlando Magic with the 23rd overall pick. The extra pounds would continue to hinder his development. Despite missing nearly 30 games due to injuries, Roberts showed real promise as a rookie, posting solid averages of 10 ppg and 6 rpg and being named Second-Team All-Rookie.
Still, one year after Roberts was drafted, guess who showed up in Orlando? The Magic won the Draft Lottery and selected Shaq with the first pick in ’92. Orlando had only signed Roberts for one year but owned his rights for three. Roberts remembers, “Dallas was very interested in me and I flew out and signed a contract with the Mavericks. They put an increase in pay if I get traded, all these things in in my favor ’cause they didn’t want Orlando to try to match the contract and bring me back, which they ended up doing anyway. I was upset ’cause I really wanted to play with Dallas. I went to see Pat Williams, the Magic GM and I said, I’m going to buy a house, but I’ll get an apartment if you’re gonna trade me. I was assured that my future was in Orlando. Two weeks later the Magic call and say, ‘We have a three-way deal to trade you to the Clippers.’ I had just signed papers on the house.”
Roberts says he fought the trade. “They’ll never admit this type of stuff, but Williams said, basically, ‘Shaquille don’t want to play with you. If you stay, you’re gonna be at the end of the bench.’ It hurt. This is the first time—other than telling my friends and a few people—I’ve said it publicly,” Roberts confides. “I was pissed off more than anything because I just bought a house for over half a million dollars and if I didn’t accept the trade, they were going to kill my career.”
Roberts eventually agreed to the trade to L.A., where he worked under Larry Brown, who had been brought on to turn the Clips around. Brown and Roberts formed a unique friendship, becoming close when Brown had to convince Roberts that the situation in L.A. was right for him. “I remember trying to recruit Stanley like you would a college kid,” the now-Bobcat coach says with a sparkle in his eye. “You know, I always thought he needed to be in a little better shape, but that was coming. He tried for me. He was a fun kid to be around, and I thought he had an unbelievable upside. He was so quick, athletic, explosive. I thought he had a real chance.”In L.A., Roberts started to find a groove on the court. Off it, however, life was difficult. He ran up tremendous debt buying lavish cars and giving away most of his earnings. At one point, Roberts had seven people living with him in L.A.—he eventually left the house to his guests and rented himself an apartment. “I was out there alone,” he says. “I was out there with people who were sharks and I didn’t know who to trust.”
In ’93-94, Roberts ruptured his Achilles. By that time, Brown had left to take a job with the Indiana Pacers and couldn’t make a move for Roberts. Roberts missed the entire ’94-95 season with injuries, and then the street element he’d never been exposed to in South Carolina really hit his life. “There was pressure and I didn’t want to think about basketball,” Roberts says. “I didn’t want to deal with the Clippers so I started hanging out with people from the streets, the Bloods and the Crips. I felt comfortable. They understood me.”
By the start of training camp in ’96, Roberts’ relationship with the Clips’ latest coach, Bill Fitch, was rocky at best. Roberts says he asked to come to training camp a day late to witness the birth of one of his four children and then had what he says is the only run-in he ever had with any coach. “I came back with pain in my lower back and Coach Fitch didn’t believe me. He huddled us up and started saying, ‘Some of us came in late and out of shape.’ And I just lost it,” Roberts admits. “I said, You bad-heart having sonofabitch! He’d just had a triple bypass. Had Lorenzen Wright not stopped me, I would have been the first Latrell Sprewell.”
Fitch kicked Roberts out of camp, but GM Elgin Baylor kept him on the team. Roberts played in 18 games for the Clippers but wasn’t re-signed at the end of the season. He joined the Minnesota Timberwolves in ’97-98 for what would be his last full season. Roberts posted decent numbers (6 points, 5 rebounds and 1 block per game) in limited action but still struggled with weight and injury issues, as well as mocking teammates. Stanley did, however, find words of encouragement from his T-Wolves teammate, Kevin Garnett.
“I grew up in ACC/SEC country and watched a lot of basketball, so he’s a guy I watched play a lot,” says KG, himself a South Carolina native and prep legend. “I’m going to stand up for anyone that’s getting picked on. Stanley was an interesting guy, a different type of personality, but he was a great teammate. Really nice guy off the court who—when he wanted to—was able to really be an animal on it.”
Unfortunately, Roberts never had that confidence in himself. He ate excessively, smoked marijuana and used other drugs during his NBA career. Foolish generosity and bad investments plagued his portfolio and he found himself barely hanging on to his once lucrative source of income. He signed in Greece during the ’98-99 NBA lockout , then joined the Houston Rockets once it ended. He was injured again and only played in six games.
In October of ’99, Larry Brown again recruited Roberts, this time for the Philadelphia 76ers, where Stan became friendly with Allen Iverson, Larry Hughes and Eric Snow. Philly would go on to play in the Eastern Conference Semis, though without Stanley—the drug suspension had ended his season. “Once that happened, there wasn’t much I could do,” recalls Brown. “That killed me because I had no idea. If I had an idea of what was going on, maybe I could have helped. Stanley could have played forever. He would have been able to help us in Philly.”
The ban was supposed to last two years, but Roberts was arrested for cocaine possession in 2000 and the suspension was extended a year. He sued FIBA for upholding the ban and blocking him from signing with a team in Turkey. In 2003, the Toronto Raptors signed him, but he couldn’t get in shape in time for training camp. After a quick summer playing in Puerto Rico, Roberts’ career was over. “I don’t even think I’m going to be remembered,” he says. “They don’t bring my name up too often, but when they do, it’s always because I was the first player suspended under the new drug policy. I was a poster child.”
Once Roberts’ career ended, the money ran out. Since then, he’s worked odd jobs, once as a security guard and another as a “car broker” in the Houston area. Nothing seemed to stick. With few options remaining, Roberts returned to LSU and restarted his education in the fall of ’07.
“I’ve been spending the past six years getting my life back on track,” Roberts says. “Coach (Dale) Brown stayed on me all these years about finishing school. It’s a change for me. When I was first here, we only had about four of five computers on the whole campus; now you even take your tests online.”
Though Roberts missed out on much of the glory of a pro sports career, he never stopped enjoying the game. He’s now about 18 months from earning a Bachelor’s Degree in sports management (he says he’s got a 3.2 GPA at the moment) and hopes to get into coaching. His education is being funded by financial aid and the Dale Brown Foundation. Roberts has gone back to church and spends time working with a substance abuse program. Because of the many physical problems he’s had in his post-playing career, Roberts is attempting to receive disability benefits. He never asked for much out of life and definitely got more than he expected. Now he’s hoping to move on to a simpler life, one without the headaches and heartbreaks he’s already endured.
“My goal, my dream my whole life was just owning a little house, having a wife and family, that’s all I ever wanted. I didn’t ask for this. It was never my dream to be an NBA player,” Roberts admits. “Everybody else threw me into it because of the money. I was pushed. Everybody told me I should play ball, but nobody ever stopped and thought what I thought my life should be like.
The following is Prep Hoops Assist Class of 2011 player watch list.This list was composed utilizing and considering the rankings of numerous scouting services and publications.This is not a consensus list, but appears to be 80 players that most national sources consider to be the cream of the crop in the class of 2011.
The pictured below is South Carolina very own Damien Leonard a 6’4 Guard with a deadly shot. Hopefully we get more South Carolina Players on this list this summer.
We also added a video of Bishop Daniels from North Carolina; if not the best, one of the best dunker’s in the class of 2011.
Tracy Abrams, 6′-1″, G, Mt. Carmel (Chicago, IL) ILLINOIS
If you haven’t heard about the High Point, North Carolina native Deuce Bello I’m pretty sure you will very soon. This kid have been on ESPN top 10 more than once for crazy dunks doing high school basketball games. Thanks to MemphisRoar great interview with Deuce last year here is a better insight on a good up and coming basketball player.
Bello, a 6’3’’ guard, plays for Westchester Country Day School in High Point, North Carolina.He also plays on the D-One Sports AAU team coached by Brian Clifton. Despite coming from a relatively small town, Bello’s game is primed for the limelight. His uncanny ability to get to the basket, his monster dunks, and his breath-taking alley-oops have all become standard in Bello’s game.
Bello is starting to become one of the nation’s most coveted 2011 recruits, listing interest in Baylor, Clemson, Duke, High Point University, Maryland, Memphis, NC State, Oklahoma State, Oregon, Wake Forest, UNC, UNC-Charlotte, and USC, according to various recruiting services.When asked if he had any leaders at this time, Bello respectfully declined to answer. In fact, Bello went as far to say. “I’m not considering anybody (right now).”Bello told MemphisRoar that his coach Brian Clifton and his trainer are handling the colleges right now as he focuses on his sophomore year.
With more college choices than one can count on two hands, it is easy to wonder what will factor into making his decision. When asked if distance would play a factor when making his college decision, Bello replied, “I don’t think it will. It just depends on the style of play that I like to play, and what the education is like.” And what style of play does Bello like? “I like to get up and down the floor,” he said.
Deuce had the opportunity last summer to play with one of the nation’s best 2009 high school players, John Wall, on their D-One Sports AAU team. “Just watching him play helps me a lot, and I learn a lot of stuff,” Bello said. “In the beginning of the season, I was not getting a lot of time for D-One Sports, and just watching him, I started to step up.” In addition to learning a lot from John Wall, Bello said his coaches have also helped in making him the player he is today, motivating him and telling him the things he needs to do.
When asked what he considered to be the most underrated part of his game, Bello said, “I don’t think I have any part that’s underrated; I think there’s just things I need to work on. I think I need to work on my shooting right now.”
Despite gaining the attention of numerous division one programs and being regarded as a top prospect for his class, Bello maintains a very humble attitude. “It’s a blessing. It’s just hard work that paid off,” Bello told MemphisRoar.Bello’s hard work is definitely paying off, as he was named to the 2009 NCISAA 2A Boys All-State Basketball Team for this season only a few days ago.
With Bello’s size (6’3’’ and 170 lbs.) and freakish athletic ability, Bello says he is unsure what position he will play in college. “I’m playing point guard right (for Westchester Country Day), but I believe I will probably play shooting guard.” Bello’s knack at getting to the basket gives the defense fits, and with the hard work he is putting in, it is getting harder and harder to find flaws in his game.
While Deuce Bello may not know where he wants to play college ball now, or even the position he will play once he gets there, one thing is certain with this young man—Bello will be a great addition to any college program.
2010 Jordan Brand All-American Team Announced Madison Square Garden to Host Nation’s Elite High School Basketball Players The top 10 ESPNU-rated players headline star-filled roster
Jordan Brand, a division of NIKE, Inc., announced today during a special ESPNU Selection Show that the top 10 ranked ESPNU 100 players – No. 1 Harrison Barnes (Ames, IA/North Carolina), No. 2 Jared Sullinger (Columbus, OH/Ohio State), No. 3 Brandon Knight (Coral Springs, FL/Undecided), No. 4 Kyrie Irving (West Orange, NJ/Duke), No. 5 Tobias Harris (Dix Hills, NY/Tennessee), No. 6 Will Barton (Baltimore, MD/Memphis), No. 7 Josh Selby (Baltimore, MD/Undecided), No. 8 C.J. Leslie (Holly Springs, NC/Undecided), No. 9 Perry Jones (Duncanville, TX/Baylor) and No. 10 Tristan Thompson (Brampton, ONT/Texas) – will headline the nation’s best high school senior basketball players at the 2010 Jordan Brand Classic, presented by Foot Locker, at Madison Square Garden in New York City on Saturday, April 17 at 8:00 p.m. EST.This year’s event will once again be televised nationally live on ESPN2.
The Jordan Brand Classic will also continue to include a Regional Game, showcasing the top prep players from the New York City metropolitan area in a City vs. Suburbs showdown.In its third year of the event, an International Game will feature 16 of the top 17-and-under players from around the world.
“As our preeminent basketball game, the Jordan Brand Classic strives to put the top talent on the floor each year and this year is no exception as we will have the top 10 ranked players in the class of 2010,” said Keith Houlemard, President of Jordan Brand.“We are thrilled to host the nation’s best at the World’s Most Famous Arena in the biggest city in the U.S.”
Also selected for this year’s event are No. 11 Joshua Smith (Kentwood, WA/UCLA), No. 12 DeShaun Thomas (Fort Wayne, IN/Ohio State), No. 13 Terrence Jones (Portland, OR/Undecided), No. 15 Dion Waiters (Philadelphia, PA/Syracuse), No. 16 Reggie Bullock (Kinston, NC/North Carolina), No. 21 Cory Joseph (Toronto, ONT/Undecided), No. 22 Kendall Marshall (Dumfries, VA/North Carolina), No. 25 Doron Lamb (Laurelton, NY/Undecided), No. 29 Roscoe Smith (Baltimore, MD/Connecticut) and No. 43 Jelan Kendrick (Marietta, GA/Memphis).
The head coaches this year will be Greg Wise of Yates High School (Houston, TX) for the East and Mike Peck of Findlay Prep (Henderson, NV) for the West.The East assistant coaches are Charles Smith of Peabody Magnet High School (Alexandria, LA) and Doug Lipscomb of Wheeler High School (Marietta, GA).The West assistant coaches include Pat Strickland of Jefferson High School (Portland, OR) and Mark Migiishi of the Iolani School (Iolani, HI).
2010 Jordan Brand All-American Team
East Team
Reggie BullockGKinston, NCNorth Carolina
Kyrie IrvingGElizabeth, NJDuke
Perry JonesCDuncanville, TXBaylor
Jelan KendrickFMarietta, GAMemphis
Brandon KnightGFort Lauderdale, FL Undecided
C.J. LeslieFRaleigh, NCUndecided
Roscoe SmithFMouth of Wilson, VAConnecticut
Jared SullingerCColumbus, OHOhio State
DeShaun ThomasFFort Wayne, INOhio State
Dion WaitersGPhiladelphia, PASyracuse
Head Coach: Greg Wise, Yates High School (Houston, TX)
Assistant: Charles Smith, Peabody Magnet High School (Alexandria, LA)
Assistant: Doug Lipscomb, Wheeler High School (Marietta, GA)
West Team
Harrison BarnesFAmes, IANorth Carolina
Will BartonGWolfeboro, NHMemphis
Tobias HarrisFDix Hills, NYTennessee
Terrence JonesFPortland, ORUndecided
Cory JosephGHenderson, NVUndecided
Doron LambGMouth of Wilson, VAUndecided
Kendall MarshallGArlington, VANorth Carolina
Josh SelbyGBaltimore, MDUndecided
Joshua SmithCCovington, WAUCLA
Tristan ThompsonFHenderson, NVTexas
Head Coach: Mike Peck, Findlay Prep (Henderson, NV)
Assistant: Pat Striclkand, Jefferson High School (Portland, OR)
Assistant: Mark Migiishi, Iolani School (Iolani, HI)
Rob Taylor of the Buckeye Prep Report has an in-depth article on Nike Youth Basketball’s changes to their spring/summer circuit plans, announced last week in a meeting in Las Vegas. Previously, Nike sponsored various traveling teams, tournaments for the traveling teams, and individual skills events and camps.
According to Taylor, Nike is planning on replacing the old standard travel team tournaments with the newly minted Nike Youth Basketball League. Taylor states in the article that over four weekend, the 42 Nike sponsored travel teams will play in a league format in Virginia, Houston, Los Angeles, and South Carolina. Each weekend will consist of 5-6 league games, culminating in a league championship.
Taylor’s report has the Nike Youth Basketball League schedule as follows:
April 9 – 11 at the Boo Williams Invitational, Hampton Roads, VA
April 30 – May 2nd, Houston, TX
May 29 – 31, Los Angeles, CA
July 12 – 15, Peach Jam at Augusta, South Carolina
The article states that positional “academies” and all-star events are still plan, without change.
BallerCircuit.com announced that the 2010 Reebok Summer Championship, a long running summer grassroots basketball tournament was being suspended for this year. The following is the press release from their website:
LAS VEGAS—Citing the loss of title sponsorship, ever-increasing facility costs and the general overall economic condition of the country, tournament officials announced today that they will no longer be able produce the annual Summer Championships, the nation’s most prestigious elite boy’s prep tournament held each July in Las Vegas for the last 3 years.
Featuring 300 teams from 44 states and three countries at its peak and 136 teams from 28 States last summer, the Rebook Summer Championships were produced in Las Vegas for the last three years by the same management team that produced the massive Big Time tournament locally from 1995 through 2006.
Building a series of summer events held annually during the special viewing period for college basketball coaches, the Summer Championships provided the template by which the National Collegiate Athletic Association developed and implemented the NCAA rules and regulations for sanctioning summer prep basketball tournaments.
“It’s hard to let go of something that we all worked so hard to develop, but we have exhausted all efforts to secure the sponsorship needed to offset the loss of our sponsors and without it, we cannot operate at the level that we developed that has become the standard for these summer prep basketball tournaments,” said Jim Allen, veteran Southern Nevada prep basketball coach who was a co-founder of these summer tournaments and director the last several years.
“We have a group of dedicated core workers of over 100 who contributed greatly to the success of these tournaments over the years and helped us to reach the stature we have, but without adequate sponsorship we cannot provide the quality experience for nearly 5,000 young athletes each year that we have and we will not produce an event if it is not up to the standards we have achieved. Because we so strongly believe in the value of this summer event and our commitment is so great, we will continue to seek sponsorship in an attempt to bring the event back in the summer of 2011.”
Using as many as 24 courts at 12 high schools in Southern Nevada and headquartered the last several years at Foothill HS in Henderson, Nev., the events have helped hundreds of high school athletes earn college scholarships.
Questions regarding the tournament may be directed to Jim Allen at 702.493.3689.
With much of the basketball world focused on the horrible 2010 NBA Slam Dunk Contest, Dar Tucker won the 2010 D-League Slam Dunk contest. Some hoop fans noted that the 2010 D-League Slam Dunk contest was more entertaining than the NBA version.
Dar Tucker beat Alonzo Gee to take the 2010 D-League Slam Dunk title. His winning dunk? The 6’4″ Dar Tucker dunked over 6’10″ teammate Brian Butch.
Here is the Dar Tucker 2010 D-League Slam Dunk Contest video.
Name: Dar Tucker
Age: 22
Hometown: Saginaw, Michigan
Height: 6-4
Weight: 210
Shoe size: 13
Position: Guard/Forward
My Home Court: Vets Park in Saginaw
Playing Experience: Arthur Hill High School, DePaul University
Current Team:Los Angeles D-Fenders
Favorite Sneakers: Jordan 1s
Favorite Player: Kevin Garnett. I model my work ethic and stuff off of him. The way he’s a leader on the court and gets the crowd into it, that’s how I play too.
Favorite Team: MJ and the Chicago Bulls
Go-to-Move: Either the in-and-out crossover, or pump fake and sweep through to the basket
I play: Because I love the game and it’s getting me to places that I would probably never see if I didn’t play
Coming up I admired: My brother. Back then, that’s who I used to watch all the time. Right now he’s at Robert Morris in Chicago. We played a little bit this summer when we went home.
My basketball moment: Winning the championship my junior year in high school. It was my first championship and my school’s first in like 50 years.
Austin Rivers and Brandon Knight were teammates on the summer circuit but had never met during the high school season – that is until Friday. The pair of high profile players are known for their scoring touch and are considered two of the nation’s top players in their respective classes.
Brandon Knight is a senior from Fort Lauderdale, Fla./Pine Crestand and Austin Rivers is a Junior from Winter Park, Fla.
Their highly anticipated first encounter was nationally televised on Friday on ESPN2.
And what a game it was. Austin Rivers scored 41 points and helped the Winter Park’s boys basketball team to an 87-76 victory against 2 time defending Class 3A state champion Fort Lauderdale Pine Crest and largely outplayed senior Brandon Knight.
Knight and Rivers played for Each One Teach One, a Central Florida club team. Rivers figures he’ll guard his friend throughout the game.
“You can’t guard him the whole game or you’ll be exhausted,” Rivers said. “I’m the best person to guard him, especially in the fourth quarter when the game could be on the line.
Brandon Knight who is closing in on Broward County’s all-time scoring mark? “He’s an aggressive player and a scorer,” Rivers said. “He likes to attack the glass and steps out to shoot the 3-ball.”
Knight has scored more than 3,300 career points, averaging 32 points, and has knocked down 86 3s this season. Pine Crest (19-4) entered Friday’s game having dropped a buzzer-beating 63-62 decision to Florida Air Academy, snapping a 30-game home win streak. Knight had 42 points with four 3-pointers.
Winter Park (Fla.) High School point guard Austin Rivers is one of the best prep players, pound-for-pound, in the country. HighSchoolHoop.com ranks the 6-4 junior fifth overall in its national Top 50. Rivers has been verbally committed to Florida for over a year, but this fall, decided to open things up and let Duke recruit him as well.
The younger son of Celtics coach Doc Rivers and younger brother of Indiana Hoosiers PG Jeremiah Rivers, Austin had a kill mentality in Friday night game against Pine Crestand School showing off why he is one of the top guards in class of 2011.
GOOD Sports LLC have been invited to represent South Carolina in 4 major exposure grassroots basketball tournaments across the country.
On February 20, 2010 GOOD Sports LLC is holding a tryout looking for twelve of the top 13 and 14 year old basketball players in South Carolina. This will be an opportunity that has never been offer to grassroots basketball players in South Carolina.
We are asking all coaches to bring their best players to this tryout – workout not only to represent there school and city, but to represent South Carolina.
It doesn’t matter if your players are already playing for an AAU team, this is a team put together to represent South Carolina and to bring maximum exposure to the kids participating on these teams.
