Tuesday, July 6, 2010
In every sense of the word, John Lucas' Southwest Invitational Camp was LIVE. In the kids vernacular, it was hopping. 80 high level players got after it for two days, with non stop drills and games. In addition to the inimitable John Lucas who can spin a colorful yarn or anectdote with the best of them, there was great instruction from a host of quality trainers including veteran coach Kevin "Ice" Lewis recently of the University of Houston staff and veteran of Baylor &TCU.
Today was the 1st day of the NCAA Live 2010 recruiting period and close to 100 D-1 coaches came to see the great talent on display. They included heavyweights Marquette, Texas, LSU, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Utah, & Arizona. An incomplete list included Colorado, Baylor, Texas Tech, UT-Arlington, Sam Houston State, Lamar, Stephen F Austin, Texas State, South Alabama, North Texas, Pepperdine, Wichita State, Creighton, Southern Methodist, Oklahoma State, Nebraska, Texas Christian, UTEP, Louisiana Tech, Colorado State, Houston, Campbell, Tulsa, Columbia, Navy, Citadel, Air Force, Wyoming, Ole Miss and a host of others.
From left to right: Jalen Washington, Deon Mitchell, Eric McClellan, Josiah Monroe, Jaleel Williams (partially hidden), Travon Landry, Jake Kocher, Michael Hardge & Max Yon. Missing from photo is Alex Caruso.
I previewed the 10 players from Central/South Texas who attended the camp in a posting a couple of days ago. Local fans would be proud as every one of the guys played their butts off and caught the eye of numerous coaches. Here's an update from camp:
2012 P 6'9" Connor Lammert was unable to attend due to a back injury requiring rest. it will serve to keep him under wraps a little longer, but he'll be a household name from coast to coast when he heads back to San Antonio Churchill this fall.
2013 PG 6'0" Travon Landry of Bryan showed he's a high major prospect as the younster looked every bit a 2011 level player. The Eyes of Texas, Baylor & New Mexico are on him.
2012 PG 5'11" Michael Hardge of Georgetown showed outstanding quickness, pushing the ball against pressure. He'll own all Georgetown scoring records when he's finished and he'll have a scholly in his pocket as well. More than one mid to high said "I like this kid's chances".
2011 W Jalen Washington of Pflugerville Hendrickson showed his explosiveness coming from the wing and had the Southland Conference, Sunbelt and our friends from Wichita State (including Coach Marty "Mass Email" Gross) looking on.
2011 PG 5'9" Josiah Monroe of Bastrop constantly hears the he's a "small guard" tag but he plays big and was as tough a defender as the camp had. He had a particularly good first day shooting the ball.
2011 SG 6'2" Jake Kocher of Austin St. Michael's continues to increase his defensive intensity to go along with his high octane offense. His academics make him a prime target for the service academies, and the Southland Conference, Big Sky, etc.
2012 Combo 6'4" Alex Caruso of A&M Consolidated caught the eyes of mid and high majors with his stroke, court vision and savvy. I did not realize until yesterday that Pops, Mike Caruso was Coach Eddie Sutton's PG back in the day at Creighton.
2011 WG 6'4" Max Yon of San Antonio Reagan was full of energy and coupled with his high academics (700 on the math section of the SAT alone!) he had schools that put a premium on the "student" in student-athlete drooling.
2011 G 6'4" Eric McClellan is a guy that had his coming out party today. His stroke was smooth and his game's explosive. The Pride of Austin High is on the rise!
2011 PG 6'0" Deon Mitchell continued to show why he's a high major. Marquette's Buzz Williams was the first to recognize him last summer as they made him an offer. Now the word is out, and his phone will blow up after the live period.
2011 W 6'6" Jaleel Williams of Killeen Ellison made the biggest jump of the day. Everywhere, it was "who is this guy?" as he shot threes, showed explosiveness, played above the rim and showed that he could be a point forward as well. All the high majors are now intrigued.
Two other guys from the Cen Tex attended camp:
2011 P 6'6" Freddie Juarez of Laredo United was a hard worker who showed a willingness to mix it up with taller, more athletic players down low.
2011 P 6'8" Tashawn Thomas of Killeen showed out well with his ability to run the floor, handle the rock adequately and has a nifty array of moves down low. He can power or finesse you. He caught the eye of several high majors.
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