first day report

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SoCalHoops Recruiting News

Double Pump West Coast All Star Camp:
Second Session, Report #1--(July 12, 1999)

The first session of West Coast All-Star Camp was good, but most of the guys in the rising senior class who are considered high major D-I prospects were missing in action, being occupied elsewhere either at ABCD camp or at the Nike Camp. But the second session, when all of the top prospects return, is extremely competitive and the games are by far more enjoyable to watch as the level of play tends to be just a bit better.

Yesterday's games were everything we thought they would be, and as more guys roll into the camp (the Cravens didn't play because they were exhausted from the travel, most of the Artesia guys didn't play but will today, and Branduinn Fullove ended up late for his game so we only saw five minutes of him playing). But there were a number of ABCD and Nike guys who did play yesterday. Here's who played well among the players we watched:

Andre Hazel (6'-0" Sr. PG) Artesia--We expected Andre to be tired from the travel. He just returned from ABCD camp where he tore it up, and we've never seen him play so well. Could be the best handle in camp, and maybe one of the elite points on the West Coast right now, Andre did some amazing things last night, dazzling the crowd and the college coaches on hand with great ball handling, flashy crossover, startling changes of speed and tempo, and blowing by whoever was assigned to guard him. We expect him to get a lot more popular than he already is with a lot of high major programs by the time the summer is over.

Salim Stoudamire (6'-2" Jr. SG) Lake Oswego--Another returnee from ABCD where he told us he had a "good" time, Salim almost never talks, and almost never smiles, so getting "yeah" from him when we asked if he enjoyed the camp was a major accomplishment. Salim was feeling the effects of the travel and also playing out of position on his team here, handling the one, which made him look far less effective than he might have been had he been playing the two, which is his natural position, at least with Pump N Run.

Marc Jackson (6'-1" Sr. PG) Olympus--Another dazzling point guard, he handles the ball extremely well, pushes the break, plays extremely active defense and is a great floor general, who makes excellent decisions. We watched him for a whole game last night and he only turned the ball over once in 20 minutes of floor time. A lot of college coaches could get really excited by this guy, and we'd recommend taking a look (he's on Phil Bryant's "Iowa" team so you won't be disappointed with the rest of the players either).

Carlos Arroyo (6'-6" Sr. F) Bell Jeff--Playing on Salim Stoudamire's team, he and Bryan Defares (6'-4" Sr. F) from Mt. Tam via the Oakland Solidiers were having a major war. Carlos is really strong, showed great footwork, had some nice fadeaway jumpers in the lane from about 7' out, and rebounded like a maniac. Amazing that he didn't get to play varsity last season at Bell-Jeff and played JV instead because his former school would not approve the transfer. Could be a low D-I, but might go higher.

Ryan Bisio (5'-10" Sr. PG) St. Bernard--Scoring point guard, very quick, runs the floor, pushes and finishes at the basket. Nice mid range jumper, he played good defense too. Another fine St. Bernard point in the tradition of Brandon Granville.

Guy Beahm (6'-7" Sr. F) Willow Glen--While Guy's Arkansas team was getting the snot beat out of them by Phil Bryant's loaded Iowa squad, this guy really stood out (no pun intended). Strong, tough inside player, he probably out-rebounded Casey Cook and Lee Biddlecome combined. Very active, great footwork, good sense of timing on the floor.

David Gale (5'-11" So. PG) Buckley--Made last week's Frosh-Soph All-Star game and opened a couple of eyes, including Louis Johnson's of the LB Press-Telegram; last night collected 12 assists and effectively D'd up Lyman Edwards (5'-11" Sr. PG) from Venice. . . again, as these two continue to find each other on opposite teams at this camp. Ran the floor, got several steals and handled the break with some fine passing for Charlie Myers' Minnesota team.

Jason Parker (6'-7" Jr. F/C) Gridley-- Big, strong, and very physical post type player, watching him with three other 6'-8' or better players on the floor made the rest of the camp look vertically challenged. Jason runs well, is very agile, and was a rebounding machine.

Sean Paul (6'-10" Sr. C) Elko--Another very physical, active post player, had at least 11 boards that we counted during his 20 or so minutes on the floor. Will be playing for Jam On It (Reno) in the Big Time, and college coaches would be very wise to check this big man out in a year of seeming shortages of good quality big guys in the rising senior class.

Franklin Matos (6'-3" So. PG/SG) Artesia--Why does he feel compelled to act like a bully on the court, with the yelling and screaming at other players, taunting, and mugging after the dunks? We don't know, but it's probably because in the team environment he plays in at Artesia they'd kick his butt if he acted the same way. A very talented player, Matos can run, handle it very well, and finishes with a flourish. Thankfully he's got three more seasons to mature before he heads off to college.

Kyle Bailey (6'-2" Sr. PG) Lathrop--Very quick laterally, excellent handle, but this week he probably won't be playing a lot of point since he'll be on the same team with Brandon Brooks, which means that Kyle will move to what we actually thought was his natural position all along at the two spot. Kyle is actually a very good outside shooter, and he'll have more than enough chance to show that, as he did last night, draining three threes in a row.

Brandon Brooks (6'-0" Sr. PG) Portland Jefferson--Point guard's point, very smart, smooth point, who did well at ABCD and will play here and then in Vegas with the Pump N Run Gold team. We saw Brandon last night running the offense with his great handles, excellent passing and superior decision-making. The best thing about Brandon in fact is his on-court sense of the ball and where other players are and will be; actually seems to think about three passes ahead.

Aerick Sanders (6'-8" Sr. F/C) Serra--ABCD rebounding machine, came back last night after waking up a lot of college coaches in New Jersey to do the same here. Grabbed at least 18 rebounds, scored a fair amount, and then continued shooting in the gym until midnight, well after everyone else had already left. Great player and a great young man.

Jarrah Bolden (6'-0" So. SG/SF) Horizon--Ended up playing inside down on the blocks last night, a strange place for him, but then he seemed to like the contact and rebounded very well. Didn't shoot too much, but the few shots he took dropped. His forte' is defense and he's got very quick feet and hands, and looks to be developing well.

David Joiner (6'-6" Sr. SG/SF) Rialto--We have no idea what last week's All-Star committee was thinking when they left him off the Senior team, or even the Best of the Best, but whatever it was, they need to rethink things, because he's a great player. Somewhat slender, and a bit awkward looking when he runs, he actually gets out on the break, and rebounds like a machine. He had 13 boards in 15 minutes last night that we counted, and about 12 points in the same time span.

Joe See (6'-0" Jr. PG) De La Salle--His shot was off last night, and we saw him only hit three threes, which was somewhat of a season low for him. A reasonably good defender, he's quick enough to get up and down, can defend, and when he's on will shoot the lights out. Didn't do it last night, but we're waiting for that break out game like he had in all his games at the EBO tourney in May.

Sa Tanuvasa (6'-4" Sr. G/F) Radford-- Had a real eye-opening performance last night, rebounding and outdefending players much bigger and stronger. His name is spelled correct, we just don't know how to pronounce it. Very active defender, great hands, jumps, great hops. We've never seen him before, and all we know about him is that he's from Hawaii. Oh, and he is a great shooter too, and worth a second look.

Lee Biddlecome (6'-9" Sr. C) Carson--Another huge, active guy from Nevada who just happened to end up on Phil Bryant's team, this guy is very smooth, and while he seems to be running in slow motion, you just have to realize that his legs are about twice as long as all the other little guards running around, so he just looks like he's not trying. Nice drop step moves, good footwork, and rebounded well. Shot was a bit off last night, but he's definitely a high major player.

Jacob Chrisman (6'-9" Sr. F) Provo--Ok, so we misspelled his name the first few times, but he's still one of our favorite players, and coaches who want a basketball-baseball combo man should check him out. Very active and physically strong player, runs the floor way out ahead on the break, moves without the ball, and displays some great guard skills for such a big man.

Casey Cook (6'-8" Sr. F) El Camino-- Did the usual with about 10 rebounds and at least that many points, mostly off of slam dunk finishes. Very physical, we really wonder why he didn't end up at ABCD because he's very skilled and accomplished.

John Giannoni (5'-11" Sr. PG) South Lake Tahoe-- Another good, solid point on Phil Bryant's Iowa team, John has a solid grasp of the game, an excellent handle and great speed and quickness. Excellent defender, he is one of the better on-ball defenders we saw yesterday.

Langston Grady (6'-5" Sr. SG/SF) John Jay--Langston initially seemed a bit overwhelmed by the talent on his team, and tended to hang out on the wings, not getting too many touches, but by the second half, he had adjusted, and was back into it, scoring with a good 10-15' jumper, and rebounding and finishing at the basket. He also has great leaping ability and a number of coaches and camp staff stuck around after everyone had left the gym while Langston continued working out (he'll play with Pump N Run Black in Vegas), and a few coaches had a bet about how high he could jump. After playing several games at about 11:00 p.m., when most of the other players were either in bed or exhausted, we saw him put the tip of his hand at least three inches above the top of the box on the backboard. He may not be a high major player overall, but he can help some D-I program who needs an excellent wing man.

Craig Weinstein (5'-10" So. G) Harvard-Westlake--Developing guard with a good handle and skills who can play both the point and the two, he had a good first half, and then his team struggled a bit during the second half. Craig had some excellent moves to the basket off of ball fakes and displayed solid passing skills, running the floor very well. Also showed good on ball defensive skills.

Charlie Rodriguez (6'-6" So. F) Clovis West--Big shot blocker and rebounder, and a huge body, but then he's another Dominican import, so that's what we'd expect. Also playing for Phil Bryant's team, so college coaches will have the chance to see this young player (well, ok, at least he's just a sophomore, so how old could he really be?) with some other excellent senior talent. Charlie is very agile and mobile for a guy with his size, and he continues to impress.

Hassan Bassiri (6'-0" Sr. PG) Campbell Hall--Hassan is even faster than we remembered him, and thankfully, he played the point here instead of playing out of position like he's been doing recently at the three with his high school team. Good handle, nice decision-making and good court vision.

Baker Dunleavy (6'-3" Jr. SG) Jesuit--Not yet a player the caliber of his brother, Duke-bound Mike Dunleavy, Jr., but shows flashes of the same lanky agility and speed while manuvering in traffic. Baker also is an excellent outside shooter, and he hit several threes last night off of some nice feeds from Bassiri.

Qaiyaan Harcharek (5'-8" Sr. PG) Barrow--Very quick point guard, we really liked this guy. Good speed, nice ball handling ability, and a good defender, his only limitation is size, and given the plethora of other good, diminutive guards this year, it will take a special program to find a spot for him, but wherever it is, he can definitely play and defend.

Michael Smith (6'-4" Sr. F) Cedarcrest--This guy jumps way over the rim, which is just absolutely astonishing for a stocky, muscular white guy, and he had everyone amazed by his ability to dunk and get way, way up when he finishes. Decent speed and a decent handle don't hurt either, and he's worth a look.

Michael Jacobs (6'-3" Sr. G/F)--Attended Claremont HS, and graduated early this year, then moved to Las Vegas with his family, he may attend Prep School or a JUCO, he's not yet sure, but he's an amazing player, another guy who can jump and dunk. He's Pharoah Davis' cousin, so the basketball skills for this guy come naturally. Great defender, not blindingly fast, but pretty damn quick. Oh, and did we mention he can jump? Definitely check out this guy because he's amazing.

That's it for now. . . as the games take shape again today, we'll have some reports later.