March 9
Individual Standouts

I met Eric Wallace and knew he was onto something good. A young gentleman with a vision for helping Florida players to be recruited into the college ranks. He has proven to have excellent contacts and is one of the hardest working guys you will ever meet. He has been on the road for the past six months getting to know the Florida high school basketball community. Eric's choice to bring Hoop Mountain to Florida will prove to be good one.

One of his best decisions was staying in contact with the folks at IMG Academies. Eric is based out of Sarasota, so it's not much of a drive to the Bradenton campus. A very nice facility that is just that step above any other school campus in the state. Yeah, it does boast of more tennis courts than basketball. But, the state-of-the-art workout room adjacent to the gym is quite impressive. Several of the staff were glad to be on hand to help coach as well as workout the kids in the morning skills sessions.

All that I can say is that is been too long since I have seen Dan Barto. So, it was nice to see him working the kids out. The presence and motivation of Vince Walden had to inspire several to play just a little bit harder. Adam Dunham did a great job with getting the kids to move thier feet with the agility drills. An hour and a half later most of the kids were red-faced and ready for a break. Thanks goes out to everyone involved as well as IMG Academy's Shell Dailey, Howard Porter, and Aaron Seybert of SWFLHoops.com for lending their day to one of the best run events that I've had the opportunity to attend.

Well, half of the 84 kids in the gym, got their chance to rest while the aftenoon session got started at both courts. I'm not going to go into how each team performed. I'm getting to the point that I just want to see the kids play hard. You could see some kids were just not motivated or ready for the experience that a one-day exposure camp offers. Guys, there really were college coaches in the gym. It shouldn't matter what division that they represent. You get one chance to make a first impression that will last forever. Several players will be overlooked in the future due to their decision making and display of skill level. These coaches see each other all the time at different camps. They will remember who did what and who didn't. Some players look like they should be able to play and prove themselves wrong with their un-dynamic ball handling (oops, I meant dribbling), no look behind-the-back passes that end in turnovers. Well, hopefully you get the point. Kids wake up and play hard!

Ok, enough of the scolding. There were some really good players in the gym yesterday. A couple of kids joined in that have already to signed to the University of Connecticut (Nate Miles) and Louisville (Jared Swopshire). I was hoping that a certain University of Florida recruit would be in the gym. But, an early morning flight back didn't afford the chance to see Kenny Kadji workout. Why would I want see Kenny Kadji workout again? Well, let's just say that IMG Academy has some great secrets that are going to get out on 6'10" junior Kyryl Natyazhko. This kid is a beast with great skill and fundamentals. He is also athletic and capable of making some very nice spin moves and knock a nice fade away baseline jumper. Mark my words, he will play professional basketball. It may not be the NBA, but it will be somewhere. It would have been nice to see a big body like Kadji matchup with Kyryl. I guess I should get over to a practice session. They probably workout together frequently.

It's always fun sitting with Palm Beach Atlantic head coach Terry Primm. We discussed this kid off and on all day. Another underclassman in Class of 2009 6'8" Vladyslav Kondratyev from The Rock School. Vladyslav was one of those players that continued to get better as the day got longer. He hada quite a repetoire with outside shots, inside shots, and just a good overall showing.

Hardee's Class of 2008 6'7" Arnold Louis did a nice job showing off some inside moves and running the floor, and landing an athletic dunk occasionally. He is a little on the thin side and is looking for some qualifying scores to get some more looks. His teammate, Mark St. Fort, is an interesting situation with his college commitment and academic qualifying scores. The kid can flat play, so his basketball skills are not in question at all. He demonstrated yesterday some nice moves from the inside and the outside and a good ability to handle the ball in transition. Hopefully, he can get some things straigthened out and play college ball next year.

IMG Academy Class of 2008 Shamar Marston showed the qualities that I've come to expect from him. He has some good all around skills, not one area of his game really stands out from the rest. I'm still trying to figure out where to put him. He is a little on the small size at 6'6" to play post at a high level and doesn't quite as effortlessly knock down the outside jumper to call him a wing. So, he can definitely help out a lot of schools looking for a rebounding athletic kid. I would think a Division II program could easily find a spot for him on their roster.

I have to admit maybe I was expecting too much out of The Rock School Class of 2008 6'9" Anton Tuz. He looks like a player. Once he got started he demonstrated a shot that was a bit flat for the big man. He is not the most athletic and his lateral movement is not as high caliber when compared to a younger counterpart like Kyryl. Anton would make a Division III program really happy. His athleticism may hold him back from playing at a major Division II or higher level. Hopefully, he can get in the gym and work on that part of his game.

Smooth........ Real smooth... and athletic and springy as they come is IMG Academy Class of 2010 6'9" Dwight Powell. He laid one of the best one handed alley oop dunks of the day early on. But, that was not the only part of his game. But, it is definitely a strength when you can get to the basket as effortlessly as Dwight does. He hit some shots throughout the day for us to take notice that he has some guard skills.

The youngest of the guys over 6'5" was another IMG Academy player in Class of 2010 Dewtang Gathoth Kuek. A raw project that show mements of brilliance. A knack for being at the right place and being around the ball means good things await the young man. One to watch over the next couple of years

I'm going to throw a curve ball and shift to a couple of post grads that need to be known throughout the state. Yes, the players that I will mention are from IMG Academy students as I've been asked not to talk about another participant due to personal conflict (I'll just say a relative). He was one several players that the college coaches took notice of and invited to attend additional workouts.

If you want a name to remember, then Chris Daniels is the man. I'll put him at 5'10", freaky athletic, will not be denied access to the basket, and his jump shot got better throughout the day. He landed the craziest one handed windmill dunk at the end of the day that got everyone out of their seats that was watching. Whew! A definite player that might play as high as mid-major Division I.

Another IMG Academy post grad guard that was impressive 6'0" Cory Johnson. Another high level athlete that has some pretty good basketball skills to go aloong with the motor. Not quite the athleticism of Chris Daniels. But, Cory would make any high level Division II or lower Division I program a welcome addition.

Lien Phillip was one of those 6'8" guys that got out and work their butt off. He was not content to stay in one position and showed some moments that made us notice. Good size and athleticism and what appear to be a great work ethic will afford Lien a chance to play at the collegiate level.

IMG Academy 6'5" wing Brian Frank rounds out the five post grads that looked best for this day. Brian did a good job of balancing between offense and defense and knocking shots when they were there. He showed that he was a good rebounder for his size when bodying up against some of the more physical players. A quality player that a Division III program would welcome and a player that could find his way in the right Division II setting.

I'll start wrapping up the article with a look at some of the other standout underclassmen under 6'4" . Bishop Verot's Class of 2009 6'4" Brennen Melvin gets better everytime that I see him. He is not the quickest but he just does a lot of good things on the floor. He will get another year to prove his capabilities and I'm sure that you can count on Bishop Verot to have some wuality players to help him out.

Another Class of 2009 wing was 6'4" Rashad Davis from Armwood. He showed some good moves and the ability to knock down some open three's in transition as well as a half court setting. Good athleticism and nice attitude made me take more notice of Rashad throughout the day.

North Port has a jem that will not remain hidden for much longer in 6'4" Jonathan Ocasio. His shot looks a bit unorthodox. But, he hit more than just three pointer yesterday. In fact, he put on a nice display for being one of the underclassmen. He handled the ball effectively and showed that he wants to make the transition from the post to the wing with his outside shooting.

Class of 2009 6'2" Regan O'Rourke demonstrated that the cupboard is not quite so bare at Clearwater for next year. Yes, he had to play behind a senior strong squad this year. So, you can expect that this is the beginning of good things to come for this young man. He displayed a very nice overall game. It would be a surprise to see Regan move to the point guard position next year.

Lastly, the all important point guard position. The position that I love to watch players play the most. I always am watching for those point guards that get their teammates involved and show themselves to be unselfish and then will make a nice screen to get someone open for a shot. Who knows, maybe they will even get a chance to shoot the ball once in a while. So, they better be able to knock down the outside three and have the heart of a lion and take it right down the middle to break down defenses and kick it out to an open shooter. The most thankless position on the team. So, a place reserved for a select few. I've already mentioned three potential playmakers in Chris Daniels, Cory Johnson, and Regan O'Rourke.

Let's go ahead and include Class of 2008 6'0" Robert Hatcher from Pelham, AL that showed extended moments and abilities that warrant some high level Division III programs to take notice. He has good grades and a qualifying ACT score. So, hopefully he can find a school needing the serviceds of a quality point guard.

Bradenton Prep has a pretty good Class of 2009 player in 5'10" Reginald Kendall. Reginald just did some good things, nothing fancy, but the right things to get noticed.

Lastly, I'm the first person to not want to discuss realy young players. But, IMG Academy has a Class of 2012 player in 5'9" Larry Taylor. Larry has a long time to get better and he is pretty darn good right now. He fit in just fine playing against juniors and seniors. So, I'll be expecting big things from him as he moves to the high school level.

On a final note, this event was the best display of sharing the ball that I have ever seen! Maybe, it was the overall quality of all of the players. Maybe, it was the quality coaches talking to them throughout each game. Maybe, it was the atmosphere that only a place IMG Academy generate. I don't know but it was nice for no one have to scold anyone for being a ball hog. I don't think that I watched that many high school offenses make so many passes in a single possession.

I'm looking forward to the Fall Season when Hoop Mountain Florida, IMG Academy, and Florida Hoops get together and do this again!