Deonte Burton to Nevada

Sorry, old but still significant news just the same for Bruin basketball.

NV hoops land recruit who had offer from UCLA
AP, SF Chronicle
Thursday, April 22, 2010
09:29 PDT Reno, Nev. (AP) --

Nevada's basketball team got some good news on the recruiting trail a day after star sophomore forward Luke Babbitt announced he's following junior guard Armon Johnson off the campus and into the NBA draft.

Deonte Burton, a highly-regarded 6-foot-1 guard from Compton, Calif., signed a national letter of intent Wednesday to play for Nevada next year. He also had offers from UCLA and Cincinnati, among others.

Burton was named the CIF Southern California Division III player of the year this past season.

He averaged 21 points, six rebounds and five assists mostly at the shooting guard position, but could end up playing the point at Nevada.

Wolf Pack coach David Carter says Burton is a very talented guard who should have an immediate impact at Nevada.
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Carter adds Burton to Pack’s lineup
By: Juan López
The Nevada Sagebrush
Thursday, April 22, 2010 - 11:44 AM


Nevada basketball head coach David Carter announced Tuesday he signed guard Deonte Burton to a national letter of intent. File photo/The Nevada Sagebrush
On Tuesday afternoon, Nevada men’s basketball head coach seemed calm and cool despite losing his second star in just as many weeks to the NBA Draft.

Carter was confident that the young group of returning players he has would be able to pick up where Armon Johnson and Luke Babbitt left off. He repeated one phrase frequently throughout his question-answer session with the media: “The sun’s going to set tomorrow.”

Carter’s obvious optimism was clearly understood when he announced later that day he signed stellar guard Deonte Burton to a national letter of intent.

Burton, a 6-foot-1, 185-pound guard from Compton Centennial High School, won the John R. Wooden High School Player of the Year Award this season. He averaged 21 points, six rebounds and five assists this year for his high school squad.

“Deonte Burton is a very talented guard who has the ability to play at a high level,” Carter said. “We are thrilled to have Deonte join our program. He will be very exciting to watch for the next four years.”

Burton also considered going to Pac-10 schools University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and the University of Southern California (USC), and Big East schools Marquette and Cincinnati. He was ranked the 43rd-best shooting guard in the nation this year by ESPN.

With Burton added to the lineup, Carter has one more scholarship to work with this season. He said he would like to go after a combo forward (one who can play both small forward and power forward).