Tony Parker down to UCLA, Duke and Ohio State

CLHTV2/youtube



georgiastargray/youtube



Tony Parker
6'9'', 270 lbs. | Class of 2012
Hometown: Lithonia, GA
School: Miller Grove High School
Position: Power Forward


MalibouAL shared this on BZ. Thanks!

Georgia Tech and UGA haven’t quit on Atlanta basketball star visiting Duke, Ohio St. and UCLA

by Michael Carvell
ajc.com
10:30 am September 14, 2011


Georgia Tech and UGA haven’t given up on basketball star Tony Parker, who doesn’t have an official visit planned to either local school.

Both UGA coach Mark Fox and Georgia Tech assistant Chad Dollar showed up at Miller Grove High School this week to check on the 6-foot-9, 270-pound power forward who is ranked among the nation’s top 25 overall college basketball prospects.

Parker’s original top five was Duke, Ohio State, UCLA, Memphis and Georgetown but now it appears to be a three-horse race for his services.

After making an official visit to Ohio State last week, Parker rated it a “10” and is scheduled to welcome Buckeyes coach Thad Matta on Wednesday to the DeKalb County school. Parker said he has also set up recruiting trips to UCLA on Sept. 30 and Duke for Oct. 28. Memphis and Georgetown apparently have been eliminated.

“I think it’s smart that Georgia Tech and Georgia are still recruiting Tony,” Miller Grove basketball coach Sharman White told the AJC. “I wouldn’t give up. He’s a hometown guy. When you look at it, Georgia Tech and Georgia aren’t losing that much in time or money by checking on Tony. It’s not like they have to fly out to California to see him. He’s in their backyard. I think it’s smart for them to keep recruiting Tony because you never know how things turn out.”

Parker told the AJC he is considering taking an unofficial visit to Georgia Tech and/or UGA. His next scheduled recruiting trip will be in a couple of weeks to UCLA, which hired his longtime AAU coach from the Atlanta Celtics, Korey McCray, as an assistant in June. Parker’s close friend and teammate on the Atlantic Celtics, shooting guard Jordan Adams, has already committed to the Bruins.

Then there’s Duke next month. “I want to go visit Duke the same time as Alex Poythress” said Parker, referring to fellow top 25 national prospect from Clarksville, Tenn. The 6-foot-7 Poythress plays for Parker’s rival AAU team, the Georgia Stars.

Ohio State appears to be the frontrunner for Parker after last weekend’s visit. “I’d give that trip a 10,” Parker said. “I had a great time, and that school is at the top of my list. Well, it’s high on my list.”

“[Matta] is a great guy. I’m really digging the campus. They have a family-like atmosphere with the players and coaches that I love. I’m just all-around loving the school.”

Ohio State has another big factor working in its favor with Parker – NBA All-Star LeBron James. Parker and James became fast friends at a summer camp, and James has said he would’ve played at Ohio State if had not gone directly to the NBA.

“LeBron will be there [at Ohio State] next week for training,” Parker said. “I know he’s a big Ohio State fan. He watches their basketball and football games.” What advice has LeBron give Parker about Ohio State, or the recruiting process in general? “None, really. He doesn’t talk with me about that stuff.”

More on Mr. Parker here.

CBSSports.com Podcast: Where top uncommitted recruits will land

Thanks to bruinjake for hooking the BZ faithful with this.

Podcast: Where top uncommitted recruits will land

By Matt Norlander
CBSSports.com Eye on College Basketball
Posted on: September 13, 2011 1:35 pm


Recruits are becoming savvy to the game. Each year, it's taking longer and longer for more and more high-level recruits to commit to a school. Makes sense -- this is pretty much the last bastion of legitimate power they'll have until they get out of college and go on to earn buck at some sort of professional level.

So, with that in mind, I had Borzello hop onto the podcast and give you the most likely landing spots for these 10 undecided guys:

1.Shabazz Muhammad
2.Mitch McGary
3.Kyle Anderson
4.Archie Goodwin
5.Kaleb Tarczewski
6.DaJuan Coleman
7.Amile Jefferson
8.Alex Poythress
9.Rodney Purvis
10.Jarnell Stokes

Some seem inevitable, while a few others are true toss-ups. Listen to find out which guys on the list could very well drag out their recruitments all the way until April. That's right -- after the upcoming college basketball season, which is still seven weeks away from having games on television. We also discuss how Houston was able to pull off getting two top-100 guys, and why that label is actually a little misleading in this case.

To play podcast, visit site here.

Yayareasfinest2006: "Check out UCLA-bound Dominic "DA" Artis having a HUGE summer for the Oakland Soldiers"

Thanks to Kaz for posting on BZ.

Yayareasfinest2006/youtube


Uploaded by Yayareasfinest2006 on Sep 12, 2011

"Check out UCLA-bound Dominic "DA" Artis having a HUGE summer for the Oakland Soldiers... Easily the best PG on the West Coast in 2012, is he the best in the nation? Watch this and you decide...

Check out UCLA-bound Dominic "DA" Artis having a HUGE summer for the Oakland Soldiers... Easily the best PG on the West Coast in 2012, is he the best in the nation? Watch this and you decide..."

Obekpa Hosts Trio of Schools

Thanks to Kaz for posting on Bruin Zone.

CityLeagueHoopsTV/youtube



Christopher Obekpa
6'8'', 200 lbs. | Class of 2012
Hometown: Centereach, NY
School: Our Savior New American School
Position: Power Forward
Status: Undeclared

Obekpa Hosts Trio of Schools

By Adam Zagoria on September 12, 2011, 3:48PM


Chris Obekpa, a 6-foot-9 Nigerian power forward at Our Savior New American on Long Island, hosted head coaches from UCLA, Providence and Cincinnati on Sunday for in-home visits.

Ben Howland had Phil Mathews with him. Ed Cooley brought Andre LaFleur and Mick Cronin was accompanied by Darren Savino.

“Everything went well with each visit,” said assistant coach Eric Jaklitsch of Our Savior. “They all expressed their interest in Christopher and how much they want him.”

A native of Nigeria, Obekpa also plays sweeper on the school soccer team and was thus unavailable the first two days of the contact period.

He takes the SAT Oct. 1, and cannot take any officials until.

“We spoke about possibly taking an unofficial to Providence,” Jaklitsch said. “We spoke to UCLA and Cincinnati about taking official visits out there once he gets his SAT and everything.”

More on Chris Obekpa here.

Double Dribble

Thanks to bruinjake for sharing on Bruin Zone.

Double Dribble

By Wendy Soderburg
UCLA Magazine
Published Sep 9, 2011 12:00 AM


Although there won't be any home games in Pauley Pavilion this year, Bruin basketball fans are still looking forward to the start of the 2011-2012 season. Why? They'll be catching their first look at David and Travis Wear, the highly recruited McDonald's All-American twins who transferred from the University of North Carolina last year.

David (left) and Travis Wear representing UCLA and Bruin blue, ready for this season.


Sit down with identical twins David and Travis Wear — the 6'10" McDonald's All-Americans from Huntington Beach, Calif., who will be playing basketball for UCLA this fall — and you'll discover subtle differences.

For example, Dave enjoys the occasional cookie, while Travis refuses to eat junk food of any kind. Dave also tends to be the more adventurous twin, perhaps by virtue of his being the older brother (by one minute). When they were kids, Dave would always be the first to try a new skateboarding trick or attempt to catch the biggest wave — in Travis' words, "the first one to do something stupid."

On this sunny July afternoon in the J.D. Morgan Center on campus, the twins actually don't look that much alike: Dave, in a black T-shirt, sports slightly longer hair than close-cropped Travis, who is wearing white.

But those are minor differences. In almost every other way, the Wear brothers are very much alike, from their love of the outdoors to their taste in TV shows (The Office, Entourage, Discovery Channel). After being hotly recruited by several schools upon their high school graduation in 2009, the duo — who had always planned to attend the same school — narrowed their choices down to UCLA and the University of North Carolina (UNC).

The Wears chose UNC and, as freshmen, averaged 10-12 minutes per game under Coach Roy Williams. But after a year in which they both admitted to a bit of homesickness, they decided to come back home and play for UCLA. The brothers sat out the 2010-2011 season per NCAA transfer rules, but now they're chomping at the bit to join their teammates in playing Bruin basketball.

Big Gets Bigger


The Wear twins bring versatility to UCLA's already impressive big-man game this season. They can play both power forward and small forward, although Dave will probably see more time at the small forward position.

Together with forwards Reeves Nelson (6'8") and Brendan Lane (6'9") and centers Josh Smith (6'10") and Anthony Stover (6'10"), the brothers are part of what could be the most formidable front line in the newly formed Pac-12 (newcomers Utah, Colorado and the former Pac-10 schools). Actually, UCLA Head Men's Basketball Coach Ben Howland believes that with the added depth provided by the Wear twins, the Bruins will have one of the best front lines in the country.

"There will be a lot of competition for minutes," he says. "We've got Josh and Reeves returning as starters from the NCAA tournament games, and with the addition of the Wears, it gives us a lot more depth and strength."

Impressed by their playing ability early on, the UCLA coaches started recruiting the brothers when they were 9th graders at Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana, Calif. Although he lobbied hard for them to come to Westwood, Howland learned in 2008 that the twins had decided to commit to UNC.

"It was devastating because we wanted them so badly, but that's part of this whole recruiting game," Howland says. "I think that when they got [to North Carolina], they realized how far away from home they were, with all their family and friends out here in California. It was such a different world, 3,000 miles from here."

Dave and Travis second that emotion. "I'd grown up here my whole life, and I thought it would be nice to move away and see how things were on my own. Go from bigger city to smaller city," Travis explains. "But I missed home a lot when I was actually there for a while."

It was culture shock, Dave agrees. "It was completely different, being in the small town of Chapel Hill," he says. "It was a learning experience and a lot of fun, but I'm definitely excited to be back and playing for UCLA, surrounded by friends and family and all the people who supported me. So I definitely have no regrets."

Howland notes that the brothers have dedicated themselves to becoming the best they can be. They attend yoga classes three times a week with their teammates; lift weights four days a week and practice basketball for seven; and, despite Dave's occasional cookie, are extremely serious about nutrition and eating right.


Leave It on the Court

They've easily settled into campus life, and are ready to start playing.


Generally laid-back, the only time the brothers really argue is when they're competing, and their squabbles on the basketball court have served as a source of amusement to their teammates. "If we're on the same team and one of us makes a mistake, we get on each other," Dave says. "Probably more so than any coach or anyone else would, because we just expect so much out of each other."

Travis acknowledges, "Sometimes it can be a distraction to our teammates, because we just get so heated …" "We don't hear anything else," Dave finishes. "We're just focused on ourselves."

The on-court arguing is one of the few things Howland has had to talk to them about. "They're each other's biggest critic," he says, laughing. "They're always getting on each other, but in a good way. That's the one thing I've had to try to correct them on — to be supportive of one another."

Otherwise, the twins are as close as two brothers can be, according to their dad, Dave Sr. "They've been basically joined at the hip forever, and I don't think they'd have it any other way," he says. "If one of them isn't around, the other one always wants to know when the other one is coming back. And as soon as he gets back, it's 'What'd you do? Who'd you see? What happened?' They want a full play-by-play so they can feel like they were there with them. It's a pretty special relationship, that's for sure."

The brothers, both political science majors, are good students and often study together. When they're not working out or shooting hoops, they like to play video games ("Call of Duty" is a favorite) or hang out with their friends. Ferocious competitors on the court, they're nonpartisan in their social lives. Dave's girlfriend, Christina Marinacci, plays on USC's women's basketball team, while Travis' girlfriend, Kendall Bullock, is a Trojan song girl. Not that there isn't good-natured "rivalry" teasing between the brothers and their girlfriends, but it's all in fun.


Twice as Nice

The arrival of twins was completely unexpected for Dave Sr., 6'9" and a former basketball player, and his wife, Gloria, who is 5'9". The couple knew they would have big kids, but when Gloria became pregnant, she couldn't understand why she was so extraordinarily huge at only two months.

"Two of my girlfriends were pregnant at the same time as me. They were barely showing, and I looked like I was about five months pregnant," Gloria says. "I would go to my check-ups and look at my ultrasounds and my friends would look at theirs. They could see an outline of a baby, and mine was always a mess!"

About a month before her due date, Gloria wasn't feeling well. Since her regular doctor was on vacation, Gloria saw his partner, who grew concerned when he saw that she had grown two inches in the last week. He ordered another ultrasound.

"He said, 'OK, here's the head on the left and here's the head on the right,' " Gloria recalls. "And I said, 'What? My baby has two heads?' And the doctor said, 'Well, there are two bodies to go with those heads.' And I had them three days later."

The Wear boys naturally gravitated to sports and played several, including baseball, soccer, roller hockey and ice hockey. In fact, before they were hoops heroes they excelled at roller hockey, playing on the North American national championship team for the 10-and-Unders. Once they started growing, however — they hit 6'3" in the 7th grade — the twosome began to concentrate exclusively on basketball.


Prep-school Prodigies

After a few years of playing in the National Junior Basketball league and in the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU), the Wears entered the prestigious basketball program at Mater Dei High School, run by Coach Gary McKnight. Dave and Travis played on McKnight's teams from 2006-2009, garnering an incredible record of 132 wins and 10 losses.

"They won a CIF championship in 2006 and two state championships in 2007 and 2008," McKnight remembers proudly. "David was two-time CIF Player of the Year, and both David and Travis were first-team All-CIF, All-County, All-League. They were co-MVPs of [Orange County's Trinity League]."

In fact, Dave and Travis are just two of five Mater Dei alumni on the UCLA team, along with Tyler Lamb, Blake Arnet and David Brown. And the twins still see their high school coach often, dropping in at Mater Dei and speaking to the elementary and middle school boys at McKnight's summer basketball camps.

When the Wears played for him, McKnight recalls how they would fool him at practice by switching jerseys. "I couldn't tell them apart," the high school coach says. "I had to put numbers on both sides of the jerseys, because if they were facing me and the numbers were on the back, I couldn't tell who was who. I'd yell 'David!' at one of them, and he wouldn't give me a response. Finally, he'd say, 'I'm Travis. That's David.' They would just mess with me all the time."


Home Again

UCLA senior point guard Lazeric "Zeek" Jones, a transfer student from John A. Logan College in Carterville, Ill., arrived at the Westwood campus in summer 2010 along with the twins. But because he wasn't from the West Coast, Jones was one of the few players on the Bruin team who hadn't already met or played with the Wears. He had definitely heard of them, though.

Travis (left) and Dave reach new heights (even for them).


"They were way cooler than I thought they'd be," Jones says, laughing. "They're real laid-back guys. They have a really good sense of humor, too." After a couple of weeks, Jones says, the brothers didn't even look alike to him anymore, and the differences in their personalities became evident: Trav, he says, can be more silly, while Dave is the serious one.

But when it comes to basketball, Jones says, both Wears mean business. "They can do pretty much everything I can do," the 6'1" point guard says. "They can shoot, they can dribble, they can pass. They're smart players and they're really aggressive. And if it comes down to it, they can go on the post with the big guys — like Reeves and Josh — and they can score."

With the Wears around, the team's practices can get pretty lively, Jones says. "They mess with me a lot! During practice, Coach will say, 'Zeek, don't worry about the twins!' because they'll be on the sidelines, barking at me. I can't miss a shot; I can't make a turnover because they're in my ear, trying to get into my head," he says, laughing ruefully.

"I do the same to them and make sure whenever they make a mistake, I'm on them. It's all good-natured — right afterward, we're smiling and hugging. And it's definitely made me better," Jones admits. "But I'm working hard to make sure I don't make a mistake, because I know as soon as I mess up, they're right there, in my ear. I have to turn around and see both of them!"

NBA AM: Who’s Playing in Las Vegas? Malcolm Lee is.

Some choice cuts from Alex Kennedy's post on HOOPSWORLD. To read the whole thing, click here.


NBA AM: Who’s Playing in Las Vegas?

By Alex Kennedy
NBA Writer, HOOPSWORLD
Updated: September 7, 2011, 6:49 am ET


Impact Basketball is working out the final details for their two-week competitive training series, which means NBA stars are beginning to flock to Las Vegas. The league’s rosters won’t be released until Thursday, but over 50 players have already committed to play in next week’s games.

John Wall, Rudy Gay, Zach Randolph, Stephen Curry, Kyle Lowry, Stephen Jackson, Chauncey Billups, DeMar DeRozan, Tayshaun Prince, Al Harrington, Jermaine O’Neal, DeAndre Jordan, Mo Williams, J.J. Hickson, Austin Daye, Jared Dudley, Marreese Speights, Dahntay Jones, Courtney Lee, Chase Budinger, Omri Casspi, Eric Maynor, C.J. Watson, Ryan Gomes, James Anderson, Avery Bradley, Melvin Ely, Armon Johnson and Shawne Williams are among the players that are expected to participate.

The Impact CTS will also feature a number of rookies including Iman Shumpert, Kawhi Leonard, Jimmy Butler, Jordan Williams, Malcolm Lee, Josh Selby, Trey Thompkins, Travis Leslie and Shelvin Mack.

With no summer league or offseason workouts, these first-year players will use the two weeks to build chemistry with their new teammates and adjust to the NBA’s style of play.

Several former NBA players will also compete including Jamaal Tinsley, Bonzi Wells and Damon Jones.

Blake Griffin remains a possibility, but he may not be able to play for the entire two-week period due to his busy schedule. If the lockout continues and September’s series is a success, Impact will hold another two-week session during the month of October, which Griffin would participate in.

The list is subject to change and other players will be added throughout the course of this week. Impact is hoping to have 64 participants so that the eight teams will feature eight players. Some players – such as Leonard – won’t be able to stay for both weeks so having extra bodies to take their place is important.

The games will be streamed online for free and they will also be open to the public. Five hundred tickets will be sold each day and the proceeds will go to charity. Nike has designed jerseys for each of the eight teams and other sponsorships are being discussed. Statistics, standings and more information will be updated on Impact Basketball’s website.

Unlike many other summer leagues, the Impact CTS won’t resemble streetball. Organizers are encouraging players to treat these games as if they were part of the NBA’s regular season. There will be an emphasis on defense and NBA rules will be enforced by referees.

This is the closest thing to the NBA that basketball fans will be able to watch for quite some time. As the NBA’s players and owners continue to meet and iron out a new collective bargaining agreement, the Impact CTS will provide you with a basketball fix.


News and Notes: Here are some items from this week’s news and notes bin.

• Jimmer Fredette is organizing two rookie exhibition games with all proceeds going to his charity. The games will be played in Salt Lake City (9/21) and Provo (9/22) and will feature Kemba Walker, Kawhi Leonard, Chris Singleton, Nolan Smith, Malcolm Lee and Isaiah Thomas among other players.

The NBA's worst-kept secret: UCLA

The NBA's worst-kept secret: UCLA

By Steve Ritea
UCLA Today
Aug 30, 2011

Lakers forward Ron Artest (center), who's petitioned to change his name to Metta World Peace, plays a pick-up game at the Student Activities Center, a favorite, low-key place to practice for dozens of all-stars during the off-season and current NBA lockout.




It’s a poorly-kept secret just about everyone in the NBA knows: If you’re looking for a casual, off-season pick-up game, there’s only one place to go — UCLA.


On any given weekday afternoon, dozens of professional basketball players can be spotted wandering past Ackerman Union and the Bruin statue, and disappearing into the Student Activities Center (SAC) for an informal, all-star game that most fans can only dream about seeing.


On a recent Thursday, the sneakers squeaking on the floors of the second-floor gym belonged to Ron Artest of the L.A. Lakers, Andre Miller of the Denver Nuggets and Elton Brand of the Philadelphia 76ers … to name just a few.


Bruin players were out on the floor, too — shooting, dribbling and guarding them in pick-up games that have become a decades-old tradition at UCLA, stemming largely from its reputation as a basketball powerhouse.


This year, in fact, UCLA will have more alumni in the NBA than any other university, Bruins Assistant Coach Scott Garson said. "There’s no better pick-up game anywhere in the country," he said of the unannounced games.

Philadelphia 76ers forward Elton Brand, formerly of the L.A. Clippers, aims for the basket.

At the former Men's Gym basketball courts, hoops history is all around them — even Coach John Wooden’s original chalkboard as well as the very gym floor where he trained Kareem Abdul-Jabbar back when the towering player was still Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor Jr. In fact, the courts, located on the second floor of SAC, used to be where the Bruins played before crowded bleachers until Pauley Pavilion became their home court.


Today, only a few spectators watch from the sidelines.


But Brand said there’s something very raw and appealing about getting to play away from the crowds and the ever-present cameras. "It’s a great, pure feeling," he said. "You’re just playing for the love of the sport. … There’s not even anyone to tape knees."


That also makes for amazing basketball moments never captured on camera, left only to linger in the minds of those who played that day.


"Yesterday Russell Westbrook did some amazing dunks against really aggressive defense," Artest said after a recent pick-up game, sweat still dripping from his brow. "There’s not many games like UCLA in any other city."


The games also function as an informal way to study up on your opponents’ moves. Miller said he might step into an NBA game and suddenly recognize someone with whom he played months earlier back at UCLA. "You pick up on other guys’ habits," he said.


Those "other guys" might soon include Bruins' Point Guard Lazeric Jones — a talented player with his sights set on the NBA. For guys like Jones, playing against the pros at SAC was intimidating at first, but it turned out to be an invaluable experience that’s preparing him for the next step in his career.

While the rules are few at SAC, there is one that the pros take to heart. At least one student has to be included in every game.

"This is one of the reasons I came here," Jones said. "This is a legendary place. … I’ve talked to Baron Davis and Earl Watson, and they’ve taught me a lot."


Including Bruin players in their pick-up games is actually one of the few rules at SAC. At least one student player has to be included in every game, said Mitchell Butler, a former Bruin who went on to play for the former Washington Bullets. On good days, there are up to three games going on simultaneously.


"We were all young pups, and the older players would share their knowledge with us, and we turned around and shared it with Baron Davis and others," Butler said. "Today, Baron’s helping young Bruins like Reeves Nelson."


With the NBA lockout delaying preparations for any upcoming season, the pick-up games, which would normally be over by now, are now likely to extend into early September.