In the Shadows

Quick, which two freshmen have the highest offensive efficiency rating in college basketball? If you guessed Ben McLemore of Kansas and Marcus Smart of Oklahoma State you would only be half right. If you said McLemore and Georges Niang of Iowa State, well, ding ding ding. These two freshmen efficiency leaders face off tonight in Ames, Iowa in a game that will help decide the Big 12 regular season race.  McLemore is currently sporting an offensive rating of 120.0 compared to Niang’s 119.9 (Note: Niang led all freshmen until Kansas and McLemore beat up on an over-matched TCU team this past Saturday). While McLemore has received all the media hype throughout the year, it is Niang who has quietly put together an under the radar freshman campaign.

In conference play, Niang is over-shadowed by star freshmen such as McLemore, Smart, and Isaiah Austin of Baylor. Being over-looked is nothing new for Niang as this was commonplace during his high school career despite being a top 100 recruit and scoring a school record 2,372 points during his tenure. Niang played for The Tilton School, a New Hampshire prep school which also happened to be the home of the nation’s number 1 prospect in Nerlens Noel and class of 2013 five-star Wayne Selden. While fans were busy watching the shot blocking prowess of Noel and the powerful Seldon, it was Niang who averaged 25.1 points per game as a senior.

Draft Express currently has Niang ranked #42 amongst freshmen and had the following to stay in their scouting report:

“On the offensive end, Niang doesn't have a very pretty game from a stylistic standpoint, but he is extremely fundamentally sound and even more advanced with his awareness and polish, constantly finding ways to make positive contributions with the ball. Looking forward, Niang is the type of player every college coach loves to have and will likely find ways to consistently contribute on the offensive end in a variety of areas.”

 Iowa State lost three starters including do everything forward Royce White from its 2012 team and Fred Hoiberg knew that his transfers and freshmen would need to step up in order to have another successful season. Before the season opener, Hoiberg noted “Georges is ready. He has a tremendous basketball IQ and can score from all over the floor.” Niang came off the bench in the first game of the season and produced 15 points and 12 rebounds in 28 minutes. Strong early season performances earned Niang earned a starting spot before Iowa State’s Big 12 opener against Kansas. He has continued his strong play throughout conference play scoring in double figures eight out of 14 times and is currently averaging 11.4 points and 4.7 rebounds in 23.6 minutes.

Last week the country watched McLemore and Smart face off in a double overtime slugfest while Niang was quietly having one of his best games while helping the Cyclones pull a road upset against Baylor. Tonight, Niang and the Cyclones host McLemore and Kansas in ESPN’s game of the night. Despite a terrific senior season in New England and a 119.9 offensive rating, Niang has not received the spotlight like so many of his talented counterparts. Tonight, Niang has a chance to step into the national radar and out of the shadows.  

Top 5 Freshmen (OER)
#	Name	School	Rating
1	Ben McLemore	Kansas	120.0 (22.7)
2	Georges Niang	Iowa St.	119.9 (21.3)
3	Jameel Warney	Stony Brook	119.4 (21.5)
4	Gary Harris	Michigan St.	119.3 (20.1)
5	Jalan West	Northwestern St.	119.0 (20.8)
Note: Minimum 20% possessions used

Chicago Public League Championship

Whitney Young started the season off making a national name and ended their regular season by affirming their local name becoming Chicago Public League champs by knocking off rival Morgan Park in overtime, 60-55. Despite falling to Simeon and Orr in the regular season, Whitney Young regained their swagger during the public league tournament and rode the top junior in the country, Jahlil Okafor to Tyrone Slaughter’s first title. 

L.J. Peak against Morgan Park

Morgan Park entered the championship fresh off an upset win over rival Simeon while snapping their 2 year win streak over Illinois teams in the process. Senior guard Billy Garrett, Jr. hit the game winning lay-up over Simeon and continued his solid play against Whitney Young. Morgan Park jumped out to an early 6-0 lead as Whitney Young uncharacteristically turned the ball over 4 times in its first 5 possessions. Okafor and junior Miles Reynolds began to pick up the slack and cut into Morgan Park’s lead and finished the first quarter trailing 15-9. 

Okafor and Young quickly tied the game up early in the 2^nd quarter and then battled Morgan Park shot for shot over the next two quarters as juniors L.J. Peak and Paul White joined in on the action. As the game heated up, no lead was safe. White hit a floater to increase Whitney Young’s lead to 44-37 to start the 4^th quarter, but Morgan Park quickly rallied back to tie and then take a 51-48 lead as the 4^th quarter clock ticked down. With Whitney Young needing three points to tie, it was their silent assassin, Miles Reynolds who knocked down the all important game tying three from the wing that touched nothing but net. Morgan Park held for the last shot and put the ball in Garrett’s hands. After having his jersey retired earlier in the week, Garrett was looking to add to his legacy however as he drove left for the game winning shot, he was quickly greeted  by Okafor’s out-stretched hand and both teams left regulation tied at 51 points apiece.

Unlike a few days earlier in overtime for Morgan Park, this overtime session was dominated from the opening tap by the opposition. On the first possession L.J. Peak swooped in for an offensive rebound and scored on a 5 foot put back. Okafor quickly scored on the next possession giving Whitney Young a lead they wouldn’t relinquish as they held on to their early lead for a 60-55 lead.

Okafor continued his dominant junior season with 19 points, 14 rebounds, and 7 blocks. Despite facing constant double teams, Okfor utilized quick post moves to get his baskets and his first city title. While a city title is nice, Okafor and Whitney Young know that a chance for a state title still is the end goal. Unfortunately for them, they will have to make it through the tough Illinois Argo sectional which also features junior big man Cliff Alexander of Curie and of course the three time defending state champs in Simeon. Not only is Simeon going for the fourth straight Illinois title, they have also held Okafor to single digits the past two times the teams have faced off. Okafor’s only single digit game all-season came against Simeon earlier in the year. Whitney Young will look to end their season by making its name in the state of Illinois.

2013 Spring Summer AAU Events

With the high school season winding down, here is an early look at the 2013 Spring / Summer AAU schedule. Tournaments and dates will be updated as they become available. Similar to last year, college coaches are allowed on the road for two weeks in April and three weeks in July:

·        April 19-21

·        April 26-28

·        July 10-14

·        July 17-21

·        July 24-28

April 5-7
Swish N Dish	Milwaukee, WI	NY2LA
April 12-14
Real Deal in the Rock	Little Rock, AR	5-Star
Spring Jam Fest	Neptune, NJ	Hoop Group
Las Vegas Tip-Off Classic	Las Vegas, NV	Big Foot Hoops
April 19-21 (open to college coaches)
Nike EYBL (Session #1)	Los Angeles, CA	Nike
Adidas VIP Exclusive Run	Dallas, TX	Adidas
UA Jam Session	Pittsburgh, PA	UA / Hoop Group
Spring Extravaganza	Minneapolis, MN	NY2LA
Pangos Spring Spectacular	Las Vegas, NV	Pangos
Southern Exposure Showcase	Augusta, GA
Kingwood Elite	Spring, TX	Big Foot Hoops
April 26-28 (open to college coaches)
Nike EYBL (Session #2)	Hampton, VA	Nike
Under Armour Jayhawk Invitational	Olathe, KS	Under Armour
Bob Gibbons TOC	Atlanta, GA
Philadelphia Jam Fest	Philadelphia, PA	Hoop Group
H-Town Classic	Spring, TX	Big Foot Hoops
Adidas Spring Classic	Indianapolis, IN	Adidas
May 3-5
Spiece Run N' Slam	Fort Wayne, IN
Howard Pulley Invitational	Eagan, MN
Bay Area Spring Classic	San Francisco, CA
May 10-12
Nike EYBL (Session #3)	Plano, TX	Nike
Adidas May Classic	Bloomington, IN	Adidas
Providence Jam Fest	Providence, RI	Hoop Group
May 17-19
NY2LA Invitational	Milwaukee, WI	NY2LA
Southern Jam Fest	Hampton, VA	Hoop Group
May 24-27
Nike EYBL (Session #4)	Minneapolis, MN	Nike
Best Buy Chicago Classic	Chicago, IL	Adidas
Are You from Here Classic	Duncanville, TX	Under Armour
Bay Area Memorial Classic	Walnut Creek, CA	Big Foot Hoops
May 31 - June 2
Pangos All-American Camp	Long Beach, CA	Pangos
June 12-16 NBPA Top 100 (Cville, VA) July 10-14 (Open to College Coaches)
Nike Peach Jam	Augusta, GA	Nike
Adidas Invitational	Indianapolis, IN	Adidas
Next Level Invitational	Milwaukee, WI	NY2LA
Peach State Summer Showcase	Aiken, SC
July 17-21 (Open to College Coaches)
UA Summer Jam	Milwaukee, WI	UA / NY2LA
Summer Classic East	King of Prussia, PA	Hoop Group
Summer Jam Fest	Philadelphia, PA	Hoop Group
AAU Nationals	Orlando, FL
Las Vegas Live	Las Vegas, NV	Big Foot Hoops
July 24-28 (Open to College Coaches)
Adidas Super 64	Las Vegas, NV	Adidas
Fab 48	Las Vegas, NV
AAU Super Showcase	Orlando, FL
Las Vegas Classic	Las Vegas, NV	Big Foot Hoops
Buzzer Beater Classic	New York, NY	Hoop Group

Class of 2014 Analysis

Scout.com recently released their updated rankings for the class 2014, which represents the first up date of the 2012-13 high school season. The previous rankings included 75 players, while the updated release now includes 100 players. While several players made the jump into the rankings for the first time (highlighted by St. Rita’s Vic Law jumping to #48) here is a look at the players that had the biggest fluctuations in the rankings:

The Good:

(+38) Goodluck Okonoboh, 6’9” Wilbraham & Monson

Okonoboh jumped up 38 spots, from #75 in the fall to #37. After re-classifying to the 2014 class and transferring from the Tilton School to Wilbraham & Monson, Okonoboh started the year off on a strong note at the Prep School Showcase in Connecticut blocking shots left and right. While most consider him one of the top shot blockers in the country, he has also been working on expanding his offensive repertoire. While Okonoboh sports the same hair style as Nerlens Noel, stepping out of his shadow has done wonders for his game and ranking.

(+26) T.J. Haws, 6’3” Lone Peak

Teammates Nick Emery and Eric Mika received a bump up in the class of 2013 rankings and T.J. Haws jumped up to #40 after previously being ranked #66. Haws’game has been on display for the whole country to see this year while leading his team to a #3 national ranking. Haws averaged 20 points per game in the City of Palms Classic while he has also performed strongly in various other national tournaments. Haws has unlimited range on his jump shot and can also throw down a high flying dunk when necessary. 

(+22) Namon Wright, 6’4” Pacific Hills School

Namon Wright out of LA has drawn increased attention from Pac-12 schools this winter as he recently landed scholarship offers from Arizona and Washington. Wright increased his stock by 22 spots with his strong play going from the 52^nd ranked prospect to the 30^th. Having improved his outside shooting ability, Wright will look to represent the West Coast throughout the spring and summer. 

(+15) Paul White, 6’8” Whitney Young

Paul White started his high school career in the top 25 before slowly sliding down the ranks as other players emerged on the scene. Going into his junior year, White was ranked as the number 44 prospect in the country. After solid performances at the City of Palms, Hoop Hall classic, and Chicago Public league, White has risen back up to #29 in his class. While White has not put an extremely dominant game together, he has managed to fill the stat sheet almost every game. Whitney Young is currently the 2^nd best team in the city of Chicago and state of Illinois and if they are to topple top ranked Simeon, they will need a great performance from White.

The Bad:

(-33) Jarred Terrell, 6’3” Brewster Academy

The powerful guard dropped out of the top 25 and down 33 spots to number 58. Terrell plays on one of the most talented prep schools in the country and has performed strongly throughout the season. Terrell started the season off well at the Prep School Showcase and has showed off his strength and athleticism throughout the season. Despite the drop, interest from colleges has not declined. 

(-20) JaQuan Newton, 6’1” St. John Neumann Goretti

Newton dropped 20 spots from #42 to #62 in the country as his team most recently lost a nationally televised game to Chester. Newton has spent the season showing off his strength in driving to the basket but is still a suspect outside shooter. Newton will need to show off an increased jumper during the AAU season to regain his top 50 ranking.

Other Notes:

Justin Jackson, a small-forward from Houston jumped from the #16 prospect to the #10, while small-forward Theo Pinson dropped from the #11 prospect to the #18. Jackson continues to grow and now stands around 6’8.” While he used to be just an outside jump shooter, Jackson has somewhat gone away from knocking down 3’s and has perfected an unstoppable floater while also scoring more in the paint with his new found height. On the other hand, Pinson exhibited an improved outside jumper during the Brandon Jennings Invitational but has not performed at the same level he was during the July time frame.