2014 McDonald's All American Practice: Tuesday

The second day of practice for the McDonald’s All-American teams was short and sweet. Both teams went for just over an hour before they played a closed scrimmage later in the afternoon. Yesterday it was the West team that came out with the intensity in drills and scrimmages, but today the East squad matched their level of play which created a hard fought session this morning in Chicago, IL.

EAST

Top Players:

Romelo Trimble, 6’3”, G, Bishop O’ Connell (VA)

The future Maryland Terrapin had his offensive game working this morning as he scored from a variety of areas on the court. Trimble is known for his scoring prowess and he showed why in both the 5 on 5 half-court and full-court scrimmages. Going against Tyus Jones, Trimble was able to get a step on Jones on occasion and used his powerful shoulders to keep the smaller Jones on his hip. Trimble finished at the rim with right handed lay-ups and he also dropped in a soft floater from around eight feet. He also knocked in a three from the wing capping an extremely productive morning practice session. This past season he was one of the best, if not the best player in the DC area and is now continuing his high scoring ways against the top players in the country. 

Karl Towns Jr., 6’11”, C, St. Joseph (NJ)

On Day #2, Towns Jr. and Myles Turner were battling again in the post. This time Towns Jr. got the better of Turner by using his power and strength to finish several tough baskets around the rim. Not just a bruiser, Towns Jr. impressed with his ability to get up and down the court as well. He also showed patience by not getting frustrated after numerous fouls that weren’t called during the scrimmages.

Justise Winslow, 6’5”, SF, Saint John’s (TX)

The Texas native showed media and scouts his ability to become a lockdown defender at the next level with his defense on Isaiah Whitehead, one of the top shooting guards in the country. Despite having one of the nicest jump shots in the country, Whitehead had trouble even getting a shot off. Winslow hounded Whitehead all over the court and stayed with him when he tried to shoot from the outside and when he tried to attack off the dribble. In addition to his defensive prowess, Winslow also came to play on the offensive end as well. He hit several open jump shots and also used his athletic ability to finish at the rim. 

Other Notes:

Five-star center Cliff Alexander missed practice today after a wrist contusion suffered during the PowerAde Slam Dunk Contest. The Chicago native still hopes to play in the game. D’Angelo Russell continued his stellar play from Day 1 looking extremely comfortable firing up jump shots off the dribble. While Russell was making his outside shots throughout the practice, so was James Blackmon Jr., the men’s winner of the 3-Point Contest. Blackmon hit several three’s and pull-up jump shots from 10-15 feet on the day. Future UCLA Bruin Kevon Looney took advantage of a mismatch in the post this morning. Going against small forward Justin Jackson, Looney used his strength down low to score several easy baskets early on.

WEST

Top Player:

Jahlil Okafor, 6’11”, C, Whitney Young (IL)

Okafor had a strong day yesterday, but was a monster today. Going against the 7 foot Thomas Welsh, Okafor used his size to score in a variety of ways down low including a rim rattling dunk on the future UCLA center. Okafor grabs the ball like it’s a tennis ball to keep it out of reach from the defense and needs only one or two dribbles to back his man down below the basket. Okafor used his patented spin move at times, but he also scored from the middle of lane off the left and right block. Today Okafor showed why he is considered the top player in the country. 

Other Notes:

Rashad Vaughn continued his hot shooting from Day 1 hitting several three’s from the wings and corners during the half-court and full-court action. Along with Vaughn, shooting guard Devin Booker also displayed his smooth stroke from the outside. The 6’5” guard struggled to get to the basket against quicker defenders but had no problem knocking in jumpers off the catch. Emmanuel Mudiay became a bit more involved today. Sliding over to the point guard position, the 6’5” guard was able to get in the lane off the dribble and was a lot more involved than yesterday. Power forwards Reid Travis and Trey Lyles continued to do battle with both players scoring on each other inside and outside.

Overall:

The practice session was shorter today, but definitely more intense. After going against their teammates the past two days the East and West faced off in a scrimmage on the United Center floor this afternoon. After playing in front of media and scouts, the most talented players in the country are looking forward to a national audience tomorrow.

2014 McDonald's AA Practice: Monday

The McDonald’s All-American week has begun. While the skills competition, three-point shootout, and slam dunk contest will be broadcast on ESPNU this evening the players were showcasing their skills to the media and NBA personnel in the morning. Both the East and West teams went through an hour and a half practice session at the Quest Multiplex in Chicago, IL in an event open to NBA scouts and front office personnel. While there were not any players at the level of Andrew Wiggins or Jabari Parker there were several standouts on Day 1 and most likely a fair amount of players that will be at the top of the 2015 NBA Draft.

West Team:

The West team is led by Frank Allocco, the head coach of De La Salle High School in California and there was no doubt which team meant business Monday morning. Within minutes the West team was doing full-court drills and instituting out of bounds and half court plays. The intensity displayed in the first minute of action carried over for the remainder of practice. For the most part the West was broken out into two teams:

Team A:                                               Team B:

Joel Berry (UNC)                              Tyler Ulis (Kentucky)

Rashad Vaughn (UNLV)                   Emmanuel Mudiay (SMU)

Kelly Oubre (Kansas)                       Stanley Johnson (Arizona)

Travis Reid (Stanford)                     Trey Lyles (Kentucky)

Thomas Welsh (UCLA)                    Jahlil Okafor (Duke)

Devin Booker (Kentucky)               Grayson Allen (Duke)

Top Players:

Rashad Vaughn, 6’5”, SG, Findlay Prep (NV)

The silky smooth shooting guard had his outside shot working from all parts of the court. He stayed within his means and didn’t force the action while also distributing the ball at times and giving a strong effort on the defensive end. Along with his deep outside shots, Vaughn showed his athletic ability to get to the basket while also hitting fade-aways over smaller defenders. 

Grayson Allen, 6’4”, SG, Providence School (FL)

Another wing that impressed was shooting guard Grayson Allen. The 6’5” wing displayed his athleticism with several dunks in the open-court and like Vaughn was on target with his outside shot. Allen was usually the sixth man for his team, but just like in AAU action he contributed right away.

Stanley Johnson, 6’6”, SF, Mater Dei (CA)

On Saturday night, Johnson was busy winning his fourth straight California state championship and just two days later he was back in action playing with a purpose on the defensive end and using his powerful body to aggressively drive to the basket. Johnson misfired on several outside shots, but he did end one scrimmage with a three from the right wing.

Top Match-Ups:

Joel Berry vs. Tyler Ulis

The two point guards on the West squad went head to head all morning long. Ulis took the lead early on as his quickness on the defensive end frustrated Berry and resulted in an early steal while Berry was dribbling the ball on the wing. After the turnover, Berry’s game took a turn for the better as he started to use his strength to attack the rim. He finished an acrobatic lay-up on the right side and then attacked the basket for a left hand lay-up early on. Berry’s finest moments came on the defensive end when it looked like Jahlil Okafor had an easy dunk but instead resulted in a half block / half steal for Berry as he met Okafor at the basket. Neither Ulis nor Berry took many shots from the outside, but both got the ball to their shooters for open jump shots.

Jahlil Okafor vs. Thomas Welsh

It was clear that Okafor was the dominant player in this match-up from the beginning, but it was also impressive to see Welsh never back down, despite a 30 pound (at least) weight disadvantage. Okafor used his power and large hands to score consistently in the low post, but Welsh challenged him for rebounds and at times was able to keep Okafor out of the lane. Towards the end of the scrimmage, Welsh hit a soft 6 footer and followed that up with a basket at the rim. 

Other Notes:

Trey Lyles and Travis Reid both had their moments as the two rugged Midwest power forwards attacked and countered each other all morning long. Whether it was tough post-ups or outside jump shots, the Lyles and Reid match-up was a fun one to watch. Emmanuel Mudiay and Kelly Oubre are both Top 10 prospects, but both players were fairly quite in the practice and were not as aggressive as their other teammates.

East Team:

The East team while talented took a little longer to show the same type of intensity as the West team. Coached by Lou Wilson of Riverdale Baptist (MD) the East started the practice off with some easy drills to get warmed up and then eventually increased the difficulty with culminated with some scrimmaging of their own. The East time was first divided as follows:

Team A:                                                               Team B:

Romelo Trimble (Maryland)                         Tyus Jones (Duke)

Theo Pinson (UNC)                                         Isaiah Whitehead (Seton Hall)

Justise Winslow (Duke)                                 Justin Jackson (UNC)

Kevon Looney (UCLA)                                    Cliff Alexander (Kansas)

Karl Towns Jr. (Kentucky)                              Myles Turner (Undecided)

James Blackmon Jr. (Indiana)                       D’Angelo Russell (Ohio State)

Top Players:

Tyus Jones, 6’2”, PG, Apple Valley (MN)

Jones was quiet for a fair amount of the practice, but turned it on late in the scrimmage with several tough baskets. For most of his high school career, the future Blue Devil has been labeled as the best point guard in the high school ranks regardless of class. There is no doubt his ball-handling and overall point guard skills are top notch but some of questioned his slight frame. Jones ran his team, didn’t turn the ball over and got into the paint when he wanted and finished with short jump shots or floaters.

D’Angelo Russell, 6’4”, SG, Montverde Academy (FL)

Last spring Russell’s jump shot was a big question mark. Not anymore. Russell had several nothing but net outside shots throughout the practice and caused a few deflections with his defensive activity. The future Buckeye will have a strong chance to contribute immediately next year in Columbus. 

Top Match-Up:

Karl Towns Jr. vs. Myles Turner

As a whole, the East practice was less competitive than the West; however Towns Jr. and Turner went at each other all day long whether it was half-court drills or full-court scrimmages. There were a lot of uncalled fouls committed, but both players played through contact. Towns Jr. tried to use his power while Turner countered with his length. There was no clear cut winner in the big man battle, but you can be sure these two will be going at it once again tomorrow.

Overall:

Numerous players shined in a brief viewing this morning. NBA scouts got a fresh look at next year’s college freshmen and the media got one last look at the class of 2014. With the West getting a jump start on scrimmaging the focus of the day strayed toward this team. With additional practices tomorrow the East team will receive an in-depth look as well.