To The Hoop 3 on 3 Tournament 2011

On September 24, 2011, The To The Hoop 3 on 3 tournament brought in high schoolers from around the region to Winston-Salem competing in round robin play and then a single elimination tournament. Here are some reports on a few of the players we saw at the event; several more we took note of and will continue to scout through the season.

Champions

9-10 Grade Division: Team Bison

Quadarius Pratt
Trevor Gay
Jhwan Foggey
Cory Hanes

11-12 Grade Division: SC Ballers

Kendrick Stukes
Hakeem Watson
Giankarlo Molina

Top Performers

Giankarlo Molina (SF, 6’5″, Thomasville Prep, 2013) – Good size/strong. Good slasher. Needs to finish better at the rim. Good defensive player who is capable of blocking shots. Good rotation and elevation on jump shot- capable of hitting a variety of shots- step backs, fade ways, dribble pull-ups and set 3’s- all against good defense. Streaky shooter- must work on consistency. Solid prospect- has potential.

Quindarius Cunningham (Guard, 6’0”, North Davidson HS, 2014) – attacks the basket hard and has good body control in air. Can finish over bigger players. Plays hard and competes. Good passer. Capable of hitting the set 3. Crashes boards; good rebounder for size. Full of energy; smart.

JaQuan McCauley (SF, 6’4”, HP Andrews) – Very strong upper body. Man amongst boys on the court. Was able to bully his way to the rim, where he could finish with contact. Was drawing double teams all day, even in a 3 on 3 tournament. Strong finisher. Plays hard- solid defensively. Good rebounder- sticks with it on boards- doesn’t give up. Good shot blocker.

KJ O’Neal (SG/SF, 6’2”, Reagan HS, 2014) – Nice touch around basket, lefty. More of a slasher than a shooter. Good defender- hard worker.

Spencer Wilson (PG, 5’6”, Wesleyan Christian Academy, 2015)– High Basketball IQ. Great passer- knows proper passing angles and what pass to throw- threw no looks, back doors, and euro passes. Changes speeds well, can break man down off dribble and get to rim, where he finds the open man every time. Good ball handler with either hand- has an excellent crossover move. Pure PG who sets others up to score and puts them in scoring position. Good 3 point shooter with a quick release- nice touch and good follow through. Quick hands on defense. Needs to get stronger, but plays beyond his years.

Cory Hanes (F, 6’2”, High Point Central, 2014)– Strong finisher, able to compete and finish over bigger players inside. Creative around basket. Utilizes ball fakes. Good back to the basket game. Good with P/R situations.

Tyler Rose (SG/SF, 6’5”, Calvary Baptist, 2013)– Very good shooter, especially from 3- can hit off dribble or with feet set. Can create his own shot. Long/athletic. Can attack the basket and finish over the rim. Won the dunk contest today.

Zach Hurdle (F, 6’5”, West Stokes, 2015)– Tall and long. Knock down shooter from anywhere on the floor. Excellent pick and pop player. Can shoot off the dribble. Needs to improve defensively and get stronger. Won the 3 point contest today. Solid young prospect- definitely a player to keep an eye on.

Kendrick Stukes (G, 5’10”, Thomasville Prep) – Kendrick’s shot is much stronger; very consistent and he can hit from several ranges. Can run the offense as a true point but is also effective at the off-guard.

Players of Note

Hakeem Watson (G, 5’11”, Thomasville HS) Moves well without the ball and can score. Solid all around game. Will definitely scout again to see in full court situations.

De’Marrio Mintz (G, 5’10”, 2012, Crest Senior HS) An explosive leaper who competed and came in second in the dunk contest. Strong player and plays strong with the dribble, needs to work on outside consistency and breaking down his man off of the dribble. Can run PG or SG effectively. Would like to see him develop a deadly outside shot, which would open up the lane more for him.

Blake Gilley (SG/SF, 6’3″, 2012, East Surry) Solid shooter who can hit on the run and passes well in traffic.

More coming soon on this event, including dunk contest video!

When we first caught up with Chris Walker almost a year ago, he wasn’t quite getting the recognition he should have been – but that soon changed. Chris not only became well known on the summer circuit, he was invited to several major events including the NBPA Top 100 and Adidas Nations. Chris continues to work on his game – and get a ton of D1 offers – and here’s Chris’s current favorite highlight video that showcases his talents on the court:

JaQuel Richmond
Photo Source: NY2LA

JaQuel Richmond (PG, 6’1″, 2014) worked his way into the recruiting lexicon this summer as he started to get noticed – and recruited – by some pretty big name schools. JaQuel plays alongside some very talented AAU teammates on the CP3 All-Stars, and he proved he is an elite guard at the CP3 elite skills camp this year. JaQuel’s calling card is his quickness and ability to get to the bucket, and he has a knack of creating a mid range shot for himself seemingly at will.

We caught up with JaQuel on his latest offers, what he’s working on right now and few other things in today’s edition of 7 questions.

1. The first question is always about your current college options. Which schools have offered, and which schools are you currently considering/talking to?

Charlotte (UNCC), Virginia, Virginia Tech, Oklahoma State, Wake Forest and Georgetown have offered me so far.

2. Over the summer you got the opportunity to attend some of the biggest camps and events, such as the Chris Paul elite guard camp. What are your thoughts on how your summer went, from the events to playing against top competition?

I honestly would have to say my summer went good, I played against top guards that were in my class at the Peach Jam and in Florida Showcase/Nationals. Playing against those top guards and top players shows others that you can handle that type of pressure during the game and at crunch time, but knowing myself I love to be on the stage and all eyes are on you.

3. What do you think are the strongest parts of your game right now?

The strongest parts of my game right now [are] getting to the basket at any time and attacking that mid-range at all times.

4. What parts of your game are you currently working on?

I am constantly working on my 3 ball because most coaches know that I can get to the cup so they want to see if I can also shoot that 3 ball. So most of my workout I’m constantly putting up shots, at least 600 shots.

5. Do you have a player (at any level, college or pro) that you admire?

I would have to say I admire Kyrie Irvin because we both have that killer instict during the entire game and we can get to the basket with no problem.

6. Do you have any visits planned, or have you already taken any?

October 8th I’m going to Virginia Tech.
October 14th I’m going to Duke Midnight Madness.

JaQuel Richmond basketball
Photo Source: Naples News

7. If you could tell people one thing about you that you wish they knew, what would it be?

That I would never be cocky and that I’m always humble.

Syracus Pitt ACC
Photo: Flikr/brilestakespictures

In a shocking 24 hour turn of events, two new teams have joined the ACC: Syracuse Pittsburgh, formerly two mainstays of the Big East and two teams that will bring their own history of star college basketball to the Atlantic Coast Conference. The ACC announced the move on Sunday morning:

The Atlantic Coast Conference Council of Presidents has unanimously voted to accept the University of Pittsburgh and Syracuse University as new members. The invitation followed the submission of letters of application from both universities.

“The ACC is a strong united conference that is only going to get better with the addition of the University of Pittsburgh and Syracuse University,” said Duke University President Richard Broadhead, chair of the ACC Council of Presidents. “Both schools are committed to competing at the highest level of academics and athletics. We welcome them as full partners in the ACC.”

“The ACC has enjoyed a rich tradition by balancing academics and athletics and the addition of Pitt and Syracuse further strengthens the ACC culture in this regard,” said Atlantic Coast Conference Commissioner John Swofford. “Pittsburgh and Syracuse also serve to enhance the ACC’s reach into the states of New York and Pennsylvania and geographically bridges our footprint between Maryland and Massachusetts. With the addition of Pitt and Syracuse, the ACC will cover virtually the entire Eastern Seaboard of the United States.”

National Basketball Association commissioner David Stern answers questions from the media regarding failed contract negotiations between the NBA and the players association in New York June 30, 2011. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson (UNITED STATES – Tags: SPORT EMPLOYMENT BUSINESS BASKETBALL)

        
        

The NBA and the players’ association representatives met yesterday, giving fans hope that if things went well, the possibility of pro basketball this season might still be a reality. This week, meaning, by Friday, is pretty much the last week any kind of deal could be reached before affecting the season, because of training camp schedules and then the pre-season.

Unfortunately, they walked away without any resolution, leaving a lot of doubt on the season. NBA Commissioner David Stern said that he has not asked any of the owners to take the ultimate step regarding this season, but it doesn’t sound like there is any plan for a meeting in the near future:

The Owners are scheduled to hold a Board of Governors meeting on Thursday and while Stern may not ask for a vote, the final power to scrub the pre-season may be granted to the Labor Relations Committee simply by virtue of process.

Stern warned that while yesterday was a “bad day”, he hoped that phone conversations could re-start the process which seemed awfully close yesterday.

The silver lining is that the players and owners apparently started discussions over the biggest point of contention, which is how to split revenues. This could have been a result of more people being brought into the negotiations, but normally, when a group that’s trying to agree on something gets bigger, that usually just makes it more difficult.

Regardless of how both sides try to spin the result of yesterday’s meeting, the reality is that everyone knows the lack of a resolution is a very bad sign for the upcoming season:

“I think coming out of today, obviously because of the calendar, we can’t come out of here feeling as though training camps and the season is going to start on time at this point,” players’ association president Derek Fisher(notes) of the Lakers said.

The only real movement in the discussions is that the players seem willing to give up more revenue, although no formal proposal was made. Despite everyone involved expressing disappointment, Stern seems to be the ‘less glum’ of the participants, probably due to the change in position by the players:

“We did not have a great day,” said commissioner David Stern, though he was not nearly as glum as the players. Perhaps Stern recognized important movement in the players’ stance. Just last week the two sides had exchanged proposals, according to Stern, while engaging each other in conversations that were inspiring to both union and management. While union chief Billy Hunter said he hadn’t been expecting to reach an agreement Tuesday, he was hoping to achieve progress to build on the gains of last week.

As we’ve stated before, in this negotiation, the owners have far more leverage to get what they want than the players, and it’s pretty much a waiting game for them until the players’ wallets start hurting enough, and they concede.

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Interested in playing basketball overseas? You might want to check out this handy guide.

Germany’s Dirk Nowitzki (C) tries to score against Macedonia during a friendly basketball match in Berlin August 28, 2011. REUTERS/Tobias Schwarz (GERMANY – Tags: SPORT BASKETBALL)

        
        

The New York Knicks are ready for the season to start, or at least, the Impact “lockout league”, where a handful of Knicks will be playing on the “A Team”:

Seventy NBA players will participate in the “Impact Basketball Competitive Training Series” because of the lockout. The Knicks team will feature Chauncey Billups, rookie Iman Shumpert, Shawne Williams, Roger Mason, rookie center Josh Harrellson and Jared Jeffries.

In Europe, France was missing their stars in Joakim Noah and Tony Parker, making their European championship game against a Pau Gasol-powered Spain a losing effort. However, the move by Noah and Parker was strategic, as both teams have already advanced.

Dirk Nowitski’s Germany team had less luck, as Dirk’s poor 4-for-17 shooting effort led to his team being bounced from the European Championship. The loss has even worse ramifications for Germany:

Germany not only missed a spot in the quarterfinals but also a chance to qualify for the London Olympics. Germany needed to win by 11 points to advance but didn’t come close. “It’s my fault,” said Nowitzki, who finished with 16 points.

Finally, speaking of the Olympics, Argentina defeated Brazil behind Luis Scola’s 32 points in the Olympic qualifying championship for the Americas.