On January 9th, I had the chance to interview two of Duke’s Future Stars Kyle Flipowski and Dereck Lively II. Lively and Flipowski just played in a big game against each other at the Empire Invitational in Brooklyn. Led by Kyle’s 22 points. Wilbrahamson and Monson beat Lively’s Westtown School (PA) 59-54.
In this interview, Kyle and Dereck talk about playing in front of Future Duke head coach Jon Scheyer and the rest of the staff. They also speak on how their games compliment each other and more.
The Dog days of college Basketball are something else. You hit a stretch of bad losses, you are in a slump and fans want the head coaches bags packed the next morning. Tough times happen but like they say life is 90 % of what happens to you and 10 % of how you respond and for the St. John’s Red Storm that 10% means a lot.
The St. John’s Red Storm find themselves in a good position to finish 5th or 6th in the conference after two big wins against Xavier and Butler. The Red Storm’s NET ranking going into the Xavier game was at 90, but after beating the musketeers and Butler they are now at 68. They are slowly creeping back into the tournament discussion with a crucial stretch of games left in the schedule and they have been playing much better basketball as of late.
It’s a great thing to see at this point of the season because the goal of them becoming an NCAA team is still at reach. Most “experts” believe that the Red Storm’s way into the NCAA tournament is to win the Big East tournament Championship which may be true but continuing their winning streak with the hopes that others lose could put them in the situation where they don’t have to play opening night on Wednesday, March 9th.
At this point, it seems like a long shot but here are many reasons for optimism if you are a Red Storm fan.
Julian Champangie’s newest Nickname is roadkill.
After his best performance of the season (31 points, 7 steals, 7 boards) The Big East player of the week is out of his scoring slump and it has come in perfect timing. The Loughlin alum has shown thus far that he’s best on the road. In the past three road games, Champangie averages 25.0 Ppg 2.0 steals, and 90.5 % from the free-throw line. With key road games against Depaul and Marquette down the line, Champangie ‘s ability to dominate on the road, you gotta like their chances of finishing the regular season strong going into the Big East tournament.
Posh is back and no more missed layups
Posh Alexander’s return in the win against Butler paid huge dividends as he scored 13 points and 10 assists in the win. The offense has looked a lot better for the Red Storm, they are finishing at the rim more often and that’s a huge plus because in many of their losses this season, they have missed tons of layups that have kept them from winning some winnable games against Quad 1 opponents.
The resurgence of Aaron Wheeler.
In the two wins, Aaron Wheeler didn’t have big scoring games but what we did see in the losses too. Villanova and UConn are that he’s able to take over the game with his scoring ability and that could be a big boost as we reach the final stretch of the regular season.
At this point we all know what’s at stake for the Red Storm for the season to be a success and right now the Johnnies are trending upward and we hope it stays that way.
Key games to Watch
With the regular season winding down every game matters but here are a few games this week that stand out from the rest.
Devin Vanterpool, Tobe Awaka, and IsaiaGriffin were some of the MVP’s from Saturday’s event. Photo Credit: Jaquam Bodden
Just as if the 2021-22 showcase season wouldn’t get any greater, Stepinac Head Coach Pat Massaroni and the CHSAA and the Archdiocese of New Jersey decided to make things greater by coming up with the NY vs NJ Catholic High school showcase.
Something special about state showcases in high school hoops as playing for bragging rights brings a different type of competitive energy. Five great matchups, a plethora of high level college prospects and tons of college coaches in attendance.
Of all of the games, Cardinal Hayes vs Bergen Catholic was one that that took the cake. Two nationally ranked teams, several division one prospects between both programs.
Hayes coming into the game on Saturday faced a short handed but hungry Bergen Catholic squad who was out to take them down and add to the win column for the Garden state. Christ The King
The game started out heavily in favor of BC as they raced out to an early 7-0 lead. The Crusaders came out hot while Hayes was off to a slow start. The shots weren’t falling early on but senior forward Tobe Awaka provided much needed offense inside for Hayes. For most of the first half it looked like Bergen was a step or two quicker than Hayes. Wagner commit Julian Brown and Fordham Commit Will Richardson were hitting shots and playing with so much tenacity.
Richardson closed the first half by hitting a buzzer beater three pointer from the corner. The crusaders from Oradell felt good taking a 36-33 lead into the half despite being without PG Eliot Cadeau and Big man TJ Copeland.
Hayes responded in the beginning of the third quarter with run to take a 42-38 lead. BC responded outscoring Hayes 8-4 to tie the game at 46. The Crusaders would then finish the third quarter on a 9-4 run to take a 55-50 lead going into the 4th quarter.
The fourth quarter turned out to be big as Hayes went on a 9-2 run to take a 59-57 lead then Choppafam arrived. Elijah Moore sparked a huge scoring run which shifted the momentum for the rest of the game. From there HAYES never looked back, they would outscore BC 16-9 en route to a 75-66 victory.
From Moore’s 11 point outburst to Ian Jackson finding Tobe Awaka for the facial slam which was arguably the play of the day. “Shoutout to Ian for being unselfish on that play he’s a great teammate and he did a good job playing great defense and finding me in transition to finish the play” says Awaka after the game. Awaka finished with 23 points and 16 boards in the game. Jackson scored 21 points in front of UConn, St. John’s , Seton Hall and other schools in attendance. Elijah Moore scored 11 points on 4/7 shooting all in the fourth quarter.
It’s also worth noting that Senior PG DJ victory finished with a near triple double with nine points nine assists and six rebounds. The Harlem native came up huge in the game assisting key baskets throughout the game as well as controlling the tempo and not allowing BC to creep back in the game late.
BC was led by Julian Browns 23 points while Will Richardson scored 21 points grabbed four rebounds and had six Steals. Elijah Flournoy had 10 points and seven rebounds.
Hayes improved to 14-0 on the season and finished their non conference slate of their schedule.
Other Scores
Don Bosco Prep 75, St. Rays 57
Isaiah Edmond earned MVP honors and scored 17 points and grabbed 6 boards. Nicholas Koch also scored 17. Dylan Harper scored 15 points while Isaiah Brown scored 10. Isaiah Philbert led three Ravens in double figures with 12.
St. Peter’s Prep 51, Iona Prep 42
Villanova commit Mark Armstrong led SPP with 20 points and earned MVP honors. Despite the Loss RJ Greene reached a milestone with reaching 1000 career points. He finished with 16.
Christ The King 53, Hudson Catholic 52
Upon my arrival to Iona College, I came just in time to see Junior guard Devin Vanderpool seal the victory over a very good Hudson Catholic team. Vanderpool Warned MVP honors with 18 points and five rebounds. Brandon Williams scored 17 points grabbed boards and dished out five assists. Elijah Getrude led Hudson with 25 points and Tahaad Petiford scored 14.
Patrick School 33, Archbishop Stepinac 32
Isaia Griffin scored some key buckets late for TPS as they edged Archbishop Stepinac 33-32. Griffin earned MVP honors as he scored 12 points, grabbed three rebounds and dished three assists. Boogie Fland in his second game back scored 12 points.
Overall New Jersey won this Showcase going 3-2 on the day and has the bragging rights. There’s some speculation that this event will become an annual thing. If and when it does we all are looking forward to it because there’s some dream matchups many people have in mind. Peace to our colleagues and supporters in the Garden State we’ll bounce back for the win in 2023 !
Posh Alexander with one of his best games of the season against Georgetown 17 points , 7 assists, 6 rebounds and 6 steals. Photo Credit: Associated Press
As the 10-5 ( 2-2 in BE) St. John’s Red Storm embarks on a tough stretch of games starting tomorrow when they face Creighton on the road.
Given how St. John’s gave a lot of fans some optimism after they handled Georgetown at home on Sunday afternoon, Wednesday’s game against the Bluejays looks winnable even though they are five point underdogs. The play of some of the supporting cast gives Johnnie fans a lot to be optimistic about.
Last time we seen St. John’s in person was December 18th when they fell to Pitt in their Garden debut. Since then some game cancellations due to COVID have prevented us from covering them in person but I have seen them on TV and there’s alot to be optimistic about going forward.
The Progression of Dylan Addae-Wusu
Dylan Addae-Wusu’s progression in many ways has been a great thing to see and it’s a huge plus for the Red Storm. In the past 4 games Wusu is averaging 15 points per game , 5.75 assists per game and 4.7 rebounds per game. Wusu’s 3pt shooting went up dramatically to 43% from 27% last season. Wusu’s progression is going to come in handy because it gives the Red Storm another offensive piece and it helps ease the scoring load for leading scorer Julian Champangie who can go off for a light 20-25 points in his sleep.
Aaron Wheeler is On His Way
Fans have been waiting for Aaron Wheeler to rise to the occasion and he has. In the last three games, Aaron Wheeler contributed with scoring 15, 13, and 10 points. The Purdue transfer will be a key piece going forward in this stretch on both ends for the Red Storm.
The Mathis Double Figures Effect
The more times Rutgers Transfer Montez Mathis can get in double figures the higher the chances that St. John’s will win the game. The Red Storm are 8-0 when he scores in double figures. Mathis scored 11 points in the win against Georgetown compared that to the two road losses against Providence and Georgetown where he scored four in those games that’s very important. The moral of the story is the red storm looks unstoppable once he’s in double figures.
Capitalize on the small things
Taking care of the basketball, Free throws, and rebounding is going to be very vital in these next few games just like it has been all season. After Creighton, the Red Storm is going up against the tough Seton Hall front court of Ike Obiagu, Tyrese Samuel and Alexis Yetna on Saturday and Monday.
Knowing that the Pirates will be very angry and motivated after being robbed by refs against Marquette on Saturday and getting an extra day to practice due to Tuesday’s Providence game being postponed
As this week of opportunity begins tonight in Omaha, we will get to see how far improved this team is. The losses at Providence and Uconn were proven to be lessons. There’s no denying that if they can win all four or even split these next 4 games they are likely back in the tournament discussion.
The start of the 21-22 high school basketball season started in a somber way for some. Since the Pandemic shut down basketball back in March 2020, many deaths have hit the basketball community hard from the deadly virus and another virus that impacted the community. Gun Violence
The Monroe Eagles 21-22 season opener was a special one as it was dedicated to Brandon Hendricks-Ellison, the Eagles alum who was gunned down on June 28th, 2020 just a few days after his graduation. Since then there have been countless protests and celebrations in his honor, Hendricks number 5 Jersey was retired at the Watson Basketball classic this past summer a decision made by Monroe’s assistant coach and Watson Classic Commissioner Christopher “Glasses” Salgado.
(L-R) Brandon Hendrick’s Parents and relatives, Head coach Nigel Thompson, Rapper B-lovee. Photo Credit: @soru503___
On November 30th, the Monroe staff and school retired his No.5 Jersey at the home opener vs Samuel Gompers. In front of a full gym of fans, community members, and family members of Brandon it was a somber start of the season but the energy was high as they got to celebrate his life and honor him the right way.
As for the game, The Eagles were heavily favored to dominate Gompers but faced some challenges as they were short-handed and were missing their starting five due to many issues some such as awaiting clearance from the league. It was a perfect opportunity for many of the reserves to prove that they belong and get the job done. The team sported new Nike uniforms with the “B5” patch on Jersey while the huge crowd wore red and yellow memorial t-shirts dedicated to Brandon.
Assistant coach Christopher Salgado wearing one of many memorial shirts given to the crowd. Photo Credit: Captured Images
“That day was electric! Says Salgado. Regarding the fact that we were missing five starters, to see the next group of guys came in and continue what Brandon built was real”. Salgado was highly ecstatic as he described that night “ From seeing everyone in the crowd to seeing the players jerseys the energy that night was amazing ! “ Salgado added.
As for the game itself, Monroe dominated early but Gompers showed some fight tying the game halfway through the second quarter. From there, Monroe took over in the second half en route to a 54-40 victory. The game was a big debut for freshman point guard Mo Jaiteh who scored 10 points and five rebounds. Kelvin Urena led the Eagles with 18 points. Johnny Flynn who was the biggest surprise that night scored 14 points and grabbed 10 rebounds “His energy was Amazing” Salgado added.
Mohammed Jaiteh ‘25 rose to the challenge of starting at Point guard vs Samuel Gompers. Photo Credit: @Soru503___
That game marked the start of season two of the Dark Skin “Splash Bros tour” With hosts David “ ChaChing” Teele, Jaden Edwards Aka Mr. Talk Spicy along with DJ The ZooKeeper. The trio was at Monroe back in 2019 to kick off their debut season as Hendricks led the Eagles to an upset win over Wings Academy to kick off the 2019-20 season.
Since the opening night, The Eagles have won two straight and are currently 3-0 with wins over Manhattan Center and Stevenson. Throughout the preseason the Eagles have shown out and proved to many that they are team to keep an eye on this season.
(R-L) Players Donzell Hamilton Jr. And Eddy DelaCruz sport new Nike uniforms with the B5 patch. Photo Credit: Captured Images
As the season continues, the Eagles will look to improve even more as they will look to improve on what Hendricks and other James Monroe alums started.
Real Skills Head Coach Daon Merritt celebrating with his team after winning the 2021 City is Mine Basketball classic in his first year on August 21st, Photo Credit: Ukwan Milliner / Vintagevizuals
The annual City Is Mine Basketball Classic has been one of the best events to end the summer. Four teams representing four Boroughs going at it for bragging rights and Basketball supremacy. The 2021 tournament which made its return on Saturday August 21st after taking a break last year due to Covid-19. This years CIM basketball classic was one of the best I have witnessed in all of the years I have covered the event.
Let’s take a look back at what went down three weeks ago….
The Build up
Leading up to the event on August 21st, CIM released a promo video done by Ukwan Milliner of Vintage Vizuals introducing the four teams that were participating in the event (United Brooklyn, Real Skills, Team Shine , Milbank) The promo vid created a frenzy mainly due to a comment by Team Shine coach Hector Almodovar when he was asked about going up against Real Skills coach Daon Merritt when he said that Merritt “is just a trainer he ain’t a coach”The comment by Almodovar raised the anticipation of the event for everyone across the city.
Team Shine consists of many players from the Riverside Hawks AAU program and is coached by Almodovar and legendary grassroots head coach Dermon Player. Many of their notable players include Many of the top post grad players in the region such as Jay Woodard, Promise Opurum, and Todd Rochelle. Shine also added the tough and outspoken PG Tyler Hawkins to their squad.
Real Skills led by founder and St. Rays product Daon Merritt brought out the top players from the Queens / Long Island area but he also brought a big staff as well. Real Skills staff included Depaul standout and streetball veteran Cliff Clinkscales along with NYC Finest head coach Rob Diaz and Coach Malie Williamson from the Rising Stars AAU program. It was the first appearance for Real Skills majority of the players on Real Skills are from Queens and Long Island
Semifinal action.
The event kicked off with Real Skills beating Shine 85-77 behind a balanced attack from their guards. While seniors Jaquan Sanders and Tyshawn Trail combined for 38 points. Zakai Ziegler and Dwayne Pierce scored 13 and 17 respectively. Wings academy grad and Woodstock academy bound wing Jay Woodard led Team Shine with 26 points. Real Skills was able to fend off a late rally made by Team Shine to seal the win.
The first game set the tone and gave them some momentum heading into the championship. The win was also a statement made for head coach Daon Merritt who May have taken Almodovar’s comment personal.
Up next was 4 time champions Milbank against 2016 champion United Brooklyn coached by Arkansas product Gary Ervin. Even though Milbank are the 4-time champs Coach Rose still sees himself as an underdog just as a way to keep themselves humble but focused on the goal at hand.
Milbank set the tone early getting out to a sizable lead in the first half and then never looked back as they handled United Brooklyn 82-72 behind a 22 point , 8 rebound performance by Dominik Barlow who made his city is mine debut. Zaire Wells added 14 while Cardinal Hayes senior DJ Victory flirted with a triple double (8pts/7assists/5 rebounds). Hayes rising senior Tarique Foster scored 13 but made his presence known throwing down emphatic dunks.
The Chip
After a highly competitive semifinals it was time for the championship where pride and bragging rights were on the line. Both teams knew what was at stake at that point and went at it from the jump.
From the tip Real Skills came out with sense of urgency as they raced out to a 10-4 lead. The lead then went to 26-17 as Tyshawn Trail and Zakai Ziegler went hit timely shots and they turned it up on the defensive end. The first half was quite entertaining as both teams were also trading emphatic dunks that got the crowd hyped.
Fresh off his appearance at Jellyday earlier that Saturday, IMG academy wing Anthony Gilkes came right into the CIM event and went baseline for an emphatic dunk over a defender, Gilkes then followed it up with a fast break dunk. Milbank’s Dominik Barlow countered with a huge fast break dunk over a defender himself. Milbank went on a mini run to close the half but Real Skills went into the half up 28-21 as Mohamed Dioubate blocked a shot at the buzzer gaining confidence and momentum going into halftime.
In the second half Real Skills lead would quickly grow to 15 points with 9:45 remaining leaving the Milbank on the ropes but they would quickly answer back with a huge run fueled by some big shots hit by Jayden Williams and Zaire Wells to cut the lead to six. Team Real Skills had some turnovers and sloppy play which played a huge part in Milbank’s run but they regrouped in the last few minutes to close out Milbank en route to a 63-52 win to become 2021 City is Mine champions.
Tennessee Commit Zakai Ziegler Led three players in double figures with 14 points, six boards and four assists Mouhamed Dioubate came up huge with 13 points and five boards. Tournament MVP and St. John’s commit Jaquan Sanders of Our Savior Lutheran scored 12 points and dished out three assists. In the two games combined, Sanders averaged 15.5 points and 3.5 assists per game.
The Boys from Queens Reign Supreme
From the timely shots hit by guards Jaquan Sanders Tyshawn Trail, and Zakai Ziegler to the toughness and tenacity by Mo Dioubate and Cherif Diarra on the defensive end in the front court. Real Skills proved that the borough of Queens reigned supreme in NYC basketball that Saturday evening. Overall It was an impressive showing by both teams in the game that in our opinion made this years City is mine tournament the best one in the event’s history.
Winning CIM is not the only thing basketball heads from queens are bragging about this summer. NYC finest won the HS division championship or had players from the program win a championship in many of the top summer leagues in the city. Far Rockaway native Jaquan Sanders has emerged as one of the top players of the summer after the live period.
The future continues to be bright for CIM as Bowen, along with Cofounder Carmelo Anthony of the Los Angeles Lakers, is taking the CIM on the road and furthering their expansion to cities such as LA, Washington DC, Chicago, and Philadelphia. CIM already expanded to Baltimore in 2019 as they will be returning there as well in 2022.
From the stacked rosters to the high level competition in all three games there’s no question that the City is Mine Basketball Classic is the new era of Golden Hoops, as Bowen said in the promo video. It’s one of many events where you will see the top upcoming prospects along with the best in the city under one roof.
PSA Cardinals 16U head coach Casey Williams has been coaching the youth in NYC for a long time. So when it came to the NYC Invitational back in April, he felt a sense of nostalgia. “Good old fashion NYC AAU basketball”. Williams said about the prestigious event . “Gauchos gym was a great atmosphere to compete against the locals”. Which is something we have not experienced at all. Five of Grassroots programs four of them representing three major sneaker circuits Nike EYBL, UA Association and Adidas 3SSB.
Five of the top grassroots organizations in the Tri-state area NY Rens, PSA Cardinals, Riverside Hawks, NY Jayhawks and the host organization NY Gauchos had teams from all high school age groups 15-17U participating in mostly scrimmages to work out the kinks with their teams and preview their teams to many college coaches watching virtually and many scouts and media in attendance.
Recently we caught up with some of the players after the event as well as a representative of each organization as they gave their thoughts about the NYC Invitational as well as how they see their teams as they head into their respective circuits in July.
Williams gave some insight into his 16U squad which at the time was just beginning to get used to playing each other at the time. “ I liked how our group rose to the occasion and competed on a big stage” Wiliams added.
The growth of the PSA Cardinals 16U since the NYC Invitational has shown in the recent tournaments they participated in when they won championships in events such as the Hoop Group NJ Jam Fest and The Collision. Offers have been flowing in for all of their players, especially their core group of rising juniors Jayden Lemond, Jayden Reid, Mouhamed Dioubate, and others. The PSA Cardinals 16U squad is set for a big July as they are currently preparing for the EYBL regular season in July.
“ The NYC invitational was ran at a very high level, says PSA Executive director Munch Williams. “ To see many of the top grassroots programs in the NYC area under one roof was a powerful message to the rest of the country the best part was the competition on all grade levels.
The PSA cardinals only participated in the first session of the NYC invitational. Still, since we have seen many of their players in other events since then, we know each squad has a strong nucleus of talent that can compete with some of the best teams in the nation.
PSA Cardinals 16U squad captured The Collision championship on June 6th. Photo Credit: Captured by Mike
The host team of the event New York Gauchos has a lot to be proud about. When I spoke to Boys Director Book Richardson he spoke highly about the growth and unity of the organization. “In terms of the Gauchos I think we are more unified now having a true system in place with our 15,16,17U teams.
“ I’m happy that there is a lot of unity and solidarity with in our program that we haven’t seen in a while Richardson also added”.
The Gauchos had a strong showing at the NYC invitational especially with their 17U team. Zaire Williams a 6-3 shooting guard from Eagle Academy II in Brooklyn came into this event looking to do a post grad year and re-class into the class of 2022 but after his amazing performance at the invitation his stock grew even more and high major schools started to offer, eventually for Williams he found a school he can go to right away in Wagner College in which he committed to a few weeks later. Zaire Wells a 6-6 wing from St. Benedict’s prep in New Jersey is another guard who shined in the invitational and raised his stock even more.
Made an appearance on The Players Circle Weekly Roundup with Miguel Rodriguez to talk about the first session.
The Gauchos 17U squad has a lot of talent on their roster with Iona Prep’s RJ Greene leading the way. The 6-5 wing joined the Gauchos a couple of days after the NYC invitational at the Pittsburgh Jamfest and has been one of many key players for them. We recently seen RJ at The Collison earlier this month when he went off for 23 points against Team New England. The offers continue to roll in for Greene as well as other members of this team.
One thing the Gauchos takes pride in is that they have players in their organization from all age groups playing varsity in both the PSAL and the CHSAA. Markell Alston, Naszaire Simmons and Brandon Williams are just a few of their underclassmen players who have shined so far.
Alston is an eighth-grader playing up in 16U, and he looked like he fit right in. Nazaire Simmons had the big defining moment as a freshman on varsity by scoring the game-winning bucket to beat Xaverian in the CHSAA spring league championship.
As for looking back at the event in April, Richardson takes pride in hosting an event where all of the talent was right in our backyard. “This event was tremendous especially with the for the first time in over a year where you have an AAU event that we didn’t have to travel all over the country to find talent to come play in this event”.
“There’s no venue like Gauchos gym in the country with all of the talent here I’m glad that we were able to put on not only for the city but for the country says Richardson.
(L-R) NY Rens 17U head Coach Andy Borman, NY Jayhawks Executive director Jay David, NY Gauchos Boys Basketball director Book Richardson, PSA Cardinals director / Coach Munch Williams, Riverside Hawks Athletic director Daniel Coloñ. Photo Credit: Hector Martinez / Moving Pictures
As the July Live period looms, we will look forward to seeing the Choz compete with some of the best programs in the nation, and as for their players, more of them will be earning more scholarship offers along the way.
One team that has shown tremendous growth from the 1st to second session of the NYC invitational is the Riverside Hawks 17U team.
In the first session the Hawks got off to the wrong start but showed much growth in the second session. The Hawks proved that when they beat the NY Rens 64-60 in a real game to close out the event back on April 25th.
“ I think we have vastly improved in these past two weeks in the NYC invitational. It was great to play in an event with Local teams from all three sneaker circuits Nike, Adidas and Under Armour”says 17U head coach Dermon Player.
Mount St. Michael Academy senior wing Noah Best left the gym that night with high hopes after the win over the Rens. “ I think our team have a lot of potential we played well against a High level EYBL team and we did real well and we competed so on the UA circuit we are going fo be phenomenal.
If you haven’t been following the Riverside Hawks since April, the Hawks are had a great debut in the UA Association’s Memorial Day tournament in Indiana going 3-2. The Hawks have a great group of guards like Maurice Odum a 6-0 guard from East Harlem who plays high school ball at Union City HS is one player who could flourish in this circuit as he showed in the first session with many big scoring games. Odum who holds an offer from St. Peter’s is one of many players who is set for a big July when the UA Association begins on July 8th in Georgia. Other notable prospects on the Riverside Hawks 17U squad include Todd Rochelle, Promise Opurum, Richard Smith, Jalen Bradberry and more.
As we look forward to part two, we will talk about how arguably two of the deepest teams from April’s NYC invitational look to become contenders in their respective circuits.
Jeremiah “Spook” Green Got an opportunity to attend Mount St. Joseph academy in Vermont thanks to Diamond in the Rough showcase
The Covid 19 pandemic has preempted everything in sports including in-person recruiting and AAU Basketball. It’s something that has forced many to scramble looking for options while others became more creative and used technology to broadcast open runs and workouts via live stream at open places.
Queens Native Kaamil Dillard who has run the Diamond in the Rough showcase in his second year, decided to get creative and have his second annual showcase outside at Ajax Park in South Jamaica Queens on Sunday, August 9th.
Dillard came up with the idea of the showcase to honor his friend Darryl Adams an up-and-coming basketball prospect who was killed near South Jamaica Houses ( also known as 40 Projects) back in March of 2012. Adams who played his high school ball at Thomas Edison HS used basketball to move further away from the rough streets of South Jamaica Queens. Dillard felt that he needed to make a platform for unknown players in NYC to get a chance to show coaches that they can play at the next level. “A couple of friends should have made it out of the hood to play college ball, myself included so I felt it was right to create a platform for players not a lot of people know about,” says Dillard.
Dillard overlooking the action at the August 9th showcase
At the Showcase on that sunny Sunday afternoon, approximately 30 players from Queens and all over the tri-state area ranging from high school upperclassmen to JUCO transfers came through to play in front of a handful of coaches from JUCo’s, prep schools, and small College programs.
Most coaches watched the games on Instagram live, well known local scouts such as Nate Blue of real scout basketball and coach Tom “Tippy” McTernan made their appearance on that day to check out some players. There were also a few prep school and JUCO coaches in the area from Herkimer Community College and Prestige Prep just to name a few.
The extension of the NCAA dead period deferred many coaches from attending events but Bronx native Leshawn Hammett head coach of Penn-State Wilkes-Barre (DII-USCAA) took the opportunity to attend the event and shared his thoughts. “The showcase was a solid event and there was a lot of talent that was there. I come to this event every year and recruit players from this event”. Hammett also named talked about a few players who have impressed him. “Shamel Grant was the best PG there, Dian Wright-Ford is a strong athletic wing. Greg Thurman is one Juco transfer to watch, I also liked Alex McClain and Leon Nicholas they are two big aggressive guards”.
Coach Tom “Tippy “ McTernan of Big Apple Sports was in attendance
When it came to how the games went Hammett added “It was competitive and all games were dog fights.” Andrew Lara and Teequan Holley are two undersized bigs
Having the event at Ajax Park was the last-minute decision after the rims were taken down at the original location in South Ozone Park. Despite that Dillard and his staff still made things work. In the end, many of the participants have either gained offers or signed up with schools and will be heading there this fall.
Notable Participants who have received offers or committed to schools since the event on August 9th.
Shamel Grant’21 6-2 PG, Brooklyn, NY – Committed to Chaffey University (JUCO) in California
Michael Graham’21 6-6 PF, Queens NY On Point Academy ‘21 Offer from Penn State University-Wilkes Barre as well as other schools.
Jeremiah Green 6-0 guard, Queens, NY
Currently attending St. Joseph Academy in Vermont.
Dian Wright-Forde 6-4 shooting guard Upper Room Christian Academy ‘21
Offer from St. Francis Brooklyn
After the event on August 9th, Dillard explained in the interview that he received many calls from coaches asking him to do the event again. This inspired Dillard to make the event bigger and better. Over the past two months, Dillard and his staff have worked hard to get players to sign up to participate in their fall version of the Diamond in the Rough showcase that will be going on tomorrow at the Brooklyn Stuydome.
Coaches from over 30 colleges across all levels and 20-plus prep schools will be in attendance most of them will be watching virtually.
With some uncertainty of the High school basketball season starting, and the recruiting dead period being extended to January, events like Diamond in the Rough showcase will be beneficial for the athletes looking to get recruited.
As for the next steps, Dillard and his staff will look to get more athletes from across the tri-state area and other places to attend as well as put on more exposure events in the future.
BROOKLYN, NY – APRIL 14: West Team guard Lonnie Walker Jr. (15) drives to the basket during the first half of the 2017 Jordan Brand Classic National Boys Game between the West Team and the East Team on April 14, 2017 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY. (Photo by Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire)
Article originally published 4/15/17
Lonnie Walker saves the day for the East Team.
Lonnie Walker scored 19 points and Grabbed MVP honors as the West Team surged past the East Team 124-116 at the 2017 Jordan Brand Classic.
It was a game that was heavily in favor of the East Team for most of the game until late in the 2nd half. The East Team was up 92-89 when Lonnie Walker scored seven straight points to give the East a 96-89 lead.
As walker continued to go on a tear, he often heard chants from the crowd of family members and fans who came all the way from Pennsylvania to see him play. All of them sat in section 31 to see him at play. The presence of his friends and family gave him a sense of being home. “That’s what Reading, Pennsylvania does. Even though we are three hours away, no matter how close we are, we still find ways to be a family.” Same with high school, every single game we played was almost sold out. Mainly we’re just reading fans. So seeing them, it just gave me a lot of energy. It made me so much more active, hyper, and I was motivated by them”. Walker said
When it came to the late run in the second half Walker was very strategic on how he was going to get points . “It’s just knowing my strengths are and knowing what the other team’s weaknesses are. Their defense started to slow down and my transition offensive game it doesn’t take a lot to make those easy buckets I made the game a lot smaller and a lot easier for myself and those points started to come like free candy whatever they gave I took it”. Lonnie’s high IQ showed in this game and it’s something that many Miami fans are going to like about him when he suits up for the hurricanes next season.
One of the top uncommitted seniors Brian Bowen was the Co-MVP as he scored 26 points to lead the East squad, and at that point, his pending college decision was the least of his worries. “During these all-star games, I haven’t been worried about this, just having fun overall. Now it’s a business, and it’s a business decision that I’ll be making this month. Plenary of schools, a lot have tried to get involved since I’m not committed. From winning a championship at the Dick’s nationals in Queens to winning the Co-MVP at the Jordan Brand Classic, NYC has been good to the 6-7 forward from Saginaw, Michigan. “It means a lot. New York is the Big Apple, the big city; it’s a great city. The atmosphere was alive, and I fed off that. I truly had a great time tonight”.
The Covid-19 pandemic has put a halt to everything especially Basketball. Playoffs canceled, in- person recruiting cancelled AAU season in question. So how are some of your favorite teams and coaches dealing with this? Just about everyone is staying positive and adapting to this whole new reality.
A few weeks ago, Ralph Fornoles a referee, coach and creator of the Referee Rant podcast invited me to collaborate on a special podcast series called Pandemic Preempt: A series about the lost season in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.
This first episode is episode 179 of the Referee Rant podcast and it features Stepinac Head Coach Pat Massaroni. Stepinac finished the season 18-9and was coming off of a huge win against division rival St. Raymon’s to win the NY-AA Archdiocesan championship on February 29th. With a highly anticipated matchup against crosstown rival Iona Prep on the horizon, the Covid-19 pandemic started to get worse as the quarterfinals site Fordham University was closed down due to a student being infected.
The Catholic league made adjustments moving the quarterfinals to Stepinac where St. Rays, Scanlan, Archbishop Molloy and St. Francis Prep played. During that time, the pandemic got worst and all over the NBA and NCAA and College basketball conferences started to shut down. From there it was a sure thing that the CHSAA playoffs weren’t going to continue there for putting an end to Stepinac’s historical season a season where it’s star player Mcdonald’s All-American and UNC commit R.J. Davis garnered tons of accolades including CHSAA player of the year, New York’s Mr. Basketball, Gatorade NY player od the year and much more. The Crusaders finished the season with an 18-9 record and was ranked as one of the top 40 schools in the nation.
Ralph Fornoles and myself talked to Massaroni on hosting the quarterfinals, the effect that the pandemic had on his season, his coaching journey and much more.
Hoop Dreams NYC 
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