AAU Summer Action
Bridgeport, CT – When Manute Bol played for the University of Bridgeport in the mid 1980’s, AAU basketball was non-existent. Nowadays, the Amateur Athletic Union has left no stone unturned and it is virtually impossible to find a city that does not feature an AAU club. This Connecticut AAU tournament is sponsored by Adidas and features teams from Boston, Connecticut, New Jersey and Philadelphia with mostly rising sophomores and juniors. These kids will most likely end up at division II or III schools such as UB, Adelphi, Vassar and Eastern who were all in attendance scouting players. The following is a look at players who may end up at the local D-II or III college in your neck of the woods:
Tyrone Pullins was one of the more talented point guards at the summer tournament. Pullins is a generous 5’9″ but makes up for his height in speed. Pullins is a junior out of Bloomfield High School in Newark, New Jersey and has problems, according to people close to him, in the classroom. Pullins has plenty of time to improve his grades at just 16 years of age.
When Kobe Bryant, Richard Hamilton and Hakim Warrick played AAU basketball in their high school days, they played for Sam Rines, who brought his 15 and 16 year olds to this year’s summer tournament. Andrew Ott, a 6’9″, 225-pound sophomore was the most versatile player on the floor for the Sam Rines All-Stars. Ott scored 25 points against St. Benedict’s in a game during the regular season. He has a great touch but is uncoordinated and according to Rines (who’s had Ott in his program since the third grade) he’s being groomed to play like a European. Ott was hoping for an invitation to ABCD but it didn’t happen. He will unofficially visit Georgia Tech and Wake Forest and has been noticed on the radars of West Virginia and the Villanova Wildcats. His teammate, 6’3″, 185-pound Harris Mansel, had a big tournament and is also attracting the likes of some Division I schools, mostly from the CAA and the MAAC.
Chris Pedra, a 6’0″ junior at Avon High School in Connecticut is a solid point guard and says he will most likely attend Hartwick or Trinity. He is an honor student and earned All-State status. Omar James is a 6’10” junior out of Bloomfield High School and like Pedra, James excels in the classroom but could use some improvement in the gym. His footwork and agility needs to improve. With James’ height he can get away with playing center for a D-II or D-III program.
The Connecticut Gold featured the brother’s Reshaun and Jamele Jones. Reshaun is a sophomore at Harding High School and is only 15 years old. He needs to improve his left handle and his footwork defensively. Jamele, a junior, is very athletic and loves to drive the lane but his ball handling is bad and he should try and develop an outside game, which would make him a solid mid-to-lower-level college player. The Zoo Crew, which also participated in the HBC Tournament held at Seton Hall, brought Kelvin Brown. The 6’6″ 15-year old sophomore raised eyebrows with his solid skills on defense. Brown, however, should distribute the ball more often instead of trying to create. He needs to work on his body strength as well. Brown has received interest from FSU, Quinnipiac, Loyola (MD) and American University. Kajuan Rudolph is a 6’3″-6’4″ guard from Easton High School in Pennsylvania. Rudolph is a sophomore and may be a steal for a low-level program if he can improve his game over the next couple of years. Jonathan Cruz is a 6’8″ junior from Lawrenceville, Massachusetts and has started since freshman year. Over the weekend at UB he dominated his opposition and was scoring at his own will.
The host team, the Connecticut Select, featured their top prospect Andrew Patterson. Patterson, a 6’4″, 190-pound rising senior from Simsbury, CT, was a monster on the boards over the weekend. His 10-foot jump shot was hitting consistently and he’s also not afraid to step back and hit the three. Last season Patterson scored 24 points against Dorell Wright and South Kent Prep and 18 points and 20 rebounds (twice) versus St. Andrew’s. Patterson loves to drive to the whole and is a fierce power player. UConn assistant Tom Moore has contacted Patterson as well as Providence, CCSU, and Richmond. His AAU teammate, Keith Cothran, from Hillhouse High School in New Haven CT, is skinny but he is a beast below the basket. The 6’4″, 150-pound rising senior proved he can hit from three-land and according to people close to him, grades are not an issue. Cothran needs to add muscle and work on his shooting. The third member in this trio from the Select is Wayne Portolin. His footwork is poor due to the fact he is not in great shape. At about 6’7″, 195-pounds, the junior Portolin is a bruiser and plays well with his back to the basket.
