PHILADELPHIA – The 2009 Reebok All-American Camp is in the books. With that in mind, we take a look back with a few camp notes and player notes that go beyond the scope of the daily items.
Camp Notes
- There was a noticeable buzz on Friday about a missing presence: players. Several teams had players who left early, as benches with just two or three reserves (instead of five) were spotted. One can imagine why they left early – most likely, for a travel team tournament coming up. While that might explain it, that doesn’t make it right to leave early like that. They were invited to this as an elite camp, some of them earning it through a good showing at a Headliner Tryout Camp, but apparently they didn’t think highly enough of the event to stay through to the end.
- A few injuries occurred, not surprisingly. Besides Michael Cobbins’ injury mentioned in the story on Friday, Khem Birch (6’9″ So. PF-C, Pierrefonds (Que.) Winchendon School) went down with an ankle injury on Wednesday night and did not play the remainder of the camp. Chances are, he will not play at all for the remainder of the first half of the month.
- Not surprisingly, the all-star game selections left plenty of room for debate – enough, in fact, to drive a truck through. The biggest area where this was noticeable was at the point guard spot, which is interesting because the point guard play as a whole was not very impressive here. Besides three point guards for each team, they even put unimpressive Sterling Gibbs (6’1″ Jr. PG, West Orange (NJ) Seton Hall Prep) on one team as a shooting guard, as well as Deion Jackson-Houston (6’0″ So. PG, Grand Prairie (TX) Duncanville HS). Gibbs is a fine prospect, but I have seen him play much better than he did here. Nowhere to be found were Shabazz Napier (6’0″ Jr. PG, Charlestown (MA) Lawrence Academy) or David Joseph (6’0″ So. PG, Hollywood (FL) Zion Lutheran Christian School), both of whom were among the better ones here.
Who made it, you ask? Among them was Tony Chennault (6’2″ Sr. PG, Philadelphia (PA) St. John Neumann-Goretti), a Wake Forest commit and a local player. I’ve never been a fan of his, and he did nothing here to change that.
Another interesting selection was Kyle Anderson (6’7″ So. SF, Paterson (NJ) Catholic HS). He’s a fine prospect and could develop into a point forward or even a big point guard, but he didn’t play well enough here to deserve this.
- While the point guard play wasn’t stellar, interestingly there were probably more post players who impressed. That doesn’t happen often in these settings since guards tend to dominate the ball so much.
Player Notes
Devonta Abron (6’7″ Jr. PF, Seagoville (TX) High) held his own alongside two other good frontcourt players. The lefty went to work inside, for the most part, although he did settle for a couple of shots later on the perimeter along with the three-pointers he did make. His body isn’t there yet, and he is undersized for the power forward spot, but there’s certainly some potential here.
Waverly Austin (6’11” Sr. C, Fernanding Brach (FL) God’s Academy) gave a solid showing on the post. He has a mature body and some scoring tools, as he’s capable of going up with either hand on a post move and got his share of stickbacks as he was always active inside.
Jaylen Bond (6’7″ Jr. SF, Plymouth Meeting (PA) Plymouth Whitemarsh HS) has often looked like he should be better than he is, and this week was no exception. With his body, he certainly passes the “look” test, but he wasn’t really a factor here as he missed several close shots.
Jason Carter (6’7″ Sr. PF, Richmond (TX) Thurgood Marshall HS) has some potential, as the lefty has a good frame and scored well inside, at times using a power move to beat his defender. On one play, he finished the fast break, but he won’t often do that unless he improves his conditioning.
Darrun Hilliard (6’4″ Jr. SG-SF, Bethlehem (PA) Liberty HS) has a ways to go physically but a lot of potential. The lefty is athletic, was good in transition and had a nose for the ball, while also showing a touch from mid-range.
Rodney Hood (6’8″ Jr. SF-PF, Jackson (MS) Meridian HS) is a nice prospect who quietly played well here. The lefty made some shots and got several stickbacks on the offensive glass, he’s athletic and his body isn’t there yet.
Tyree Johnson (5’9″ Sr. PG, Darby (PA) Penn Wood HS) was among the better point guards here, as he scored in several ways including a touch from long range, was able to drive right through a gap in the defense if it was present, and made some good lead passes.
Cody Kale (6’3″ Sr. SG, Rocklin (CA) High) tried driving to the basket often and had mixed success, as finishing proved to be a real challenge. At times, he dribbled too much and seemed intent on trying to score, and that didn’t make sense since it’s not like he can’t shoot.
Willy Kouassi (6’10” Jr. C, Miami (FL) Center of Life Academy) quietly had a good camp. He’s long and has a thin upper body, but he rebounded at both ends and blocked some shots along the way. When he adds strength, he could be a difficult player to rebound against.
Shane Larkin (5’11” Jr. PG, Orlando (FL) Dr. Phillips HS) was tough to figure out. The son of former shortstop Barry Larkin, he was inconsistent but clearly has talent, as he showed a touch from three-point range but generally struggled largely due to some ill-advised shots he took.
Danny Lawhorn (5’10” Sr. PG, Hartford (CT) South Kent School) quietly had a good showing, using his quickness to blow by defenders on a few occasions for layups and also leading the fast break quite capably.
Patrick Lucas-Perry (5’11” Jr. PG, Grand Blanc (MI) Powers Catholic HS) had his moments and was better at the end of the camp than early on. A small point guard, he scored shooting from mid-range or long range and wasn’t hindered by contact when finishing near the basket.
Jonathan Marsh (6’0″ Sr. PG, Buffalo (NY) Lee Academy) was under the weather but acquitted himself well. His body still has a ways to go, but he can score and has made strides in terms of his decision-making.
Keaton Miles (6’6″ Jr. SF, Dallas (TX) Lincoln HS) seemingly flew under the radar. An athletic wing, his body isn’t there yet and he got his share of transition baskets.
J.J. Moore (6’5″ Sr. SG-SF, Brentwood (NY) High) looks more and more like an excellent wing prospect. He shot the ball well here and simply plays the game well, much like he did during the spring.
Anthony Myles (6’3″ Sr. SG-SF, Dover (DE) Polytech HS) looks the part of your typical “scorer not a shooter” type of wing. The lefty is a plus athlete who got some transition opportunities, but he has a shaky jump shot release and the results bore out that it’s not good.
Ryan Rhoomes (6’8″ Sr. PF, Flushing (NY) Cardozo HS) had a fine showing and got better every day. He’s always been an athletic rebounder at the power forward spot, but he showed some good offense here as well.
Travis Robinson (6’5″ Sr. SF, Philadelphia (PA) Friends Central HS) had a reputation as a scorer who couldn’t shoot, but he took steps toward changing that. He shot it well here from long range and not just in one game, and that’s a good development considering he looks to be mature physically and thus won’t be getting another physical boost.
Derrick Wilson (6’1″ Jr. PG, Anchorage (AK) Hotchkiss School) is a nice prospect who plays physical basketball and doesn’t shy away from contact. He’s not the most offensively gifted player, but the intangibles are great.
