The Phenom Hoop Report with summary and evaluation of the MLK Day Games at the Greensboro Coliseum

Courtesy of Rick Lewis at the Phenom Hoop Report

Event: Hoop Hall Classic & NC MLK Scholastic Showcase

The Evaluator: Rick Lewis

You can reach Rick on Twitter: @Coach_Rick57

Website: www.phenomhoopreport.com

Phenom Quote of the Day: Play as a team and eliminate all thoughts of
personal glory.

Phenom Hoop Report Philosophy: Balanced, thorough and detailed evaluations
based upon the 3 P’s philosophy of Performance, Production, and Potential

In today’s issue, we will review the action at the 2012 Spalding Hoop Hall
Basketball Hall of Fame Classic and the 10th Annual MLK Day North Carolina
Scholastic Classic. We have a lot to cover so let’s get started.

We will move right to the action on Monday at the 10th Annual MLK Day North
Carolina Scholastic Classic and finish with some final thoughts on the 2012
Spalding Hoop Hall Classic.

In one of the day’s most surprising games was between High Point Wesleyan
and Greenfield. HPW entered the contest with a 10-3 record and has one of
the state’s most talented trios in 6’7 senior SF Montay Brandon (Florida
State), 6’5 sophomore WG Theo Pinson, and 6’0 sophomore PG Jaquel Richmond.
Greenfield is led by 6’8 senior WF Aaron Roundtree (Wake Forest) and 6’4
senior WF Sam Hughes (UNC-Asheville) who was the difference maker for the
game as Greenfield won going away with a 73-64 victory over High Point
Wesleyan. Between Brandon, Pinson, Richmond and Roundtree, you have four
high major college players, but it was the play of Hughes that made the
biggest impression. Hughes finished the game with 22 points while Roundtree
had another all around performance with 15 points. In addition, Greenfield
got balance scoring as 5?11 senior PG T.J. Hinnant chipped in 14 points
while 6?3 junior SG Jordan Sharpe finished with 10 points. Theo Pinson led
the way for HPW with 16 points while Montay Brandon chipped in 15 points and
Jacquel Richmond finished with 12 points. While Greenfield?s coach Rob
Salter is one of the state’s best coaches, he too was surprised with the
impressive win over a very talented Wesleyan team. Greenfield who is ranked
number 1 in the NCISAA 1-A led by as many as 17 points in the 3rd quarter
over the NCISAA 3-A number 5 team in the 3rd quarter. Greenfield now moves
to 16-1 for the season while High Point Wesleyan drops to 10-4.

In the city matchup between private school Greensboro Day and Greensboro
Smith, it was Coach Freddy Johnson and the Bengals winning easily over cross
town Smith by the score of 61-48. As usual, it was a total team effort on
behalf of Greensboro Day and balanced scoring once again was the point of
the day for the Bengals. 6’3 senior SG Reed Lucas led the way with 17 points
and his stock continues to soar. Lucas has always been an excellent catch
and shoot player, but he has added strength and athleticism to his game and
is able to put the ball on the floor with authority as he made a nifty
baseline cross-over move for a beautiful slam dunk that put the explanation
point for his MVP performance. Without question, schools in the Big South
and Southern Conference should definitely be recruiting his young man. He
has outstanding basketball IQ and has a great feel for the game. 6’7 senior
PF Quayshad Williams chipped in 10 points and is quickly regaining his
stamina after pre-season injuries. Williams made a big time college low post
move where he had a drop step and then went in for a reverse layup that
showcased his skill and ability. He is another player area schools in the
Big South and Southern Conference should be recruiting. 6’7 junior Christian
Hairston finished with 9 points while 5’10 PG Eastern Michigan signee Jalen
Ross chipped in 8 points. Hairston is a long and athletic WF that rebounded
well and has the ability to put the ball on the floor. Ross is simply the
engine of the Bengals well balanced team. He is a heady PG that plays with
excellent poise and will be an excellent prospect for Eastern Michigan.
Greensboro Smith was led by 6’5 senior WF Adrian Wimbach with 15 points
while 6?3 senior WG Tracy Gathings chipped in 14 points.

In the fifth game of the day, it was Oak Hill Academy vs. Greensboro Dudley.
Oak Hill was fresh off its impressive win Saturday over Prestonwood and flew
home Sunday. Oak Hill players attended class on Monday and then made the 2 ½
hour drive down to the Greensboro Coliseum. Oak Hill won easily by the score
of 84-58 and it was another good homecoming for senior PG Tyler Lewis. Lewis
finished with 21 points going 7-11 from the floor (2-4 from the 3 point
line) and 5-6 from the free throw line. Jordan Adams tallied 16 points going
6-15 from the floor (2-7 from the 3 point line) and 2-2 from the free throw
line. AJ Hammons continued his impressive play with 10 points, 8 rebounds
and 4 block shots while RJ Curington enjoyed double digit scoring with 10
points going 4-7 from the floor (1-1 from the 3 point line) and 1-3 from the
free throw line. D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera finished with 9 points going 4-9
from the floor (1-3 from the 3 point line) The top player for Greensboro
Dudley is 6’1 junior PG Sam Hunt who is a legitimate division one prospect.
Oak Hill now moves to 28-0 for the season and should secure the number one
spot in both USA Today and the ESPN high school poll.

In the final game of the day and the most exciting game, it was High Point
Christian squeaking out a 59-58 OT win over Quality Education. Leading 52-48
with less than a minute remaining, HPC could have iced the game on several
occasions but missed 7-8 free throws that allowed QEA to get back into the
game. Coach Brandon Clifford and HPC moves to an impressive 19-0 record for
the season while QEA falls to 12-4. Leading the way for HPC was 5?11 junior
PG Diante Baldwin with 23 points. Baldwin is a crafty and quick PG that can
easily get into the lane. Without question, Baldwin is a solid division I
prospect and area schools in the Big South and Southern Conference should
continue to monitor and recruit. Baldwin attended the 8th Annual NC Phenom
150 Camp last October and below is our evaluation of him.

Player: 5’11 Diante Baldwin

Hometown: Greensboro, NC

School: High Point Christian

Grade: 11 (Class: 2013)

Evaluation: IQ Baldwin recently ?reclassed? to the 2013 class with his
transfer to High Point Christian and he is another name MM schools will want
to monitor. Baldwin has sneaky athleticism and has exceptional ball
handling and passing skills. He sees the floor really well. Baldwin does
have good strength and athleticism and even had a few nice dunks in
transition. Overall, Baldwin is a very active PG that has good fundamentals
and basketball.

Next up for HPC is the ever improving Jackson Kent. The 6’7 junior WF has
always been known as a lights out shooter, but he has improved his
athleticism and especially his lateral quickness. He has also shown the
ability to handle the PG responsibilities if need be. Kent also attended the
NC Phenom 150 camp last October and here’s what he had to say about him
then.

Player: 6’7 Jackson Kent

Hometown: Greensboro, NC

School: High Point Christian

Grade: 11 (Class 2013)

Evaluation: Kent recently transferred to High Point Christian and reclassed
to the 2013 class. Kent is another regular at the NC Phenom 150 camp and I?m
totally impressed with his improvement over the past year. Basically known
as a dead eye from the 3 point territory, he has worked hard on his ball
handling and passing skills and has really raised his level of play. He even
played PG at times at camp. Kent is excellent in transitions and with
improved strength and quickness, he is more comfortable attacking the basket
and finishing well. He has always been a fundamentally sound player with a
high basketball IQ and is a legit D1 prospect.

That being said, Kent continued improvement will garnish interest from mid
majors and even some high majors. Currently, Kent has the overall skills and
ability to score and the next step in his development is to gain strength.
If he continues to improve as much in the next two years as he has in the
past year, don’t be surprised to see him playing at a high level. Kent
finished with 16 points. 6’11 junior center Chuck Ogbodo played with a
severe ankle sprain and gave 100% effort, but it was evident he was having
trouble playing on it. He had little to no elevation but one has to give the
young man tons of credit for playing with heart and passion. Below is our
evaluation from our NC Phenom 150 Camp on Ogbodo.

Player: 6’11 Chuck Ogbodo

Hometown: High Point, NC

School: High Point Christian

Grade: 11 (Class: 2013)

Evaluation: Ogbodo is a very long and athletic center that is starting to
garnish interest from ACC schools. He is a quick leaper and is excellent in
transition. He has a tremendous wing span and is definitely a defensive
presence in the paint. He alters and blocks a lot of shots due to this
length and timing. Like many athletic big men, he is more advanced on the
defensive end of the floor, but is making huge strides in his overall
offensive development. If he continues to improve his overall game in the
next year as he has in the past year, he will definitely be a major target
of HM schools. When you are 6?11 young, energetic, athletic and have the
length, quickness and bounce, high majors will quickly take notice. The next
step for his development is play hard consistently on both ends of the
court.

Leading the way for Quality Education was 6’4 senior combo guard Tevin
Findlay. Findlay tallied 13 points while 6’7 senior PF Dominique Williams
tallied 11 points. QEA has tons of talent and 6?9 Freshman Ibrahima Diallo
is a promising young prospect that high majors should be all over.

Prior to leaving for the 2012 Spalding Hoop Hall of Fame Classic, Oak Hill
returned to school after a ten day lay-off. They played Christian Faith
Academy and won easily by the score of 87-57. Jordan Adams led the way with
25 points going 10-21 from the floor (1-4 from the 3 point line) and 4-6
from the free throw line. He also grabbed 10 rebounds for a double-double
for another solid all around performance. D?Vauntes Smith-Rivera tallied 18
points going 6-11 from the floor (3-5 from the 3 point line) and 3-4 from
the free throw line. Tyler Lewis pumped in 17 points going 5-11 from the
floor (1-3 from the 3 point line) and 6-8 from the free throw line. Lewis
also dished out 5 assists and had 3 steals. AJ Hammons also finished with a
double-double with 11 points and 15 rebounds. Oak Hill now stood with a 26-0
record and traveled to Springfield, Massachusetts against national
powerhouse and the prestigious City of Palms Champions Prestonwood High
School of Texas.

Oak Hill jumped on Prestonwood early and never looked back as they recorded
an impressive 85-55 win over a really good team. One of the unsung heroes
for Oak Hill was 7?0 senior center AJ Hammons. Hammons set the tone early on
both ends of the court. While his stat line will not wow you, but it was his
enormous frame and girth that created problems for 6?9 Junior All American
Julius Randle and 6?9 Kansas signee Zach Peters. Hammons finished with 6
points and 8 rebounds while blocking 4 shots and even dished out 2 assists.
More importantly, Hammons altered countless shots for the opposing team and
his presence alone in the middle was huge. Leading the way for Oak Hill was
Jordan Adams with 23 points. Adams was an efficient 9-14 from the floor (5-7
from the 3 point line) and had 4 rebounds, 3 steals and 3 assists. Simply
put, this was Adams best game of the season and it came at the opportune
time. D?Vauntes Smith-Rivera tallied 16 points going 5-17 from the floor
(2-9 from the 3 point line) and 4-4 from the free throw line and also dished
out 4 assists. Tyler Lewis finished with 15 points going 5-9 from the floor
(3-4 from the 3 point line) and 2-2 from the free throw line. Lewis also
dished out 10 assists and had 4 rebounds and recorded 4 steals to record an
effective and efficient floor game. Charlotte signee 6?6 PF Darion Clark
also got into double figures with 10 points going 5-6 from the floor and
also collected 6 rebounds.

For Prestonwood, 6?9 PF Julius Randle finished with 23 points going 10-23
from the floor (0-3 from the 3 point line) and went 3-3 from the free throw
line. Randle also collected a team high 9 rebounds. Kansas signee Zach
Peters tallied 9 points going 3-9 from the floor and 3-5 from the free throw
line. Peters also collected 4 rebounds for Prestonwood. Rounding out the
bright spots for Prestonwood was 6?8 freshman sensation Mickey Mitchell who
some are already touting as the best freshman in the country. Mitchell
finished with 9 points going 3-9 from the floor (3-6 from the 3 point line.

For the game, Oak Hill shot the ball extremely well and they went 51% from
the floor and an impressive 52% from the 3 point line. They also went 8-8
from the free throw line. On the other hand, Prestonwood shot 38% for the
game and only 27% from the 3 point line. That being said, the big difference
in the game was the ability of Oak Hill to share the ball as they had 19
assists for the game.

In another marquee matchup on Saturday, Gonzaga (Washington DC) defeated
Riverside of New Orleans by the score of 77-65. The star of the game
belonged to 6?6 junior Kris Jenkins as he tallied a game high 30 points
going 12-16 from the floor (2-4 from the 3 point line) and 4-6 from the free
throw line. Jenkins also grabbed 11 rebounds to record an impressive
double-double. We went back to the Phenom Hoop Report archives from August
2010 and this is what we had to say about Jenkins two years ago.

August, 2010

Player: 6?6 Kris Jenkins

High School: Gonzaga

Hometown: Upper Marlboro

Class: 2013

Phenom Hoop Report: HM-

Jenkins is a strong and powerful PF that uses his strength extremely well.
HE may be one of the best young 6?6 PF that really knows how to use his body
and post up on the block. He has really soft hands and does an excellent job
of finishing in the paint. In addition to being a strong PF, he has the
ability to step out and know down the open 15 foot jumper to be a nice face
up 4.

It looks like we were again spot on in our evaluation of Jenkins two summers
ago!

6?1 junior PG Nate Britt finished with 16 points going 7-16 from the floor
(0-1 from the 3 point line) and 2-2 from the free throw line. Britt dished
out 2 assists, but had an enormously high 8 turnovers for the game. For
Riverside, it was 6?8 senior PF Ricardo Gathers leading the way with 22
points going 8-21 from the game (0-2 from the 3 point line) and 6-7 from the
free throw line. Gathers also grabbed 8 rebounds for the game. Gathers is
simply a ?man among boys? and his strong physical play always leaves you
with a lasting impression of the coveted unsigned senior. Gathers already
sports a NBA body and knows how to use his body extremely well in the post
area. That being said, we felt Gathers settled for too many midrange jumpers
and didn?t attack the basket as in previous tournaments. In addition, he
does have a nice mid range jumper. We were also impressed with the play of
senior SG Lucas Martin-Julien who finished with 19 points. Martin-Julien
went 8-17 from the floor (2-4 from the 3 point line) and 1-2 from the free
throw line. That being said, college coaches should put the following names
in their SIM card for future reference. 6?1 freshman PG Tharvon Julien
finished with 11 points going 4-7 from the floor (1-1 from the 3 point line)
and 2-2 from the free throw line. While he does possess outstanding speed
and quickness, the next step in his development is to play more under
control and cut down on careless turnovers, which is typical of a young PG.
Another name to remember is 6?9 8th grader Khalea Turner who finished with 7
points. This young man has a soft touch around the basket and has huge and
soft hands which are a complete luxury for big men.

The game changing stat was the inability of Riverside to take care of the
basketball. Riverside committed 19 turnovers and only had 7 assists for the
game. On the other hand, Gonzaga had 15 turnovers but had 16 assists for the
game.

Final thoughts from the 2012 Spalding Hoop Hall Classic

All Tourney Players:
National: Shabazz Muhammad, Bishop Gorman

2012 Hoophall Classic All-Tournament First Team
Shabazz Muhammad, Bishop Gorman
Nerlens Noel, Tilton
Tyler Lewis, Oak Hill
Aaron Thomas, Brewster
Kyle Anderson, St. Anthony

2012 Hoophall Classic All-Tournament Second Team
Dominic Artis, Findlay
Kris Jenkins, Gonzaga
Katin Reinhardt, Mater Dei
Grant Jerrett, LaVerne Lutheran
Jabari Parker, Chicago Simeon

While we were not physically able to watch the Sunday and Monday games in
person of the 2012 Spalding Hoop Hall Classic, we were fortunate to tape
and watch the games shown on ESPN. After watching Shabazz Muhammad countless
times this past summer, there is no question that he is the number one
player in the 2012 class and there is no close second. In addition, we
simply don?t buy the fact that many scouting experts are touting junior
Jabari Parker as the best player in the country regardless of class. I will
agree Parker may be the most complete all around player and his overall
skill package at 6?8 is second to none. That being said, the Phenom Hoop
Report went against ?conventional wisdom? and selected 6?11 Nerlens Noel as
the number one player in the 2013 class and here are the reason why. First
of all, Noel may be the best defensive player at the high school level since
a Patrick Ewing or Alonzo Mourning and his ability to change the outcome of
the game is unequal without scoring a single point! That being said, his
defensive and shot blocking ability is far ahead of his offensive skill set,
however after watching his development and improvement on the offensive end
of the court against Brewster, we are confidence that Noel may even become
the number one pick in the draft by the time he enters his name for the NBA.
Below is our evaluation from this past August after watching him at the NBA
Players Camp.

August 2011 Report

Player: 6?11 Nerlens Noel

High School: Tilton School

Hometown: Tilton, MA

Class: 2013

Committed: Undecided

Phenom Hoop Report: What is there not to like about this young man! Noel is
an extremely long and athletic shot blocking machine and is one of the few
players in the country that can impact a game without scoring a single
point. His length, timing, and quick bounce off the floor are a recipe for
many balls ending up in the first and second row of spectators. On the
offensive end of the floor, he didn?t get many touches but that had little
to no effect on his ability to play hard and with a passion and purpose.
While Noel only averaged 7.4 PPG, he put together two strong performances in
the semi final game and also in the championship game. (18 & 15 points
respectively) His team lost by one point and if his team had won, one could
make a strong argument that he could have been named the tournament MVP. The
majority of his points came off missed shots and running the floor in
transition, but in a few games we noticed him taking a jump hook shot as his
main offensive weapon. Without question, Noel has no equal on the defensive
end of the floor and reminds me of a younger and lankier Alonzo Mourning.

In the next couple of days, we will be updating our 2012 national rankings!

10 thoughts on “The Phenom Hoop Report with summary and evaluation of the MLK Day Games at the Greensboro Coliseum

  1. Don’t you think, in the interest of full disclosure, that people should be told when you run these Phenom Hoop Reports touting, among others, Tyler Lewis, that the guy doing this evaluation is his dad, Rick?

    No doubt Tyler is a player, but having his dad ranking him and putting him on all-star teams is a pretty blatant conflict of interest.

  2. We can do that in the future, but most of the people that follow basketball on a consistant basis already know Rick is Tyler’s dad and from all the critics that we have been reading, they have Tyler rated right where his dad has him or above that mark……His coach Steve Smith said as much or more in Ed Hardin’s article(N&R) and Ed Hardin had plenty of positives for Tyler’s efforts yesterday…..I have been following the kid since he was in the 8th grade and he keeps on getting better….Many of the passes that he was making on Monday, he won’t be able to make all of those type of passes in college because of the level of competition, but I would tell his teammates and especially those inside, to be aware and to stay ready….The ball will get to you, you just have to be looking up at all times….Tyler scored a good number of points on Monday(21) and if the game was closer, he might not have gotten as many…His Oak Hill teammtes might not have been inclined to give the ball back once they got it in their hands and he may have been looking more to pass first/shoot second in a tighter game…Who knows, all speculation, but l liked what I saw and wish him the best….And his dad did recognize this web site on Monday and so did Bob Gibbons, so they all know we are out here somewhere……

  3. I don’t think his Dad is putting him on any all star teams. I’m pretty sure these are voted on by people at the tournament, he is just reporting it. I have watched him play over the last few years and he deserves any awards he gets. He always plays hard and plays the game the way it is supposed to be played.

  4. To J.D. Springer: For anyone that has read this blog for more than 2 month, they would know who the different parties are at this point. Regardless, your statement is fine on the surface but I am not aware of Rick Lewis making an outrageous comments or statements that would discredit his information. Why would he need to disclosure that he is Tyler’s dad everytime information is published here? If he was Tyler’s coach, would he be required to disclosure that he is also his dad before making comments either negative or positive? The bottomline is that the information is useful and a good read. I don’t carry who Rick is the father of or who he is connected to – I just like to read about kids that I have seen or may see down the line. It adds value to the experience.

  5. @ Get Real: I’m sure most of the people reading this site know the relationship between Rick and Tyler, but I’m also sure that some don’t. And in all the reports from Rick I’ve seen posted on here touting his son — and other players — I’ve never seen that fact mentioned once. As I said, Tyler is a player and no one is questioning his ability to compete at the highest level. It’s just a little bit disingenuous to have a kid’s dad writing about him — no matter how unbiased he may be — and not tell those who might not know that he’s the kid’s dad. It would be like Dell Curry writing a scouting report on Steph or Seth and not mentioning that he’s their dad.

  6. The fact that some people just started reading this site or don’t know the relationship of Rick and Tyler does not matter, if Rick does this type of scout reporting regular basis. If a person does scouting reports and runs a “scouting” service for all kids, then that person does not necessarily have to report or keep reporting that they are that persons parent. Again this just leads no where. Your logic “J.D. Springer” would suggest that a head coach should not start their kid and never ask them to be the pressure shooter or “the man”. At some point, you are not being fair to the kid either.

  7. yall need to get over the tyler lewis mania, its pathetic…also somebody needs to give it up for sam hunt, he balled out and played well even though he didnt have much help.

  8. This is crazy!!!!! or as many years that I have been reading Greensboro Sports, I have never seen so much coverage on here about Tyler Lewis. No disrecpect to the kid, but he’s not even from GREENSBORO!!!!! If this is the case you should be talking about Rodney Purvis or Montay Brandon just as much as Tyler Lewis. Like NG Fan said, You guys should be talking about Sam Hunt and how well he is playing this year. I believe that he is the best player in his conference and in Greensboro. If you payed close attention to the Oak Hill game, they tried a lot of different kids on him and he still got the job done. And i I’m not mistaken those guys are going to Goergetown, UCLA,etc. So lets give credict where is due. Cudo’s to Sam Hunt. If he didn’t have any offers before Monday, I’m sure that Coach Price phone is ringing now!! Besides Diante Baldwin, SAm was the most impressive guy there to me on Monday.

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