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Fullcourt Press Southern California
Class of 2011 Rankings:
Part V – Centers/Power Forwards
(July 2, 2010)
This is the 5th (and final part) of a five part series of 2011 rankings that has been released over the past few weeks. Unlike some other media sources that don’t fully understand that the college and pro game positions are inherently different for many reasons too detailed to discuss here, the Fullcourt Press has always broken down its rankings into 5 different position areas: (a) Centers/Post-Forwards, (b) Combo-Forwards, (c) Wing Forwards/Off-Guards, (d) Combo-Guards and (e) Point Guards. These position categories reflect how multi-dimensional the college game has become and how much the concept of “versatility” is valued by college coaches.
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These rankings reflect both current player talent level/skills as well as their “upside” or potential. The Fullcourt Press also tends to value “intangibles” (e.g. work-ethic, attitude, character, leadership, basketball IQ, etc.) more than several of our fellow West Coast scouts. We also feel that projecting a player’s potential involves not just looking forward but also reflecting on a player’s past body of work. We believe that this overall and comprehensive perspective gives us a better read of a player’s present and future capabilities. We have ranked the top players in each of our five position categories from 1-10 with others deserving consideration listed further below. For purposes of these rankings: “Southern California” is the area bordering the Fresno area to the north and the Mexican Border to the south.
We will update these 2011 rankings again in late August/early September – after we get a chance to digest how much all of these players either improve or digress between now and the end of the July recruiting period. Additional players will be added to the list below in future reports as we get a chance to see and discover other prospects at future events like the Fullcourt Press All-West Camp this summer.
Listed below are the top Centers/Power-Forwards in Southern California’s Class of 2011. While there is a lot of quality depth at this position (8 are potential high-major candidates), nobody has really established himself as the top dog yet in this SoCal class although Smith has emerged as the current best back-to-the-basket offensive player.
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2011 Centers/Power Forwards
1. Kenyatta Smith 6’8”
Flintridge Prep (La Canada CA)
While not the best athlete in this Top 10, Smith has proven this spring that he is the best pure “back-to-the-basket” post player in Southern California. Soft hands allow him to catch the ball on the block in traffic while his improved footwork allows him to evade post-defenders for an array of quality post moves including a drop-step turn-around off-the glass baseline jumper as well as an impressive baby hook. Smith’s strong performance at the recent Pangos All-American Camp earned him an invite to last month’s NBPA Camp in Charlottesville VA. Smith’s consistent play this spring as well as his huge personal improvement gives him the edge for the current #1 spot at this position.
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Excellent student is hearing from a growing list of schools including Stanford, UCLA, Arizona, Cal, Northwestern and most of the IVY League (including Harvard).
2. Norvel Pelle 6’10”
Price (Los Angeles CA)
Very long but ultra-thin post is an excellent shot-blocker and a skywalking player in transition. Pelle may have the most upside of any post player in this group but his effort is often lacking too much of the time and keeps him from realizing his very real pro potential. Pelle is a good kid with a tremendous sense of humor and his maturity both on and off the court will largely determine if he will become the dominant college player I believe he can be. Kansas, Washington, UCLA, Arizona, St. John’s (attended the Red Storm’s elite camp in June), Oklahoma, Arizona State, Maryland and UTEP are among the long list of schools involved.
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3. Angelo Chol 6’8”
Hoover (San Diego CA)
Athletic and springy shotblocker has been a mainstay of several national recruiting lists for the past few years, but his play this past HS season and spring have been inconsistent to say the least. Angelo runs the floor very well and is active on the glass but his offensive post moves are raw and not yet polished. While showing flashes of an ability to score around the cup, Angelo is too often a non-factor on the offensive end. Chol has narrowed his college list to 5 schools: Washington, Connecticut, Kansas, Georgetown and Alabama.
4. Kevin Johnson 6’10”
Taft (Woodland Hills CA).
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Johnson (who sat out this past HS season per CIF transfer rules) is also (like Pelle and Chol) a model of inconsistent post play. Long, physical and athletic, Kevin has had his moments – like at the Pump Spring Classic in Las Vegas where he led his Cal Supreme squad past Pump-n-Run Elite in the event’s championship game – but he has been AWOL at other times. Big center prospect has all the tools to be an excellent rebounder and defender but his desire and commitment to the game are questions yet to be fully answered. Academics are also a reported issue.
5. Ronnie Stevens 6’9”
Serra (Gardena CA)
One of the most improved power-forwards on the West Coast has gasoline hose arms and is very agile and active around the cup. Underrated mid-range jump shooter can also finish around the basket but his real strength is his
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excellent rebounding and his ability to defend in the paint. Stevens was impressive at last month’s Pangos All-American Camp – earning a selection to the Top 50 game there. In a class that lacks quality size on the both the regional and national levels, Stevens should be given a long look by HM programs looking to add quality forwards to their programs. Hearing from Colorado, Oregon, Gonzaga, UTEP, SMU, San Diego State, Creighton, Bradley, Colorado State, UCSB (unofficially visited) and Colgate.
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6. Damien Cain 6’6” Harvard-Westlake (North Hollywood CA)
Active power-forward with a nice back-to-the-basket game is a dependable mid-range scorer too. Good student at an excellent academic HS is hearing from Oregon, Gonzaga, Butler, New Mexico, Utah, UTEP, San Diego State, Colorado State and UC-Santa Barbara.
7. Greg Sequele 6’8” Ribet Academy (Los Angeles CA)
Bouncy forward import from Guadeloupe is a very long athlete that plays above the rim and is also a dangerous threat in transition. Greg played very well at the Fullcourt Press Easter Classic in Las Vegas this past April and his emerging development as a potential HM prospect will draw increased attention from a variety of schools in the July period.
8. Kyle Caudill 6’11” Brea (Brea-Olinda CA)
Huge center has a decent face-up scoring touch that extends to the 3-point line, but does not move well enough to compete effectively against high-major athletes and lacks the physicality and aggressiveness to be a force near the cup. Terrific student is drawing looks from Cal, Stanford and other academic-minded institutions.
9. Dorian Cason 6’7” Summit (Fontana CA)
Underrated PF is coming on strong and is a dependable rebounder and defender as well as a polished scorer on the block. Carson more than held own at the recent Pangos All-American Camp. Mid-major-plus prospect.
10. Xavier Jones 6’7” La Verne Lutheran (La Verne CA)
Power-forward with a strong physique has really improved his scoring skills and is a hard-worker on the glass. Very good student is hearing from UTEP, Colorado, SMU, Colgate, UC-Davis and Harvard.
Other 2011 Centers/Post-Forwards To Watch
(in alphabetical order)
* Mookie Beard 6'7” El Camino (Oceanside CA)
Burly rebounder holds his own in the paint.
* Dillon Biggs 6’7” Dorsey (Los Angeles CA)
Agile forward moves well and has a nice pull-up jumper but needs to improve post scoring skills.
* David Burton 6’7” Harvard-Westlake (North Hollywood CA)
Big body (220 lbs) is an excellent student.
* Chen Cai 6’7” Maranatha Christian (San Diego CA)
Skilled post is a wide-body that can score but his lack of defensive quickness is a concern. Good student.
* Chris Dees 6’8” Verdugo Hills (Tujunga CA)
Rugged rebounder and interior defender is also a solid student.
* Marcus Fuggins 6’8” Citrus Hill (Perris CA)
Physical interior player is a SoCal sleeper.
* Justin Kaminski 6’6” Los Alamitos (Los Alamitos CA)
Hard-working post player has improved footwork.
* Aaron Liberman 6’9” Valley Torah (Valley Village CA)
Long but thin center is energetic and has a nice face-up game. Excellent student.
* Paulin Mbawe 6’8” East Valley (Redlands CA)
Long and athletic forward runs floor well and is a promising rebounder and shotblocker. Good student too.
* Hunter Merryman 6’6” Poly (Pasadena CA)
Multi-sport athlete (All-CIF baseball pitcher and football QB) is a post-man that has range on his shot. Very good student.
* Cory Osetkowski 6'8” Canyon Crest Academy (San Diego CA)
Strong and physical power-forward rebounds with authority and is comfortable on the block. Very good student.
* Joshua Richardson 6’6” Temecula Valley (Temecula CA)
Scrappy PF is a solid defender.
* Darren Smiths 6’7” Colony (Ontario CA)
Physical rebounder plays hard.
* Dillon Vander Wal 6’7” Oaks Christian (Westlake Village CA)
Aggressive rebounder and underrated post scorer has excellent grades and an impressive test score.
* Mike Van Kirk 6’11” Paraclete (Lancaster CA)
Extremely long center needs to add weight and strength. Good student has upside.
* Jordan Watson 6’6” Pacific Hills (Los Angeles CA)
Improving PF has an excellent work-ethic and runs well from baseline to baseline.
* Antonio Worthy 6’9” Montebello (Montebello CA)
Huge center is a real project and needs to substantially increase his mobility in order to be considered a DI recruit.
* Solomon Williams 6’7” Wilson (Long Beach CA)
Gritty PF is active on the glass. Decent student too.
** Photos courtesy of Nick Koza (SportsAmp.com)
** Copyright 2010 by Fullcourt Press
All rights reserved
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