Trigonis Tidbits:

With Adidas on the Sidelines,

Nike and ABCD prepare for Camp Battle in 2007

(October 28, 2006)

 

Adidas stunned the basketball community recently when the Three Stripes brand announced that it would discontinue its adidas Superstar Camp annually held in Suwanee GA.  That announcement came during a “basketball summit held in Indianapolis where the NCAA, National Federation of High Schools (NFHS), Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) and the two major shoe brands (Nike and adidas) convened to discuss current “hot” basketball issues.  At that time Nike gave hints that it too might disband its Nike All-American Camp held annually in Indianapolis IN and that gave some observers reason to believe that if that was the case, pressure would mount on Sonny Vaccaro and his ABCD Camp to follow suit.  That proved to be wishful thinking as Vaccaro thereafter announced his ABCD Camp (with or without Reebok as a sponsor) would be “open for business” in July 2007.   Following Vaccaro’s declaration that the ABCD Camp is alive and well, Nike held its annual grassroots meetings in Scottsdale AZ over the weekend of October 13-15 and announced it would revamp its current all-american camp format - focusing more on position skill development camps that would occur every June at different locations for point guards, shooting guards, post-forwards, etc.   The general premise appears to be utilizing Nike wide-range of upper tier NBA athletes like Steve Nash (point guard skills session), Kobe Bryant (shooting guard skills session) and Vince Carter (small forward skils session), etc.  for the position camps in June and top it off with all those position camp players meeting in July at a Lebron James-headlined national camp in Akron, Ohio to form the basis of a event that would go “toe-to-toe” with Vacarro’s ABCD Camp in July.   Speaking of the “basketball summit” it was ironic that the person most largely responsible for creating grassroots basketball in America, Sonny Vaccaro, was not at the table giving his perspective on the current state of grassroots affairs.  Another thing that was surprising was that the only seat that youth teams and players had as this roundball table was filled by the Orlando-based AAU which has become over the years a generic way to refer to all club basketball activity although most (95% or more) of the club activities and events that occur in the nation have nothing to do with official AAU business.  In fact, out of the hundreds of events certified by the NCAA last July, only two (AAU Super Showcase and AAU 17 & under Nationals) were directly related to the AAU.  The NCAA would be better served if they would seek input from more diverse basketball sub-groups like high school and club coaches as well as parents so that they can get a better understanding of the problems that truly exist and formulate in a knowledgeable way better solutions to them………….Promising 6’11” junior center Jeff Withey decided to wrap-up his recruiting before his junior season began by giving Rick Pitino and Louisville a verbal commitment shortly after visiting the Louisville campus – picking the Cardinals over Kansas (his other finalist), Arizona and UCLA.  Credit UL assistant Marvin Menzies (a SoCal native) who utilized all his Cali connects to get this deal done early.  “Marvelous” (one of the “up and coming” assistants in the nation) previously honed his recruiting skills as an assistant at UNLV, USC, San Diego State and Santa Monica College)………..6’6” Andre Hardy (New Hampton Prep/New Hampton NH) has committed to San Francisco –giving Don coach Jesse Evans an athletic and physical combo-forward who can really defend and slash well on the offensive end.  Hardy spent his high school days at St. Augustine (San Diego CA).…………One of the most underrated senior point guards in the West is 5’11” Lashard Anderson (Serra/San Diego CA).  Anderson is a smart and savvy floor leader with ability to connect from long range.  Anderson’s level of recruitment is slowly gaining speed as the PG visited Long Beach State recently…………..While Anderson may be the biggest senior point sleeper, one of the most underrated junior point guards in the West is 5’11” Michael Elliott (Canyon Springs/Las Vegas NV).  Elliott is athletic, a quick ballhandler and exceptional defender who has improved his offensive skills substantially over the past year.  Elliott is drawing attention from likes of New Mexico State, Virginia Tech, Oregon State, Pepperdine, San Diego, Wyoming, Idaho, Cal State Fullerton, Air Force and Southern Utah……….In other recent “announcement” news:  6’4” senior Carlon Brown (King/Riverside CA) has committed to Utah, choosing the Utes over Marquette, Nebraska and UNLV…….. ..6’1” senior point guard Kamyron Brown (Mater Dei/Santa Ana CA) committed to Oregon, picking the Ducks over Utah, New Mexico and Cal State Fullerton………..Brown’s commitment to the Ducks apparently had a domino effect – causing close friend 6’6” senior Drew Viney (Villa Park/Villa Park CA) to withdraw his verbal (given last summer) to Cal and declare his intention to sign with Oregon instead……… …..Athletic 6’7” senior Billy White (Green Valley/Henderson NV) his given a verbal to San Diego State………..Also selecting the Aztecs as his college destination is versatile 6’7” senior Tim Shelton (Clovis West/Fresno CA).  Shelton (the son of former NBA player Lonnie Shelton) is one of the most underrated senior forwards in the West……….….Penn picked up a pair of Southern California verbals recently when 6’0” senior Harrison Gaines (Serrano/Phelan CA) and 6’6” Tyler Bernardini (Parker/San Diego CA) committed to the Quakers.  Gaines (a solid point guard) and Bernardini (a bouncy swingman with 3-point range) are the first California recruits for new Penn head coach Glenn Miller.  Credit hardworking assistant Mike Martin for landing these two solid prospects and for continuing the tradition of Penn’s successful recruiting of Southern California…………Fast rising 6’4” senior Dana Kendrid (Spring Valley/Las Vegas NV) is drawing interest from the likes of Illinois, Clemson, Arizona State, Pepperdine and San Diego State………...Elite junior 6’3” Jrue Holiday (Campbell Hall/North Hollywood CA) is in the process of narrowing his list and those programs currently at the top include North Carolina, Washington (his older brother Justin will sign with the Huskies next month), UConn, UCLA, USC and Arizona.