TWO MORE THOUGHTS ON RECRUITING CORRUPTION: Yesterday, we wrote about how many stories involving sleaze going on behind the scenes during the recruiting process. Late last night, Dana O'Neil had an article posted to ESPN.com that said the NCAA sent out a mass email telling coaches that it could be a violation if they attended a dinner for Grassroots Basketball of America, which is headed by Sonny Vaccaro. Apparently, some coaches still attended, but they simply did not pay the $800 price tag.

O'Neil also said there was a $160 fee for the GBOA showcase.

Is this a sign the NCAA is cracking down?

You know, with at the legal ways to funnel money to AAU coaches, handlers, and the players themselves, if amazes me that some guys (Tim Floyd, I'm looking at you) still allow themselves to get caught.

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Tuesday Morning Dump

- Gregg Doyel takes a look at UCLA's $500,000 seats.

- Tough situation for these two kids.

- ESPN won't credit NY Post.

- Crazy knockout.

- 14 foot python caught near pre-school.

- Chris Webber talks to with a blog.

- USC football team gets hypnotized:


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AAU Coaches: Always hustlin'

There has been a lot of talk this summer about the corruption that goes hand-in-hand with youth basketball these days. Not only are these AAU coaches slowly destroying the concept of fundamental basketball in our nation's youth, but squeezing every dime they can out of their connections has become the norm at the elite level of AAU ball.

First came the Charlotte Observer's report on online recruiting service's. Basically, the hustle is that AAU programs will start, or become "affiliated" with, a recruiting service that charges for a yearly subscription; the thought is that yearly subscription also doubles as a fee for admission into the recruiting carnival of the player's in their program. Then came the Wall Street Journal's article criticizing the way youth basketball is run in this country.

And now? Pete Thamel of the NY Times takes us through what might be the most brazen hustle of them all.

This is basically how it works. The NCAA sanctions certain tournaments that AAU coaches are allowed to attend. The price of admission is, say, $10 to get in. Perfectly acceptable. These tournaments have sunken costs - it isn't free to rent the gym time, to pay for the refs, etc. What isn't acceptable is the $275 it costs coaches to buy the packets containing such information as player's names, their contact information, and - something just a teeny bit useful - the number they are wearing.

These packets are mandatory for coaches to buy.

Say you are a coach and you are out on the recruiting trail to watch a player you know. He is playing in a tournament within driving distance, and you decide to swing by to see him play and, more importantly, have him see you seeing him play. You are there for one game, know the kid you are there to see, and have no need to spend that much money on a packet of printed paper.

You are still going to have to drop a few benji's.

Or you won't be watching the game.

Just ask Vanderbilt head coach Kevin Stallings:

Just after sitting down with some fellow college coaches, two tournament employees told Stallings that he had to pay $295 for a packet of rosters and information that doubled as an admission fee for college coaches. The coaches in attendance told him that they had been required to do the same thing. Stallings said he had paid a $10 admission fee and did not want or need the packet, so he hit the road out of principle.

Or Yale's James Jones:

James Jones once paid $350 to watch one player play a single game in South Carolina. His other option was to buy the tournament organizer Jeff Schneider’s $600 recruiting service.

Tom Izzo has a horror story as well:

Michigan State Coach Tom Izzo refused to pay $100 for admission to the Summer Jam tournament in Milwaukee earlier this month after one of his assistants had already paid $250 for the packet that doubled as an entry fee. Izzo said the tournament director should visit him if he had a problem.

The sleaze involved in high school and college basketball, and the corruption of the process of getting high school hoopers to the next level, almost makes the sport unbearable for me to watch. Knowing that a recruit will decide where he will attend based on someone associated with a shoe company; watching what is a beautiful game when played correctly degenerate into a glorified Rucker League game; seeing "recruiting experts" rate the best 11 and 12 year olds and seeing coaches offer scholarships to kids that have yet to even decide on a high school.

I can handle all of that.

I'm not naive enough to think that cheating doesn't happen, or that in an industry worth billions of dollars there aren't going to be some shady people with questionable ethics.

But this?

Forcing coaches to pay that much for a scouting service or an identification packet, with the the prize being the ability to talk to a 16 year old kid?

That's extortion.

And, as Rick Pitino will tell you, extortion is a pretty serious crime.

The worst part is that the NCAA not only allows it, but they enable it by not changing the rules. Nothing these tournament organizers are doing is a sin in the eyes of the NCAA - only to those of us with a moral compass. And it would be so simple for the NCAA to fix. All they have to do is make a rule that you can charge X amount of dollars for a recruiting service or for a player's program at an AAU Tournament. If it is more, they pull the college coaches from the tournament. If there are no college coaches there, why will the big name recruits and AAU teams want to play there? If no one wants to play there, how does the tournament make its money?

It really that simple.

But the rules won't change unless the big name coaches speak out against them. The Bill Self's or the Jim Calhoun's or the Ben Howland's. The coaches with the clout to make a change.

The odds of that happening? Almost none.

These are the guys that are either cheating effectively or winning without cheating. Why would they want the system changed? They have their connections. They don't want to ruin friendships with the AAU programs.

Awesome. We've traded our favorite sports integrity for wins and dollars. Excuse me while I bathe with my toaster.

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JOE JACKSON TALKS RECRUITING: We mention Joe Jackson, a top 15 recruit from the class of 2010, earlier today in our post about Josh Selby. Word is that Jackson is considered a lock to stay close to home and head to Memphis.

Last week, TheShiver.com landed an interview with Jackson where he talks recruiting. His top five right now? UConn, Kentucky, Tennessee, Memphis, and Kansas.

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The Super 64 AAU Tournament was played out in Las Vegas last week, which attracted all of the big time college basketball coaches, as well as many of the big name college hoops writers.

Joe Jackson, a top 15 recruit in the class of '10, led the Memphis Magic to the title on Sunday. But that was far from the biggest news story coming out of the Sin City.

In case you missed it last week, Josh Selby, another top 15 point guard in the class of '10, decommitted from Tennessee while Bruce Pearl was coaching the US in the Maccabiah Games. There is a bit more of a back story here. Selby decommitted after the LeBron Skills Acadamy, where his mom reportedly spoke with William Wesley aka "Worldwide Wes". For those that don't know who he is, Wesley is a basketball power broker with strong ties to Nike and, among other, John Calipari.

Kentucky is a Nike school. Tennessee is Adidas.

Now, this does not necessarily mean that Selby is a lock to replace John Wall next year. If you were to take a look into the stands at anyone of Selby's games in Vegas, you would get a glimpse of a who's-who of the coaching fraternity - Gary Williams, Jim Calhoun, Josh Pastner, John Calipari. Word travels fast through the coaching ranks when it is assumed a kid is destined for a certain school (coaches have stopped recruiting Jackson because it is widely felt he is not leaving Memphis), so the fact that they are still involved means the coaches believe they have a shot at landing him.

That isn't to say, however, that any rumor involving the Wildcats and Coach Cal is unsubstantiated. Take a look at this quote from Selby's mom:

Anybody with a basketball brain and knows what John Calipari has done - you have to consider Kentucky. It doesn't mean its a done deal, but you have to consider Kentucky.

Dana O'Neil wrote a column on ESPN taking a look at players who back out of commitments to schools. Personally, I don't have much of a problem with a recruit backing out of a verbal commitment - it isn't binding, basically all the kid has done is say he wants to play for that specific school. Now I can't speak for anyone else, but I am 24 years old and still have trouble settling on a team to be in Madden or Fifa.

You expect a 16 or 17 year old kid to decide where he wants to spend the next 1-4 years of his life? With so much riding on their decision, should you not expect the kid to waver?

And do I even need to mention that coaches have no problem taking commitments from players only to bounce to a higher-paying job?

The real trouble arises the players decision is influenced by an outside source based on something other than basketball or academics. Now, I don't want to make any assumptions as to why Selby is backing out on his commitment. It is just as likely that Selby was concerned about only seeing two schools (which is what he and his mother have been saying all along) as it is that Wesley has influenced the decision (Selby's mother has said that her only conversation with Wesley was receiving a recommendation that he work with a track coach to prevent leg injuries, but an Andy Katz source said that his mother is the one that approached Wesley).

Hopefully, it is not the latter, and Selby truly was just concerned with his decision. But knowing how college basketball recruiting works, it would not surprise me if Wesley had a hand in this decision.

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Monday Morning Dump

- Adam Zagoria sits down with Bill Self.

- Great read on a former White Sox pitcher that took HGH.

- College coaches must pat "admission fees" at these tournaments.

- Derrick Rose's brother lost it at the Vegas AAU Tournament.

- Memphis Magic win Super 64.

- Paparazzi ask LeBron about covering up the dunk.

- Tragic way to end a bachelor party at a baseball game.

- Who could be on the 2012 Olympic team?

- Lamar Odom to the Heat?

- Another great read on a homeless man from DC pushing for a College Football playoff.

- The title of this article is worth the click.

- Craziest hole in one I've ever seen.



- Remember this guy? He's back.


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SI ARTICLE ON DUNK VIDEOS: First of all, did you ever think you would see a page full of youtube videos on SI.com? I didn't.

Second of all, if you are going to post (and I'm quoting here) "some of the top dunks in college hoops history", you should at least make sure that you actually put up "some of the top dunks in college hoops history."

Seriously, they should have consulted me before posting this nonsense. I think I've established myself unequivocally as the intraweb's leader in dunk vids.

I have all sorts of issues with this list, and it is more than just the fact that they called Bambale Osby "Barnable". My biggest problem is the Russell Westbrook dunk they chose to use. They didn't choose this one or this one, they chose this?

Really? One of the best of all time?

The same could be said for this Dwayne Collins dunk on Greg Paulus. Paulus getting dunked on does not an"all-time great" make.

Looking at that list, I think that whoever made it simply typed "NCAA basketball dunk" into youtube and chose all the videos that showed up on the first page of results.

You really want to see the best dunks of all-time? Go here. Its our list (albeit a year old). Continue reading...

Friday Morning Dump

- Another Dana O'Neil story. She's swell.

- Adam Zagoria catches up with Gregory Echenique.

- Jim Calhoun is a tough guy.

- D-Will has been popping into some of the AAU games in Vegas.

- Murry Bartow gets an extension at ETSU.

- More on the Josh Selby decommitment.

- Gotta love New Jersey.

- The white cop that broke into a black Harvard professor's home to arrest him tries to prove he isn't a racist by telling the story of how he performed CPR on a dying Reggie Lewis.

- I'm not really sure what this mascot is trying to do:


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Dickie V's All-Rolls Royce Teams released

And it begins...

Last week, we wrote a piece about who we would want to build a team around, referencing articles from FOXSports and Rivals regarding, in some way, who the best player in the country is.

And today we get Dickie V's all-american teams (all seven of them ... seriously). Overall, there aren't really a ton of surprises. His first team is pretty standard; Cole Aldrich, Kyle Singler, Luke Harangody, Sherron Collins, and Kalin Lucas.

To be honest, there really aren't all that many changes I would make. I probably would slide Patrick Patterson up onto the 1st team in place of Kyle Singler. I also would drop Damion James while moving both Evan Turner and Craig Brackins (who will both be top 10 picks next year, watch) up one spot each.

One player that Vitale whiffed on (which is surprising given his affinity for this team and this conference) is UNC sophomore center Ed Davis, who made his sixth team. Davis is being mentioned as a possible top 5 (maybe even #1) pick in the 2010 Draft. He is long, tall, athletic, and is tough at both ends. With all the Heels lost, there should be plenty of shots (and minutes) available for Davis. Expect a year similar to Aldrich's breakout '08-'09 season - 15, 10, and 3 blocks.

Another player to watch next year is Raymar Morgan, who Vitale listed as an honorable mention. Morgan was a beast as a sophomore, but battled through injuries and illness last season. Expect him to return to form.
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Randy Culpepper can fly

For the casual college hoops fan, the name Randy Culpepper is probably an unfamiliar one. Culpepper is a 6'0" PG for UTEP that averaged 17.5 ppg as a junior. For the avid Sportscenter watchers, you may actually recognize him for this piece of aerial artistry that reached #1 on SC's top 10.

This will probably not be the last time you see Culpepper on Sportscenter. Not when he can do things like this:



Look at where he takes off from. That is absurd. He actually looks like he is flying.

Assuming Derrick Caracter can get into shape, UTEP will have themselves a nice little inside-outside combo. With all that has happened at Memphis, including losing their top recruit to pro ball overseas, could UTEP be the team that unseats the Tigers atop Conference USA?
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Thursday Morning Dump

- Ebaumnation has a better video of LeBron getting dunked on.

- St. John's Anthony Mason Jr. gets an extra year of eligibility.

- The St. Paul Pioneer Press is reporting that Ames, Iowa product Harrison Barnes is leaning towards Duke or UNC.

- Kevin O'Neil lands his first recruit at USC.

- The Charlotte Observer takes a look at Coach K's decision to return to Team USA.

- WCC tourney staying in Vegas.

- Josh Selby's first game since decommiting from Tennessee drew some big names: Calipari, Calhoun, Self, Donovan, Stansbury, Pastner.

- Wooden Classic participants announced.

- Freedom Hall or Rupp Arena?

- Michigan State, Rutgers, Florida, and UMass will be hosts for the Legends Classic.

- In depth piece from Sports Business Journal on the decline of beat writers.

- ESPN cuts ties with NY Post over the Erin Andrews pictures they ran Tuesday.

- Not sure how I feel about this mash-up...:


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Jordan Crawford's dunk on LeBron

TMZ has the video of it. To be honest, not that impressed. Its a grainy video from the other side of the gym, and the dunk wasn't even that nice. LeBron was late rotating after Crawford beat his man on the perimeter before giving a half-hearted attempt at blocking the dunk.

For all the hoopla surrounding this video, I'm sure everyone is going to come away just as disappointed. They should have just left this video underground and allowed the dunk's legend to continue to grow.

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DERRICK CARACTER INTERVIEW: Everybody remembers Caracter.

He was the first 14 year old ever invited to the Nike Camp back in 2002. He was supposed to be the next great big man.

The problem is he stopped growing in 8th grade, and eventually everyone caught up to his size and athleticism. Caracter never learned how to work hard (because he never needed to, he was always just bigger and better growing up). He went to Louisville, but ended up getting run out of town by Rick Pitino for a myriad of reasons - from his behavior to being out of shape.

Well, Caracter is back on the map again. He will be suiting up for UTEP this season. The blog for IMG Academies, where Caracter has been working out, posted an interview with him last week. Based on the pictures (see below) and some of Caracter's quotes, it seems like he has turned himself around.



Caracter is a talented player. We wish him the best as a Miner.

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Maybe if Coach K wasn't heading to the 2012 Olympics...

JP Giglio covers the ACC for the Raleigh News & Observer, and also runs their ACC blog ACCNow. They are currently running a Summer Hoops preview over there, and while reading it over, I stumbled upon this little diddy: Giglio's pick to win the ACC this year is Duke.

Huh?

His argument is basically this - Duke's experience will make up for a relative lack of talent, and the fact that the Blue Devils currently have just two guards (three when Andre Dawkins is officially accepted) on their roster is mitigated by the ACC's lack of perimeter star power.

Again, huh?

Can Duke win the ACC?
(photo credit: You got dunked on)

I don't want to come off like a Duke hater - because I'm not - but this is a bit crazy. Duke the ACC champs? I really don't see it happening. There are just too many question marks on this team.

Who is going to run the point?: Nolan Smith may be a junior, but he has yet to prove himself as anything close to an elite lead guard. Scheyer excelled when he ran the point last year, but that is not an option this season due to Duke's lack of perimeter depth.

Do they have a go-to scorer?: Last season, Gerald Henderson emerged as the guy that Duke turned to when they needed a bucket. Who will it be this year? Jon Scheyer struggled to score consistently when he was guarded by bigger, more athletic two-guards last season. Kyle Singler is by far their best player, but can he handle being "the man"? He seems to me to be more of a complimentary player (albeit a great one).

Is their size any good?: Duke's post rotation will consist of Brian Zoubek, Lance Thomas, the Plumlee brothers, and Ryan Kelly. What will happen when they go up against frontlines like UNC (Ed Davis, Deon Thompson, Tyler Zeller), Georgia Tech (Gani Lawal, Derrick Favors), Clemson (Trevor Booker), or Florida State (Solomon Alabi, Uche Echefu, Ryan Reid, Chris Singleton)? Isn't their advantage supposed to be on the inside?

Sorry Duke fans. I see this Blue Devil squad being very similar to your 2007 team, the one that went 22-11 (8-8 in the ACC) and lost to Eric Maynor and VCU in the 1st round of the dance.

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Ed O'Bannon suing the NCAA

Last summer, we did a Where Are They Now? piece on Ed O'Bannon, the former UCLA standout turned Las Vegas car salesman.

I don't think anyone is going to be asking that question again anytime soon.

Yesterday, Dan Wetzel of Yahoo! Sports broke the story that Ed O'Bannon will be the lead plaintiff (on behalf of all current and former DI football and men's basketball players) in a class action lawsuit against the NCAA. The case centers around the fact that the NCAA can cash in on the likenesses, the accomplishments, and the memorabilia sales of former players (be it via video games, commercials, jersey sales, etc.) in perpetuity without those players seeing a dime.

Apparently, they have a case (for those better versed in legalese than I go read what Michael McMann has to say about the case at SI - he breaks everything down for you). I'm no lawyer, but I can tell you that when you are represented by a firm that won reparations for Holocaust survivors, price fixing cartels, and benefactors of slave labor, there is a good chance a large amount of money can be made.

Ed O'Bannon is the lead plaintiff in a case against the NCAA
involving their use of a players likeness after graduation.
(photo credit: lowposts.com)

Do I need even need to mention how big of a deal this case is?

Seriously, think about what this covers - ESPN Classic replays; a Carmelo Anthony Syracuse jersey; those Pontiac game changing performance commercials; any copy of NCAA video games.

In fact, the video game is where the entire case originated. From the Wetzel article:

Last winter, Ed O'Bannon discovered that a couple of kids down the street didn't just know the star of the 1995 UCLA national championship team as a friend of their dad, a really tall neighbor or even as a guy who shows up on ESPN Classic every once in a while. They knew O’Bannon – his tendencies, his number 31, even the mechanics of his lefty jump shot – from playing a video game that featured classic college teams. "They literally played me on a video game," O'Bannon told Yahoo! Sports on Saturday. "You could play the '95 Bruins. It didn't have my name, but it had my number, left-handed, it looked like me. It was everything but the name. My friend kind of looked at me and said, 'you know what’s sad about this whole thing? You're not getting paid for it.' I was just like, 'wow, you're right.' It just kind of weighed on me."

An interesting side note to this case is that they are not pushing for athletes currently on scholarship to get paid; only that they players see a cut of the profits from collegiate licensed merchandise once they move on from the NCAA.

According to Wetzel, collegiate licensed merchandise is an estimated $4 billion industry. These are rough economic times for the NCAA and its member institutions, and if O'Bannon happens to prevail, the NCAA may be forced to fork over hundreds of millions of dollars in damages.

Don't cry for the NCAA. They make money hand over fist off of these kids while they are in school. OK, I get it, the NCAA is technically a non-profit organization and these kids are technically amateur athletes. While I may not completely agree with the current structure, I can tolerate it simply because I love the ideal of a "student-athlete" representing his school.

But why shouldn't former players like O'Bannon get a taste once their collegiate careers come to an end?

The guys over at RTC say it best:

Frankly, it’s about effin’ time. As Dan Wetzel poignantly notes in his article breaking the story today, the players are painted into a (legally unrepresented) corner at 17 or 18 years old when all they’re really worried about is getting their eligibility to play college sports. We understand why the NCAA doesn’t want its current players profiting off of their likenesses while an amateur, but why does the NCAA retain 100% of those rights for the rest of those players’ lives? Why does Texas Western profit off of 1966 jerseys of #14 Bobby Joe Hill, but not the player (or the estate in Hill’s case) some 40+ years later? Same thing with Jerry Rice’s MVSU #88 jersey? Or, as O’Bannon stated in his complaint, why doesn’t he see a dime for an EA Sports video game licensed by the NCAA that clearly shows his silky smooth left-handed collegiate “self” running around making shots and ripping down rebounds as a 1995 UCLA Bruin? It’s absolutely ludicrous, and we’d really like to see the NCAA take it on the chin this time around.

One last note - O'Bannon explains his rationale for becoming the lead plaintiff over at Lost Letterman.

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Wednesday Morning Dump

- According to an adviser, money was a major factor in the decision of Latavious Williams to go abroad.

- CoachCal.com - coming soon.

- Randy Hill with a surprisingly good take on the one-and-done rule. the best part:

Well, based on NCAA workout restrictions and most coaches game-planning themselves to death during the season to survive in a brutally fluid job market, players have less school-year time than you could imagine to eliminate individual weaknesses. In college, you're an investment in a coach's ability to win games. That's just fine; it shouldn't be his job to prepare you for an NBA career. Doing so within the context of winning games can make recruiting a lot easier for the college coach, but he has more than your bank account to worry about. Yeah, with an 82-game schedule, NBA coaches have very little time to teach and refine team concepts, but actual time spent on improving skill work — especially for young players — can be relatively enormous. You are an investment for the pro team; it's their business to make sure you can make plays.

- Good read on Lance Stephenson from the Cincinnati Enquirer.

- The CBS College Sports channel is re-airing the 2009 NCAA Tournament.

- Coach K to lead Team USA again in 2012. Is his commitment hurting Duke? They are just 5-4 in the tournament since he took that job.

- MWC commissioner gets his contract extended through 2012.

- The SEC to launch a syndicated network with ESPN.

- Seth Davis takes a look at Hoop Dreams, 15 years later.

- Centenary to move from DI to DIII.

- Effing hilarious.

- What your favorite athlete's twittering says about their sexuality.

- Boy drinks gasoline to become a Transformer.

- Formula One driver killed by a loose tire:


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Who would you pick to build a team around?

During the last couple of days, two of the biggest media outlets have weighed in (albeit from slightly different angles) on the debate over who will be the best player in college basketball next season.

Over at Rivals, they pose the question "Which player in the best to build a team around?" Both writers went with centers - one picking Cole Aldrich and the other Ed Davis. Josh Herwitt from FOXSports made a list of the top 10 returning players, which was capped off by Luke Harangody.

Look, you may not like him, but it is very tough to argue with Herwitt's decision to name Harangody the best returner in college hoops. The guy is coming off of his second consecutive 20 and 10 season (averaging 23.3 ppg and 11.8 rpg in last year's brutal Big East). 'Gody worked his tail off while testing the waters of the NBA Draft and is now checking in at a svelte 245 lb. From what I've read about his pre-draft workouts, Harangody is getting off the floor much better than he was early in his career and has improved his jumper to the point that he can consistently hit NBA three's (watch this video).

Harangody tops the list of preseason Player of the Year candidates.
(photo credit: Daylife)

Combine that with his ability to nimbly score in the post, and Harangody is near unstoppable at the college level. With the graduation of Kyle McAlarney, the Irish are going to rely even more on Harangody at the offensive end. Would it surprise you if he finished the season averaging 26 and 12?

It shouldn't.

And if averaging 26 and 12 wouldn't surprise you, than that player has to be in the conversation as the best player. Its that simple.

But just because an argument can be made for Harangody as the best player in the country doesn't mean he is the guy that I would want to build a team around.

Think about it. Last season, Harangody was the focal point of an experienced team with two wings that could go for 25 on any given night (McAlarney and Ryan Ayers) and one of the most underrated point guards in the Big East (Tory Jackson), and the Irish had an incredibly disappointing season, missing the NCAA Tournament.

The way I see it, there are two schools of thought here. You either A) pick a talented and experienced point guard or B) choose a center that can dominate a game offensively and defensively. Lucky for Kansas, regardless of which theory I follow, I'm picking a Jayhawk - Sherron Collins or Cole Aldrich.

Sherron Collins and Cole Aldrich will lead Kansas to their pursuit of a second title in three years.
(photo credit: ESPN)

Cole Aldrich is the total package at center. While he is not quite at the level of a Jarvis Varnado or Hasheem Thabeet, Aldrich is able to dominate the paint on the defensive end of the floor, blocking and changing shots while controlling the defensive glass. Offensively, he averaged 14.9 ppg as a sophomore, but most of those points came off of face-up jumpers or dunks. With his height, length, and strength, Aldrich has the potential to become a go-to scorer in the paint with an off-season of hard work.

Collins was very impressive as a junior in his first season as a go-to guy for the Jayhawks. His numbers were fantastic (18.9 ppg and 5.0 apg), but Collins brings much more than stats to the table. Whenever Kansas needed a big play, Collins was the guy that stepped up. And it wasn't just hitting big shots (which he did quite often), it was making the smart play in the big moments. He wasn't afraid to dump the ball off the Aldrich or hit one of the Jayhawk wings spotting up if he was covered. A leader and big-time scorer that makes the right plays and has championship experience - what more can you ask for?

With Collins and Aldrich leading a talented group of freshman and sophomore role players, and a star in the making in freshman Xavier Henry on the wing, is it any wonder Kansas tops most pre-season top 25's?

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Latavious Williams headed to ... China?

That's what Rivals is reporting.

The jewel of the 2009 Memphis recruiting class, and Josh Pastner's first signee as the head coach of the Tigers, is opting to head overseas. Williams, a top 20 recruit nationally, was quoted as saying that it is a "done deal" and that he is "trying to work something out in China".

Memphis commit Latavious Williams seems to be headed to China.
(photo credit: College Basketball 365)

This is a devastating loss for the Tigers. With all they lost to graduation last year and Shawn Taggart's decision to skip his final year of eligibility, the Tigers will now head into the season with some serious question marks across their front line - can Pierre Henderson-Niles stay in shape? How good is JuCo transfer Will Coleman? Can the unproved Angel Garcia contribute?

Williams, an athletic 6'7" combo forward with a similar skill set to Robert Dozier, would have provided some versatility to the Tiger's frontline as he is mobile enough to play some on the perimeter.

Tigers fans better hope Elliot Williams, a two-guard who transferred from Duke, is granted eligibility this season. Without him, this is what the Memphis starting five looks like:

• F - Pierre Henderson-Niles
• F - Will Coleman/Angel Garcia
• F - Wesley Witherspoon
• G - Roburt Sallie/Doneal Mack
• G - Willie Kemp
  

Does that look like a top 25 team to you?

UPDATE: Gary Parrish is reporting that it was unlikely that Latavious Williams' transcript would have been cleared by the NCAA.
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ATER MAJOK TO STAY AT UCONN: After sitting out last year, testing the NBA Draft waters this past spring, and flirting with the idea of playing professionally overseas, Majok has finally settled on UConn as his destination for the upcoming season.

Majok will be a welcome addition to a UConn front court that will be severely depleted with the loss of Jeff Adrien and Hasheem Thabeet.

Majok will become eligible after the first semester, joining a front line that will include seniors Gavin Edwards and Stanley Robinson and freshman Alex Oriahki.

How good Majok will end up being is debatable. While testing the waters, the word was that he looked fantastic in individual workouts, but in live-action (both 3-on-3 and 5-on-5) he seemed a bit out of place. His skill set is impressive. He's a long and athletic, albeit slender, 6'10" with a nice touch on his jumper, but it may take him awhile to adapt to play in the Big East.

Personally, I think Majok has Ajou Ajou Deng written all over him. Deng, who was also a Sudanese refugee, had tons of hype coming into Storrs (during the 1999 Final Four, when UConn won their first title and before Deng was eligible, Khaled El-Amin called Deng the "best player on the team"), but turned out to be a monumental bust before transferring to Fairfield.

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Tuesday Morning Dump

- Gary Parrish gives us four reasons to love summer basketball. And you thought reading these stories about Renardo Sidney and Josh Selby were bad.

- Arizona State loses a commitment from Josiah Turner, a top 100 recruit from the class of '11. Andrew Nicholas, a wing from the class of '11, has signed with Rutgers.

- Andy Katz catches up with Ole Miss guard Terrico White, who had a great U19 tournament after winning SEC Freshman of the Year. I remember him for this dunk.

- Jio Fontan has decided to return to Fordham.

- 2004 Conference USA Player of the Year Antonio Burks is in critical condition after being shot.

- The Dodgers Matt Kemp played high school ball with Shelden Williams at Oklahoma powerhouse Midwest City.

- Top 10 recruits in July.

- Due to the success of ESPNChicago, the WWL is launching local sites in NYC, LA, and Dallas. Also, the WWL looks ot single-handedly destroy print journalism.

- By now you had to have heard about Larry King's interview last night with Joe Jackson. Creepy:


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