Justin Young on competitiveness and American youth basketball

Justin Young has an article up today on the subject of U.S. basketball competitiveness and it entails many factors, including the playing versus practicing argument and turning-it-on at the tip off versus going hard all the time. Do read it.

It's the 'practice how you play, play how you practice' conundrum but, simply put, the best are at it all the time.

All sorts of basketball items and notes

Rivals' Jerry Meyers just posted this on Archbishop Mitty/Oakland Soldier Aaron Gordon:

"We knew this five-star prospect was good, but we didn't know he was this good. A high level athlete, Gordon is a rebounder and inside scoring threat but also much more. His ball-handling was outstanding and he continually made positive plays in the open court. The ceiling for Gordon as a prospect is extremely high."

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Jon Gold covers the UCLA signing of CCSF's De'End Parker.

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Scott Wolf covers the USC signing of Eureka High's Greg Allen, who is finishing up at Navarro College in Texas.

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From Gerry Freitas' recent 2011 So Cal Hoops review, comes these northern CA names (it's a partial list so go here for more):

Mike Best 6’10” C 2011 Terra Linda HS (Lakeshow Black) An athletic post that scores the ball and blocks a lot of shots. Needs physical strength.

Jalen Dupree 6’0” PG 2012 Vallejo HS (Davis Wildcats) Athletic point guard that penetrates and creates for others. Sees the floor well.

Mike Harris 6’4” SF/PF 2011 Monte Vista HS (Lakeshow Seniors) A strong left handed combo forward that can inside and outside. He is strong and can drive it and shoot it and is a solid rebounder.

Bobby Johnson 6’8” C/PF 2011 Castlemont HS (NorCal Pump N Run 17) Strong, physical post.  Plays through contact, and draws a lot of fouls.  Ok athlete with deceptive quickness. Showed the ability to drive from high post.  Good rebounder.

Tajai Johnson 6’2” SG/SF 2012 Vallejo HS (Team Superstar 17) Real athletic wing with a nice burst of speed. Makes plays in transition, good driver, real good rebounder, shot is improving.

Theo Johnson 6’6” PF/SF 2012 Franklin HS (Team Superstar 17) Very athletic combo forward, nice one-bounce drive, capable post up player, solid rebounder. Really stepped it up in this event.

Erik Kenny 6’3” SF 2012 Sacramento HS (Play Hard Play Smart Elite) Big time athlete that is always at the rim. Can handle and pass, shoots it ok and is a real good rebounder.

Justin Argenal in at Louisiana Tech

It's official: former De La Salle and Chico State basketballer Justin Argenal is indeed on the staff of new Coach Mike White at Louisiana Tech.

Remember Festus Ezeli?

Here's a March 2010 article on Festus Ezeli, a phantom name and figure up Yuba way. He never played for Yuba College Coach Cornelius but the young man certainly learned from his tutelage.We recall seeing Ezeli play club team ball and wondering about his background -- now we know.

Santa Rosa JC backcourter to Pacific

Lorenzo McCloud, a 6-foot sophomore guard straight outa Compton, has signed a letter-of-intent with Pacific. From the school's athletics site:

[McCloud] spent last season at Santa Rosa Junior College, earning First Team All-State and First Team All-Big 8 Conference honors as a sophomore. In 2010-11, he led the Bear Cubs to a record of 22-9 and a second place finish in the Big 8 Conference with a mark of 10-4. Lorenzo led the team with 18.2 points and 3.8 assists per game. He made a team-best 173 free throws, hitting 80.8 percent from the line. Scoring 565 points on the season, he had nine games with at least 25 points. Lorenzo scored a career-high 30 points twice last year, against Feather River College on Dec. 17 and Delta College on Jan. 18. As a freshman, McCloud played at Panola JC in Carthridge, Texas. He scored 9.5 points a game and grabbed 3.8 rebounds per contest for the Ponies. Lorenzo prepped at Compton High School, in his hometown.   

"Lorenzo is an explosive point guard that can score, pass and lead," said Thomason. "He is very fast and has the ability to make his teammates better. I couldn't be more happy to have Lorenzo become a Tiger."

"I chose to attend University of the Pacific because it has great academics, which will serve me well in my life after basketball," said McCloud. "After talking to coach Thomason and coach Verlin, I believe it's the place where I will be able to grow as a person, not just as a basketball player. The visit my family and I had with coach Thomason was great. My mother and sister really trust and believe that it will be a great fit for me. Coach Thomason has seen many different types of players and knows what it takes to become a great player, which is what I'm striving to become. Getting the opportunity to play for Coach Thomason and his coaching staff at Pacific is just a blessing and I thank God for that. I really believe that it's going to be an exciting two years playing at Pacific. With the confidence that coach Thomason has in his players, it allows us to go out there and give it our all every time we step out on the floor. I believe we have a great chance to win, and be a part of greatness."

Back in November, Tiger Coach Bob Thomason signed 6-foot-10 center Las Positas College center Tim Thomas.

ESPN's Joel Francisco on a pair of Sacto area prepsters

Here's ESPN's Joel Francisco on two Sacramento area basketballers he observed in a southern California tournament this past weekend:

"Play Hard Play Smart have a handful of eye-catching prospects in 6-5 Dakari Allen (Sacramento, Calif./Sheldon) and 6-3 Eric Kienny (Sacramento, Calif./Sacramento). Allen has a rangy frame with extraordinarily long arms as well as an improved skill set, while Kienny can shoot it from deep and handed out a number of nifty assists off the pick-and-roll."

Justin Argenal to Louisiana Tech?

Louisiana Tech just hired Ole Miss assistant Mike White as head coach and one LT site is listing Justin Argenal as the new director of basketball operations for the Bulldog program.

This means Justin will get out to California at least once a year when Western Athletic Conference member Tech plays San Jose State University.

Here's Justin's bio from his present employment at The Citadel (what is not listed is his prepping at De La Salle High):

Justin Argenal joined [Chuck] Driesell's Citadel staff after spending last season as a graduate assistant at the University of Mississippi.

In this role, at Ole Miss, he focused on the academic success of student-athletes and implementation of individual workouts for off-season player development. He was an instrumental part of the Rebels 2009-10 NIT Final Four staff. Argenal has also served as a staff assistant for basketball camps held by Herb Sendek (Arizona State), Gary Williams (Maryland) and Kelvin Sampson (formerly of Indiana University).

A native of Lafayette, Calif., Argenal was a four-year team captain at California State University, Chico, and is the school's all-time leader in steals and assists. He earned a bachelor of arts in psychology from CSU-Chico in 2009. Argenal completed his master's degree in coaching and athletic administration from Concordia University (Irvine) in 2010.

Rivals' Eric Bossi and Jerry Meyer on the Oakland Soldiers

The top two evaluators at Rivals weigh in on this year's version of the Soldiers:

'The Oakland Soldiers are still must see

While previewing EYBL session No. 1, we pondered whether or not the Oakland Soldiers were still going to be a marquee team after last summer. Well, the Soldiers' 5-0 performance throughout the weekend should have answered any questions about that.

Because they hadn't yet practiced there were some rough spots, but as the weekend wore on they dominated. Five-stars Brandon Ashley and Aaron Gordon played like five-stars. Point guard Dominic Artis had a strong weekend as the team's primary ballhandler while 2012's Richard Longrus displayed versatility and 2013 wing Jabari Bird played to his early four-star status. Keep in mind, the Soldiers were without 2013 twins Tyree Robinson and Tyrell Robinson, who check in as five- and four-star prospects, respectively."

A great article on Scott Brooks

At East Union High (and probably before that) Scott Brooks was told about limitations. They definitely didn't include playing and coaching in the NBA but guess who had the last laugh? Ron Agostini has the story.

Jacari Whitfield is heading to...

Phil Jensen tells us about the college destination of St. Joseph Notre Dame backcourter Jacari Whitfield.

Another item on Adrian Oliver

Former Modesto Cyhristian High and San Jose State University star Adrian Oliver recently participated in the Portsmouth Invitational basketball tournament, a gathering of a number of collegians finishing their senior seasons.

Oliver measured out at 6-foot-3 and 198 pounds, with a 6-foot-6 wingspan.

Sam Hicks leaving Boise State

Former Liberty Christian High star Sam Hicks, who redshirted his first year but played this season, is departing from Boise State. He'll hopefully end up closer to home.

Chico State's Jake Lovisolo honored

Chico State sophomore guard Jake (Del Oro High) Lovisolo was recently honored by the school:

Among the dozens of Chico State student-athletes making contributions in the community, in the classroom and on the court or field of play, three will be officially recognized Tuesday for such achievements at the 2010-11 University Awards reception...Jake Lovisolo is receiving the Bud Hanna Scholar Athlete Award...

...The Bud Hanna Scholar-Athlete Award is presented to the male athlete at Chico State who best exemplifies excellence in the classroom and in athletics. A member of the men’s basketball team and the All-CCAA Academic Team, Lovisolo is a dual major in environmental science and environmental economics. According to his head coach, Greg Clink, Lovisolo is the epitome of what it means to be a student-athlete: “His efforts in the classroom and on the court are an inspiration to his teammates and coaches,” Clink said.

Longrus coming on

Here's Jeff Borzello on Bishop O'Dowd and Oakland Soldier Richard Longrus after the senior-to-be's play this weekend back in Virginia.

A couple of prep basketball items

The Stockton Record has published it's listing of the top players in the area, from First Team to Honorable Mention.

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Dante Quazzo has the game writeups on the outcomes of the best players on teams in San Francisco going up against one another.