by Alex Schwartz

I received word this morning from a source close to the situation that CJ Aiken '10 of Plymouth-Whitemarsh (PA) committed to St. Joseph's last night. The 6'9 combo forward has long been rumored to be a St. Joe's lean, and he attended the SJU Elite Camp a week and a half ago. Aiken joins Daryus Quarles '10 of Life Center Academy (NJ) as a big-time recruiting duo for Phil Martelli and Co. Aiken received interest/offers from high-major programs such as Syracuse, Florida, West Virginia, Virginia, Clemson, Virginia Tech, and Penn State, but in the end it seems he wanted to stay close to home. Once again, CJ Aiken of Plymouth-Whitemarsh has elected to take his game to St. Joseph's come 2010-2011.

Last weekend at the Rumble in the Bronx, I had the chance to chat with Florida State-commit Okaro White '10 of Clearwater (FL). White was running with Nike Team Florida, which made a run to the U17 Gold Semifinals, before falling to USC-pledge Dwayne Polee '10 and California Supreme. White, a 6'9 forward, selected FSU over Florida, Memphis, Clemson, Miami, and Indiana, citing his familiarity with the school as his reasoning. "They were one of the first schools to start recruiting me, [and] . . . made me feel like family. . . . I [have] been up there seven times [and I get a] . . . good vibe, and then, it's in Florida, so it's close to home." Okaro already is close with a future teammate, Ian Miller '10 of United Faith Christian Academy (NC). "[Ian and I] have a real good relationship. I talked to him on the phone for 40 minutes [Friday] night. We [are both] going to be at the NBAPA Top 100 Camp [this] week [and we were both at] . . . the Florida State Elite Camp last week." White, who uses the word "enthusiastic" to sum up his game, compares himself to Al Thornton on the court. I will have a chance to see both White and Miller at the NBAPA Top 100 Camp, as I arrived in Virginia today for the major event!

Note- photos are from http://scouthoops.scout.com/