by Alex Schwartz

I have recapped almost all of the 2010 Bob Gibbons Tournament of Champions already. Check out my Day One Rundown from Friday night's action, my Day Two Rundown, Part One from Saturday the games on Saturday morning/afternoon, and also my Day Two Rundown, Part Two from Saturday evening/night's happenings. In this article I will provide news and information from Sunday morning out in North Carolina at the University of North Carolina, where the event was primarily held.

While there were five game sets on Sunday, I was only there for the first two due to traffic concerns. In the 9:00am game set at UNC's Dean Dome I watched a U17 National Playoffs (pool winners) quarterfinal contest between the Illinois Wolves and Team Loaded (VA). During the 10:15am action, I watched both a U16 National Playoffs semifinal between the Atlanta Celtics and Team Philly as well as a U16 Select Playoffs (second place pool finishers) game pitting Indiana Elite/Team Indiana against the Pennsylvania Playaz.

With three courts in the Dean Dome, I was also able to glance over at the action on other courts and talk with players from those games, in addition to the ones in the games that I was primarily concentrated on. Thus, in addition to evaluating players, I collected a number of school lists/recruiting updates before hitting the road on Sunday afternoon.

School Lists/Recruiting Updates

Ryan Watkins ’10, Reseda (CA), Pump ‘N’ Run Elite: Hawaii, Alabama A&M, UC Irvine, Cal State Northridge, and UC Riverside
                            Offers: Alabama A&M
                            Favorites: Hawaii, Alabama A&M, and UC Irvine are his top three, with Hawaii as the leader
                            Note- Watkins still plans on going to college in the class of 2010, but if he does not then he is not sure what he will do.

Chasson Randle ’11, Rock Island (IL), Illinois Wolves: Illinois, Purdue, Stanford, Duke, Kansas, Georgetown, Miami, Florida State, Wisconsin, DePaul, UConn, Minnesota, Notre Dame, and Michigan
                                Offers: All except Duke, Kansas, and Georgetown
                                Favorites: None
                                Note- Although he has no favorites, Randle said that Illinois, Purdue, Stanford, Duke, Kansas, and Georgetown are “the six mainly [involved], but there’s some others I’m gonna look at,” adding, “I wouldn’t say [that those are my] top six. Those are the ones I’m looking at strongly.” Randle does not have a timetable for a decision, but is “looking for the fall to maybe make a decision hopefully”. Asked if location will be a factor, Randle replied, “No, I don’t think so. Wherever I’m comfortable and feel the best, that’s where I’ll end up going.” Randle, who was invited to try out for the 17 & Under USA National team in June, was planning on visiting Duke on Monday, but did not make the trip due to how much it would have cost to change flights.

Marvin Williams ’11, White Station (TN), Memphis Magic Elite: Stanford, Lipscomb, Alabama, Arkansas, and Mississippi State
                               Offers: None
                               Favorites: “I kinda like Alabama and Mississippi State and I like Lipscomb, them three.”

Amile Jefferson ’12, Friends Central (PA), Team Philly 16s: Villanova, Virginia Tech, Penn State, Wake Forest, West Virginia, Georgetown, Temple, St. Joseph’s, Syracuse, and Duke (“That’s a short list for right now,” he said.)
                               Offers: Virginia Tech, Penn State, Wake Forest, West Virginia, Temple, and St. Joseph’s
                               Favorites: None
                               Notes- Asked if location is a factor, Jefferson replied, “I’m wide open. [Those around me have been] getting calls from coaches from Texas to Stanford and I tell them if a school I wanna go to is close or far, if it’s the best fit for me, [I will go there].” To read the full article that I wrote on Jefferson and Tavon Sledge for VUSports.com, click Here.

Peter Jurkin ’12, United Faith Christian Academy (NC), Indiana Elite/Team Indiana 16s: Indiana, Texas, South Carolina, and Clemson
                          Offers: Indiana, South Carolina, and Clemson
                          Favorites: “Indiana or Texas”
                          Note- Jurkin has been playing basketball for four years and came over to the US from Sudan in 2008.

Jordan Adams ’12, Central Gwinnett (GA), Atlanta Celtics 16s: Georgia, Tennessee, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Florida, South Carolina, Auburn, and Vanderbilt
                             Offers: Georgia
                             Favorites: None
                             Note- Adams, who is giving up football to focus on basketball, said that he “might be going to Oak Hill this year”. He went on to say, “I know I’m not going [back to Central Gwinnett] next year. I’m going to make that decision [on where to go] by the end of June.” Newbirth (GA), Wheeler (GA), and Norcross (GA) are the other schools besides OHA that are under consideration. As far as college goes, Adams said that he is not concerned with location.

Phil Nolan ’12, Vincent (MI), Wisconsin Playground Warriors 16s: Marquette, Iowa State, Texas, and Baylor
                       Offers: Marquette and Iowa State
                       Favorites: None

Kuran Iverson ’13, Northwest Catholic (CT), Long Island Lightning 15s & 17s: Georgetown, USC, Florida State, and Rutgers
                            Offers: None
                            Favorite: Georgetown
                            Note- Iverson’s dream school is Kentucky.

Player Notes

See my Bob Gibbons TOC- Day Two Rundown, Part One for my evaluation on the play of Ryan Watkins, a 6'8 center.

One of the most highly-regarded players in the class of 2011 at the Bob Gibbons TOC this year, Randle had a solid outing in his team's big win over a talented Team Loaded squad. The 6'1 point guard did not wow in the game, but it is clear that he can run a team. He sets up his teammates, has a quality handle, can shoot a bit, and gets to the cup well.

See my Bob Gibbons TOC- Day Two Rundown, Part Two for my evaluation on the play of Marvin Williams, a 6'7 center.

Amile Jefferson is one of the top 2012 prospects in the country, and the 6'7 forward showed some flashes of why that is on Saturday morning. A long player with a nice skill set, Jefferson has a vast amount of potential. For more on his play, see the aforementioned article at VUSports.com.

Peter Jurkin 'of United Faith Christian Academy (NC) is a player who has a chance to be outstanding down the road. Having only been playing basketball for four years, it is impressive what Jurkin can do on the floor. A 7'0 center, Jurkin has ultra long arms, and he is able to use them to block shots and rebound the basketball. On one play, Jurkin basically blocked a shot by catching the ball with one hand. He can also score in the post, though he will need to add some bulk to his 220-pound frame. It is clear that Peter Jurkin is not only a nice talent now, but a player with tremendous long term upside. 

Jordan Adams definitely has the talent to play high-major basketball in a few years, but he is going to need to work on his body. A 6'5, 212-pound wing, Adams is able to use his size to his advantage, but would be better served if he was able to create a more muscular physique. Regardless, Adams is one of the top wings in the class of 2012 at this point and will likely continue to improve over the next few years.

See my Bob Gibbons TOC- Day Two Rundown, Part Two for my evaluation on the play of Phil Nolan, a 6'10 power forward/center.

I did not get a chance to see Kuran Iverson play all that much, but by all accounts, he was one of the most impressive class of 2013 prospects at the 2010 Bob Gibbons TOC. Checking in at 6'8, 190-pounds, Iverson has the look of a big-time prospect and he is only going to be going into his sophomore. Iverson is definitely a player to keep an eye on.

Now, for some guys that I did not talk to on Sunday morning, but did see play for at least a bit:

Another player who had a great morning that I did not get to see as much as I would have liked was Jordan Tebbutt '12, a 6'6 wing out of Horizon Christian (CA). Tebbutt was running with the Pump 'N' Run U17 squad and was a key part of the California team's blowout victory over the Atlanta Celtics in a National Playoffs quarterfinal.

Savon Goodman '12 once again showed off his ridiculous athletic ability while playing with Team Philly's U16 team. The 6'5 wing from Academy of the New Church (PA) had one or two dunks that were just outstanding, just as he does in many of his games. He is able to get to the cup with ease and has a solid enough handle, but Goodman is going to need to improve upon his outside shooting ability to prevent defenders from just playing off him at the next level, where he will certainly be able to play high-major ball. Regardless, he is certainly a special athlete and for now that makes him a top-tier player in his class on a national level.

Obji Aget '12 has a long way to go in his development, but he has one thing that cannot be taught: height. A 7'0, 195-pound center out of Mountain State Academy (WV), Aget really needs to add a lot of bulk, but he has a tremendous length in his body and arms. Right now he is quite raw, but he does rebound and block shots.

Tournament Recap

In the U17 National Playoffs, Long Island Lightning defeated the Michigan Hurricanes in the championship. Western Kentucky-bound Derrick Gordon '11 of St. Patrick's (NJ) was named MVP for LIL, which was part of a surprise finals matchup on both ends.

In the U17 Select Playoffs, Memphis Magic Elite took home the title. I do not know who the MVP was or which team lost in the championship, but it was either New Heights NYC of the New England Playaz, as they met in the semifinals of the Select Playoffs bracket.

In the U16 National Playoffs, the Atlanta Celtics were the crowned the champions after knocking off the CP3 All-Stars in the title game. Will Goodwin '12 of Southwest Dekalb (GA) was selected as the MVP for the ATL Celtics.

In the U16 Select Playoffs, Indiana Elite/Team Indiana knocked off the Charlotte Nets for the championship. I do not know which player was named the MVP.

In the U15 National Playoffs, Team United won the championship, beating DC Assault in the title tilt. Sanderius Thornwell '13 of Lancaster (SC) was the MVP for United.

In the U15 Select Playoffs, Wisconsin Playground Warriors took home the title after beating Garner Road Bulldogs (NC) in the championship. Bronson Koeing '13 of Aquinas (WI) and Austin Mecca '13 of Lincoln (WI) were named co-MVPs for WPW.

Note- the first photo is of Peter Jurkin and is from http://www.rivals.com/; the second and third photos (Randle and Adams) are from http://scouthoops.scout.com/; and the final photo (Goodman) is from http://www.phillyhoops.net/
Note- Bob Gibbons All Star Report, Memphis Magic AAU twitter, Indiana Elite twitter, and CourtCred.com used as sources for tournament results information