April 2013 Basketball Wiretap

UNLV Receives Commitment From Dwayne Morgan

Mar 27, 2013 8:44 PM

UNLV received a commitment from Dwyane Morgan, a 6-foot-7 small forward who is considered a top-30 prospect in the class of 2014.

Morgan chose the Runnin’ Rebels over finalists Maryland and Georgetown.

"Throughout my recruitment UNLV stayed the most consistent and involved," Morgan wrote on zagsblog.com. "There were about two games that they were not in attendance for this past summer.”

Morgan visited UNLV on Feb. 9 for the 64-55 victory against New Mexico.

“They like to get it down the floor and everybody on the team can pretty much shoot, and I can shoot for my size,” Morgan said in February. “That would be a perfect fit.”

Taylor Bern/Las Vegas Sun

Tags: UNLV Runnin' Rebels, Mountain West Conference, High School, NCAA, NCAA Recruiting, NCAA Commitment

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Wiggins, Parker, Gordon, Randle Headline 2013 Nike Hoop Summit

Mar 26, 2013 1:15 PM

The rosters for the 2013 Nike Hoop Summit have been announced.

On the USA Roster is Aaron Gordon, Aaron Harrison, Andrew Harrison, Kasey Hill, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, Demetrius Jackson, Jabari Parker, Bobby Portis, Julius Randle and Noah Vonleh.

On the World Team Roster is Dennis Schroder, Nikola Ivanovic, Gabriel Deck, Dante Exum, Andrew Wiggins, Sergey Karasev, Mario Hezonja, Mouhammadou Jaiteh, Livio Jean-Charles and Karl Towns Jr.

RealGM Staff Report

Tags: Andrew Wiggins, Aaron Gordon, Julius Randle, Jabari Parker, High School, High School Nike Hoop Summit

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Karl Towns Named New Jersey Gatorade Player Of The Year

Mar 23, 2013 5:37 PM

Karl Towns was named the New Jersey Gatorade Player of the Year.

Towns, a 7-foot sophomore, averaged 20.6 points, 14.0 rebounds and 5.3 blocked shots per game this past season in leading St. Joseph’s to a 27-5 record.

“This is just an incredible honor, something I’m extremely proud of,’’ said Towns. “Just like a game, this was a team effort. I have to thank my parents for supporting me, especially for pushing me to be the best I could be. I have to thank coach [Dave Turco] for all his great gameplans and his coaching ability, the Dominican team, Mr. [Jerry] Smith our athletic director and of course my teammates for allowing me to go out and play my game. You can’t win an award like this without a great supporting cast.’’

Towns maintains a 4.2 grade point average while taking several accelerated classes.

“I’ve coached a lot of great players and been around a lot of great kids. But when you combine the both, Karl is the best. He’s special on and off the court,” Turco said. “When we go to a lot of big events, they cater to Karl. But when they ask him what he wants, the first thing he will do is look at my son Andrew and say ‘do you want a hot dog? What do you want?’ He’s a one-of-a-kind person.’’

John Haley/Newark Star-Ledger

Tags: Karl-Anthony Towns, High School, NCAA, NBA

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Wiggins Still Weighing College Options

Mar 21, 2013 9:05 PM

Andrew Wiggins is still contemplating his college choice.

"I really don't know when I'm going to sign," said Wiggins. "When I know where I want to go, I'll sign. But I just don't know."

Huntington Prep coach Rob Fulford made up an Excel chart for Wiggins, so he could rank his final four schools -- Florida State, Kansas, Kentucky and North Carolina – in areas of interest such as atmosphere, fans, weather, coaching style, play style, campus, general feel and more.

"With the sheet, we want to help him to figure out exactly what is most important to him, what might not be most important and rank them among those schools," Fulford said. "At the end, you add it up and see who is leading. That doesn't necessarily determine the final decision, but that gives you a solid basis to build off of."

Grant Traylor/Huntington Herald-Dispatch

Tags: Andrew Wiggins, North Carolina Tar Heels, Florida State Seminoles, Kansas Jayhawks, Kentucky Wildcats, Atlantic Coast Conference, Big 12 Conference, Southeastern Conference, High School, NCAA, NCAA Recruiting, NBA

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Julius Randle Commits To Kentucky

Mar 20, 2013 1:20 PM

Julius Randle has announced that he will attend Kentucky.

Randle is widely considered the third best overall player in the incoming class of 2013.

Randle also considered Kansas, Florida and Texas as his final choices.

RealGM Staff Report

Tags: Julius Randle, Kansas Jayhawks, Texas Longhorns, Florida Gators, Kentucky Wildcats, High School, NCAA

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Jabari Parker Named 2013 Morgan Wootten Male Player of the Year

Mar 18, 2013 4:15 PM

Jabari Parker has been named the 2013 Morgan Wootten Male Player of the Year.

Parker led Simeon to its fourth straight Illinois state title on Saturday.

"It's a big-time (honor)," Parker said of the award. "I always dreamed about being amongst the ranks of especially Chicago players, but now I can say nationwide. Hopefully, I can take this and give myself a little bit motivation."

Parker averaged 18 points and 10 rebounds during his senior year after battling a foot injury early in the season. He averaged 21.7 points during the team's seven playoff victories.

The other finalists were Aaron Gordon, Aaron Harrison, Andrew Harrison, Dakari Johnson and Andrew Wiggins.

ESPN

Tags: Jabari Parker, Aaron Gordon, Andrew Harrison, Aaron Harrison, Andrew Wiggins, Dakari Johnson, Duke Blue Devils, High School, NCAA

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Wiggins Set For Visit To North Carolina

Mar 9, 2013 3:31 PM

Andrew Wiggins is scheduled to travel to North Carolina today for a recruiting visit with the Tar Heels.

Wiggins plans to attend the Tar Heels' game against Duke tonight.

“I’m definitely looking forward to visiting,” Wiggins said. “It’s a great rivalry and two great schools.”

Wiggins has already taken official visits to Florida State, Kentucky and Kansas, and is expected to decide at some point after visiting Carolina.

“I haven’t found it yet, so I am just waiting for that moment that will convince me it’s the right place,” Wiggins said.

Adam Zagoria/ZagsBlog

Tags: Andrew Wiggins, North Carolina Tar Heels, Atlantic Coast Conference, High School, NCAA, NCAA Recruiting

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Julius Randle Added To McDonald's All-American Game

Mar 6, 2013 10:40 AM

Julius Randle has been added to the 2013 McDonald's All-American Game.

Randle has been limited this season due to injury, but has had a storied high school career and is one of the top-five recruits of the 2013 class.

Randle has yet to make his college decision.

RealGM Staff Report

Tags: Julius Randle, High School, High School McDonald's, NCAA

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Justin Jackson Commits To North Carolina

Mar 4, 2013 6:57 PM

Justin Jackson has committed to North Carolina for 2014.

Jackson is a 6-7 small forward out of Texas.

Jackson also considered Arizona, Ohio State, Virginia, Texas A&M and Washington.

Jackson is a top-15 recruit in his class.

RealGM Staff Report

Tags: North Carolina Tar Heels, High School, NCAA, NCAA Recruiting, NCAA Commitment

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Wiggins Quiet After Official Visit To Kentucky

Mar 2, 2013 1:16 PM

Andrew Wiggins declined to talk about his recruitment after taking an official visit to Kentucky this week.

“He’s not going to give up much,” Huntington Prep coach Rob Fulford said. “You guys know him well enough.”

Wiggins’ parents, both of whom attended Florida State, accompanied him on the trip to Kentucky.

Fulford addressed a popular narrative in recruiting circles that Wiggins is already sold on Kentucky and that this week’s trip was about selling his parents on the Wildcats.

“That could be. It could be. I don’t know,” Fulford said. “There’s no doubt about it that it could be. The fact that his parents are on his visits is crucial. Had they not gone to any of the other ones, I would have said that Florida State was a lock. Because they wouldn’t have had anything to compare it to. The fact that they are going says a lot about the process and that they had a chance to see different places.”

Ben Roberts/Lexington Herald-Leader

Tags: Andrew Wiggins, Kentucky Wildcats, Southeastern Conference, High School, NCAA, NCAA Recruiting, NBA

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