Last week marked the start of the first July evaluation period, allowing college coaches to scour the country in search of their next players. Over the weekend, Washington, D.C. played host to one of the summer’s premiere Nike basketball events for prospects—the Nike Global Challenge.
In the absence of head coach Mike Krzyzewski and assistants Chris Collins and Steve Wojciechowski, who are busy with their obligations to the U.S. National Team, Duke assistant head coach Nate James was on the scene Saturday and Sunday to see some of the Blue Devil coaching staff’s targets.
The top prospect at the Nike Global Challenge was Andrew Wiggins, the top-ranked player in the class of 2014. His physical talents really separate him from the rest of his peers. At 6-foot-7, Wiggins has elite vertical leaping ability, quickness and adequate NBA length and frame. From a skills perspective, Wiggins is dangerous in every facet of the game. He can take people off the dribble, finish above the rim through traffic, hit mid-range jumpers and shoot the ball proficiently from deep.
Averaging 19.7 points and 7.0 rebounds per game, Wiggins led Canada to a second-place finish to the U.S. Midwest team. Wiggins was also named the CO-MVP of the All-International Team at the tournament.
Wiggins was not available for media access, however, Florida State and Kentucky remain the two schools that are the perceived leaders in his recruitment. Seminole head coach Leonard Hamilton watched every one of Wiggins’ games in Washington, D.C. at the Nike Global Challenge. And Wildcat head coach John Calipari was at the nation’s capital on Friday to get a look at Wiggins.
Duke, North Carolina and Syracuse, however, remain on Wiggins’ list of prospective schools.
Marcus Lee was one of the best big men at the Nike Global Challenge over the weekend, averaging 12.5 points and 8.8 rebounds per game for the U.S. West team, which finished third at the event.
The 6-foot-9 big man from Deer Valley, California appears to be improving with time. At the Nike Global Challenge, he ran the floor exceptionally well, finished in the paint, blocked shots and constantly communicated with his teammates.
A number of coaches were in attendance to watch Lee, including James for Duke, Stanford head coach Johnny Dawkins, Kansas head coach Bill Self, N.C. State head coach Mark Gottfried and North Carolina head coach Roy Williams, as well as many others.
Krzyzewski appears to be doing well in his effort to bring Lee to Durham. After his game on Friday night, Lee indicated to Adam Zagoria, The Chronicle and Steve Clark of scout.com’s The Devil’s Den that he has been communicating with Krzyzewski and his staff very frequently as of late. He is also very fond of Krzyzewski’s role with Team USA, describing it as “cool.”
Lee’s older brother is the point man in his recruitment. For the time being, Lee’s list of schools is quite lengthy, however, Lee also expressed to The Chronicle on Friday that he hopes to start cutting it down to “seven or eight” schools shortly after the Peach Jam.
Anthony Barber, a 6-foot-2 speedy point guard, has been a common point of discussion for Duke fans that follow recruiting. Arguably the best floor general in the class of 2013, Barber seems to have elimated the Blue Devils and narrowed his recruiting focus to Kansas, Alabama and Louisville. It appears that the Blue Devils and Barber have parted ways due to Duke's hope to land the top point guard in the class of 2014, Tyus Jones.
Switching gears to the class of 2014, another Duke target that was stellar at the Nike Global Challenge was small forward Theo Pinson, who averaged 15 points and 7.3 rebounds over the five games. Pinson was also named to the All-Tournament Team for the U.S.
In regards to Pinson’s recruitment, there is no groundbreaking news. A handful of schools continue to chase the 6-foot-6 wing. At this stage, Pinson is letting his father handle much of his recruitment as the rising junior is in the midst of a very busy AAU period.
Duke still has not offered Pinson a scholarship, which likely is due to the uncertainty of how the recruiting class of 2013 will look for the Blue Devils.
Justin Jackson is another 2014 Blue Devil recruit that the Duke coaching staff has reached out to in recent months. Playing alongside Lee on the West, Jackson was solid throughout the weekend. He rebounded well for a wing and was a capable defender that also showed the ability to score from all three levels. The only knock on Jackson at this stage is his lack of strength, which will likely be the deciding factor in whether or not some of the elite programs will pursue him intensely in the coming years.
Much like Pinson, Jackson’s recruitment has yet to really escalate in terms of narrowing down the list of schools. North Carolina, however, might be a school to keep an eye on with Jackson.
For more on these two 2014 swingmen, check out The Chronicle’s interviews with Pinson and Jackson, from over the weekend.
This coming weekend promises to be one of the biggest recruiting weekends of the year as some of the top AAU teams in the country gather in Augusta, South Carolina for the Nike EYBL championship tournament—the Peach Jam.
Essentially every Duke target, besides Robert Hubbs and Austin Nichols, will be participating in the Peach Jam.
The class of 2013’s top player and Duke recruit, Jabari Parker, did not participate in any events this past weekend due to injury. It is still unknown whether or not he will be playing at the Peach Jam this weekend for his AAU team, the Mac Irvin Fire.
This weekend will be another open-evaluation period for college coaches.
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