Nation's top recruits do battle at 3 major showcases

College basketball’s recruiting season is now in full swing as the past week featured three high profile showcases: The LeBron James Skills Academy, Rebook Breakout Classic and Adidas Unrivaled Camp.

At the LeBron James Skill Academy in Las Vegas, one of the premiere matchups of the entire event was between two Duke targets: Ivan Rabb, the No. 1 ranked player in the ESPN100, and Henry Ellenson, one of the fast risers in the Class of 2015. The battle of two elite big men played to a “virtual standstill” when guarding each other. The 6-foot-11 Rabb showcased his ability to dominate the paint on both ends as 6-foot-9 Ellenson flashed the versatility that has made him sought after by the country’s top programs.

Other Duke targets in Las Vegas included Caleb Swanigan, Cheick Diallo and D.J. Hogg.

Duke’s star-studded incoming freshman class is highlighted by center Jahlil Okafor and point guard Tyus Jones, who were a well-publicized package deal on the recruiting trail. The Class of 2015 could have its equivalent in guard Malik Newman and center Diamond Stone, both of whom are Duke targets and are ranked third and fourth in their class, respectively. Both Stone and Newman were at separate events this weekend, but both expressed their strong friendship and desire to play together in college. However, the outlook does not look good for the Blue Devils when it comes to this high-profile package. When Newman was asked his top five schools for a potential package deal, he did not list Duke and instead named Connecticut, Kansas, Kentucky, N.C. State and Miami as the possible schools for the duo.

Speaking of Stone, he faced off against another Duke target this weekend, Skal Labissiere, at the Rebook Breakout Classic in Philadelphia. The aforementioned Stone is a 6-foot-10, 250-pound center from the Dominican High School in Milwaukee. Labissiere, originally born in Haiti, is a 6-10, 210 pound Center from the Evangelical Christian School in Memphis, Tenn. Stone is currently ranked No. 4 and Labissiere currently resides at No. 11 on ESPN’s top 100.

In terms of Labissiere’s recruitment, his hometown Memphis Tigers seem to be the leader in the clubhouse as of now. Duke’s contact has been limited, and it seems more and more likely that the Haitian big man will stay in his home state and play for Josh Pastner’s Tigers.

At the Adidas Unrivaled camp, head coach Mike Krzyzewski, associate head coach Jeff Capel and assistant coach Jon Scheyer were on hand to watch an in-state gem put on a show. Kinston, N.C., native Brandon Ingram continued his recent stretch of dominance as his team throttled the team of fellow highly-ranked prospect Jaylen Brown. A few weeks ago, Ingram, a 6-foot-8 small forward, seemed to be deciding only between the top schools of the state, Duke, North Carolina and N.C. State, but his recent strong play has intrigued blue bloods Kansas, Kentucky and UCLA, and the Wildcats and Bruins both offered Ingram following his strong performance.

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A sidenote on Ingram, two Kinston High School alums went on to become Tar Heels in Jerry Stackhouse and Reggie Bullock, so a potential commitment from Ingram down the road would be a coup for the Blue Devils in regards to in-state recruiting.

Forward Chase Jeter was also at the Adidas Unrivaled camp and put on quite a show. Jeter faced off against top-10 prospect Carlton Bragg and dropped 18 points and seven rebounds, holding Bragg to only five points on 2-of-10 shooting. Jeter, ranked 13th in his recruiting class by ESPN, did not discuss his recruitment at the Adidas camp, and although Duke continues to be regarded as the favorite, no announcement date has been set. The Blue Devils continue to be the clubhouse leader for the 6-foot-10 big man from Las Vegas, with Arizona, UCLA and UNLV also in the mix.