I'm Back from Vacation & the Elite 24 Basketball Classic @ Rucker Park Recap

Last night, I was at Rucker Park with a press pass to scout the Elite 24 Basketball Classic. My article is now posted at nbadraft.net. Please go check it out!

If you do not click the link above, this is what the recap looks like:
"Though the final score of the inaugural Elite 24 Hoops Classic at Rucker Park came to 141-139 in favor of the Blue Team, the defense did not leave spectators pondering, “Where you at?” Despite co-sponsorship of the event by Boost Mobile and Rise Magazine, the inflated score was more a consequence of the talent pool (the game was being hyped as “featuring the 24 best high school basketball players in the nation, regardless of graduating class and regardless of sneaker affiliation”), NBA length game time of four twelve minute quarters, and the compulsory run and gun style that comes standard with every basketball all-star game. Had there not been such strong winds blowing through the music filled Harlem evening air, complements of DJ Envy, the score of 280 total points could have easily reached 300.

In the first half the White Team, coached by Ben Gordon and Lincoln H.S. (Brooklyn) coach Dwayne “Tiny” Morton, failed to recognize that the wind hindered its outside shooting. The White Team, or the Goat Squad in honor of Rucker Park Legend Earl “The Goat” Manigault, threw up plenty of bricks and airballs before deciding that the time had come to scratch deep 3-pointers from the game plan. However, once the players started going to work inside of twenty feet, it was a delight to watch.

Kyle Singler (2007 – Undecided), sporting a ‘dew that inspired hype man Bobbito Garcia, a.k.a. DJ Cucumber Slice to confidently tell the crowd, “he could get a lot of hair endorsements someday,” played a solid game, showing his well rounded offensive arsenal. J.J. Hickson (2007 – considering Florida, NC State, & Tennessee) was a workhorse all night in the paint. Chris Allen (2007 – Michigan State) was a crowd pleaser, showing off his athleticism throughout the game. Although he may have missed as many dunks as he made, it is easy to cut the guy some slack when you take into consideration the type of acrobatic moves he was trying to pull off.

Highly ranked Kevin Love (2007 – UCLA) and Donte Green (2007 – Syracuse) both had moderately productive but quiet nights. Neither did anything wrong, yet did not stand out as other top ranked players did.

Stealing the show for the White Team was Brandon Jennings (2008 – attends Oak Hill). The Compton native played with enough flair for Bobbito to question whether or not the former has some New York blood in him. He ran his team so well it would have made Jason Kidd proud. Ironically, Kidd, who brought his family with him to the game, was Co-coach of the opposing Blue Team.

The Blue Team, a.k.a. the Skip to my Lou Squad in honor of Rucker Park legend and current Houston Rocket Rafer Alston, was coached by the aforementioned Kidd as well as Benjamin Cardozo H.S. (Queens) coach Ron Naclerio. Naclerio and J-Kidd’s crew held a slight yet consistent advantage over the opposition for most of the game. Overall, the Blue Team was probably a bit more talented. The White Team was banking on the services of O.J. Mayo (2007 – Undecided), Bill Walker (2007 – high interest in Kansas State), and Corey Fisher (2007 – Villanova), though all three pulled out of the game. ‘Fill-in’ Dexter Strickland (2009 – attends St. Patrick’s, NJ) played very well while the other ‘fill-in,’ Erving Walker (2008 – attends Christ the King, Queens) struggled at times but overall held his own.

Mike Beasley (2007 – Kansas State) on the other hand more than held his own. “I should call him The Veteran,” Bobbito Explains. “He’s twenty years ahead of his time.” Though Bobbito failed to address him by this name at any other point during the game, he exclaimed “Be easy Mike Beasley!” enough to make up for it and then some. The point is Mike Beasley looked like a man among boys, seemingly doing what he wanted at will. He made the game look like child’s play, putting his spectacular versatility, athleticism, and mouth on display. Beasley was not all talk though, as he hit threes, threw down a few nasty dunks, displayed an array of midrange fade-aways and leaners, and swatted away a few shots. If Beasley did not talk enough while on the court, he made sure to keep his mouth running while subbed out, though seemingly all in good fun.

Helping Beasley bring Blue the victory were Jerryd Bayless (2007 – Arizona), Deandre Jordan (2007 – Texas A&M), Cole Aldrich (2007 – Kansas), and New York’s current phenom Lance Stephenson (2009 – attends Lincoln, Brooklyn). Bayless, wearing tights to help him adapt from the Arizona desert to the end-of-summer New York night, showed off his incredible athletic ability multiple times throughout the event. Bayless could be seen with his head at the rim on more than one occasion. It's impressive enough to see Lebron James with his head at the rim, but Bayless is under 6'3" - more than five inches shorter. Deandre Jordan’s length and body control helped him block two shots and get one dunk in the first minute of play. It was more of the same, though to a lesser degree, for the rest of the game. Cole Aldrich had five thunderous dunks by halftime. It got to the point where Bobbito asked him to do something else because we already knew he could dunk. Lance Stephenson had a whisper quiet first half, until suddenly he put on a show two minutes before the end of the half. Play was sloppy, and Lance picked up a couple of steals and a few hoops. A few hoops not counting his ¾ court shot that hit nothing but the bottom of the net a second after the halftime buzzer had sounded, that is. The Brooklynite proceeded to do a rendition of the Chicken Noodle Soup, a dance created in Harlem. Harlem always makin’ it, Brooklyn always takin’ it, as they say.

Highly ranked Tyreke Evans (2008 – attends American Christian School, PA), Anthony Randolph (2007 – Undecided), and Devin Ebanks (recently reclassified to 2008 – attends St. Thomas More) did not quite live up to the hype. Tyreke broke a few ankles, however rarely converted on the plays. Rather than finishing a lay-up or dishing to a teammate for an easy hoop after a nice move, he often missed close shots or threw the ball away. Anthony Randolph had his flashes of brilliance, i.e. when he brought the ball up the court and threw an alley-oop to Cole Aldrich from 30-35 feet out. However this is the same type of play that got Anthony in trouble. It was apparent that he possesses above average ball handling ability for someone who stands 6’10” tall, though he was prone to over dribbling and actually tried to go coast-to-coast on more than one occasion. The ball was taken away almost every time. Ebanks did not see much play in the first half, though when he saw more action in the second half he did not do much to capitalize. It was not a bad effort, though he did nothing to stand out and earn his high ranking.

Although the score was close, the game was never really in question. The White Team did revert to fouling in the last 30 seconds, though it was inconsequential to the final outcome of the game.

Awards:

Doing his best Steve Nash impression, Brandon Jennings dished his way to 15 assists and White Team co-MVP. Bobbito Garcia made it apparent that Jennings was MVP in his heart as well, as he actually asked the Compton native to come live with him in New York. DJ Cucumber Slice also quipped, “There is a spot in the EBC for you.”

Beneficiary of more than a couple of Jennings feeds was other co-MVP J.J. Hickson. The strong bodied big man made his bones in the paint, finishing with 34 points, 8 boards.

Blue Team co-MVPs were Mike Beasley, who truly made the game look too easy, and Jerryd Bayless, who wowed the crowd all night with his aerial assault. Beasley finished with 26 points, 9 rebs while Jerryd “Pay up” Bayless racked up 16 points.

Despite the absence of O.J. Mayo and Bill Walker, 155^th and Frederick Douglas Boulevard in Harlem was the place to be on the night of September 1^st. Just ask the many celebrities who chose to enjoy the festivities with the New York crowd, such as Steve Nash, Jason (and Joumana) Kidd, Ben Gordon, Kenyon Martin, Smush Parker, and the Beastie Boys.

For highlights, make sure to tune into Bobbito’s show Summerball on the MSG Network on Monday, September 11^th at 9:00."