Memory Lane: LeBron in high school

EACH WEEK, WE'LL TAKE A LOOK BACK AT A MEMORABLE MOMENT IN ILLINI HISTORY, THANKS TO THE WORDS OF THE NEWS-GAZETTE

This week: Long before he was breaking hearts in Cleveland — and making friends in Miami — LeBron James was the talk of the Nike All-America Camp in Indianapolis. Even as a non-participant.

Headline: Nike camp a wild summer hoops ride

Date: July 11, 2002

By BRETT DAWSON

INDIANAPOLIS – It is a sometimes dazzling, always dizzying basketball blur, this Nike All-America camp.

It's the only place on the planet you can watch high school basketball from a folding chair at courtside, flanked by Bob Huggins and Manute Bol.

It's the only place a freshman-to-be like Derrick Caracter can be asked how much recruiting mail he receives and reply, without a hint of irony, "A lot, if you count all the stuff from high schools."

And sideshows aside, after 20 years, the Nike camp, along with adidas' ABCD event, still is the best place to watch the next wave of college and NBA stars.

"I love it," Illinois assistant coach Billy Gillispie said. "I wish they'd let us do this 300 days a year."

That's a mind-bending thought, given the sheer amount of hoop minutia crammed into these five summer days in the basketball heartland.

Slam dunks, cell phones, spin moves, cameo appearances - they're all a part of summer basketball's hottest showcase. Here, a look back at a week filled with hoops hysteria:

Best of the best

We'll leave the rankings to college coaches and recruiting gurus who earn their paychecks comparing and contrasting the players assembled here. But the Nike camp is just no fun without a little listing.

What follows isn't an attempt to rank the top players at the camp. It's merely an alphabetical list of the ten guys who left the strongest impressions:

* Shannon Brown: It's no wonder Illinois is recruiting Brown even with Richard McBride already committed. He measured a shorter-than-expected 6-foot-1, but Brown might be the most explosive player here. His jumper isn't always on, but when he's focused, he can be a dominant offensive player.

* Luol Deng: The 6-7 Deng was born in Sudan, moved to Egypt at age 6, left for England at 9 and relocated to New Jersey at 14. His next stop might be Durham, N.C., and the Duke campus. Whoever gets him lands the best player here.

* Ndudi Ebi: Another incredible shrinking prospect, he ended up listed at 6-7 and didn't look any taller. His game wasn't as good as advertised for much of the camp, but he turned in a hype-affirming performance Tuesday night, flashing the slashing and post-up skills that have Duke and Indiana salivating. Illinois isn't among his favorites, but the multi-talented Ebi said he's still considering the Illini.

* Pat Ewing Jr.: Dad should be proud. At 6-8 and 213 pounds, the younger Ewing isn't the same kind of sheer physical force his father was. But he plays like the son of an NBA great, with an understanding of the game's basics that escapes many of his contemporaries.

* Brandon Foust: Expect Peoria's Brian Randle to remain Illinois' top target on the wing. But Foust is nobody's second fiddle. The 6-5 Columbus, Ohio, native was arguably the most active wing in camp, getting to the rim, it seemed, on every missed shot. It's not hard to see why Cincinnati, DePaul, Illinois, Oklahoma and Seton Hall are so interested in Foust, who's as effective without the ball as with it.

* Kalen Grimes: He's a junior. And he hardly played this week, sitting out most of the games with a bruised elbow. But when Grimes took the court, he was an undeniable presence, overpowering players a year his elder and showing a budding offensive game. Get ready for a whale of a recruiting fight among Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri and North Carolina.

* Joseph Jones: Another junior, Jones came in as a well thought of wing forward and probably left as a priority recruit. Illinois had him on the radar coming in, and Kansas reportedly had its interest piqued by the 6-7 Jones, who has all the skills of a major Division I small forward.

* Courtney Sims: There's no bigger mystery in camp than the relatively quiet recruitment of Sims, a 6-10 center/power forward from Roslindale, Mass. Virtually all of his scholarship offers were from mid-major programs, but in some games here he dominated the low post on both ends and showed an ability and a willingness to run the court. Look for him to climb the recruiting rankings after five days as the camp's best big man.

* Vakeaton Wafer: Like Grimes, the 6-4 junior played sparingly, sidelined with a thigh bruise. Also like Grimes, he was spectacular when he played. It's no wonder recruiting gurus told everyone who would listen to watch the talented wing guard whose stock has been soaring all summer.

* Keith Wooden: Unlike some of his classmates, the legitimate 6-8 senior won his battle with the tape measure, and his size wasn't nearly as big as his game. Wooden has the makings of a power forward's build, but he's blessed with small forward skills and an otherworldly upside.

Best of the rest

* Best player who didn't play: LeBron James. Even with a brace on his injured left wrist, the Akron, Ohio, star - who put in a cameo appearance - was the most talented player on any court. James, who was scheduled to play at the ABCD camp before injuring his wrist last month, pulled the pop-in at Nike instead and looked every bit like the NBA star he's expected to be. He wore lightly tinted sunglasses (inside, at night), sported a George Gervin retro jersey and had strapped to his baggy shorts two cell phones and a two-way pager. James is still rehabbing his wrist, but he was well enough to bury a flurry of NBA three-pointers and even throw down a couple of dunks with his one good hand.

* Best player you hadn't heard of (tie): Gabriel Pruitt and Chris Low. The 5-11 Pruitt, a point guard from Los Angeles, was unstoppable off the dribble and was more than willing to set up his teammates. Low is no superstar, but the 6-8 Texan has a body built to accommodate considerably more than his present 201 pounds. Already a battler in the paint and capable on the perimeter, he could turn into quite a prospect.

* Best off-the-chart performance: Kenneth Harris of Gary, Ind., at the weigh-in. The 6-9 Harris, a major talent who's committed to play at Valparaiso, is listed on Nike's official camp roster at 351 pounds - but that might not be entirely accurate. The scale Nike uses stops at 350.

* Best family ties (tie): Ewing Jr., Darryl (D.J.) Strawberry Jr., Brandon Bell. Patrick's son, Darryl's son and Charlie's little brother all had their moments here, though Ewing Jr. was the only consistent standout. No surprise here: Turns out Pat and D.J. have forged a friendship. Don't know what they talk about, but it's probably something like, ÒAren't you sick of being asked what it's like to have so-and-so be your father?"

* Best versatility: Michael Bush. The Louisville, Ky., product has scholarship offers at six different positions: shooting guard, small forward, quarterback, wide receiver, linebacker and safety.

* Best name: Juan Diego Tello Palacios. You should have seen Nike's poor public relations staff trying to squeeze that thing onto a ÒHi, my name is" sticker at the media interview sessions.

* Best tough name made easy: Ndudi Ebi looks complicated, but it's not. All together, now: "IN-dee EBB-ee."

* Best easy name made tough: JamesOn Curry. That capital ÒO" is guaranteed to drive your spell-check crazy.

* Best basketball: As usual, the most heated workouts came courtesy of the camp counselors, including Illinois' Brian Cook, who described the regimen by shaking his head and saying, "We're just like.." then waving his hand back and forth to indicate constant motion. Among the honor roll of college stars who showed up to take part: Arizona's Jason Gardner, Connecticut's Emeka Okafor, Oregon's Luke Ridnour and Luke Jackson, Notre Dame's Chris Thomas and four Kansas Jayhawks, Nick Collison, Keith Langford, Aaron Miles and Wayne Simien.

* Best trivial fact: Because of NCAA regulations, players can't keep the gear they're given to wear at camp. Each player is allowed to keep a T-shirt, but the brand-new home and road jerseys and crisp new basketball shoes given to each player are donated to charity when the camp ends.

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