Bill Self and 325 other NCAA Division One men’s head basketball coaches won’t be resting, relaxing and recharging their batteries during the month of July.
They’ll be hitting the recruiting trail for 20 days.
Coaches are allowed to scout camps — sponsored by adidas, Nike, Reebok and others — so they’re off to Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Nevada, and South Carolina from July 8-17 and July 22-31.
There’s a short catch-your-breath break July 18-21.
“I used to not like it at all,” Kansas University coach Self said of living out of a suitcase in July. “When you are recruiting 150 guys to try to sign five at Oral Roberts, it’s a little more hectic than when you are recruiting 15 guys, trying to sign two at Kansas.
“You work just as hard, but it’s nice to know what you are looking for as opposed to going into a crapshoot every day, which basically is what it is for a lot of folks, because the recruiting landscape changes almost daily for some schools.
“At Kansas, we can have a better idea who we want and who we are going to go after because the pool of players who can play for us is a little bit smaller.”
Self, who will begin his summer recruiting junket at the Nike camp in Indianapolis, says he’s looking for a big man and perimeter player to join 6-1 point guard Mario Chalmers and 6-8 shooting guard Micah Downs, who already have committed orally to KU.
Self said he and his assistants would “continue to follow our commitments around to make sure they understand how important they are to us,” while also “getting a head start recruiting juniors and sophomores, getting a pool of 25 to 30 guys we feel are recruitable, who will seriously consider us and will make us better.”
Here’s a list of some of the players in the Class of 2005 who have had KU on their list of schools at some point. Recruiting, of course, is an inexact science, and only the Jayhawk coaches know who they are pursuing for sure. Coaches can’t comment on recruiting in accordance with NCAA rules:
Tyler Hansbrough, 6-9, 230, Poplar Bluff, Mo.: Rivalshoops.com’s No. 5-ranked player will choose KU, North Carolina, Kentucky or Missouri after attending the Nike camp in Indiana, Peach Jam in South Carolina, Super Showcase in Florida and Prep Invitational in Kansas City.
Kevin Rogers, 6-8, 220, South Oak Cliff High, Dallas: Rivals’ No. 36-rated player wants to attend the same college as 6-6 C.J. Miles of Skyline High in Dallas. Rogers, who plans to visit KU with Miles this fall, lists KU, Texas, Arizona, Georgia Tech, Oklahoma, Baylor, UConn and North Carolina.
C.J. Miles: Rivals’ No. 30-rated player, who will attend this week’s Nike camp with Rogers, lists KU, North Carolina, Georgia Tech, Texas and Arizona.
| Here’s a list of some of the big-name camps that college men’s basketball coaches will visit in the upcoming 20-day evaluation period, which runs July 8-17 and July 22-31:Nike All-America, July 6-10, Indianapolis; Reebok ABCD, July 7-11, Teaneck, N.J.; adidas Superstar, July 6-11, Suwanee, Ga.; ASI Midwest Summer Nationals, July 8-11, Des Moines, Iowa; Nike Peach Jam, July 13-17, North Augusta, S.C.; adidas Showtime Nationals, July 15-17, Suwanee, Ga.; Reebok Big Time Tournament, July 22-26, Las Vegas;AAU 17&under Showcase, July 23-26, Kissimmee, Fla.; AAU 17&under Nationals, July 26-31, Kissimmee, Fla.; Reebok Summer Classic West, July 27-31, Fullerton, Calif. |
Chris Douglas-Roberts, 6-5, 180, Cass Technical, Detroit: Rivals’ No. 24-rated player has said he wants to visit KU. He’s also considering Arizona, Maryland, UConn, Duke, UNC, Arkansas, Florida, Michigan and UCLA.
Tyler Smith, 6-6, 210, Giles County High, Pulaski, Tenn.: Rivals.com’s No. 26 player, who may attend Late Night in the Phog on Oct. 15, is said to be favoring Tennessee over KU, UNC, Florida and Miami.
C.J. Henry, 6-3, 195, Putnam City Okla.: The son of ex-Jayhawk Carl Henry likely will be chosen in the first round of the 2005 major-league baseball draft. Rivals.com’s No. 80-ranked player lists KU, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Kentucky, UConn, Louisville and Texas. He also is considering various baseball powers.
Jerry-Davon Jefferson, 6-8, 190, Lynwood, Calif.: Rivals.com’s No. 65-rated player lists Arizona, Louisville, KU, USC, Washington and North Carolina.
Michael Washington, 6-8, 210, McGhee, Ark.: Rivals.com’s No. 51-ranked player, who says he wants to visit KU, also is considering Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Miami and others.
Chris Gadley, 6-8, 245, Amherst High, Buffalo, N.Y.: Currently unranked, he has a list of KU, St. John’s, Pitt, Illinois, Tennessee, Purdue, Seton Hall and others.
Brandon Costner, 6-9, 220, Seton Hall Prep, West Orange, N.Y.: Rivals.com’s No. 42-rated player has visited UCLA, UConn and NC State.
Austin Jackson, 6-1, Denton, Texas: Rivals.com’s No. 41-ranked player, who like Henry is a standout baseball player, lists Oklahoma, Illinois, UConn, Georgia Tech and KU.
Jamont Gordon, 6-4, 215, Nashville, Tenn.: Rivals.com’s No. 18-rated player lists Memphis, Texas, Tennessee, Alabama.
Marcus Johnson, 6-6, 190, Westchester High, Los Angeles: Rivals.com’s No. 57-rated player lists Syracuse, Arizona, UConn, Texas, Louisville and KU.
Chad Millard, 6-8, 210, Manchester, N.H.: Rivals.com’s No. 19-ranked player has visited N.C. State. He also likes Missouri, Louisville, Pitt, KU and Arizona.
Julian Wright, 6-8, 190, Homewood Flossmoor High, Homewood, Ill: Rivals.com’s No. 23-rated player lists Illinois, Arizona, KU, DePaul, Duke, Michigan State and Indiana.
A juco possibility is James Davis, 7-foot, 285, from Garden City Community College out of St. Paul, Minn., who lists Minnesota, KU, K-State, Oklahoma State, Cincinnati, Nebraska and Georgia.
Some other standout prep players who have mentioned KU at some point: Jonathan Adams, 6-5, Chattanooga, Tenn.; Brayden Bell, 6-9, Salt Lake City; D’Andre Bell, 6-4, Los Angeles; Eric Boateng, 6-10, Middletown, Del.; Jamal Boykin, 6-6, Los Angeles; Leo Criswell, 6-8, K.C. Piper; Joe Darger, 6-7, Riverton, Utah; Uche Echefu, 6-8, Nigeria; Mitch Johnson, 6-0, Seattle; Octavius Spann, 6-7, College Park, Ga.; Brian Morris, 6-8, Portland, Ore.
