On Saturday the Nations camp got into full swing with
morning scrimmages between the college players followed by afternoon and evening
games among the Nations U18 players. It’s a bit of a 3-ring circus as at times
all 6 courts are being used making it impossible to take in even half of the action
at one time. So the dilemma is whether to sit and watch complete games or move
around and try to take in as much action as possible. I find myself opting for
the latter.
Saturday morning marked the first day that James Harden, rocking a mo-hawk, participated
in games and scouts rushed to the far end of the gym to see him as soon as his
game got started. There’s no question he’s the top player in camp, Harden has
a presence about him, a certain confidence that great players have. He looks every
bit a potential top 5 pick based on his play so far.
Day 2 Games
|
James Harden |
|
The roughly 20 college counselors were split up into the following
teams:
Team 1: Darren
Collison / Jrue
Holiday / Diamon
Simpson / Jarvis
Varnado / Arinze
Onauku
Team 2: Curtis
Jerrells / James
Harden / Quincy
Pondexter / Mac
Koshwal / Cole
Aldrich
Team 3: Henry
Dugat / Dar
Tucker / Terrance
Williams / Gani
Lawal / John Bryant
Team 4: Shaun Dumas / Olu
Ashaolu / Antonio
Anderson / Wayne
Chism / Luke
Nevill
The squads faced off for two 10 minute quarters and
then moved courts to face other teams.
Harden didn’t force things letting the game come to him. He squared off with Terrence
Williams getting by him for some nice drive and dishes. Harden scored baskets
in the flow of the offense. He had roughly 6 points in each of the games showing
excellent lift on his jumper.
His shot looked good in the practice session and although he didn’t light the
scoreboard on fire, his team won against T-Wills in a brief overtime 37-32. Harden’s
passing and ability to make teammates better from the 2g position is what really
makes him so valuable.
Similar to a Manu Ginobili, Harden does whatever it takes to win, making those
around him better. Maybe most impressive about his play today was the way he went
down with what appeared to be a potential serious knee injury but was able to
shake it off and continue.
That ability to not get injured on a play that had serious injury written all
over it is a tribute to his tremendous athletic ability. While he may not look
like a specimen, he’s one of those deceptive types of athletes who is much more
athletic than his body makes him appear.
Darren Collison |
|
The Collison/Holiday squad took care of business winning all
three 20 minute scrimmages against the other squads.
It’s apparent these two already play with a lot of continuity. Holiday’s presence
and unselfish style is sure to benefit Collison next season as Holiday commands
a lot of attention on the offensive end. He gets into the lane at will and has
a polished bag of tricks offensively. Collison has shown
the ability to get to the rim with little resistance.
Unfortunately there isn’t a great point guard in camp
as there was at last year’s Nations camp (Augustin) to test DC. While he may have
been the most productive college guy in camp on Saturday, the fact that he’s doing
it against guys like Shaun Dumas and Henry Dugat leaves something to be desired.
Gani Lawal
had the dunk of the day flushing a dunk in emphatic style in the night session.
He appears to have put on some muscle (now likely in the 230 lb range) and appears
on pace to become a first rounder in 2010. He’s likely always going to be a little
on the thin side, but his length make up for some of his lack of natural girth.
Curtis
Jerrells was another impressive player. He’s still not nearly the passer that
he is scorer, but his speed and ability to blow by his man and get to the rim
makes him an intriguing prospect. His college teammate Henry
Dugat may not be a defensive stalwart but he remains one of the most aesthetically
pleasing offensive players on the college level. Dugat is a bit of a poor man’s
Iverson with his amazing body control and degree of difficult finishes. The Baylor
pair missed the bus on the first day causing them to miss the first set of games,
but have rebounded and seem to be playing well.
Cole Aldrich
has neither impressed nor disappointed, just showing solid play on both ends and
some added bulk. He’s got solid upside, but still appears a year away from being
ready.
*Scotty Hopson
was at the event but did not participate in the games due to an apparent injury.
Under 18s
Tony Wroten |
|
The European squad continues to play down to the level of their
competition. They were able to squeak out a victory against the Latin American
team after a late run almost got the gritty Latin bunch to pull out the win. The
Euros had trouble extending a second half 10 point lead and the gap closed all
the way to 2 with just a couple minutes left on the clock. Nihad
Dedovic was the hero as he made all the big plays late carrying the European
crew to victory. His late steal and bucket helped crush a late game push as the
Euros were able to get a ten point victory, 76-66. Impressive young Czech 2-guard
Tomas
Satoranski looked solid today but suffered an injury and might be done for
the rest of camp.
The Latin American guys lack any NBA potential players but are an extremely steady
and tough bunch led by guards Vitor Benite and Vinicius Gobor of Brazil and Jayson
Granger of Uruguay. Benite in particular impresses with his heart and determination
showing excellent ball handling and shooting skills. The Latin group pushed the
2009 American squad the distance in the night cap with energetic coach Frank Johnson
leading them. Johnson’s passion and intensity is truly remarkable. The game got
so heated that a questionable late call had assistant coach Antawn Jamison jumping
out of his seat and running the length of the floor into the other gym.
The USA 2009 team was able to win both of their games keeping their record undefeated.
Lance Stephenson continues to dominate the ball, which could ultimately spell
doom in the later rounds as he often forgets his teammates and forces bad shots.
Although he has made a number of key baskets lte in games to help seal 2009’s
victories. Derrick Favors has been solid but struggles offensively outside of
dunking and garbage baskets.
The 2010 USA squad made short work of Asia Blue 105-77. The three player tandem
of sophomore Tony
Wroten, Jr., Brandon
Knight and Joshua
Smith makes them highly formidable. Wroten continues to be extremely unselfish
looking to set up teammates first and find basekts for himself when necessary.
Smith is a bull with soft touch who if he grows another inch or two could really
turn into a serious prospect. Knight continues to impress with his speed/athleticism
and feel for the game. Against Asia he had one very impressive two handed rebound
dunk. This 2010 USA team may lack the experience of the 2009 USA team, but they
appear to be the team to beat with their "big 3".
On Sunday it’s live bullets as the games will spell elimination for the losing
teams.
Rosters
adidas Team Europe
| |
Nicolo Melli |
SF | Italy |
| |
Moritz Lanegger | SG | Austria |
| |
Branislav Djekic | C | Serbia |
| |
Andreja Milutinovic |
SG | Serbia |
| |
Tomislav Zubcic |
PF | Croatia |
| |
Leon Radosevic |
PF | Croatia |
| |
Nihad Dedovic |
SG | Bosnia |
| |
Tomas Satoranski |
SF | Czech Repblic |
| |
Josep Franch de Pablo | PG | Spain |
| |
Carl Ona Embo |
PG | France |
| |
Richard Grznar | PG | Slovakia |
| |
Deniz Kilicli |
PF / C | Turkey |
2009 adidas US National Team
| Peyton Siva |
PG | Seattle, WA |
| GJ Vilarino | PG | McKinney, TX |
| Dexter Strickland |
PG | Rahway, NJ |
| Lance Stephenson |
SF | Brooklyn, NY |
| Dominic Cheek |
SG | Jersey City, NJ |
| Noel Johnson |
SG | Fayetteville, GA |
| Jerry Brown | SF | El Sobrante, CA |
| Christian Watford |
SF | Birmingham, AL |
| Tyler Griffey | PF | Wildwood, MO |
| Brendan Lane | PF | Rocklin, CA |
| Stephan Van Treese | PF | Indianapolis, IN |
| Derrick Favors |
C | Atlanta, GA |
| Erik Murphy | PF/C | Southborough, MA |
2010 adidas US National Team
| Ray McCallum | PG | Bloomington, IN |
| Trae Golden |
G | Powder Springs, GA |
| Brandon Knight |
PG | Fort Lauderdale, FL |
| Trey Zeigler |
G | Mt. Pleasant, MI |
| Tony Wroten, Jr. |
G | Seattle, WA |
| LaQuinton Ross |
SF | Jackson, MS |
| Jared Sullinger |
PF | Columbus, OH |
| Julian Washburn | PF | Duncanville, TX |
| Joshua Smith |
C | Kent, WA |
| Adreian Payne | PF/C | Dayton, OH |
| Evan Anderson |
C | Eau Claire, WI |
adidas Team Canada
| # | Player | Position | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| |
Tristan Thompson |
PF | Canada |
| |
Junior Cadougan |
PG | Canada |
| |
Kadeem Coleby | PF | Canada |
| |
Alwayne Bigby | SG | Canada |
| |
Myck Kabongo |
PG | Canada |
| |
Cory Joseph | SG | Canada |
| |
Dwight Powell | C | Canada |
| |
Jason Calliste | SG | Canada |
| |
Renaldo Dixon | SF | Canada |
| |
Brady Heslip | SG | Canada |
| |
Richard Armardi | SF | Canada |
adidas Team Latin America
| # | Player | Position | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| |
Vitor Benite | SG | Brazil |
| |
Gregory Echenique | C | Venezuela |
| |
Rafael Maia | PF | Brazil |
| |
Fabrico de Melo | C | Brazil |
| |
Jonathon King | SG | Brazil |
| |
Rafael Luz | PG | Brazil |
| |
Fabian Rameriz Barrios | SF | Argentina |
| |
Jose Victor Ferreira Jeronimo | PF | Brazil |
| |
Jayson Granger | SG | Uruguay |
| |
Diego Gerbaudo | PG | Argentina |
| |
Vinicus Gobor | |
|
| |
Andre Silva | SF | Brazil |
adidas Team Africa
| # | Player | Position | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| |
Bandja Sy | PF | Mali |
| |
Harouna Abdoulaye | PG | Niger |
| |
Amadou Kaba | SG | Mali |
| |
Lens Aboudou | SG | Chad |
| |
Amath Mbaye | SF | Senegal / France |
| |
Eric Katenda | SF | RD Congo / France |
| |
Mohamed Koita | PG | Mauritania / France |
| |
Youssaoupha Mbao | C | Senegal |
| |
Abdou Niang | PF | Senegal |
| |
Remi Dibo | SF | Ivory Coast |
| |
Negueba Samake | C | Mali / France |
adidas Team Asia Blue
| # | Player | Position | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| |
Dion Brewster (Dallas only) | SF | New Zealand |
| |
Liam McInerney | PF | Australia |
| |
Mitchell Young | PF | Australia |
| |
Shengyu Lim | Forward | Singapore |
| |
Calvin Chia | PG | Singapore |
| |
Changmin Lee | G | Korea |
| |
Tsz Kin Chau | SG | Hong Kong |
| |
Ka Wai Li | C | Hong Kong |
| |
Sanggu Lee | C | Korea |
| |
Shengyu Lim | SF | Singapore |
| |
Kevin Louie Alas | G | Philippines |
| |
Jose Eduardo Llanes | G | Philippines |
| |
Yi-Hsiang Chou | F | Taiwan |
| |
Yu-Hsuan Sung | F | Taiwan |
adidas Team Asia Red
| # | Player | Position | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| |
Guo Ai-Lun | PG | China |
| |
Tang Han-Lin | SF | China |
| |
Jiang Jun-Qi | SG | China |
| |
Wang Chao | PG | China |
| |
Chen Fei | PF/SF | China |
| |
Toa Han Lin | C | China |
| |
Cai Chen | PF | China |
| |
Raymond Tapusoa | |
|
| |
Samer Jassar | |
|
| |
Mingyu Lin | |
|
| |
DeAndre Metloc | C | China |
adidas College Players
| Player | School |
|---|---|
| Cole Aldrich |
Kansas |
| Antonio Anderson |
Memphis |
| Olu Ashaolu |
La Tech. |
| Tyrell Biggs | Pitt |
| John Bryant | Santa Clara |
| Wayne Chism |
Tenn |
| Darren Collison |
UCLA |
| Henry Dugat |
Baylor |
| Shaun Dumas | Xavier ( La) |
| James Harden |
ASU |
| Jrue Holiday |
UCLA |
| Scotty Hopson |
Tennessee |
| Curtis Jerrells |
Baylor |
| Dominique Jones |
South Florida |
| Mac Koshwal |
Depaul |
| Gani Lawal |
Georgia Tech |
| Luke Nevill |
Utah |
| Arinze Onauku |
Syracuse |
| Quincy Pondexter |
Washington |
| Diamon Simpson |
St. Mary’s |
| Dar Tucker |
DePaul |
| Jarvis Varnado |
Mississippi State |
| Terrance Williams |
Louisville |
