News » Event Reports

Lebron James US Skills Academy: Top Twenty

Lebron James US Skills Academy: Top Twenty

Akron, OH- After two days of pouring over our scouting video and notes from the Lebron James US Skills Academy, we have put together a list of the top 20 players based on performance at the camp.  At the top of the list sits Demar DeRozan (pictured), a 6’6 wing that is committed to USC.

1.  Demar DeRozan 6’6/207 Sr. Wing Compton (CA) High USC
The camp didn’t keep stats, but everyone watching knew that DeRozan scored the most points.  He played in attack-mode and scored on outside jumpers (with or without a defender in his face), slashes to the hoop, and transition dunks.  His scoring game was straight dominant.  After finishing as the consensus top player in camp, DeRozan’s stock is once more on the rise.

He needs to improve his ball handling to become more of a threat in the open court and driving to the basket.

2.  Tyreke Evans 6’4/204 Sr. Guard Aston (PA) American Christian
The most talented player in the camp didn’t disappoint as, he too, was one of the top scorers in camp.  Evans’ most deadly weapon is usually his high-arching jumper, but when that wasn’t working for him, he resorted to using his slick handle to shake defenders out of their sneakers on his way to finishing acrobatic layups.  He was simply unstoppable one-on-one.  Although he isn’t a great vertical athlete, he still called for, and finished, alley-oops in transition.  If he had shot the ball from outside like we know he’s capable of, Evans would have been the highest rated player in camp. 

We noticed a few things that could use fine-tuning while evaluating Evans.  He still needs to work on creating for his teammates and improving his overall point guard skills if he wants to keep from being labeled just a scoring guard.  He tends to favor driving right and would only be more dangerous if he created more going to his left.  Evans also thrives with the ball in his hands, but doesn’t have a big impact on the game away from the ball.  Sometimes his shot selection is questionable, but not to a fault.

3.  John Riek 7’0/222 Jr. Center Centereach (NY) Our Savior
Riek was likely the biggest game-changer in camp.  He is a tree on defense that swats or alters every shot taken within 10 feet of the basket.  He even gave Greg Monroe fits, who told us “it’s hard to even get a floater off over him”.  He’s no slouch on the offensive end of the floor, either.  When Riek gets the ball, he holds it high above his head (he never dribbles), and uses his soft touch to hit short-range shots (often using the glass), or throws down aggressive dunks.  He is not even close to a finished product and has a tremendous upside- so it’s safe to say that he could be the best player at this event… next year.

Riek is still extremely raw and he doesn’t have a big bag of post-moves at this point.  He also loses a sense of where he is on the court at times when he is fighting for a rebound or being double or triple teamed.  He almost always pumps the ball above his head awkwardly before his short-range shots and he is easier to stop once defenses pick-up on that, so he would benefit from a catch-and-release move.

4.  Greg Monroe 6’10/233 Sr. Forward Harvey (LA) Helen Cox
It’s easy to see why many scouts think Monroe is the best prospect in the 2008 class- he has a great skill set for his size, and he can burn you in a lot of ways.  Monroe can handle the ball and take his defender-off-the dribble, and he had numerous drives that resulted in dunks at this camp.  He was also a force in the post where he has a quick spin-move and can finish with either hand.  We were impressed with the way he senses the double-team and makes quick passes before the defense has a chance to recover.  Although he didn’t dominate the boards, or block as many shots as we would have liked, he is still very capable in both areas.  It’s safe to say that he is one of the elite big men in the class of 2008.

Although Monroe is a capable shooter, he still needs to improve his perimeter shot to become a legit inside-outside threat.  We’d also like to see him play with more aggressiveness all the time.  He doesn’t always dominate like he should and that is a concern considering his opposition is only going to get faster, stronger and better at the next levels. 

5.  Scotty Hopson 6’5/195 Sr. Wing Hopkinsville (KY) University Heights MISS ST
The class of 2008 in Kentucky is the best the Bluegrass has seen in over a decade with Hopson, Darius Miller and Bud Mackey at the top.  Since the high school season, Darius Miller has been recognized as the best of the bunch, but Hopson has come on strong lately and his performance at the Lebron James Academy only helped his stock.  He is a big-time athlete with long arms that has the ability to score every time he touches the ball.  His outside shot is improving to the point that he is a serious threat from deep, but he is most dangerous when he puts the ball on the floor and creates.  Hopson has a good midrange jumper and has developed an unstoppable floater that he consistently scores with off-the-dribble.  Hopson will play his way into All-American status with continued improvement.

Hopson has proved that he is a prolific scorer.  In order to continue his ascent up the rankings he will need to use his athleticism and length to hit the glass and impact the game on the defensive end.

6.  Kemba Walker 5’11/172 Sr. Point Guard New York (NY) Rice UCONN
Walker has firmly established his spot among the nation’s top point guards and he is building a strong case for McDonald’s All-American caliber honors.  He is everything you want in a point guard: unselfish, fast, an excellent ball handler and passer, a scoring threat at every level, and a leader.  His only real weakness is his lack of size (5’11 might be a tad generous), but there have been a lot of great sub-6’ point guards and Walker is no-doubt one of them.

Walker is such a well-rounded point guard that it is hard to find something he needs to improve on, but although he is a 3-point scoring threat, there is room for improvement on his outside shot which would make him even tougher to guard (it would force defenses to play him closer).

7.  Tony Woods 6’9/234 Sr. Big Rome (GA) High
Woods was one of the best big men in Akron.  He set the tone on day one when he nearly tore down the goal with a dunk, and he continued to play aggressively the entire event.  Woods showed off an improved offensive game and hit a high percentage of his shots.  He also did a fine job defensively and on the boards.  His stock is rising.

Woods quietly goes about his business and while that’s refreshing at times, he would benefit from a mean-streak.  After one monster dunk, Woods jogged back up the court, his eyes on the floor in front of him, without an ounce of swagger to his step.  He could be a potential monster down low with some more killer instinct.

8.  Matt Humphrey 6’4/180 Sr. Shooting Guard Chicago (IL) Halos Franciscan
Humphrey shot lights-out in all four of the games we watched him play in.  A typical sequence in our notes about him read like this: “fast-break dunk, fast-break finish, made 15’ jumper, made 3-pointer, made 3-pointer…”.  It’s easy to see why schools like Oregon, Duke, UConn, Notre Dame, and Illinois keep a close eye on this long and skinny shooting guard- he has the makings of a top-50 caliber prospect nationally.

It’s hard to knock on a guy that just lit-up an All-American Camp, but at 6’4/180, he doesn’t exactly have a college-ready body.  He also needs to improve his court-vision and awareness.  There were times that he would try to create and it would work, but he just wouldn’t notice the open man.

9. DeMarcus Cousins 6’9/249 Jr. Big Birmingham (AL) Erwin
Cousins could have been the best overall prospect at the camp.  He’s big and active and has plenty of skill.  On the perimeter he is capable of knocking down jump shots and he can also put the ball on the floor and slash to the hoop.  He’s a load in the post and he has a lot of spin moves and nice finishes that resemble something you’d see from Greg Monroe.  Talent-wise, Cousins is in the same league as Monroe.  He's also a good passer, rebounder, and effects the game defensively.  

We’d  like to see Cousins play more to his strengths and continue to improve his inside game where he is most dominant.  To take his game to the next level he will also need to continue to work on his skill set, decision making and shooting touch. 

10. Iman Shumpert 6’3/180 Sr. Guard Oak Park (IL) Oak Park & River Forest
This smooth shooting guard had a terrific camp.  He rained 3-pointers all weekend and many of them were from NBA range.  He also showed off some slick dribbling and spin moves that we previously didn’t know he possessed.  His passing and decision making drew praise from all the scouts we spoke to, as did his poise and basketball IQ. 

Although Shumpert made few mistakes because he lets the game come to him, he also didn’t do a great deal to create plays.  When he got the ball it was normally on the perimeter where he either took the 3-point shot, or passed it to another player (that was usually also on the perimeter).  Shumpert rarely tried to drive to the basket and create.  If he wants to become a high level lead man someday he will need to add a penetrating game.

11. Michael Dunigan 6’9/253 Sr. Big Chicago (IL) Farragut Career Academy
Dunigan is a big, intimidating post man that blocks shots like he’s mad at somebody.  He physically overpowers his opponents and effects the game by scoring, rebounding and defending.  He went up against Samardo Samuels on Saturday and more than held his own while even showing off a soft touch by knocking down some short and midrange jumpers.

Although Dunigan gets plenty of points (mostly on dunks) by bullying his opponents inside, he still is very raw offensively and needs to continue to add skill and finesse to his scoring game.  The further away from the basket he gets, the less effective he becomes.  Right now he’s mostly back to the basket and he needs to add the ability to get the ball in the midrange and score going to the hoop.

12. Sylven Landesberg 6’5/193 Sr. Wing Queens (NY) Holy Cross
Landesberg gave us flashbacks of current UNC wing Danny Green.  He has a high basketball IQ and effortlessly and efficiently effects the game by making good decisions, hitting his shots, scoring with cuts to the basket, and getting his teammates involved.  He’s a throwback in the sense that he’s not flashy… just effective.  Landesberg solidified his status as a top-50 player in the 2008 class.

One of Landesberg’s strengths is that he doesn’t have many weaknesses, but the way he played against Demar DeRozan on Sunday had us wondering how good he could be with some killer instinct.  His style of ball is to let the game come to him, but he needs to play with more intensity to become dominant.

13. Alex Oriakhi 6’9/225 Jr. Big Tilton (NH) School UCONN
The first thing that we noticed about Oriakhi was his athletic and muscular frame- he definitely has the look of a big time prospect (his body looked just like Lebron’s in a camp photo we have of the two standing next to each other).  He’s a talented player that uses pump fakes and up-and-under moves  to free himself for impressive finishes.  Oriakhi has enough skill to play away from the basket and we also caught him hitting a handful of midrange jumpers. It might have been his build that first caught our attention, but it was his game that landed him on this list.  

Oriakhi showed flashes of high-level talent, but he also fades out of the game at times.  He was at times the last player up the court and he didn’t bang on the boards like a player with his physical gifts is capable of.  A little more hustle would go a long way for this big-timer.

14. Daniel Orton 6’9/262 Jr. Big Oklahoma (OK) Bishop McGuiness
Orton is as big as any guy on the circuit, he has long arms, and he is very mobile and has good athleticism for his size.  He does most of his damage on the defensive end as a high volume shot-blocker.  He’s also a good rebounder and he’s starting to play like he enjoys to bang in the post.  We were impressed by his desire to be an impact player on the offensive end.  He fought hard to get his points, showed range to the 3-point line on his shot, and even took it right at Lebron James on a couple of occasions.  He seems to add a little more to his offensive arsenal each time we see him play.  Orton is looking like a legit top-10 (or better) prospect in the 2009 class.

15. Xavier Henry 6’5/190 Jr. Wing Oklahoma City (OK) Putnam City
We’ve been considering moving Henry into the top-10 in our 2009 rankings since last summer, and his performance at the Lebron James Skills Academy was enough to push him over the edge.  He has solid size for his position and a tremendous scoring game.  He shoots the ball well from midrange and deep, creates shots off-the-dribble, and throws down dunks in transition.  He also plays with the maturity of a veteran player and makes his teammates better.

16. Al-Farouq Aminu 6’8/205 Sr. Forward Norcross (GA) High
To be honest, we expect more out of Aminu than what we got at the Lebron James Academy.  He is such a tremendous talent that we won’t be satisfied until he has that breakthrough performance.  All he did in Akron was run the court well, handle the rock, and complete impossible finishes at the rim.  But, that’s not enough.  He also blocked shots, rebounded and showed that he could be a pretty dominating post player when he needs to be.  But, that’s not enough.  We want that triple-double, 30-point game that we think he’s capable of and we haven’t seen that, yet.  We’ve seen him pull down 20 rebounds in a nationally televised high school game.  We’ve seen him pull a crossover on Delvon Roe at the 3-point line, take one step and throw down a nasty dunk.  In January, we sat courtside at the Nissan on Nicholasville Shootout when he hit 10-13 shots (including four from downtown) in front of Roy Williams.  So we know what he’s capable of and we’re waiting anxiously for him to dominate an event this summer.  Maybe he can put it together at Peach Jam (which starts tomorrow).

17. Rotnei Clarke 6’0/175 Sr. Guard Claremore (OK) Verdigris
The thing about Rotnei is that he has to throw his kicks on to stand six-feet tall, yet the best aspect of his game is his scoring ability.  He is widely considered the nation’s top sharpshooter and recently he has added a deft floater that is near-automatic.  Normally when you have a white kid that shoots the ball well, but is too short to play the two at a high level, that player gets labeled a tweener- and his stock as a high level prospect is questioned.  The reason that Clarke is not a “tweener” is that he has the legit ability to run a team.  He is a smart player, good ball handler, and has no problems getting the ball to teammates in scoring opportunities.  Throw in a lot of heart and hustle and he is very capable of running the point at a high level.  The fact that he’s a big-time scoring threat just makes him an even more impressive prospect- at either guard position.  Not to mention, Clarke’s freshman year of college ball will coincide with the 3-point line being moved back a full foot, making him an even more valuable asset to a high level program.

Although Clarke has the ability to play point guard, he still needs to continue to hone his point guard skills, such as making plays by breaking down defenses, drawing the double team, and excelling while leading the fast-break.  He is no-doubt a shoot first guard, and that isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but he needs to improve the other aspects of his game because his role will likely change a bit when he hits the next level.

18. Jordan Hamilton 6’7/210 Jr. Wing Los Angeles (CA) Dorsey
Hamilton is among the best underclassmen in Nike’s camp for the second year in-a-row.  He has been criticized in the past for not affecting the game in more ways than just scoring, but he was among this camp’s most well-rounded players.  Hamilton was very active on the boards and was often good for tip-ins and dunk-tips, and he did a good job of sharing the rock with his teammates.  Like usual, he scored plenty of points- mostly in transition, but also hit his fair share of outside shots and showed off a nice floater.

19. Samardo Samuels 6’8/270 Sr. Big Newark (NJ) St. Benedict LOUISVILLE
Samuels was the best player at the NBPA Camp two weeks ago where he played his heart out, so it’s understandable that the big guy would regress a little at this camp.  The busy spring and summer AAU season takes it’s toll on a lot of players this time of year and Samuels played like he had tired legs.  He still was an impact player and used his wide array of post moves to get his points, and battled for rebounds like he always does, but he also got blocked on dunk attempts that he would have easily threw down earlier in the summer.  Even though it wasn’t a great performance by his standards, he still ranked among the camp’s top-10 big men.

20. Jordan Theodore 5’11/170 Sr. Guard Paterson (NJ) High SETON HALL
Theodore has been a little under the radar this year because he plays somewhat in the shadow of his highly touted teammate, Kemba Walker, but Seton Hall didn’t sleep on him and they have picked up an excellent Big East style point guard.  Theodore is tough as nails, ultra-quick and he has a crossover going either direction that is nearly unguardable that he loves to use when driving baseline.  He is also a great defender that is good for a handful of steals each game.  What we saw in Akron that impressed us the most, however, was his legit point guard skills.  On his AAU team (NY Gauchos), Theodore often plays the two while Kemba Walker runs the show, but he showed at this camp that he has all the tools to play the point.  He used his quickness to excel in the open court where he showed off impressive court vision and in the half-court game he proved that he was capable of getting in the heart of the defense and creating.  Theodore did a lot to validate his top-75 ranking nationally.

Just Missed The Cut:

Michigan State-recruit Delvon Roe 6’7/220 Sr. Forward Lakewood (OH) St. Edward, Brad Tinsley 6’4/190 Sr. Guard Oregon City (OR) High, Jeremy Tyler 6’9/240 So. Big San Diego (CA) High, Hollis Thompson 6’6/180 Jr. Wing Los Angeles (CA) Loyola, Lance Stephenson 6’4/202 Jr. Wing Brooklyn (NY) Lincoln, and Anthony Crater 6’0/158 Senior Point Guard Flint (MI) Southwestern High.

 Nathan@HoopsReport.com