Got a kitchen pass to go watch James tonight at the Berry Center in Cypress. I've been to football games here, when Sam McGuffie(for football fans) was the rage. It's like a mini college stadium, very impressive. First time in the basketball arena which is also VERY impressive. Lots of fans, great atmosphere.
So now for James, I will say one thing. He will not suffer from the Lattin/McNease lack of bulk issue. James on the youtube stuff looked like a guard, but seeing him up front and close physically he looks like big small forward, if that makes sense. It appears that over the course of his rehab that he has really been working his upper body. Looked like a tight end out there. They listed and announced him at 6-6 and I've seen him listed anywhere from 6-4 to 6-5. In HS and college any sport size seems to get fudged as we all know but i'll bet he gets listed at least 6-5 by OU. I was comparing him to the other guys and he was the 2nd tallest guy on the court and by far the biggest. Kid is a specimen.
As far as his game, James was very winded the entire game. I never watch HS basketball but all it really seems to be is dribble, shoot. Dribble, one pass, shoot. And being the biggest guy out there Bellaire had him at post. He didn't look or do anything like a guard, at all. So, I didn't get a good read on his handles or ability to guard on the perimeter. He also seemed as if he was a decoy on offense. The fed him on the block a couple of times and he scored only 1 field goal, and ended up having only 4 points before fouling out. I actually kept all his stats on my phone and here they are:
FG 1-8
FT 2-6
Rebounds 13
Assists 2
1 block
5 steals
No 3 pointers attempted
Don't freak out over those shooting stats he missed like 3 close up and had 2 absolutely thrown by a pretty good player named Josh Nebo. By the way watch out for a junior for Lakes by the name of De'Aaron Fox. I'm no scout but that kid is a baller. Nebo is a dominant HS player but is very thin and looks like a tweener at the college level.
Back to James, I was sitting by some of his homies and they were yelling at him, threatening to yank his schollie, etc. This guy has just gotten medically cleared and again, was extremely tired the entire game. I overheard one of his buddies talking about how he was throwing down on people last summer and his game was absolutely sick before the injury. Let me emphasize again that he was playing post only, and he was an absolute beast on the boards, and he showed some quick hands and anticipation with the steals.. He's a really good passer too.
I think when he gets to OU he'll lose a little bit of weight, and he just needs time to play competitive basketball again. He is a beast. He could be 6-6 and if he grows any more he could be a forward. Nash is the closest player I can think of in regards to style. Bellaire needs him as a post but of course he'll be a guard at OU. Wish I could have reported a 29 point explosion, but playing out of position, being a decoy, and being out of shape really hurt him.
I left after he fouled out when he got Nebo back by pinning an attempted dunk on the backboard. Cy Lakes was running away with it. Anyway, that's it!
So now for James, I will say one thing. He will not suffer from the Lattin/McNease lack of bulk issue. James on the youtube stuff looked like a guard, but seeing him up front and close physically he looks like big small forward, if that makes sense. It appears that over the course of his rehab that he has really been working his upper body. Looked like a tight end out there. They listed and announced him at 6-6 and I've seen him listed anywhere from 6-4 to 6-5. In HS and college any sport size seems to get fudged as we all know but i'll bet he gets listed at least 6-5 by OU. I was comparing him to the other guys and he was the 2nd tallest guy on the court and by far the biggest. Kid is a specimen.
As far as his game, James was very winded the entire game. I never watch HS basketball but all it really seems to be is dribble, shoot. Dribble, one pass, shoot. And being the biggest guy out there Bellaire had him at post. He didn't look or do anything like a guard, at all. So, I didn't get a good read on his handles or ability to guard on the perimeter. He also seemed as if he was a decoy on offense. The fed him on the block a couple of times and he scored only 1 field goal, and ended up having only 4 points before fouling out. I actually kept all his stats on my phone and here they are:
FG 1-8
FT 2-6
Rebounds 13
Assists 2
1 block
5 steals
No 3 pointers attempted
Don't freak out over those shooting stats he missed like 3 close up and had 2 absolutely thrown by a pretty good player named Josh Nebo. By the way watch out for a junior for Lakes by the name of De'Aaron Fox. I'm no scout but that kid is a baller. Nebo is a dominant HS player but is very thin and looks like a tweener at the college level.
Back to James, I was sitting by some of his homies and they were yelling at him, threatening to yank his schollie, etc. This guy has just gotten medically cleared and again, was extremely tired the entire game. I overheard one of his buddies talking about how he was throwing down on people last summer and his game was absolutely sick before the injury. Let me emphasize again that he was playing post only, and he was an absolute beast on the boards, and he showed some quick hands and anticipation with the steals.. He's a really good passer too.
I think when he gets to OU he'll lose a little bit of weight, and he just needs time to play competitive basketball again. He is a beast. He could be 6-6 and if he grows any more he could be a forward. Nash is the closest player I can think of in regards to style. Bellaire needs him as a post but of course he'll be a guard at OU. Wish I could have reported a 29 point explosion, but playing out of position, being a decoy, and being out of shape really hurt him.
I left after he fouled out when he got Nebo back by pinning an attempted dunk on the backboard. Cy Lakes was running away with it. Anyway, that's it!
