NIU Team Camp Notes
By Roy & Harv Schmidt
June 21, 2010
6:15 A.M. CST
St. Paul Johnson showed why they went 36-0 last season en route to capturing the Minnesota state championship by defeating Mt. Carmel in the championship game of the Northern Illinois University Satellite Team Camp this past weekend at Proviso West High School in Hillside, IL. Leading the way for Johnson was 6'3 class of 2011 shooting guard Roosevelt Scott, while Mt. Carmel was led by 5'9 class of 2012 guard Malcolm Hill-Bey. In addition, several other Mt. Carmel players stepped up in the absence of University Of Illinois class of 2011 commit Tracy Abrams (who was at the NBA Players Association Top 100 Camp in Charlottesville, VA) and Adonis Filer, who recently transferred to Bishop Noll High School in Hammond, IN.
Illinois Prep Bulls-eye was on hand for both days of action at the NIU team camp, and the following are notes on players who caught our eye.
... 5'10 class of 2012 point guard Fred Van Vleet from Auburn High School in Rockford, IL is yet another pure point guard who simply wins. He does not do anything overly flashy, but he is highly competitive and above everything else makes his teammates better. Van Vleet is not naturally quick and lacks a consistent jump shot from beyond the arc, but plays under control and simply makes plays. He consistently finds ways to get into the lane and either finish or dish to an open teammate, has solid mid-range scoring ability and is terrific at the defensive end. While Van Vleet may not be the most naturally talented point guard in Illinois from the 2012 class, he has shown us that he can hold his own with any of them.
... Two of the most improved players that we saw were 6'6 class of 2012 forward Connor Boehm from New Trier High School in Winnetka, IL and 6'5 class of 2011 forward DeShawn Greer from South Shore High School in Chicago. Boehm is developing into a rebounding force, as he has added considerable strength and controlled the backboards at both ends when we watched him on the first day of the camp. He also has a nice shooting touch inside the paint area and now needs to get better at passing out of double-teams as opposed to forcing the action at times. Greer has emerged as South Shore's leader and has begun to come into his own since transferring from Simeon. His ball handling has gotten much better, as he can now bring the ball up the floor and is adept at taking defenders off the dribble and powering his way to the basket in addition to being a strong finisher in the open court and on the break. Greer still lacks a consistent perimeter game, which is a key in terms of projecting his fit at the college level.
... While both 6'7 class of 2011 forward and 6'0 class of 2011 guard Garrett Jones from Evanston Township High School in Evanston, IL continue to receive their share of D1 attention, Evanston's best prospect just may be 6'0 class of 2014 guard Erick Locke. We really like Locke's toughness, as well as his ability to attack the basket from the wing and pull up and nail jumpers from downtown.
... A pair of athletic forwards that bear watching are 6'5 George Edwards from Foreman High School in Chicago and 6'4 LeBarron Hulls from Hillcrest High School in Country Club Hills, IL. Both are a bit undersized, but pound the glass, are consistent finishers and play hard from start to finish. Each player will be instrumental in his team's success next season.
... Perhaps the biggest sleeper to emerge from the NIU Team Camp was 6'3 class of 2011 guard Nicholas Frazier from Proviso West. Frazier can flat out score and does so in a variety of ways. He has range that extends well beyond the 3-point arc and can also beat defenders off the dribble in isolated situations. The fact that Frazier has also been putting up huge numbers for Proviso West in summer league contests thus far tells us that his performance was not an aberration.
... People would also be wise not to sleep on Curie when it comes to monitoring teams to watch in the Chicago Public League. The core of the team is still young, but there is talent there, including 6'2 class of 2012 guard Devin Foster and 6'7 class of 2014 forward Cliff Alexander.
... Once again, we extend a huge kudos to the entire NIU staff including Head Coach Ricardo Patton, Assistant Coaches Sundance Wicks, Todd Townsend and Will Smith and Director of Operations Kent Dernbach for their outstanding hospitality and for making the NIU Team Camp an event that was most enjoyable for us to cover.
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