RUTGERS ON MINDS OF MANY AT RBK SUMMER CLASSIC

July 17, 2008


Jeff Borzello spent a couple days at the Reebok Summer Classic East in New Jersey last weekend. For his full report at the NBE Basketball Report, you can see it in his article: Reebok Summer Classic East Review.

James Padgett: Playing without his Juice All-Star partner-in-crime down low in Joel Wright, who was out with an injured ankle, Padgett picked up the slack. The 6-foot-8 class of 2009 post player is a very solid scorer inside, and demonstrated a variety of post moves. He turns to the basket well and can finish with both hands around the rim. He is a very good offensive rebounder and is also active defensively. However, he does not dominate as much as he could, and is not as imposing defensively as his height and athleticism would seem to suggest.

Padgett sees a lot of Big East interest with West Virginia, Pittsburgh, St. John’s, Rutgers, Seton Hall and Providence as well as Maryland (offered) and South Carolina.

Keith Spellman: While he was also solid defensively, Spellman’s offensive game was extremely impressive. The 6-foot-3 guard has a quick crossover and consistently got into the lane. He can finish at the rim with both hands and knocked down plenty of difficult shots over the course of two days. He can knock down pull-up jumpers in the lane and also demonstrated the ability to dish it off to his teammates or score himself. Spellman is a very smooth offensive player.

Spellman lists St. John’s, Rutgers, George Mason, Seton Hall and Hofstra as schools of interest.

Jayvaughn Pinkson: Pinkston, despite having a generally poor body language, was one of the most difficult match-ups in the entire tournament. He has a big, strong body in his 6-foot-6 frame and uses a wide variety of skills that made him near impossible to defend down the stretch of games for New Heights 2010. He can score in the paint with his back-to-the-basket, but is at his best when taking his defender off the dribble and getting to the rim. Pinkston is also effective in the high post, where he can face-up or get good position and back down defender.

Pinkston rattled off a list of St. John’s, Villanova, Xavier, Rutgers (all offered), Florida and Memphis as schools he is interested in.

Isaiah Epps: Epps remains one of my favorite players in the class of 2010, mainly due to his unbelievably smooth offensive game and sweet shooting stroke. The 6-foot-2 lefty is a tremendous outside shooter with deep range who can get off his shot in a hurry. He steps into his shot well and looks calm and confident at all times. He has a slick dribble and can beat his defender to get into the lane. However, he struggles to take care of the ball at times and commits sloppy turnovers.

Epps has Maryland as a favorite because of the opportunity for immediate playing time and also has a trio from the Big East in Pittsburgh, Seton Hall and Rutgers heavily involved.


Fuquan Edwin: Like the Sterling Gibbs, Edwin looked like a completely different player than he did at the Reebok U All-American camp. The 6-foot-5 forward really is an outstanding all-around player who can do a little bit of everything on the court. Edwin loves to get out in transition and push the ball for fast-break points; he can find people or take it to the basket himself. Offensively, he has a decent mid-range game, but his shooting stroke from three-point range is fairly ugly. Defensively, Edwin has quick hands and routinely picks off errant passes.

Edwin continues to grow on the recruiting radar of many as his list has expanded to include South Carolina, Rutgers (offered), Seton Hall (offered), La Salle (offered), Providence and Texas. Indications are that Rutgers holds an early lead for his services.


Trevor Clemmings: Despite being listed at only 6-foot-6, Clemmings is an absolute beast on the inside. He has an extremely strong and wide body, and his broad shoulders make it difficult for defenders to keep him off the low block for the Playaz. He consistently gets great position and is very tough to stop once he gets the ball near the basket. Clemmings has a variety of moves and fakes inside, and draws fouls constantly. He can also finish with contact and is a strong rebounder.

Clemmings, another Playaz and Paterson Catholic 2010 star is also sees his list of colleges growing more impressive with each event. Currently Rutgers (offered), Seton Hall (offered), La Salle, Providence and Massachusetts are schools of interest.

Sterling Gibbs: As opposed to the passive, unaggressive Gibbs we saw at the All-American camp, this version of the rising sophomore was much more confident and, as a result, more productive here with the Panthers. He was a completely different player, taking the ball to the basket and trying to create his own shot inside the lane. Gibbs was not afraid to shoot the ball from the perimeter and also found holes in the defense to get to the rim for either finishes at the rim or floaters in the paint.

Gibbs, although just a member of the 2011 class, has Pittsburgh, Seton Hall and Rutgers from the Big East with Florida and Maryland on his list.


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Rutgers is definitely a long shot in the Odds to Win the 2009 NCAA National Championship (400/1), but adding some of these recruits will definitely help in the future.
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