Pre-July New England Transfer Catch-Up

Aaron Falzon is headed to St, Marks

"Confirmed" New England Transfers

1. Noah Vonleh - Haverhill HS to New Hampton - 2014
2. Jared Terrell - Weymouth HS to New Hampton - 2014
3. Aaron Falzon - Newton North HS to St. Marks - 2015
4. Jeremy Miller - Milton HS to NMH - 2015
5. Abdul Malik-Abu - Marblehead HS to Kimball Union - 2014
6. Douby Maduegbunam - Boston Trinity to Kimball Union - 2014
7. Dimitri Floras - Merrimack HS to Kimball Union - 2014
8. Matt Cimino - Cheverus HS (ME) to Worcester Academy - 2014
9. Jonathan Joseph - Brockton HS to Putnam & Science - 2015
10. Cornelius Tyson - Springfield Central to St. Andrews - 2014
11. Aaron McClean - Fay School to St. Marks - 2015
12. Akosa Maduegbunam - Charlestown to Winchendon - 2012

Durham's TJ Warren headed to Brewster Academy

TJ Warren is transferring to Brewster Academy for his Senior year, instantly making Brewster a front-runner to sit atop the HoopRootz Pre-Season New England Prep Rankings, not to mention the favorite to sit atop everyone's pre-season National Rankings. Warren is a savvy 6'8 SF from Durham, NC and #39 in the ESPN Class of 2012 Rankings.  He is a physical player who has an old-school, mature, Adrian Dantley-style game.  The trio of Warren, Mitch McGary, (ESPN #4) and Deonte Burton (ESPN #15/2013) will form America's premier Scholastic Big-Three.

Watch TJ Warren video.

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Three NE Teams in Five-Star Top 25

Heading into July, three New England Programs are represented in the Five-Star National Rankings.  In the 16u Rankings, BABC is ranked #1, while in the 17u Rankings, BABC is #2, CBC is #11 and the New England Playaz are #17.  

View full Five-Star National Rankings

Ledo Thrives at Durant Skills Academy

According to ESPN, Ricky Ledo impressed at the Kevin Durant Skills Academy this past weekend in Chicago.  Click for Full-Story

Akosa Gets a Big Ten Ride

Penn St. bound

Akosa commits to Penn St.
According to Victorybellrings.com Editor Ben Jones, Akosa Maduegbunam has committed to play at Penn St for Coach Pat Chambers, who ahd recruited Maduegbunam while he was till at BU.
(Victorybellrings.com is a Penn State University sports blog)

Click to read full story

USA GBL Top 10 - #9 - Team Heartland

 Nebraska - Iowa - Kansas - Missouri

Population: 14 Million

Coach Jess Settles

#9...Coming in at #7 is a ball-club from a region which is known more for producing football players than basketball players.  But you can throw that fun-fact out the window, because Team Heartland's roster will quickly dispel any notions one might have about Heartland Basketball.  The dynamic of this squad should be interesting.  Everything starts with the #1 Rated PG in America, Marcus Paige, who will bring his left-handed game to UNC in about 500 days.  He is terrific.  At SG, Team Heartland will go with Cameron Beidscheid, a 6'6 scorer who will be going to Notre Dame.  Team Heartland's front-line will be the biggest in the GBL, with 6'8 do-it-all All-American Perry Ellis at SF and the twin-towers of seven-footers Adam Woodberry, (won the MVP at the NBPA Camp) and Willie Cauley (impressed at Amare Stoudamire Skills Academy) down-low on the blocks.  Coming off the bench for Team Heartland will be a quartet that the Spaceship feels will thrive in it's role.  Mike Gessell is a Top 100 combo-guard who will back up both guard spots.  Providing depth on the wings for Team Heartland will be athletic 2013 prospects Ishmail Wainright and Semi Ojeleye.  And backing up the twin towers will be 6'7 face-up PF Kale Abramson, who has a gorgeous stroke and will space the floor.

Team Heartland will be coached by former Iowa Hawkeye star Jess Settles.

(Click player name below to watch video) 

Team Heartland
Starters
C - Willie Cauley -7'0 C - Spearville (KS) - ESPN #31
F - Adam Woodbury - 7'0 C - Sioux City, IA - ESPN #57
F - Perry Ellis - 6'8 F - Wichita, Kansas - ESPN #19
G - Cameron Beidscheid - 6'6 - St. Louis, MO - ESPN #69 - (ND)
G - Marcus Paige - 6'1 PG - Marlon, IA - ESPN #27 - (UNC)
Bench
F - Kale Abramson - 6'7 SF - Des Moines, Iowa
F - Ishmail Wainright - 6'5 SF - Raytown, MO - ESPN #54/2013
G - Mike Gessell - 6'1 G - Sioux City, Nebraska - ESPN #80
G - Semi Ojeleye - 6'5 G - Ottawa, Kansas - Rivals #63

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Hoopville Results

Hoopville Spring Finale Champs 

The Spaceship couldn't make it down to the Reggie last weekend, but here is an abbreviated list of Chip Winners. 
(The Spaceship goes 4 for 4 with predictions like Nostradamus)

12u: Expressions
13u: Expressions

14u: Expressions

15u: BABC

16u: BABC

17u: Expressions 

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Wayne Selden

Selden makes Five-Star 'Play of the Day'

Wayne Selden trails the break and cleans up Jaylen Brantley's miss during BABC's Chip-Run this past weekend at the Hoopville Spring Finale.

Click to Watch Video

Jeff Ravelo

Jeff Ravelo - East Boston

Jeff Ravelo Music Video

There are more than a few ballplayers out there who are passionate about music.  Jeff Ravelo, who will play hoops next season at East Boston, is definitely one of them.  Check out his video below.

USA GBL - Team Gulf at #6

Alabama - Mississippi - Arkansas - Louisiana

Population: 15.5 Million

Coach Percy Miller

#6 -  The #6 ranked team in the GBL Top Ten could very well be seen as another upset-pick, but regardless, Team Gulf gets the nod..  Team Gulf will rest it's fortune with the highly-touted trio of Archie Goodwin, Ricardo Gathers, and Devonte Pollard.  Goodwin is a star and one of the top three guards/wings in the country along with Rodney Purvis and Shabazz Muhammad.  Devonte Pollard is a do-it-all SF who makes plays all over the court.  Ricardo Gathers is an undersized, pit-bull 4-man who reminds of Kenyon Martin.  Miss. St.-bound Gavin Ware will man the middle for Team Gulf and will be backed up by young big man Moses Kingsley out of New Albany, Georgia.  By themselves, these two would not necessarily be considered among the GBL's best at the position, but next to forwards Pollard and Gathers, they wont really need any scoring out of the position, so we expect that the Ware/Kingsley combination will end up grading out well.  The PG position is definitely the position with the most question marks.  Team Gulf will go with the combination of Alabama's Deondre Haynes, Louisiana's Malik Morgan, and Miss St.-commit Craig Sword, three solid guards who will have an opportunity to prove themselves against some of the top-rated guards in America.  If they can hold their own, Team Gulf should be a team in contention.  The other wildcard for Team Gulf is their depth behind their Big-3.  Swing man Twymond Howard figures to be good as a 6th man, but after that, Team Gulf will wait and see with Freshman Craig Victor, and Juniors Daryl Milburn and Jalon Jackson.

Team Gulf Head Coach: Master P - Assistant: Brett Favre
Click player name in bold to watch video.

Team Gulf
Starters
C - Gavin Ware - 6'9 C - Starkville, MS - ESPN #58 (Miss St.)
F - Ricardo Gathers - 6'7 F - Laplace, LA - ESPN #43 in 2012
F - Devonte Pollard - 6'7 F - De Kalb, MS - ESPN #23 in 2012
G - Archie Goodwin - 6'5 G - Little Rock, AR - ESPN #8 in 2012p
G - Deondre Haynes - 6'2 PG - Calera, AL - Rivals #73 in 2012
Bench
F - Twymond Howard - 6'6 SF - Pearl, MS - ESPN #71
G - Malik Morgan - 6'3 G - River Ridge (LA) - Rivals #81
C - Moses Kingsley - 6'9 C - New Albany, MS - ESPN #60/2013
F - Craig Victor - 6'7 F - New Orleans - ESPN #15/2014
G - Craig Sword - 6'1 G - Montgomer, AL - (Mississippi St.)
F - Daryl Milburn - 6'4 SF - Baton Rouge, Louisiana
F - Jalon Jackson - 6'6 F - West Memphis, Arkansas

ACA Hoops

Acahoops.com is Back

For the last 15 years or so, a guy named Steve Auld ran America's premier youth basketball tournament database in acahoops.com.  Several weeks ago, Steve posted a message on the site saying that acahoops was shutting down, causing basketball junkies such as ourselves to panic...After several weeks of worry, this morning, I received an email which eases our panic and that of anyone else who may have felt similarly.

Click here to check out new acahoops.com

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Hoopville Spring Finale

 This weekend, the Hoopville Spring Finale will be taking place at the Reggie Lewis Center in Boston.  The tournament features a field of teams which is interesting in that there are teams from some of the top Eastern New England Programs and also teams which we have never heard of before.  Here's a look at each age division.Click here to view Hoopville Spring Finale Schedule

Preview

12u...4 Teams:  Expressions, Mass Evolution, The Stars, The Marshall - Prediction: Pick'em

13u...8 Teams:  Expressions, Mass Evolution, Big Time, Prodigy, South Shore Basketball Club, Greater Boston Lions 
Prediction: Pick 'em

14u - 8 Teams - Contenders: GBL, Expressions, Shooting Stars...Interesting rematch in pool play between GBL and Shooting Stars.  When the two teams squared off in pool play in the State Tournament, GBL got the best of the Shooting Stars and beat them by 10 or so..(The Shooting Stars came back during bracket play to make it all the way to the State Final)  Another interesting rematch would arise if the Shooting Stars and Expressions met in the Final.  In the Semi-Finals of the Super Regionals, the Shooting Stars pulled off a huge upset by knocking off an Expression squad who many expected to run the table locally this Spring.  Seems a safe statement to say that Expressions might look forward to an opportunity to even the score with the Shooting Stars. 

Prediction: Look for Expressions to have a big weekend and establish some momentum going into July.

15u...BABC is the heavy favorite in this division...They will play two tough teams in pool play in the Boston Spartans and Basketbull...The New England Ballas 15u squad reached the final at Gym Rats in Albany a few weeks back and are looking to make a splash bacvk home this weekend. Other teams entered are Mass Evolution, GBL, and Boston Titans.  

Prediction: BABC...Roll Tide

16u...This is the definitely the age division with the most loaded field of teams, with four of the best five teams in New England slated to play.  Pool A features BABC, who will be without Nerlens Noels who is in Chicago at the Amare Stoudamire Skills Academy..  The New England Playaz and the RI Hawks are in Pool B, and Expressions is in Pool C.  It is likely that the four big fish will end up in the final four on Sunday. 

Prediction:  I suppose if there was a weekend to get BABC, this would be it, but until that happens, they get the nod.

17u...The biggest name in the 17u field is Expressions, and we will be curious to get a look at the make-up of this roster heading into July.  The New England Ballas is another big name heading into the weekend as their 16u squad is coming off a Chip at the Zero Gravity Nationals at Brandeis last weekend.  Other than those two teams, the field is made up of a dozen teams that are unknowns to the Hooprootz Spaceship...We''ll see what these squads are all about.

Prediction: Expressions starts to put something together as the Holy Grail Month nears.

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USA GBL Top Ten - Team Georgia is #5

Population: 9.7 Million

Coach Dion Glover

#5  We stay in the South for the #5 Ranked Squad in the USA GBL.  Team Georgia will bring a powerful front-line to the table which will attempt to physically dominate it's opponents.  The trio of Tony Parker, Rober Carter, and Shaq Goodwin could probably form an SEC DL in a 3-4 scheme.  On the wings, Team Georgia will go with Oak Hill teammates Damien Wilson and Jordan Adams along with Marcus Hunt, Shaq Goodwin's HS teammate Jordan Price, Virginia-bound Evan Nolte. and heralded Sophomore Brannen Greene.  The point guard position will likely be the x-factor for Team Georgia.  They will go with the combination of Charles Mann and Kenny Gaines, both of whom are big guards at 6'4.  Team Georgia will likely see a lot of full court pressure to test their ball handlers, so how the guards handle this pressure will likely determine Team Georgia's fate.

The coach of Team Georgia will be Dion Glover, who was one of the best HS players we have ever seen and who would have most likely been an NBA All-Star if he hadn't hurt his knee. 

Click on players name below (in bold) to watch video.
 
Team Georgia
Starters
C - Tony Parker - 6'9 PF - Miller Grove HS - ESPN #25
F - Robert Carter - 6'7 PF - Thomasville HS - ESPN #14
F - Shaq Goodwin - 6'8 F - SW Dekalb HS - ESPN #12
G - Jordan Adams - 6'4 G - Oak Hill Acdy - ESPN #61 - (UCLA)
G - Charles Mann - 6'4 G - Union Grove HS - ESPN #88
Bench
G - Jordan Price 6'4 G - SW Dekalb HS - ESPN #75 - (Auburn)
F - Damien Wilson - 6'4 SF - Oak Hill - ESPN #52 - (Memphis)
F -  Marcus Hunt- 6'6 SF - North Clayton HS - ESPN #75
F - Evan Nolte - 6'7 F - Milton HS - ESPN #68 - (Virginia)
G - Brannen Greene - 6'7 SG - Mary Parsons HS - ESPN #15 in 2013
C - Mike Hall - 6'11 C - Atlanta - ESPN # 97
G - Kenny Gaines - 6'4 PG - Atlanta

Nerlens Take-4

Check out Nerlens Noel's dunk at the NBPA Camp.  The play was featured today as Five-Star's 'Play of the Day.'

Click to Watch Video


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Double Nerlens Post

 Noel Headed to Chi-Town

This coming weekend, Nerlens Noel will be headed to Chicago for the prestigious Amare Stoudamire Skills Academy.  Check out the official Amare Stoudamire Skills Academy Webpage by clicking below..


View Amare Skills Academy Webpage


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Nerlens Noel

Nerlens Noel Saves Best for Last at NBPA Camp

Nerlens Noel was the New Englander who shined the brightest down at the NBPA Camp last weekend, winning the "Outstanding Underclassmen Award."

Read Full Article on NERR

Kahari Beaufort

Kahari Beaufort Arrives

Playing with the Long Island Lightning, Hartford's Kahari Beaufort recently made some noise down in North Carolina at the Bob Gibbons Tournament...Check out Jeff Borzello's article below.  According to the article, there is a "99.9%" chance that Beaufort joins Kuran Iverson at Northwest Catholic High School in the Fall after having done his Freshman year at the Pompret School.

Click here to view full article by Jeff Borzello


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USA GBL Top Ten - #7 - Team North Carolina

Population: 9.5 Million

TJ Warren = X-Factor

#7 This pick will definitely raise some eyebrows because of North Carolina's lack of length and their lack of the depth that the other top teams possess.  But Team NC has the best backcourt in the country with  Rodney Purvis at SG and the combination of Tyler Lewis and Braxton Ogbueze at the point.  At the Forwards, Team NC will go with savvy TJ Warren (who has been likened to Paul Pierce), high-flying Torian Graham, and young phenom Theo Pinson.  This group will rise to the occasion and allow Team NC to be a legitimate Championship contender.  Down-low on the block is where the question marks begin...NC will go with a three-man committee of the Montrezl Harrell (who is a nice player but will be playing out of position), IU commit Peter Jurkin, and thumper Kennedy Meeks.  

Since there isn't much of a UNC or Duke flavor on this squad, the coaching staff of Team NC will have an NC State flavor...The team will have co-head coaches, with Chris Corchiani and Rodney Monroe sharing the coaching duties just as they shared the nickname 'Fire and Ice' during their playing days together at NC State.

Click on players name below (in bold) to watch video.


Team North Carolina 
Starters
C - Montrezl Harrell - 6'8 F - Tarboro - ESPN #59 - (Virginia Tech)
PF - TJ Warren - 6'8 F - Durham - ESPN #39
SF - Torrian Graham - 6'4 G/F - Durham - ESPN #24 - (NC State)
SG - Rodney Purvis - 6'3 G - Raleigh - ESPN #7 - (Louisville)
PG - Tyler Lewis - 5'11 PG - Statesville - ESPN #73 - (NC State)
6th man - Braxton Ogbueze - 6'1 G - Charlotte - ESPN #29 (Florida)
7th man - Theo Pinson - 6'5 G - Greensboro - ESPN #1
Bench
C - Peter Jurkin - 6'11 C - Charlotte - (Indiana)
F - Isaiah Hicks - 6'6 F - Oxford - ESPN #21 in 2013
F - Greg McClinton - 6'6 F - Winsto-Salem - ESPN #31 in 2013
F - Kennedy Meeks - 6'8 F - Charlotte - ESPN #28 in 2013
G - Anton Gill - 6'3 G - Raleigh - ESPN #27 in 2013



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Rose City Report

Rose City Showcase Results

Playing without All-American Center Kaleb Tarczewski, who was out with a sprained ankle, the New England Playaz went 1-2 in their three games out at the Rose City Showcase in Oregon this past weekend, where many of the big names were absent due to the NBPA CAmp.   The Playaz fell to California Supreme on Friday night, then defeated Seattle Rotary on Saturday, and on Sunday lost by nine to Team Takeover..The Championship came down to two Cali squads...Cali Supreme and Cali 94, with Cali Supreme coming out on top....The Playaz will next be in action this coming weekend at the Hoopville Spring Finale at the Reggie Lewis Center.


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USA GBl Top Ten: Team Indiana comes in at #3

Population: 6.4 Million

Indianapolis native
Gary Harris

#3  Evan with the smallest population pool from which to draw, Team Indiana still comes in as one of the top-ranked teams in the GBL.  They will be coached by Wade Schenck, who played 'Ollie' in Hoosiers.  This Team Indiana squad will feature a tough front-court of Mitch McGary, Hanner Perea, and AJ Hammons.  The point will be manned by the combination of Indiana commit Yogi Ferrell and Purdue commit Ronnie Johnson.  On the wings, Team Indiana is extremely talented and extremely deep, with the high flying Gary Harris, Indiana commit Jeremy Hollowell, Big Dog Robinson's son and Michigan commit Glenn Robinson III, Indiana commit Ron 'Buss' Patterson, Purdue commit Raphael Davis from Fort Wayne, shooter Kellen Dunham who is headed to Butler, and the uncommitted Devauntes Smith-Rivera.  All in all, this ballclub is loaded with big-time players, many of whom are staying in Indiana to play their college ball at Indiana, Butler, or Purdue.

Check out player videos by clocking on player names below.

Team Indiana Starters

C -  AJ Hammons - 6'10 C - Oak Hill Academy - ESPN #63 IN 2012

PF - Mitch McGary - 6'10 PF - Brewster Academy - ESPN #4 in 2012

SF - Jeremy Hollowell - 6'7 F - Indianapolis - ESPN # 41 in 2012 (Indiana)

SG - Gary Harris - 6'4 SG - Indianapolis - ESPN # 16 in 2012

PG - Yogi Ferrell - 5'11 G - Greenfield - ESPN # 34 in 2012 (Indiana)

Bench

PF - Hanner Perea - 6'8 F - La Porte - ESPN #49 in 2012 (Indiana)
SF - D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera - 6'4 G - Indianapolis -  ESPN # 32 in 2012

SF - Glenn Robinson - 6'8 F - St. John - ESPN #60 (Michigan)

SG - Raphael Davis - 6'5 G - Fort Wayne - ESPN # 72 (Purdue)

PG - Ronnie Johnson - 5'10 G - Indianapolis - ESPN #89 (Purdue)

SG - Kellen Dunham - 6'5 G - Pendleton Heights - ESPN #81 (Butler)

SG - Ron Patterson - 6'2 G - Broad Ripple - ESPN #86 (Indiana)

Iverson's Top Three

Kuran Iverson's Top 3 

According to Adam Zagoria, who covers the New York Knicks and Big East hoops for NBA.com and SNY and also appears as a Big East Basketball Insider on SNY and 1050 ESPN Radio, there are three schools out ahead of the pack in the race for the services of Kuran Iverson.  Those schools are UConn, Syracuse, and Kentucky.

Click here to read entire article

USA GBL Top Ten - #3 - Team Texas South

Sulaimon is Duke-bound

 #3  Team Texas is no more as the USA GBL has decided to chop the State in half and have two Texas teams, Team Texas North and Team Texas South.  Part of the reason for this is the enormous population of Texas, but if that wasn't enough, the amount of basketball talent in Texas certainly calls for two teams worth of players.  That being said, both Texas Squads will be highly-talented and highly-ranked. With a heavy Houston-Feel, Team Texas South comes in at #3 in the USA GBL TOP 10 with a high-powered, versatile, and balanced roster.  Down on the block for TTS will be two monsters in Cameron Ridley (ESPN #11) and Shaq Cleare (ESPN #22).  They will be mixed with 6'8 PF Chicken Knowles (Rivals #58) who is long an athletic.  So TTS will have the option of going with the twin-towers of Cleare and Ridley in the middle or get fast and combine one of these guys will Knowles.  On the wings, TTS has a stables of players with which to come up with a rotation.  They have two true SF's in Wannah Bail (ESPN #98) and Winston Shepard (ESPN #64), two oustandings SG's in LJ Rose (ESPN #47) and Rasheed Saliomon (ESPN #20) and one guard/forward-combo in the emerging Danuel House (ESPN #70).  They are deep at PG as well, with the highly-touted Class of 2013 Harrison twins, Aaron (ESPN #16) (who is actually more of a combo-guard) and Andrew (ESPN #8), to go along with J-Mychal Reese (ESPN #28).  The roster will be rounded out by big time Freshman Prospect Justin Jackson.

Team Texas South willed be coached by Moses Malone.

Click on players names in bold below to view player videos..

Team Texas South
Starters

C - Cameron Ridley - 6'10 C - Bush HS - ESPN #11

PF - Shaquille Cleare - 6'9 C - Village School - ESPN #22

SF - Winston Shepard - 6;8 F - Fresno, TX - Findlay Prep - ESPN #64

SG - Rasheed Sulaimon - 6'3 G - Strake Jesuit Prep - ESPN #20 (Duke)

G - Andrew Harrison - 6'4 G - Travis HS - ESPN #8 in 2013

Bench
G - J-Mychal Reese- 6'2 PG - Bryan HS - ESPN #28
PF - Chicken Knowles - 6'9 F - Houston - Rivals #58

SF - Wannah Bail - 6'7 SF - Houston - ESPN #98

G - Aaron Harrison - 6'4 G - Travis HS - ESPN #16 in 2013

G - LJ Rose - 6'3 G - Westbury Christian - ESPN #47 
G/F - Danuel House - 6'6 G/F - Sugarland - ESPN #70

F - Justin Jackson - 6'6 SF - Houston - ESPN #6 in 2014

Playaz goin cross-country

This weekend, Kaleb Tarczewski and the New England Playaz, #13 in the Five-Star Top 25, will be traveling across the country to participate in the Rose City Showcase in Beaverton, Oregon.  The Playaz, will be playing in the eight team Super Division, which will include teams such as Team Takeover out of DC, #1 in America and Boo Williams out of Virginia, #25.

Check out the full Super Division Schedule below or click on the link to go to the RSC website.

Go to Rose City Showcase Website

Happy Birthday Pac

Tu Pac was a genius...He would have turned 40 today.

USA GBL Top Ten - Team New England comes in at #1

Mass - Connecticut - Maine - New Hampshire - Vermont - Rhode Island

Population: 14 Million

#1...Team New England comes in as the Top-Rated Team in America.  They are deep and versatile at each position.  Leading Team New England into competition will be PF Andre Drummond, the #1 Ranked Player in America.  Playing beside Drummond down-low will be other All-Americans... Marcus Camby-clone Nerlens Noel and seven-foot giant Kaleb Tarczewski.  If the three of them isn't enough, Team New England also will bring 6'6 workhorse-PF Georges Niang, 6'9 gazelle Zach Auguste, and Malik Rose-type Timjah Parker-Rogers.  At SF, Team New England is stacked with the versatile Jake Layman and young studs Kuran Iverson and Noah Vonleh.  The SG position will be manned by scoring machine Ricky Ledo, 2014 Star Wayne Selden, and NE Playaz-sniper John Papale.  At PG, Team New England will feature the rapidly-rising Kris Dunn, (who's at #48 and rising) and the inflappable BABC floor-general Jaylen Brantley.  Leo Papile is the coach...Hard to argue.

 

 Team New England Elite Squad

Starters

C - Kaleb Tarczewski - 7'0 C Sr.
PF - Andre Drummond - 6'10 Sr.

SF - Jake Layman - 6'7 Sr.
SG - Ricky Ledo - 6'6 Sr.
PG - Kris Dunn - 6'3 Sr.
Bench
PF - Nerlens Noel - 6'10 Jr.
PF - Zach Auguste - 6'9 Sr.
PF - Georges Niang - 6'6 Sr.
SF - Kuran Iverson - 6'7 Jr.
PG - Jaylen Brantley - 5'9 Jr.
F - Noah Vonleh - 6'7 Soph

SF - Wayne Selden - 6'4 Soph

PF - Timjah Parker-Rivera - 6'6 Sr.

SG - John Papale - 6'3 Sr.
(12 active players per game)

Team New England Developmental Squad

Starters

C - Nerlens Noel - 6'10 Jr.

PF - Noah Vonleh - 6'7 Soph

SF - Kuran Iverson - 6'7 Jr.

SG - Wayne Selden - 6'4 Soph

PG - Jaylen Brantley - 5'9 Jr.

Bench

PF - Jared Rueter - 6'8 Soph

PF - Goodluck Okonoboh - 6'8 Jr.

SF - Jared Wilson-Frame - 6'3 Soph

SG - Jared Terrell - 6'2 Soph

G - Rene Castro - 6'2 Jr.

PG - Johnny Vassar - 6'0 Soph

G - Levy Gillespie - 6'2 Soph
F - Andrew Chrasabrazc - 6'7 Jr.
C - Jeremy Miller - 6'9 Frosh
F - Tyree Robinson - 6'5 Soph
PF - Aaron Falzon - 6'7 Frosh
SG - Damion Smith - 6'3 Soph
(Squads can have 12 active players per game)

USA GBL Take-Two

Scenario for the Imagination - Grassroots Basketball in America is different; instead of playing AAU, the top young players in America play in a Grassroots Basketball League run by USA Basketball.  Synopsis below...

- USA Grassroots Basketball League - 25 Teams 

- Each team will represent an American geographical region plus Canada. 
- A US State must field two teams if it has a population of over 20M; therefore, Texas    and California will each have two teams.
Changes from original USA GBL Plan
- Team Texas will be separated and Texas will field two teams

- Arkansas leaves Team Gulf for Team Appalachia to rectify population in-balance.
- Team Virginia combines with Team MD/DC to for Team Capitol.

Click to View USA GBL Top 10 + Team Profiles

USA GBL

1.  Team New England - Population: 14M

2.  Team New York - Population: 19M 

3.  Team Pennsylvania - Population: 12.7M 

4.  Team New Jersey - Population: 8.7M 

5.  Team Ohio - Population: 11.5M

6.  Team Capitol (MD/VA/DC) - Population: 14M
7.  Team North Carolina - Population 9.5M
8.   Team Gulf (MS, AL, LA) - Population: 12.5M

9.  Team Florida - Population: 18M

10.  Team Georgia - Population: 9.7M

11.  Team Texas North - Population: 12.5M

12.  Team Texas South - Population: 12.5M

13.  Team Southern Cal - Population: 18.5M

14.  Team Northern Cal - Population: 18.5M

15.  Team Indiana - Population: 6.4M

16.  Team Illinois - Population: 12.8M

17.  Team Lewis&Clarke (WA/OR/ ID/WY/MT/HA/AK) - Population 16M

18.  Team Michigan - Population: 9.8M

19.  Team Kentucky/West Virginia/Arkansas - Population: 9M

20. Team WIld West (OK, NM, AZ) - Population: 12M

21.  Team Sierra (NV, UT, CO) - Population: 10.4M

22.  Team Heartland (NE, KS, IA, MZ) -  Population: 14M
23.  Team Paul Bunyan (MN, WI, ND, SD) - Population: 12M

24.  Team Elvis (SC, TN) - Population: 11M

25.  Team Canada - Population: 33M

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What's the Player Watch all about?

The first part of the Player Watch is to follow New England ballplayers in their pursuit of the ultimate dream...The NBA...A larger part of the Player Watch is to follow college basketball prospects from New England in their quest to receive one of life's great gifts: the opportunity to play college basketball and receive a college education for free.  It's the Pot of Gold at the end of the Rainbow...It's called a Full-Scholarship, it's called a Full-Ride, it's called a Full-Boat.  But remember, this is is only a pot of gold if you graduate (or go the League)...If you don't get paid serious dollars professionally, and you don't earn a diploma, then all the time you invested in basketball will end up being good for nothing but memories...But on the whole, the main point of the Player Watch is to follow New England ballplayers in their pursuit of the opportunity at any level, because while that might not be a pot of luck in an actual financial sense, playing college basketball is no doubt one of life's great experiences...Here's the big misunderstanding...A lot of times, young players worry about "going D1" or "going high D1."  But here's the thing...once you get to campus, you throw all the D1, D2, D3 stuff out the window...it's just about playing ball for your school...Too many times, dudes try to go as "high" as possible, and then end up not getting the desired playing time..Again, once you get to campus, throw the D1, D2, D3 stuff out the window...Everyone just wants to play.

Latest Andre Drummond Video

Player Watch

Mount Andre

The HoopRootz Player Watch aims to keep an eye on college basketball prospects from New England...As we head into the magical month of July, there is no doubt that New England is loaded with college prospects, not to mention a bunch of pro prospects. 

The Watch List will be updated on a daily basis and player profiles will consistently be added in bunches, so check back on the reg.

Please send nominations/reminders/wake-up calls to hooprootz@gmail.com

Click on the link below to check out the Player Watch in it's entirety.

View Player Watch

Team Rankings

Still on Top

With the spring season officially in the books, lets take a look at the HoopRootz Team Rankings heading into a summer in which New England is loaded with teams capable of making serious noise.  In the 17u division, NE has three teams, in BABC, CBC, and the NE Playaz, that are in the Five-Star Top 20...In a best case scenario, BABC will repeat as AAU National Champions and the Playaz and CBC will battle it out for the Super 64 Title in Vegas....In the 16u division, BABC is the heavy favorite to win the AAU National Championship, and CBC and the Playaz also have elite squads capable of dancing.  In the 15u and 14u divisions, BABC and Expressions have squads which could make an AAU National Title run. 

To see the rankings in their entirety, click on link below.
 
View Team Rankings

HoopRootz Spaceship Arrives

HoopRootz is a brand new virtual magazine which takes an in-depth look at the past, present, and future of New England Grassroots Basketball.  Starting on this day, the 14th of June, 2011, HoopRootz will be coming at you with a steady stream of news, videos, photos, articles, rankings, and more.