Nick Fazekas-Ralston Valley High School- Mr. Basketball-Colorado" for the 2002-03 season along with being a two-time 4A classification player of the year. SHARE High school boys basketball: Orem continues unlikely 5A tourney run, bounces Lehi to advance to semifinals. When it came to dribbling the basketball, Haynes was a revolutionary; considered by many to be the greatest dribbler in the history of the game. Caitlin was born on January 22, 2002, in Des Moines, Iowa, and is currently 19 years old. Weve watched our fair share of ESPNs 30 for 30 documentaries, yet few affect us as much as, BENJI, the story of Ben Wilson, Chicagos pride and joy and the best high school basketball player in the country. In the 2010s, seeing high schoolers do things beyond their sizes is almost commonplace. ', Was I wrong about any of that? Wren basketball wins first ever boys state championship, beats Crestwood 56-49. 11 overall by the Detroit Shock in the 2007 WNBA Draft, Ivory Latta was a huge star at York High School. Of the 10 players who started in the 2013 Jordan Brand Classic, nine of them were either drafted or are currently in the NBA including Joel Embiid, Andrew Wiggins and Jabari Parker. Yet, for all the incredible individuals who left their mark on the NBA, there are those who, while talented enough to play in the league, never got the chance. Last week, we unveiled our top high school basketball team in each state and today we are digging . When you've put on the "classic" uniform of basketball franchises like Lokomotiv Mineralnye Vody and Bnai HaSharon, who needs the Celtics or the Lakers? MORE: Have you seen the legend of Mac McClung? He was a two-time All-Star in the Israeli League and at the age of 26 he could still get one more opportunity in the NBA. Luke McBride, Norwell: The senior became Norwells all-time leading scorer with 24 points and eight rebounds in a 48-46 win over Homestead. Philadelphia's other former top picks who have had to sit out their first yearNerlens Noel, Ben Simmons, and Joel Embiidhave recovered and blossomed into fine young NBA players, and odds are that Fultz will do the same. Williams was a star with two different high schools in Mississippi and Texas and was ranked in the top 20 prospects of 2009. LennyCooke was once considered a bigger high school star than our no. Standing about 6-8 and about 230 or 240 pounds, he looked like a grown man, and I had no clue who he was. Who was the best high school basketball player you ever saw in person? best high school basketball player that never made it. IHSAA boys hoops: Avon defeats Danville 61-49. Perhaps the singular flaw on KG's resume is the fact he "only" won one title; but still, KG is an all-time great. LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett and Tracy McGrady are all examples of when the prep-to-pro process works out. I had the unfortunate pleasure of guarding her while I played for Dorman High School. Selby became the highest-ranked player to ever join Bill Self at Kansas but his college career got off to an inauspicious start after he was suspended for receiving improper benefits. Mar 1, 2023, 4:15pm PST. He was seen as the surer thing between he and fellow top prospect Kevin Durant, whom many felt wouldn't last in the NBA due to his lanky frame. It was impossible to watch anybody else on the court. With the playoffs underway, it's time to see who stands out as the best of the best so far. Follow Nonstop Sports Instagram - https://instagram.com/nons. Bennett was an unmitigated bust in the NBA and became the first No. 15 Basketball High School Phenoms Who Never Made It In The NBA. Orem players celebrate a 3-pointer in the 5A boys basketball state quarterfinal game against Lehi at the Dee Events Center in Ogden on Wednesday, March 1, 2023. The 'Punks'section of Slam Magazine and maybe ESPN's 'SSA'were the primary ways we caught wind of big-time hoopers elsewhere. Michael Dyer Dyers freshman year at Auburn not only brought NFL potential but also a national championship. Jerryd Bayless 4. Young is another entry on this list who was so good he starred at two high schools--and he did it in two different states; both Wichita East High School (a coed public school in Kansas) and Hargrave Military Academy (a private, all-male boarding school in Virginia). The Philadelphia 76ers selected Raymond Lewis with the No. Mike DeCourcy. Buchanans 10 3-pointers set a program record for a single game. Telfair is 32 years old and last played in the NBA in 2014; however, his 40-year-old cousin, Stephon Marbury, has a better shot at rejoining the NBA than Bassy does. 1. She therefore embraces her subject of interest with zeal and determination, which is why she is currently becoming more well-liked among basketball fans. By. And even though phone and computer screens set what seemed to be unreasonable expectations, my own eyes could not believe what they saw. He played for four teams in four seasons and even Michael Olowokandi lasted nine seasons in the NBA. COMPLEX participates in various affiliate marketing programs, which means COMPLEX gets paid commissions on purchases made through our links to retailer sites. Lopez stayed local with his college choice at went to St. Johns where he was solid but unspectacular. Below is the ESPN High School Boys' Basketball Top 25 for the week of Feb. 27, 2023. Fast forward to the Capital Center in Landover, Md., in late March, at the Capital Classic. Caitlin Clark Early Life. Tyler remains the first and only player to not only skip college to turn pro, but he skipped part of high school as well. 7. She also won awards including Iowa Miss Basketball, Gatorade State Player of the Year, and the McDonalds All-American title. 1 player in the nation and skipped college altogether, going No. From there, it soon became clear that not all was right with Smith and he clearly wasn't ready for the rigours and responsibilities of being a professional athlete. Such was the case when my Tampa Raptors, a rag-tag, best of the rest team, consisting of a band of players not good enough to be scooped up by Nike or adidas' summer outfits. She was also named Big Ten Freshman of the Year and unanimously selected for both the All-Big Ten Freshman Team and First Team All-Big Ten after the regular season. Lopez left school ranking sixth all-time in Big East history in points but when you are on the cover of Sports Illustrated as a teenager, more was expected of him. Daniel Tippit, New Palestine: The senior hit a 30-footer in New Palestines 61-31 win over Greenwood on senior night as the Dragons finished off a 21-2 regular season. Well, teams lie and Cooke went undrafted which forced him to play in minor leagues like the NBDL and USBL. He was a very good player for the Hoosiers, was a four-year starter and left the school sixth on Indianas all-time scoring list. Clark started playing basketball at age five. His post-career life (as well as his college and NBA days) proved that his peak was at age 17. In February2017, I dragged a friend from Charlotte down to Sumter, S.C., an unsuspecting town in the middle of the state. Not only was the wiry Jamison taller than most on the court, he was quicker too. There are other players like J.R. Smith, Kendrick Perkins and Monta Ellis who also went the prep-to-pro route and churned out serviceable NBA careers. It is so appropriate that this entry of Fields as a "Never Was" directly follows our previous "Became Bigger"--Kevin Garnett--because the pair were actually high school teammates at Chicago's Farragut Academy. Big mistake. In three seasons at Loyola Marymount, 6-foot-7 forward Hank Gathers averaged 28 points and 11.1 rebounds per game and was one of the most dominant forces in college basketball. Only twice has a player won the award two times: LeBron James and Greg Oden. Viraj is a Content Editor currently working at Whistlernews.com, He intended to write on the most recent developments of Entertainment, Sports to News from his own unique angle. His problems off the court were worse than his problems on it as in 2014 he pleaded guilty to battery for punching his ex-girlfriend. Fields subsequently went undrafted by the NBA in the late 1990s, never achieving the greatness of his teammate KG. Telfair played for nine NBA teams in 10 years and spent some time overseas as well, never living up to the incredible hype. As a sophomore in 201718, Caitlin averaged 27.1 points, 6.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 2.3 steals, leading her squad to a 204 record and the state quarterfinals. He added six rebounds, four assists and one steal in 32 minutes, attempting double-digit 3 . Washburn, from Hickory, N.C., was 6-11, 230-plus pounds, ran the floor like a forward, handled like someone eight inches shorter and 50 pounds lighter, shook backboards with his dunks and blocked everything in sight. Dylan Moles, Greenfield-Central: The 6-3 senior and Marian recruit went for 29 points, five assists, four rebounds and three steals on 9-for-13 shooting from the field and 9-for-9 from the free-throw line in a 69-53 win over Plainfield in the final regular-season game. But then Jackie decided he was too good to go to the University of Tennessee and declared for the NBA Draft. Instead of going to University of Maryland in 1974, Malone joined the NBA's then rival pro basketball league, the ABA, famous for its multi-colored balls and players with outrageous '70's hair styles. For 15 year old Ryan Chian, love of basketball won't fade away. The most vivid thing I remember was how fast Jamison would get his shot off after catching a pass. That was near the end of the regular season in 1990. When Butler was with the 2006-07 San Antonio Spurs, a very telling comment by coach Gregg Popovich revealed the player's true nature: "Most of (Butler's) playing time in the initial part of the season is going to be in practice, learning what a work ethic is day in and day out and what it takes to play at this level.". Caitlin has played basketball since she was very little. But before we get to that, here are a couple more losers: Here's a perfect example of a young hoopster who should have attended the college he committed to; in Ndudi Ebi's case, it was the University of Arizona, a strong basketball program. Because ESPN ranked her as the second best guard, more people started paying attention to what she had to say about the game. Eventually, the Boston Celtics selected him with the No. Sergio Llull Unlike the other players in this list, Sergio Llull still has a chance to make. The top three-ranked players in the Class of 1998 all jumped straight from high school to the NBA. He dominated the Georgia basketball scene that year, leading. Nothing made me feel older than to watch his son, Jalen, playing in the Sweet 16 and Elite Eightfor Villanova at the Garden (different building, of course) this past year. Said former Lynwood coach Bill Lee:Ive seen Jerry West, Oscar Robertson, and Michael Jordan and Ive never seen anyone better with the basketball. He scored 2,124 points in high school and led his team to 50 straight wins. Caitlin Clark is a college basketball player who has been involved in the sport throughout her entire life. In fact, in a summer league game, Lewis dropped 52 points against a bunch of Los Angeles Lakers he was still in high school at the time. Selby would start just 11 games at Kansas and the team seemed to perform better when he didnt play. Maggette was smooth and fun to watch doing everything on the floor." Inside His Life! Oh, heck no. Selby was one of the best players to ever come out of the DMV area and he was the No. He was so skilled that the Lakers even selected him in the NBA's 1971 hardship draft. --and five NBA titles later, the rest is history. It should be noted that the tragic tales of the likes of Hank Gathers and Benji Wilson will be left off the list, as their circumstances went far beyond anything basketball related. He was then traded to the Mavs but never played a game due to more psychological issues. Walker thought that his play in high school would warrant a draft selection in the pros but that wasnt the case and he ended up lasting just one month as an undrafted free agent with the Rockets. Brandon Jennings 5. Like Antoine Walker and Juwan Howard before him, Smith was thought to be the next All-Star big man to come from Chicago. When he was just 14 years old, legendary Indiana coach Bobby Knight declared that Bailey was better than any point guard his college team had. 5. Of course, Williamson is not just a great athlete; hes a great basketball player. Our editorial content is not influenced by any commissions we receive. He now plays for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers of the G-League and averaged 5.9 PPG in 2016-17. He played for eight different teams and was traded six different times including in the deal that sent Kevin Garnett to Boston. I was not on the basketball team at Lynn English, my high school, but my friend, Charlie Leslie, was a forward for the team. He decided to stay local and went to UNLV where he was good but played against inferior competition in the Mountain West Conference. For those who think Julius "Dr. J" Erving is all that, keep in mind that Erving never won an NBA title until the 1982-83 Philadelphia 76ers acquired the late great Moses Malone to replace the lesser great but also late Darryl "Chocolate Thunder" Dawkins at center. Believe me, I tried. For the last three seasons hes played for three different teams in the Chinese Basketball Association. He was one of the most-touted players to come out of New York in years and won the Mr. Basketball USA award in 1994. A Lamborghini is a Lamborghini, and Williamson is a Murcilago with a 6.2 L V12 engine. Those Spurs went on to win the 2007 NBA title, defeating LeBron in his first Finals appearance. Those players were: 1. Nicknamed 'Benji'. Get your votes in by noon Friday for our high school boys basketball player of the week for Feb. 20-25: Cast your vote in the poll at the bottom of the article or click here to vote.. Trey . Jalen was good, but it was not quite as good as his dad playing with a bum wrist against Feehan, and posting 42 points." "It feels relaxing and just feels good to play," said Chian. It wasn't the best decision for each one, but for a select group of superstars, skipping college paid off. There was actually an HBO movie made about Manigault starring Don Cheadle entitledRebound: The Legend of Earl 'The Goat' Manigault. We were playing Salem at our small gym with a brick wall that was about 10 feet off the baseline. Caitlin hasnt mentioned her romantic relationship, but its possible that shes unmarried and devoted on elevating her career. In addition, she also retains the award of Iowa Gatorade Player-of-the-Year in 2019 and 2020. Nonetheless, she has a chance to be selected by a WNBA team in the upcoming days, and if that occurs, she will make almost as much as the stated sums. Alston. Dating back to the 1960s, and with a decade-long heyday beginning in 1995, some of the NBA's greatest talents made the leap right to the pros. If only he couldve put basketball before everything else. I don't remember how many points or how many dunks, but what stood out was his ball-handling skills and ability to spin through traffic with an effortless grace I've never seen at the high-school level since. "Like dating, the Internet has taken the mystery out travel basketball. Almost literally, because he resembled no player more than he did Shaquille O'Neal. There's been an ongoing debate for years, even decades, on whether the "one and done" rule in the NBA should be liftedor if in fact, basketball players should spend even more time in college. During his four seasons at Maryland, Len Bias averaged 16.4 points and 5.7 rebounds per game, was a two-time ACC Player of the Year, and earned All-American honors in 198485 and 198586. But with Korleone, it was a total surprise. Young would be a second round pick of the Pistons in 1998 but played a total of 15 minutes in the lockout-shortened season before being cut. 'Estaban.' The ironically nicknamed "Black Jack" Ryan represents the only "great white hope" of this list. As it stands, Selby has played 38 games in the NBA and 31 games in the D-League although he has found some success overseas. Her favourite NBA player is Kevin Durant, and Maya Moore was her basketball role model when she was little. Ebi was well regarded after leading Westbury Christian Academy to three Texas state titles, but then the forward made the crucial mistake of thinking he was better than he actually was, and skipped college. (Feb. 20-25), Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. Top opponent: Jason Drake Jr., Ferndale. He attacked the rim like it had stole something from him. Seconds after throwing down a vicious alley-oop during the 1990West Coast Conference tournament championship game, Gathers unexpectedlycollapsed. By 18, Telfair was on the cover of Sports Illustrated and just months later he was drafted by the Portland Trail Blazers. 1 prospect, was outplayed by an unknown player named LeBron James who would then supplant Cooke as the top player in the country. He was selected in the first round of the 2003 draft (26th overall) by the Timberwolves, but was never suited for the pros and wound up playing overseas for one obscure team after the next. "It's like playing with your brother in the backyard," said Panguitch coach Clint Barney. Caitlin might have a future plan to reveal it, and if she does, regular readers will be aware of it. The splash of a Spaulding sphere is sweet to anyone who knows the game. Averaged 19.4 points, 5 . 4. The first thing that came to mind upon watching him was this: Magic Johnson's head on Michael Jordan's body. At Benjamin Franklin High in New York City, shooting guard Manigault set a record by scoring 57 points in one game in the late 1950s. McBride now has 1,822 career points going into the sectional. Bryant, the son of former NBA player Joe Bryant, was regarded as the top high school player in the entire nation in 1996 when coming out of Lower Merion High School in the Philadelphia suburb of Ardmore. Her date of birth is not known. Though Bryant was drafted #13 overall by the Charlotte Hornets, of course, such an obscure franchise was beneath Kobe's destined greatness, so he promptly engineered a curious trade to the Los Angeles Lakers (for Vlade Divac?) He would eventually move on to play in the CBA before retiring in 2003. USA Today has named its top high school player since the 1982-83 season. Basketball scorers start young. Only twice has a player won the award two times: LeBron James and Greg Oden. Call Star reporter Kyle Neddenriep at (317) 444-6649. These guys seemed destined for greatness, but they peaked in high school 15 Basketball High School Phenoms Who Never Made It In The NBA. So I've seen nearly every great basketball talent as a high schooler for the past four decades: Ewing, Mourning, Garnett, Davis. On the day before his senior year at Simeon High School, Wilson was shot and killed, sending shockwaves through the city of Chicago and the rest of the country. 3. Sean Marbaugh, Cathedral: The student manager got a chance to suit up on senior night and made the most of it by scoring a basket in the fourth quarter of a 67-55 win over Zionsville. She was leading in the nation in assists (214), points (799), points per game (26.6), made field goals (266), and made 3-pointers (116), and second in assists per game (7.1) and 3-pointers per game (3.87). Her zodiac sign is Aquarius, based on the day of her birth. In 1984, as a senior, he was the Parade Magazine co-player of the year with none other than Danny Manning. The nation's top high school basketball players used to be able to go straight to the draft. Montverde Academy . 1 pick in the 2017 NBA Draft, Markelle Fultz, is currently enduring what has become a Philadelphia 76ers' rite of passage: spending his rookie year watching from the sidelines as he rehabs an injury. With National Signing Day coming on Wednesday, Sporting Newsasks that question. But in the final seconds, with his U.S. team's win in hand, Washburn got the ball in the open court, on the same side of the floor as Jordan had. And one more player was drafted but never made it to any teams -- he died at age 20 in his own bed while sleeping. There was asixth-grader in Columbus who could dunk, and his name put it over the top. In recent years, Howard has dampened his stature as an NBA pro. Watch James make one routine trip down the court and the whole package hits you at once: the size, the skills, the awareness, the competitiveness. Sometimes, it's a maturity issue, other times, players' skills are simply too raw and it's clear they could have used some more time in college or in a developmental league rounding out their game. He waspronounced dead later that evening at Daniel Freeman Marina Hospital. Shooting guard Fields became the first sophomore high schooler to play in the "Best of the Best" all-star game with the likes of Garnett and future NBA superstar Allen Iverson, and he justified the selection by becoming the number three all-time leading scorer in Chicago public league history. At one point he might have placed higher on this list, but he'll never compete with the top 3 who became bigger. woman jumps off carquinez bridge 2021 best high school basketball player that never made it. Perhaps, but Earl's "Goat" handle may have several other origins, including his surname ending with "-gault". McCain grew up in Sacramento and spent a majority of his life in the . When Bailey was 14 years old, Indiana coach Bob Knight saw him play and said, Damon Bailey is better than any guard we have right now. After bouncing around myriad high schools in two states, he enrolled at a private school in Orlando for his senior season. However, he can thank Calipari for not giving him the option of returning to Memphis as Wagner made over $8 million in the NBA and he wouldnt have made a dime had he gotten sick while in college. She doesnt appear to share anything about her private life with others, though. I beat my defender baseline and went up for a layup, but turned my back to him to avoid the contact before flipping the ball over my shoulder. These four players, and many more, skipped college to jump straight from high school to the NBA to great results. Oh, what could have been. He was later recruited by Chicago's DePaul University, but was ruled academically ineligible. With his height, physical attributes and skill level, it's not hard to believe that Howard led his high school, the blandly named Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy to a 31-2 record and the 2004 Georgia state title. The game meant something to us, but it was everything for him. 1 entry. From then until I moved out of Pittsburgh in 1993, I went to the Dapper Dan every year. What happens if an high school basketball star decides to throw a "direct to the NBA Draft" party and no one decides to show? The only thing I could think was, There can't be eight players better than him. Hes been arrested multiple times and has been charged with reckless driving, unlawful possession of a shotgun, and an armed home invasion. How Tall is Popular Singer and Star Actor Nick Lachey? There's no big tragic story behind Williams' failures; he appears to have not been good enough, at least for any teams to believe in him to sign him and actually play him. The WCAC was the best high school league in the country, as at least 3 teams were nationally ranked. Caitlin won the Big Ten Freshman of the Week award 13 times, a conference record. Joe "The Destroyer" Hammond Despite never playing high school or college ball, Joe "The Destroyer" Hammond was perhaps the greatest basketball player to ever come out of Harlem.