By Brian Crownover
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{mosImage}Action at the College of New Jersey continued on Thursday and Friday as some of the top players in the region took part in the Eastern Invitational. Here is a look at some of the performances.

Dominique Rutledge (2008, 6-8 215 PF)
Dominique is a very skilled combo forward. The lefty can put the ball on the floor and attack off the dribble. He had a beautiful crossover move and finish in transition on one occasion. He also knocked down a couple of jumpers. He can play with his back to the basket in the low post as well. Dominique is pretty efficient in down low. He battled on the boards throughout. He may not be dominant in one area, but his all around ability creates a lot of match-up problems for the opposition. 

Kim English (2008, 6-6 210 SF)
Kim is among the most talented players at the camp. When I recall seeing him last year, he was battling in the post for his AAU team. While he might be able to do that, he’s more suited to play on the perimeter. On Saturday, the talented wing was burying pull up jumpers from all over the court. He’s very quick off the bounce and can really score. Kim also threw a nice alley oop pass as well. He made quite the impression in limited viewing.

Chaz Williams (2009, 5-8 PG) Committed to Hofstra
Chaz wasn't nearly as dynamic on Friday and Saturday as he was on the opening night. He played at a much more controlled pace, but was still solid. He was much better finishing in traffic over the last two days though. Chaz was releasing the ball much earlier, before contact could arrive. He had several nice floaters in the lane and even used the glass. Chaz does like to mix in the pull up jumper too. He can hit that shot, but doesn’t do so at a high rate at this point. He also threw in a mix of drive and dish plays too. Chaz is a solid young guard who played well all throughout the week.

Ryan Brooks (2008, 6-8 PF)
Ryan opened the game with an impressive play. He used a spin move and took several more dribbles before finishing. He ran the floor well and scored in transition. Ryan is pretty athletic and he showed that on a one handed throw down. He’s a solid ball handler, but won’t consistently get to the basket in that fashion. He does take long strides though so he can get there in a hurry if the lane opens up. He played towards the perimeter a lot, but didn’t really show much of a jumper or any great wing skills. Ryan is a solid prospect though.
 
Jamin Shumate (2008, 6-6 SF)
Jamin is a well built forward. He was at his best playing on the glass at both ends of the floor. He can finish around the basket. He also possesses a pretty nice wingspan. Jamin can handle the basketball, although he could use some improvement in that area. 

Shawn Lawrence (2008, 6-9 PF/C)
Shawn made a long trip to get here and was quite impressive. The long and thin big man is very athletic. He really loves to dunk and did so several times on the offensive glass. He has excellent hands and is a very good finisher around the rim. Shawn showed a nice turnaround jumper in the post too. Not surprisingly, he also rebounded well. Shawn is a player who made quite the impression.

Christian Morris (2008, 6-8 PF/C)
Christian is a very talented post player. The big low block scorer opened with a monster jam. He hit the offensive boards hard throughout the game. In the post, he often starts on the right side and spins back left for the left handed hook. He could benefit by adding some more moves in the post, but it’s hard to argue when his best move is working so well. Christian did have some trouble finishing at times against the athletic Shawn Lawrence (see above). He even showed his versatility by stepping out towards the perimeter and knocking down a jumper. He was without question one of the top players at this event.

Chris Pelcher (2009, 6-9 PF/C)
Chris is a big man with a solid build. He’s very efficient around the rim. He has a good feel in the low post. Chris has good touch on the interior and showed it off with a nice short jump hook. He’s not a great athlete, but still a solid player.

Austin Cooley (2008, 6-4 SG)
Austin Cooley is a big guard. He takes very long strides and gets to the hoop quickly. He finishes well around the basket. Austin was quiet from the perimeter though on this occasion.

Stephen Spinella (2008, 6-5 SF/PF)
Stephen played better on Saturday than he did Thursday evening. The skilled wing isn’t flashy, but he’s still effective getting to the rim off the bounce. He is a good enough ball handler that he ran some point for his team. Stephen finished well and does really get up and down the court. He continued to struggle with his perimeter shot on Saturday though.

Jeriel Henriquez (2008, 6-2 SG)
Jeriel is a lanky and quick guard. He handles the ball quite well. He gets to the basket quickly. Jeriel has a pretty nice pull up jumper too. 

Josh Watkins (2008, 5-10 PG)
It doesn’t seem like I ever see Josh play a bad game. He opened by hitting a tough deep runner. He threw in several other runners as well. Josh did an excellent job scoring after penetrating or dishing off to his teammates. The only thing that is missing from his game is a jump shot. He rarely takes them so it’s tough to tell if that shot is in his arsenal. That said, what he does best is attack and he certainly does that well. 

Wilbur O' Neal (2008, 6-7 220 PF)
Wilbur is a power player, but what really stood out at Eastern was that he flashed some wing skills. He had a couple of nice drives and dishes. Wilbur does handle the ball pretty well for his size. He also buried a deep jumper. As always, he was solid on the boards. 

Dominic Morris (2009, 6-6 PF)
Dominic always looks good when he’s able to get some touches on the offensive end. The big bodied forward runs the floor surprisingly well and scored several transition baskets. He mixed in a nice short jump shot too. Dominic is also a rebounding machine. The big and skilled forward has a bright future.

Paris Bennett (2009, 6-6 SF)
Paris put together another fine outing. The skilled wing possesses a beautiful pull up jump shot and he hit that with regularity. He also passed quite well in this contest.

Will Kirkland (2008, 6-5 SF/PF) 
Will can really stroke the ball from the perimeter. He has a very smooth jumper. He contributed a steal on the defensive side of things and had a nice offensive rebound put back as well.

Wes Kirkland (2008, 6-5 SF)
Wes was impressive driving to the bucket early on in his game. He was able to score several times in that fashion. After that quick started, he went kind of quiet though.

Nick Greenbackwer (2008, 6-8 PF/C)
Nick is a solid interior player. He hit a nice turnaround jumper in the post. He also had a good left handed lay in. Nick is very efficient around the basket. He has a big frame and can block shots too.

Devon White (2008, 6-8 PF/C)
Devon played solid throughout camp. He made a couple of nice athletic plays around the hoop. He also knocked down a very difficult mid range jumper. When the effort is there, Devon is a very good player. He just doesn’t always bring it from game to game.

Chris Cantino (2008, 6-6 SF)
Chris is a big forward. He handles the ball well for his size. He finished well in traffic early, but was inconsistent in that area as the game wore on. Chris has good touch around the hoop. He also battled on the boards throughout the day.

Trumaine Spencer (2008, 5-9 PG)
Trumaine is a small guard who is very quick off the bounce. He’s a good drive and dish point guard who makes his teammates better. 

Charles Hinkle (2008, 6-6 SF)
Charles is a good sized wing player. He possesses a nice pull up jump shot off of the dribble.