By Brian Crownover
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Zack Rosen

Ivy League Steal 

Penn got an absolute steal in Zack Rosen. He should immediately contribute for the Quakers at point. He probably could’ve had significant playing time right away at most CAA and A10 schools. With a well rounded game, Zack can drive, shoot and distribute the ball. Also in a day in age where there is a question of whether a kid is going to qualify, it is refreshing to see a player of Zack's caliber being admitted into the prestigious Wharton Business School. Look for big things out of him.

Atlantic 10 Steal 

Another impressive North Jersey guard continues to look like a better pick up each time out. Jiovanny Fontan first caught our attention last spring when we just started the site. He looked fantastic against other mid major caliber players in an all star game. We had talked him up some after that, but he really didn’t produce all that much with the Playaz. After taking a backseat to more high profile teammates, Jiovanny has really played a much more aggressive brand of basketball this spring and summer. He is very quick off the dribble and can score or distribute the ball. He changes directions quickly and can also shoot the three point shot. Fordham spotted this kid early and was rewarded with a great pickup.

Wayns Proves Himself 

July is a great month to prove yourself between all the camps and tournaments. It’s hard to believe Philly’s best player could be flying under the radar, but that’s exactly where Maalik Wayns was at just a few short months ago. In front of his hometown crowd, the recent Villanova pickup, put together a very good camp at Reebok U. He was either out of most ’09 rankings or towards the end of the rankings. Maalik played himself onto the all star game which included a lot of talented ’08 players. It’ll be interesting to see where he winds up being ranked once the updates occur. Maalik has been a well known commodity in Philly for awhile and looks to have caught on the national scene as well. 

Diamond in the Rough? 

ODU seems to have a knack for finding some diamonds in the rough. That’s one of the reasons we were intrigued when they received a verbal from relatively unknown Marquel DeLancey. We were eager to watch him at Eastern Invitational, but unfortunately he put together two relatively quiet games. We can’t say he played poor because he did seem to do a good job of taking care of the ball and small stuff like that. He just didn’t play a very aggressive brand of basketball. As I commented to another scout, “if I knew nothing of him before the event, I wouldn’t have even written a thing about him.” This actually spikes our interest even more though. Clearly ODU saw something because there’s no way they would’ve offered the kid after putting together the two games we saw. We’ll continue to track Marquel, including out in Vegas next week with his AAU team Hoop Magic. 

Another Quick Guard for the Pride 

Speaking of CAA commitments, we have been quite impressed with Hofstra’s early commitment from Chaz Williams. His quick ball handling would cause trouble at any level. At the CAA level, he’ll be a real pest. Right now he finishes well despite his small stature, can he continue to do so as he moves forward. Chaz can also distribute the ball and shoot some from the perimeter. He’s also all over the court on the defense end. What we really like is that he plays fast, but typically does so while still under control. It’ll be interesting to track his progress as he continues to develop over the next two years. 

Final Four Run 

One question that continues to linger is will George Mason be able to capitalize on the recruiting front from their Final Four run. They put together a nice class this past winter, but it wasn’t necessarily a huge upgrade from years past. In the ’08 class, they are involved with some quality players, but certainly none that would be huge steals. One thing is for sure, Patriots have their name out there now. It seems like every mid level player that has heard from GMU even once has them on his list. Where they really are trying to make inroads and benefit from that run is with the younger classes and particularly around the DC area. They have already offered several high profile 2009 and 2010 local players before many of the big schools have really turned up the heat. One of the difficult things with that amazing run is who to go after in recruiting now. If you start shooting too high you might not be able to land anyone, but if you don’t take a chance with some of those types of players, you might be missing out on a steal. I think hitting higher level local kids is the way to go. Now we’ll just have to see if it pays off. 

Hawks Still Involved 

Kevin Jones was certainly one of the more productive players at Reebok U. He can really battle inside and shoot from the outside. We’re impressed to see that he continues to keep St. Joe’s on his short list. This would clearly be a huge steal for the Hawks and he’d fill in nicely after Ahmad Nivins is gone. 

Blue Devils Like Philly Players 

Central Connecticut State sure likes the Philly kids and more specifically Imhotep Charter players. The Blue Devils picked up Tamir Johnson and Jermaine Washington along with Brian Wanamaker. They have already offered two talented 2009 Imhotep guards in Will Adams and Kenny Battle. Both will play bigger roles this year with the departure of Johnson and Washington. 

Boys & Girls Ready to Contend 

Boys & Girls had a fabulous year last season as they compiled a 31-3 record. While they graduated talented guard Zamal Nixon (Houston), they look like they’ll be ready to compete again next season at least if Eastern Team Camp is any indication. They dismantled a talented Notre Dame Academy of Virginia team behind 19 points from David Imes and a stellar outing by C.J. Reid. The Kangaroos were runners up at the event. Notre Dame Academy has several mid major prospects on their roster, among them Andrey Semenov and Will Alston. Unfortunately for the Kangaroos, all three of their losses last year were to Lincoln. The Railsplitters will return super prospect Lance Stephenson so the battles in the PSAL should be fierce again. 

Vegas 

Next week will be a bit crazy as we will be making our first trip out to Vegas for the Nike Main Event, Reebok Summer Championship and the Adidas Super 64. We’re hoping to cover 24 games in three days so they’ll be plenty of content. Hopefully we’ll be able to have plenty of updates while we’re still out there. It’ll be a good chance for us to see some out of the region teams from Florida, North Carolina, Georgia and so on. We are most interested in seeing Terrance Saintill (VCU) of the Florida Rams battled against two teams we are familiar with in the DC Assault and New England Playaz. Both squads have talented frontcourts and should give us a good gauge on Saintill’s ability. Check back all next week for continuing coverage.