PrimeTime Punks

A few of the top ballers from the Morgantown Primetime Shootout.

by Rodger Bohn

The University of West Virginia mixed basketball with business, drawing some of the nation’s top recruits down to Morgantown this past weekend for the PrimeTime Shootout. Coincidentally, the Mountaineers had a home game versus Ohio State at 2 p.m., right in the middle of all of the action. Also coincidentally, the high school games just happened to take a brief intermission for the WVU game, only to start again at it’s conclusion. Kudos to whoever made these coincidences happen, considering that many of West Virginia’s top targets were in town for the weekend.

It was a long day of hoops, with games starting at the crack of dawn 8:30 a.m. and not concluding ’til midnight. Needless to say, there were a couple of breaks to run to the store for some red bull and charge my cell phone, but for hoop heads like us, it was well worth it.

Here’s a look at the top PUNKS at the Morgantown PrimeTime Shooutout:

Tobias Harris | 6-8 | SF/PF | Half Hallow Hills (NY) | 2010
Tobias brought his full array of skills to Morgantown, dropping 36 points in his team’s W over Chester (PA). Able to kill you inside and out, the Long Island native showed his ability to put the ball on the deck as well as get buckets with his back to the basket. Dude moves unlike most power forwards and has a crafty array of floaters and runners, leading one to believe that he might be able to move to the wing full-time if he keeps working on his J. It’s been said that Bruce Pearl plans to use him in a role similar to now defunct Tennessee forward Tyler Smith, which we can surely see based on the mismatches he creates on the hardwood.

Quincy Miller | 6-9 | SF/PF | Quality Education Academy (NC) | 2010
SLAM’s No. 3 junior in the country continued his tear this season, matching Harris’ 36 points in his own respective win over Our Savior New American (NY). Compared by many to Kevin Durant, he is a monster on the court who can kill you inside and out despite his slender frame. Miller’s jumper was wet from beyond the arc, he showed off a nice handle, and also scored in the post against stronger defenders. Q is considered by many to be a Kentucky lean, but claims that he’s still open to hearing from all suitors at this point in the game.

Josh Selby | 6-2 | PG/SG | Lake Clifton (MD) | 2010
The slower tempo of Lake Clifton’s game against Mt. Lebanon (PA) didn’t exactly cater towards Selby’s style of play, but he showed why he is arguably the most sought after guard in the country at this point in the game. The Drake of YouTube mixtapes threw his flashy game on center court for West Virginia fans, although he is not considering the school at the moment. A powerful guard, he converted on a number of acrobatic takes, while also cashing in on a number of NBA threes. Selby is still a ways away from being labeled a “pure point guard”, however remains arguably the most exciting and unstoppable player in this class.

Roscoe Smith | 6-8 | SF/PF | Oak Hill Academy (VA) | 2010
Playing on one of the most loaded squads in the country, it’s going to be tough to put up big figures in the points column, but Roscoe managed to do so in his win over Columbia (GA). The Baltimore native showed off his versatility that made him one of the hottest names left on the board until he decided to pledge to UCONN a few months back. Smith showed the length, athleticism, and motor that you dream to see out of a potential combo forward. With Stanley Robinson heading to the League at the conclusion of this year, Roscoe will have plenty of opportunity to get some burn early on in Storrs.

Jevon Thomas | 6-2 | PG | Our Savior New American (NY) | 2012
To be honest, we had never heard of this pup going into the event and were shocked to see him drop a Steve Nash-esque 15 points and 19 assists in a blowout loss to Quality Education. It’s pretty tough to fathom, but dude scored or assisted on nearly every single one of his team’s points in this game. He’s got really nice size for a guard and has tons of poise as a playmaker at such a young age, which is why he’s already receiving interest from Villanova and Kentucky. Definitely a youngster we’ll be tracking on the AAU circuit this year.

Jacob Lawson | 6-8 | PF | Oak Ridge Military Academy (NC) | 2011
Oak Ridge had a bit of a tough one, falling by 19 to Mountain State Academy, but Lawson balled out and showed why he’s one of the bigger sleepers at the power forward spot in the 2011 class. He’s got the size, body and athleticism that you dream of in a power forward, and is just waiting for his skills to catch up at this point. The upside is through the roof with this guy, which is why programs such as Wake Forest and Syracuse have been on him for a minute now.