Author: Anthony Ray

Westwind Prep’s skilled 6-foot-4, 210-pound senior guard Josh Braun recovered nicely from a knee injury that he suffered last spring – an injury that caused him to miss the remainder of the spring and also the summer evaluation period.  But soon after returning to action, less than 3 months later, Braun saw an injury to his other knee, and another torn ACL injury.  As a result, Braun is now recovering once again – hoping to return to action after a freshman year of recovery. With Braun’s college recruitment hanging in the balance as a result of the injury, the gifted senior shooting…

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Scottsdale Saguaro High School’s sharp-shooting 5-foot-11, 165-pound senior point guard prospect Mike Hauser is coming off an excellent season for himself.  The heady, fundamentally sound point man had his best season as a senior – averaging 16.5 points, 5.5 assists and 3.7 rebounds per/game. As a result, Hauser saw his college recruitment take off this season.  Hauser picked up offers from Peru State, Concordia University (CA) and Arizona Christian University and also received strong interest from such schools as Chico State and Point Loma University. This week, after giving careful consideration to each program, Hauser decided to sign a scholarship with Concordia University, one…

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When I first laid eyes on this year’s version of the Arizona Magic Pump N’ Run-2014 group of junior prospects at the recent Southwest Showcase Main Event, organized by Ron Coleman, I wondered just how competitive this group would be this spring and summer.  Sporting very little size and marginal athleticism as a team, on paper, this group did not look like much to look at. In the Southwest Showcase Main Event, the team would be led by the superb play of Westwind Prep star 6-foot-8 junior guard/forward Zylan Cheatham and 6-foot-3 junior guard Tate De Laveaga (Northern Arizona commit), and also…

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Arizona Preps began our coverage of the April evaluation period this weekend with a trip to Las Vegas, Nevada, where we were able to catch much of the action from day two of this year’s exciting Pangos Spring Spectacular event – held at Bishop Gorman High School.  While we were following each of the Arizona teams in the event, and since there are only a few Arizona teams participating (with the majority of Arizona teams competing in the Double Pump Hoop Fest  in LA) in this weekend’s event, it made for an easy day of coverage for our staff. We were able…

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The 2013 NCAA Evaluation Period is set to begin today on Friday, April 19th, and for this year’s superb crop of players in Arizona’s loaded 2014 class, it couldn’t get here soon enough.  Arizona’s 2014 Class just might be the best class of college prospects the state has ever seen, and the quest to prove so will begin this afternoon when several high-exposure club events get underway – the Double Pump Hoop Fest and the Nike EYBL Basketball Tournament in Los Angeles, and the Pangos Spring Spectacular in Las Vegas, Nevada. In each of these three events, each of the elite and top prospects in Arizona’s 2014…

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Deer Valley High School turned in a very good season for the program in 2012-2013, as the Skyhawks compiled a 20-8 overall record in the Division-I Class.  Head Coach Jed Dunn is one of the state’s top young coaches and has done an excellent job of developing the players in the Deer Valley program.  One player that Dunn has to be excited about is talented 6-foot-4, 180-pound sophomore forward Rees Plummer. While Dunn’s Skyhawks will be losing a lot to graduation next year, the future still looks extremely bright for Deer Valley as their leading scorer and second leading rebounder will…

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Many of the state’s top-rated prospects in Arizona’s 2013 senior class are still on the recruiting table – looking for future destinations for themselves.  One of these players is Westview High School’s 6-foot-6, 185-pound unsigned senior forward Airen Randolph.  Randolph saw his game improve a great deal from his junior season and played himself into a solid senior season during the 2012-2013 high school basketball season. Randolph teamed up with nationally ranked and ultra-talented 2014 prospect Andre Adams this season, and helped Adams lead Westview to a 21-8 overall record on the season, before falling to Cienega HS in the Division-I…

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Catalina Foothills High School’s basketball program has been well-recognized over the years among the elite basketball programs in the state, as the program has seen much success on the basketball court over the past decade. This past season was no different for the programs as Catalina Foothills posted one of the best overall records of the season, as they finished with an impressive 29-4 overall record on the season in the state’s Division-II Class.  A major reason for the success of the program the last two seasons has been the terrific play of talented 6-foot-4, 180-pound junior guard Austin Nehls. …

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Chaparral High School’s 6-foot-8, 220-pound senior post Joe Boyd is officially back on the recruiting trail, once again. While it was planned that Boyd would be headed to Drake University next fall to begin his college career, he is back in the recruiting hunt at a prime time of the year after receiving an official release from Drake on Friday.  Boyd’s release from the Drake program comes after former head coach Mark Phelps was released from his duties as the school’s head coach recently.  After the school hired new head coach Ray Giacoletti, the new Drake staff attempted to keep Boyd as a player, but Boyd…

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There have been many of Arizona’s elite prospects receiving major attention at an early age throughout the years.  Such past Arizona star players as Matt Carlino (BYU), Nick Johnson (University of Arizona), Jerryd Bayless (Memphis Grizzlies) and Mike Bibby (Former NBA player) are just a few names of past Arizona products that have received early national recognition for their young exploits on the AAU/club circuit. One player that has received the most national recognition early on in his young basketball career is #1 nationally ranked 7th grader Marvin Bagley Jr.  Bagley is nationally recognized by every national scout as the top prospect from…

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