Anthony Bennett

“He’ll do the interview part and everything but he’ll miss the workouts,” George said by phone.

“He’ll be back for training camp so that’s why we decided to do it earlier.”

The NBA Draft is slated for June 27 and DraftExpress.com projects the 6-foot-7 Bennett as the No. 3 pick behind Nerlens Noel and Ben McLemore.

Bennett averaged 16.1 points and 8.1 rebounds in his only season at UNLV.

Bennett, Noel (ACL) and Alex Len (left ankle surgery), projected as the No. 7 pick, will all miss the workouts in Chicago and summer league with injuries.

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The former UNLV junior has an array of options that all have their appeal.

Moser, a 6-foot-8 forward who averaged 7.1 points and 6.1 rebounds last year with the Rebels, is considering Gonzaga, Washington and Oregon and likes aspects of each school.

“It’s definitely a tough decision,” Moser, a native of Portland, Ore., told SNY.tv.

“You can’t ignore Gonzaga’s track record of making it to NCAA Tournament and winning conference tournament titles. It’s a great program that gains a lot of national exposure.

“Washington has added some impressive pieces and will be better next year. They’ve sent a lot of players to the NBA. And Oregon has come a long way in the past three years, not to mention the fact that’s where I’m from.

“But all in all, these three schools have three amazing elite coaches. I don’t think anyone can argue that.”

Moser said he has no timetable on making a decision on his destination.

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The 6-foot-8 forward made the announcement at his high school and also wrote the following post for ZAGSBLOG.

“Wassup, basketball word? This is Dwayne Morgan. I will be doing my latest blog on my decision for college in the next year.

“Today I had to make the biggest decision of my life and I would like to thank all the schools that recruited me for giving me a wonderful experience within the recruiting process. Georgetown, Maryland and UNLV were the final schools involved in my recruitment. There was a lot of hype surrounding me leading down to my decision.

“And this is a decision that I have to live with in the near future. In the next year, I have decided to go West and further my education at the University of Nevada Las Vegas. Throughout my recruitment UNLV stayed the most consistent and involved. There were about two games that they were not in attendance for this past summer.

“I felt as though being away from home would force me to mature faster. Georgetown continued to recruit me until the last minute and made various efforts to gain my commitment. And I thank Coach [John] Thompson and the rest of the coaching staff for this.

“Maryland was the school that everyone was expecting me to attend. And as a hometown kid it was expected for me to attend Maryland. But as far as recruitment, Maryland didn’t recruit me as hard as UNLV or Georgetown.

“I would like to thank Coach [Mark] Turgeon and Bino Ranson for recruiting me. At the end of the day I feel as though I’m blessed to have this experience because there are many people in the world who don’t get this experience.

“Dwayne Morgan signing out here. I’ll talk to y’all on my next entry on ZAGSBLOG.”

Morgan averaged 17.2 points, eight rebounds and four blocks last season and inspired comparisons to Kevin Durant.

“His ceiling is so much higher than a lot of players because he’s just coming into his own,” said his AAU coach, Dwayne Wise. “He’s still going to get stronger.”

St. Frances coach Nicholas Myles previously told SNY.tv: “I don’t think Dwayne has scratched the surface on what he’s going to be. He’s got so much talent. He does a lot of things well on the floor and it’s just going to come with time with him. He’s going to be a tremendous basketball player when it’s said and done.”

Morgan is UNLV’s first commit in the Class of 2014.

Photo: Baltimore Sun

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“In the end with Florida State I just felt it was a family atmosphere,” the Canadian said on CIA Bounce TV. “Coach [Leonard] Hamilton is a great guy and their coaching staff, I just felt really welcome to the program. I feel like I can go there and make an immediate impact in the best conference in America.”

The 6-foot-4 Rathan Mayes averaged 14.6 points, 4.5 assists and 4.0 rebounds a game while shooting 44 percent from 3-point range as a junior.

“Everybody knows I can score the ball at a high level,” said Rathan-Mayes, whose father, Tharon, averaged more than 23 points one season at FSU. “I feel like I can go in and be a leader and help lead the team to ultimately a national championship , because winning’s everything.”

“Obviously, I think anyone who’s watched X knows he can play a couple different positions,” Huntington coach Rob Fulford previously told SNY.tv. “He’s a scorer. He’s a really good shooter. He can play the point. He can play the two. It depends on the style of play.”

Florida State is also recruiting Huntington’s Andrew Wiggins, a 6-8 small forward considered the best high school player in America. Wiggins has yet to announce whether he will reclassify to 2013 or remain in the Class of 2014.

“It’s crazy,” Rathan-Mayes told ESPN.com last summer. “[Our fathers] playing together and they played on the 76ers together, as well. Me and Wiggins growing up together and playing on the same AAU team, now on the same high school and maybe going to college together — that’s pretty special.

“We lived about 15 minutes from each other [in Canada], but our dads were always together. We hung out all the time and played ball at the rec center.”

UNLV ADDS KENDRICK

UNLV continued to stockpile transfers by adding former Memphis wing Jelan Kendrick.

The 6-7 Atlanta native and former McDonald’s All-American committed to the Rebels Saturday while on an official visit, according to CBSSports.com.

“I believe it’s been a learning experience for me,” Kendrick told CBSSports on Saturday. “I’ve become a better person and my goal at UNLV is to help them win a national title and reach my final destination as an NBA player.”

Kendrick was twice suspended at Memphis for behavioral issues before being kicked off the team. He never played a game there.

He landed at Ole Miss but spent only one season there. At one point during a game against Alabama, he went into the stands during a game to get his girlfriend.

The Las Vegas Sun reported he will spend this year at Indian Hills Community College before arriving at UNLV next season as a junior.

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The 6-foot-6 wing chose UNLV over SMU and Pittsburgh, sources confirmed to SNY.tv. after Ryan Greene initially broke the news.

“He’s a terrific athlete,” New York recruiting expert Tom Konchalski previously told SNY.tv of Goodman, who averaged 28 points and 14 rebounds this season. “He’s 6-6 and he has a motor with a four-year warranty. He plays extremely hard.

“His athleticism has always surpassed by far his skill level. He’s improving as a shooter but the strength of his game is attacking the basket and second effort. He does play hard and he’s very athletic. The more athletic game they play, the better suited he is [to that school].”

Goodman, a onetime Villanova pledge, continues UNLV’s run of strong additions in recent months, although head coach Dave Rice has said he might redshirt if UConn transfer Roscoe Smith gets a waiver to play immediately..

UNLV added Smith and added Pitt transfer Khem Birch, who becomes eligible at midseason.

In terms of high school players, the Rebels got power forward Anthony Bennett out of Findlay Prep to join big man Demetris Morant, point guard DaQuan Cook and shooting guard Katin Reinhardt.

Now Goodman gives them another athletic wing moving forward.

“Savon is a tremendous athlete with NBA upside,” Constitution coach Rob Moore told SNY.tv. “He chose UNLV as it fits his desire to get up and down the court. He is very competitive and plans to fight for playing time from day one.

“He came to Constitution with plans to qualify and win championships. Through hard work and effort he did both of those things.

“He will be an asset to the UNLV family.”

Asked if Goodman was fully qualified, Moore said, “Absolutely.”

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After landing Pittsburgh transfer Khem Birch and Findlay Prep’s Anthony Bennett, both McDonald’s All-Americans, the Rebels on Friday landed a commitment from UConn transfer Roscoe Smith. 

“He brings invaluable experience after being a two-year starter at UConn and a starter on [their] national title team,” UNLV coach Dave Rice told Jon Rothstein of CBSSports.com.

“We’re intrigued by his versatility. He’s going to have an opportunity to make plays on the floor.”

UNLV will apply for a waiver to get Smith, a 6-foot-8 sophomore, eligible immediately after UConn was banned from the 2013 postseason, according to reports. The school could also opt to redshirt Smith for the 2013-14 season.

“Congrats to my brother @RoscoeSmith22 wish him nothing but the best at UNLV I know u will do big things.” Tweeted former UConn forward Alex Oriakhi, who himself transferred to Missouri.

UConn’s Michael Bradley also transferred to Western Kentucky and Andre Drummond and Jeremy Lamb declared for the NBA Draft.

Smith started on UConn’s national championship team in 2011, averaging 6.3 points and 5.2 rebounds. But he lost his starting job and averaged 4.4 points and 3.4 rebounds last year.

UNLV has also signed forward Demetris Morant, Shabazz Muhammad’s former teammate at Las Vegas Bishop Gorman, and reportedly has one scholarship left. They remain in the mix for 6-6 Philly Constitution wing Savon Goodman.

For more on Goodman’s latest visit, click here.

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By THEO RABINOWITZ & ADAM ZAGORIA

NEW YORK — Playing in his first event since signing a Letter of Intent with UNLV on Tuesday, Anthony Bennett  went off for 24 points and 10 rebounds at the IS8 Nike Spring Classic in Queens.

The 6-foot-8 Bennett threw down five dunks — several from three or four feet above the rim — as the New York Panthers beat the Playaz Sophomores, 72-44, to advance to the quarterfinals on Sunday.

Bennett went a perfect 7-for-7 from the line and also had two blocks.

“He was a man,” longtime New York recruiting expert Tom Konchalski told SNY.tv. “He played terrific. He was clearly the best player there today.”

Exactly a week after selecting UNLV over Oregon, the Findlay Prep forward came to New York to play with the Panthers, who lost in last year’s final. IS8 is not an AAU event so there are no restrictions on signed college players competing.

“My [CIA Bounce] teammate Tyler Ennis told me to come out,” Bennett said. “It’s close to home [in Toronto] and I just finished school so I just wanted to come out here and ball.

“I heard this team [the Panthers] lost in the finals and they wanted me to come out and help them win it.”

Panthers coach Paul Ruddock is Ennis’s uncle and Ruddock also knows Bennett through the AAU ranks.

“He was a man amongst boys,” Ruddock told SNY.tv. “I told him during the game, ‘You’re settling by even shooting jumpers beause no one on that court can even guard you.”

Bennett will be on hand Sunday when the Panthers meet the Rens in the quarterfinals and he could turn up again should the Panthers advance to the semifinals on June 2.

Ruddock said both Ennis, a rising senior point guard at St. Benedict’s Prep, and fellow CIA bounce teammate Andrew Wiggins, the No. 1 2014 prospect in North America, could also join the Panthers later on in the tournament.

Bennett reiterated that he chose UNLV because it’s now his local school since he attends high school in Las Vegas.

“I chose UNLV because of a great coaching staff,” he said. “I’ve been in that area for two years so it’s basically a home. My boy Khem Birch is there.”

After choosing UNLV over schools like Florida and Kentucky, Bennett was verbally abused on Twitter and the Internet, but said he’s not letting that bother him too much.

“Its cool,” he said. “I understand but at the same time I don’t pay attention to any of that.  I just retweet the stuff.  It is what it is and I just wanna play my game and just focus on that”

FREE THROWS

Miami-bound shooting guard Melvin Johnson added 14 points on 6-for-14 shooting for the Panthers…Memphis-bound forward Shaq Goodwin had 7 points and 7 rebounds for Team Nike in an 84-74 loss to New Heights…SMU-bound shooting guard Brian Bernardi had 26 points for New Heights in the win….Texas Tech-bound point guard Josh Gray and forward Wanah Bail both played for Team Nike.

IS8 QUARTERFINAL SCHEDULE

9 a.m — New Heights Seniors vs. Playaz Juniors

10:15 — Team Flight vs. Sports U

11:30 — QFive.com vs. Juice All-Stars

12:45 — Panthers Seniors vs. Rens Juniors

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The 6-foot-7 Canadian forward chose UNLV over Oregon on Saturday and will join fellow Canadian and close friend Khem Birch in the Rebels’ frontcourt. He will sign his Letter of Intent Monday, Findlay assistant coach Todd Simon told SNY.tv.

Bennett previously cut Florida and then Kentucky from his list.

“I got along with the coaches and players,” Bennett told SNY.tv by text. “I’ve been here [in Las Vegas] for two years now so I feel I have a lot of people supporting me out here and also just the thought of playing with my boy Khem Birch in college is going to be crazy.”

Asked how good the Rebels can be going forward, Bennett said: “Real good. I feel with all the great players at UNLV right now and the players coming in we can go very far in the [NCAA] Tournament and hopefully win it all.”

“The Rebels are back running,” New York recruiting expert Tom Konchalski told SNY.tv. “Dave Rice has done a tremendous job. If they have guards to go with those guys, they’re going to be back to the glory days. UNLV hasn’t had interior guys like that in years.

“[Bennett] is the quintessential power forward. He has a blacksmith’s body. And he’s fairly athletic.”

We Tweeted earlier this week that there was a 90 percent chance Bennett would pick UNLV over Oregon.

A McDonald’s and Jordan Brand All-American, Bennett averaged 16 points and 10.1 rebounds for a Findlay Prep team that went 32-1 and won the ESPN National High School Invitational.

Oregon remains in the mix for 6-9 shot-blocker Chris Obekpa of Our Savior New American, who is also considering Cincinnati, Providence, DePaul, St. John’s and UConn.

Photo: Robin Alam/ Icon SMI

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“We don’t want to make it worse and make it something that lingers beyond us next fall into college,” Findlay coach Michael Peck told the Las Vegas Sun.

UNLV fans figure to be out in force for the nationally televised game since the Rebels have offers out to both players.

Peck told FiveStarBasketball.com in this recent column that it would be a blockbuster move for the Rebels to land both the 6-7 Bennett and the 6-6 Muhammad.

“Oh my God, amazing,” Peck told Fivestarbasketball.com. “It would be tremendous because they play different positions but both are physically ready for that next level. I mean, you look at both, their size and their physical makeup, and they’re explosive athletes. A lot of guys that go to the next step have to get more time in the weight room and develop their bodies. These guys, their bodies are ready. They’ll continue to get stronger but they’re both ready for that next step.”

Bennett is mulling five schools — UNLV, Washington, Oregon, Florida and Kentucky — but said UNLV has a shot.

“The coaching staff is real cool. They are playing that up-tempo style and getting out running,” Bennett told the Sun. “That is my style and how I want to play.”

Khem Birch, UNLV’s newest addition after transferring from Pitt, is already working on Bennett

“I’ve talked to him a hundred million times about UNLV, but it’s up to him,” Birch told the Sun.

“That would be pretty cool, especially with Khem Birch already there,” Bennett told the paper. “That would be cool to (be in the lineup) with both those guys.”

Meantime, Demetris Morant, the Bishop Gorman forward who has committed to UNLV, believes Muhammad is now actively considering the Rebels.

“I think Shabazz is really considering going [there] because he feels that they’re a great team and everyone else sees that, too,” the UNLV-bound Morant told FiveStarBasketball.com. “And they’re ranked in the nation.

“At first he wasn’t thinking about going there because he thought they wouldn’t be that good and he wouldn’t be looked at by [NBA] scouts. So he was mostly considering Kentucky, but now UNLV is in the top three.”

Does hometown UNLV have a real shot at landing Shabazz Muhammad?

If you listen to what his Bishop Gorman teammate, Demetris Morant, told FiveStarBasketball.com, the answer is yes.

“I think Shabazz is really considering going [there] because he feels that they’re a great team and everyone else sees that, too,” the UNLV-bound Morant, a 6-foot-8 power forward, told Five Star in the above video. “And they’re ranked in the nation.

“At first he wasn’t thinking about going there because he thought they wouldn’t be that good and he wouldn’t be looked at by [NBA] scouts. So he was mostly considering Kentucky, but now UNLV is in the top three.”

Muhammad is looking at UNLV, UCLA, Arizona, Duke, Kentucky and Kansas, but he is intrigued by the Rebels, especially after they added Pitt transfer Khem Birch, a former McDonald’s All-American.

“Their program is really coming along,” the 6-foot-6 Muhammad said of UNLV. “I mean, they got Khem Birch, got some other recruits. Coach [Dave] Rice is doing a really good job. They’re a really good team, I’m really looking at them closely…They’re going to be a great team.”

Muhammad already lives in Vegas and said he enjoys the climate.

“I love Vegas. Besides the heat it’s a great place to live in,” he said. “A lot of city lights…I’ve been there pretty much all my life. I love Vegas.”

Muhammad has three officials remaining and plans to visit Duke March 1 for the North Carolina game.

He said “UCLA and UNLV probably won’t [get officials] because they’re so close to me.”

Kentucky remains a top option. Wildcats coach John Calipari and Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski watched Monday when Muhammad dropped 37 points as Bishop Gorman beat DeMatha Catholic, 73-65, at the Hoophall Classic.

“The interest level in Kentucky is high,” he said. “Coach Cal was there today [at the Hoophall]. I talked to him a week ago. Their style of play, I just think I fit really well in their style of play and they’re just a great program.”

Duke and Arizona have also drawn his attention.

“Coach K is great,” Muhammad said. “He’s just a mastermind on offense. He lets his guards go, which is a great thing for me. And I’m really excited to going down there.”

Arizona’s loaded recruiting class has also made an impression.

“Their freshman class is probably No. 1 in the country right now,” he said. “Gabe [York], Grant Jerrett, I talked to those guys. I think I could fit in really well there. They also a high-tempo style of play, which is great and fits me a lot. So I’m really looking at them also”

Muhammad plans to take his officials before making any decisions.

“I have three more officials,” he said. “Don’t know where I’m going to go yet. So I’m definitely going to take those and go from there.”

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