November 2013 | Page 13 of 22 | Zagsblog
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Adam Zagoria covers basketball at all levels. He is the author of two books and an award-winning journalist whose articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Sports Illustrated, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide.
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Friday / December 27.
  • On a night when fellow superfrosh Julius Randle, Andrew Wiggins and Jabari Parker all wowed the NBA scouts, the Harrison twins did not.

    The 6-foot-5 Kentucky twins combined to go 4-for-13 for 14 points, with six turnovers and five assists in No. 1 Kentucky’s 78-74 loss to No. 2 Michigan State Tuesday night in Chicago.

    Perhaps more concerning, they displayed some of the negative body language that was perceived as an issue during high school.

    One NBA GM told SNY.tv that Andrew Harrison “is a mid-first-round pick” while expressing concerns about Aaron Harrison’s NBA future altogether.

    Still, the good news for the twins is that the season is young and they still have plenty of time to prove themselves against elite competition.

    With a little more than 24 hours to go before he publicly announces his college choice, Cliff Alexander knows where he wants to go.

    “He has decided in his mind and he’s happy with his decision,” Latillia Alexander, Cliff’s mother, told SNY.tv Thursday.

    The 6-foot-9 Chicago Curie big man will announce at 4 p.m. ET Friday on ESPNU. Fellow Top 10 recruits Jahlil Okafor, Tyus Jones and Stanley Johnson will also announce during that hour.

    Alexander is considering DePaul, Illinois, Kansas and Memphis.

    Kentucky coach John Calipari missed out on Stanley Johnson on Friday, but said he expects to augment his class in the spring.

    “My guess is we’re going to sign two more,” Calipari said on ESPNU during a program in which the 6-foot-6 Johnson chose Arizona over Kentucky, USC, Florida and Oregon.

    Kentucky remains in the hunt in the late period for Texas big man Myles Turner, among others.

    Wade Baldwin and Karl Towns Jr. have known each other since they were 10 years old.

    They are teammates at St. Joe’s-Metuchen in New Jersey, and next year will be rivals in the SEC.

    Their mutual promise to one another: to dunk on the other guy in college.

    “Yeah, I told him, ‘Big man, you better clear out because I’m getting ready to throw it down,'” Baldwin told SNY.tv Wednesday.

    BY JEREMY WOO

    Special to ZAGSBLOG

    CHICAGO — The spotlight shone on Jabari Parker, brighter than ever.

    Parker returned home to Chicago Tuesday night at the United Center for the biggest game of his young career.

    He didn’t disappoint.

    In front of over nearly 80 NBA scouts and executives, Parker took the court in a highly touted matchup against Kansas and fellow freshman superstar Andrew Wiggins. Though his Duke Blue Devils fell 94-83, the hometown kid turned in a tremendous performance with 27 points and 9 rebounds while shooting 50 percent from the field.

    Stanley Johnson is the latest high-profile recruit to set his announcement for Friday at 4 p.m. ET.

    The news was first reported by Ben Roberts of NextCats, who spoke with Johnson’s high school coach, Gary McKnight.

    The 6-foot-6 Johnson joins Jahlil Okafor, Tyus Jones and Cliff Alexander as big-time prospects who will announce Friday on ESPNU.

    He will choose from among Arizona, Kentucky, USC, Oregon and Florida, although it may be more of a three-team race between the first three.

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