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.
Jalen Adams Receives Louisville Offer; 3 Recruiting Him the Hardest
By JOHN PAVIASpecial to ZAGSBLOG
Talented lead guard Jalen Adams picked up a scholarship offer from Louisville and head coach Rick Pitino on Saturday, as previously reported by Evan Daniels.
A 6-foot-2 guard from Ashburnham (MA) Cushing Academy, Adams also holds offers from UConn Kansas and several other high-major schools at the moment.
Vin Pastore, Adams’s AAU coach with Mass Rivals, told SNY.tv that he believed the three schools recruiting Adams the hardest at the moment were Kansas, UConn and Louisville. UConn offered Adams last year, but continued to recruit him aggressivley and Kansas offered him before the Spring Live period had begun.
Adams hails from the same hometown as former UConn star Shabazz Napier,who was drafted by the Charlotte Hornets with the 24th pick in Thursday’s NBA Draft before being traded to the Miami Heat in part because LeBron James is a big fan. Recently, there have been a lot of comparisons between the two players as both are dynamic, attacking guards from the New England area.
“I think a lot of New Englanders have taken notice of the Boston kid Shabazz Napier and what he did at UConn so I’m sure Jalen has taken notice too,” Pastore said. “I think there have been a lot of comparisons between Jalen and Shabazz lately. Connecticut has a history of dynamic guards dating back to Kemba Walker and Ben Gordon. They won a title last year because of their guard play. They’ve been recruiting Jalen for a very long time now.”
Pastore also touched upon the connections Adams has with Louisville and Kansas.
“Louisville also won a title in the past two years because of their guard play with Russ Smith and Peyton Siva,” he said. “They’ve taken their recruitment of Jalen to another level with the offer. With Kansas, you see the number of guys they have in draft almost every year. Also, Wayne Selden, Jr. is another Boston guy and he’s known Jalen for a long, long time.”
It’s clear that Adams’s roots in the New England area have given him plenty of successful routes he could go.
“In terms of Jalen’s upside, he’s a 6-2 guard with a 6-6.5 wingspan,” Pastore said. “He has exceptional length and athleticism. He has tremendous speed, gears beyond gears, just a really fast player. He can score in a multitude of ways and has good touch around the rim. If he can polish his jump shot, make it more consistent and add some range, he would be come what we call ‘unguardable.’
“I think he can reach the NBA, I think he’s that good. He’s got great upside. When he played for us, we were undefeated. He lets the game come to him almost in slow-motion. There were people saying he was the best guard at the Nike Skills camp.”
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By JOHN PAVIA
Special to ZAGSBLOG
Talented lead guard Jalen Adams picked up a scholarship offer from Louisville and head coach Rick Pitino on Saturday, as previously reported by Evan Daniels.
A 6-foot-2 guard from Ashburnham (MA) Cushing Academy, Adams also holds offers from UConn Kansas and several other high-major schools at the moment.
Vin Pastore, Adams’s AAU coach with Mass Rivals, told SNY.tv that he believed the three schools recruiting Adams the hardest at the moment were Kansas, UConn and Louisville. UConn offered Adams last year, but continued to recruit him aggressivley and Kansas offered him before the Spring Live period had begun.
Adams hails from the same hometown as former UConn star Shabazz Napier, who was drafted by the Charlotte Hornets with the 24th pick in Thursday’s NBA Draft before being traded to the Miami Heat in part because LeBron James is a big fan. Recently, there have been a lot of comparisons between the two players as both are dynamic, attacking guards from the New England area.
“I think a lot of New Englanders have taken notice of the Boston kid Shabazz Napier and what he did at UConn so I’m sure Jalen has taken notice too,” Pastore said. “I think there have been a lot of comparisons between Jalen and Shabazz lately. Connecticut has a history of dynamic guards dating back to Kemba Walker and Ben Gordon. They won a title last year because of their guard play. They’ve been recruiting Jalen for a very long time now.”
Pastore also touched upon the connections Adams has with Louisville and Kansas.
“Louisville also won a title in the past two years because of their guard play with Russ Smith and Peyton Siva,” he said. “They’ve taken their recruitment of Jalen to another level with the offer. With Kansas, you see the number of guys they have in draft almost every year. Also, Wayne Selden, Jr. is another Boston guy and he’s known Jalen for a long, long time.”
It’s clear that Adams’s roots in the New England area have given him plenty of successful routes he could go.
“In terms of Jalen’s upside, he’s a 6-2 guard with a 6-6.5 wingspan,” Pastore said. “He has exceptional length and athleticism. He has tremendous speed, gears beyond gears, just a really fast player. He can score in a multitude of ways and has good touch around the rim. If he can polish his jump shot, make it more consistent and add some range, he would be come what we call ‘unguardable.’
“I think he can reach the NBA, I think he’s that good. He’s got great upside. When he played for us, we were undefeated. He lets the game come to him almost in slow-motion. There were people saying he was the best guard at the Nike Skills camp.”
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