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.
Alkins, Heron, Simmons, Jackson, Adebayo to Be Featured in Adidas Nations on ESPNU
Rawle Alkins will appear Monday night on ESPNU. (Photo by Kelly Kline/adidas)
Rawle Alkins, Mustapha Heron, Kobi Simmons, Frank Jackson and Edrice “Bam” Adebayo are among the Class of 2016 stars who will be showcased Monday night in the adidas Nations event on ESPNU.
The third-place game featuring Team Lillard vs. Team Africa will air at 7 p.m. EST followed by the championship game featuring Team Wall vs. Team Rose will air at 9 p.m.
Team Rose features Alkins, Heron, Simmons, Jackson and Adebayo, along with Javin DeLaurier, Mario Kegler and others. Alkins went for 28 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists in Team Rose’s win over Team Africa on Sunday. He recently named his Top 10 schools.
Team Wall includes Markelle Fultz, Dennis Smith Jr., Braxton Blackwell, Payton Prichard and Udoka Azubuike.
In the third-place game, Team Lillard features 2017 stars Gary Trent Jr., Jaylen Hands, Trevon Duval and EJ Montgomery, among others.
Team Africa includes Wenyen Gabriel, who has added scholarship offers from Kentucky, Duke, Kansas and North Carolina over the past few days and is averaging 18 points and 15 rebounds at adidas Nations.
In all, 11 players with Kentucky offers will be showcased on ESPNU, according to Ben Roberts.
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**As reported by SNY.tv, several players will visit UCLA following the event, including Trent Jr., Montgomery, Duval, DJ Harvey and Jaedon LeDee.
**Fultz, a 6-4 guard out of DeMatha Catholic (MD), will head to Louisville for an official visit beginning Wednesday and will then visit Arizona beginning Aug. 10.
**Mamadi Diakite, a 6-foot-9, 190-pound small forward from the Blue Ridge (VA) School, could announce his college choice on air on Monday.
He is considering Virginia, USC and Washington.
“I might do it here,” he told Scout.com. “I might do it (Monday). I might do it on TV or I might not.”
**Many players in the adidas event will also participate in the Big Strick Classic on Saturday in New York, including Adebayo, Trent Jr., Harvey, Heron and Duval. Full rosters are here.
Adam Zagoria is a Basketball Insider who covers basketball at all levels. A contributor to The New York Times and SportsNet New York (SNY), he is also the author of two books and is an award-winning journalist and filmmaker. His articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide. He also won an Emmy award for his work on the SNY mini-documentary on Syracuse guard Tyus Battle.
A veteran Ultimate Frisbee player, he has competed in numerous National and World Championships and, perhaps more importantly, his teams won the Westchester Summer League (WSL) championships in 2011 and 2013.
He lives in Manhattan with his wife and children.
