By ADAM ZAGORIA & CHARLIE PARENT
One day after winning MVP at the UA Next Elite 24 game in Brooklyn on Sunday night, Shon Abaev was back doing another activity he loves: jet skiing.
On Monday afternoon, he was in the Miami area with his buddies hitting the waves. And he plans to go back again on Wednesday.
“It’s just a fun hobby to do on the side,” he told ZAGSBLOG in a phone interview.
The 6-foot-7 left-hander deserves a break after his performance in Brooklyn where he wowed fans and NBA scouts alike while putting up 22 points, 10 assist and 7 rebounds in the game.
“He’s a unique point-forward type of player,” ESPN’s Fran Fraschilla, who coached in the game, told ZAGSBLOG. “At 6-7 he can certainly score but his greatest attribute offensively is he’s a great transition point guard with terrific vision that makes people better.”
After the game, Abaev talked former NBA players Brandon Jennings and Trevor Ariza and his phone blew up.
“It’s a great feeling to show people that I belong and I’m also one of the best players in the country, and all the hard work that I put in over the last 10-11 years is finally paying off,” he said of earning MVP honors.
Abaev was born in Hadera, Israel and discovered basketball at age 3. “When I first touched a ball when I was 3 years old, I just fell in love,” he said. “It just became a habit since then.” He and his family moved to the U.S. when he was 4 and he’s now a four-star prospect at Miami (FL) Calvary Christian. Abaev said he models his game after three all-time greats: LeBron James “the way he gets his teammates involved,” Kevin Durant “with his shot and how he can play in the post,” and James Harden “because of the way he can iso players and his stepback. One of my favorite moves is the stepback.” He recently scheduled six official visits: Dayton (Aug. 23-24), Syracuse (Aug. 30-31), USC (Sept. 13-14), Auburn (Sept. 20-21), Cincinnati (Oct. 2-3) and Maryland (Oct. 8-9). Abaev broke down each school for ZAGSBLOG: Dayton: “Dayton’s an amazing program. It’s a small school. They have no football team, so everything goes to the basketball team. Coach [Anthony] Grant, he played a lot and he’s done it at the highest level.” Abaev has also developed a relationship with assistant coach James Kane, an Oakland Park, Fla. native. “He’s from Oakland Park, which is like 20 minutes from me,” Abaev said. “Being able to see the connection that we’ve been able to build over the last few months while talking to him has been amazing. He’s from there and he’s seen how people are from down here, so he knows how it is.” Syracuse: “I’s a good relationship. I’m really close with the coach, Coach Red [Autry]. He’s a great guy, [a] great coach, and played in the NBA. He’s given me great advice not just as a player but as a person as well.” USC: “He has been talking to me for a while. He’s seen me when I was younger and said he’s always liked my game and that when I get older he’ll recruit me and he’s recruiting me heavy now” Auburn: “Auburn’s been in the mix for some time. It’s been good. Coach Bruce Pearl, talking with him has been good. And talking with the other coaches, Coach [Ira] Bowman and coach Bruce’s son [Steven Pearl], they’ve shown me a lot of love and told me I could come in as a freshman and help the team to be a winning program.” Cincinnati: “He’s[Wes Miller] a great coach and I feel like I have a really good connection with him. I like the way he coaches, he’s very energetic with his team and that’s something I like to see.” Maryland: “I feel like it’s an amazing program, the head coach [Kevin Willard] is an amazing coach. We had a Zoom call with them, they showed me videos of how their practices went. He seems very engaged with his players and I feel like that’s a great sign for me.” Arkansas, Illinois and Florida State have also reached out and plan to see Abaev next month during open gyms. “We are open to looking at them in the future,” Calvary Christian coach Cilk McSweeney said by phone. Abaev said Arkansas assistant Chuck Martin “has been calling me for almost 2-3 years.” “Now he’s seen how much better I’ve gotten, how much more ready I’ve gotten for the collegiate level and he’s talking with his head coach [John] Calipari and he told me they’re going to come down in September and see me,” he said. Abaev is waiting to see how his recruitment plays out. “I don’t have an official time line yet,” he said. “I feel like this is a decision I want to talk with me and my family [about] and make the best decision for me.” Follow Adam Zagoria on Twitter Follow ZAGSBLOGHoops on Instagram And Like ZAGS on Facebook4⭐️ Shon Abaev went to work tonight at UA ELITE 24 and earned MVP 😤🔥
— SportsCenter NEXT (@SCNext) August 11, 2024
🥶 22 PTS
🥶 10 ASTS
🥶 7 REBS @shon_abaev I @UANextBHoops pic.twitter.com/f41UDKuGEW
