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.
Jordan Brand Selections Leave Out Lance, Dexter; Mickey D's Leaking Out
The selections for the Jordan Brand Classic were announced Tuesday night on ESPNU and the shocking news is that both Lance Stephenson and North Carolina-bound guard Dexter Strickland did not make the team.
Ironically, the announcements were made on the same night Lance dropped a career-high 50 points in front of Maryland CoachGary Williams.
I can’t imagine why these guys aren’t in it, but it’s a bad job by the folks at Jordan. If it has something to do with Lance wear-testing Under Armour gear for Lincoln, then shame on the Jordan folks.
“Yes, that’s terrible,” Lincoln coach Dwayne “Tiny” Morton wrote in a text message. “I don’t believe that, in New York City at the Garden. He played at their [Nike] camps. He loves Jordan shoes. I know he wanted to play in that game.”
Lamont Jones and Tommy Mason-Griffin are on the team, but Stephenson and Strickland aren’t? That’s a flat-out joke.
Stephenson is the No. 1 ranked player in the Class of 2009 according to Hoop Scoop and No. 9 by Rivals. Strickland is the No. 3 point guard in the class.
Here are the guys who made it for the game, which will be played April 18 at Madison Square Garden and shown on ESPN2: Xavier Henry (Oklahoma City, OK/Memphis), Derrick Favors (Atlanta, GA/Georgia Tech), John Henson (Tampa, FL/North Carolina), DeMarcus Cousins (Mobile, AL/Undecided) and Renardo Sidney (Los Angeles, CA/Undecided); Kenny Boynton (Plantation, FL/Florida), Avery Bradley (Henderson, NV/Texas), Dominic Cheek (Jersey City, NJ/Villanova), Abdul Gaddy (Tacoma, WA/Washington), Keith Gallon (Mouth of Wilson, VA/Oklahoma), Jordan Hamilton (Compton, CA/Texas), Lamont Jones (Mouth of Wilson, VA/Virginia Tech), Wally Judge (Jacksonville, FL/Kansas State), Tommy Mason-Griffin (Houston, TX/Oklahoma), Alex Oriakhi (Tilton, NH/UConn), Daniel Orton (Oklahoma City, OK/Kentucky), Mason Plumlee (Arden, NC/Duke), Durand Scott (New York, NY/Miami-FL), John Wall (Raleigh, NC/Undecided) and Royce White (Minnetonka, MN/Minnesota).
MCDONALD’S SELECTIONS LEAKING OUT
The McDonald’s All-American selections will be announced Feb. 18 for the April 1 game, but according to a post on Rivals.com several players have already been notified.
I don’t want to get any angry calls from the folks at McDonald’s because this is being reported elsewhere. I’m just the messenger.
Here are the names that have reportedly leaked out: Abdul Gaddy, Avery Bradley, Alex Oriakhi, Maalik Wayns, Dominic Cheek, Tommy Mason-Griffin, Kenny Boynton, Ryan Kelly, David & Travis Wear, Xavier Henry, Keith “Tiny” Gallon, Dante Taylor, Wally Judge, DeMarcus Cousins, Dexter Strickland and John Henson.
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.
The selections for the Jordan Brand Classic were announced Tuesday night on ESPNU and the shocking news is that both Lance Stephenson and North Carolina-bound guard Dexter Strickland did not make the team.
Ironically, the announcements were made on the same night Lance dropped a career-high 50 points in front of Maryland Coach Gary Williams.
I can’t imagine why these guys aren’t in it, but it’s a bad job by the folks at Jordan. If it has something to do with Lance wear-testing Under Armour gear for Lincoln, then shame on the Jordan folks.
“Yes, that’s terrible,” Lincoln coach Dwayne “Tiny” Morton wrote in a text message. “I don’t believe that, in New York City at the Garden. He played at their [Nike] camps. He loves Jordan shoes. I know he wanted to play in that game.”
Lamont Jones and Tommy Mason-Griffin are on the team, but Stephenson and Strickland aren’t? That’s a flat-out joke.
Stephenson is the No. 1 ranked player in the Class of 2009 according to Hoop Scoop and No. 9 by Rivals. Strickland is the No. 3 point guard in the class.
Here are the guys who made it for the game, which will be played April 18 at Madison Square Garden and shown on ESPN2: Xavier Henry (Oklahoma City, OK/Memphis), Derrick Favors (Atlanta, GA/Georgia Tech), John Henson (Tampa, FL/North Carolina), DeMarcus Cousins (Mobile, AL/Undecided) and Renardo Sidney (Los Angeles, CA/Undecided); Kenny Boynton (Plantation, FL/Florida), Avery Bradley (Henderson, NV/Texas), Dominic Cheek (Jersey City, NJ/Villanova), Abdul Gaddy (Tacoma, WA/Washington), Keith Gallon (Mouth of Wilson, VA/Oklahoma), Jordan Hamilton (Compton, CA/Texas), Lamont Jones (Mouth of Wilson, VA/Virginia Tech), Wally Judge (Jacksonville, FL/Kansas State), Tommy Mason-Griffin (Houston, TX/Oklahoma), Alex Oriakhi (Tilton, NH/UConn), Daniel Orton (Oklahoma City, OK/Kentucky), Mason Plumlee (Arden, NC/Duke), Durand Scott (New York, NY/Miami-FL), John Wall (Raleigh, NC/Undecided) and Royce White (Minnetonka, MN/Minnesota).
MCDONALD’S SELECTIONS LEAKING OUT
The McDonald’s All-American selections will be announced Feb. 18 for the April 1 game, but according to a post on Rivals.com several players have already been notified.
I don’t want to get any angry calls from the folks at McDonald’s because this is being reported elsewhere. I’m just the messenger.
Here are the names that have reportedly leaked out: Abdul Gaddy, Avery Bradley, Alex Oriakhi, Maalik Wayns, Dominic Cheek, Tommy Mason-Griffin, Kenny Boynton, Ryan Kelly, David & Travis Wear, Xavier Henry, Keith “Tiny” Gallon, Dante Taylor, Wally Judge, DeMarcus Cousins, Dexter Strickland and John Henson.
