McArthur is coming on strong

Keep an eye out for John McArthur, a 6-foot-8, 210-pound power forward from California's powerful De La Salle High School.

The junior opened some eyes in the summer with his play. McArthur suited up with his De La Salle team in Vegas and with the Oakland Soldiers at the Peach Jam. At both events, he played well against players in his own age group.

"I thought I did pretty well. I did some things my teams needed me to do. I feel like I competed at the highest level with two different teams so it was a good gauge as to how well I think I really did," he said. "I had some good diversity with De La Salle, more of a structured offense and with the Oakland Soldiers it was kind of like a run and gun."

McArthur also participated at Nike Hoop Jamboree in St. Louis in June. He says the camp was a good spring board for his summer experience.

"That was a good camp. It was a step up in competition with a lot of top notch out there. It's good for me to play against those kinds of players. It was a real eye-opener just to see what kind of talent is out there. It was my first national camp to play in," McArthur said.

"I felt like I held my own at the Hoop Jamboree so it gave me some confidence going out to the Peach Jam and then onto Las Vegas. I've already played against some of those guys and played pretty well so it was a matter of going back out there and seeing if I could play even better."

Since the summer, McArthur said he believes his recruitment has changed quite a bit. San Fransisco, UC Santa Barbara, San Diego, Portland, UC Davis, Stanford, Saint Mary's and Notre Dame are showing various amounts of interest. McArthur said he is hoping to earn his first offer this fall as well as getting a closer look at some of the schools that are recruiting him.

"I definitely want to go out and see some schools. I'm not sure which ones yet but I want to get out and see some places," he said. "I want to find a school that has good academics and also I want to find a school that wants me and that is excited about me playing at their school. Also, I want to find a school where I feel comfortable and like the atmosphere where I can succeed and excel."