Tim Williams, the 6-foot-9 post from Antioch High School (Calif.) has gone from being hardly recruited last year, to one of the most recruited big men on the West Coast. The rising senior is being courted by schools from the ACC and throughout the west coast in the Pac-10, Mountain West, WAC and WCC.

"I am looking for a school that has a good basketball history and a school that has a solid education background," said Williams.

Williams is a long and athletic big man who is very good at moving up and down the court. He is solid in the post and with his mobility and athleticism, he will eventually become a power forward in college. His stock rose with his play with the Southern California based California Hoops Club team this past offseason.

Williams was advised by his former club coach, Mark McKelvy, with Norcal Elite to play for California Hoops after McKelvy decided to take a break from coaching. The move by Williams turned out to be one that has really paid off.

With Williams on the roster, California Hoops lost in the Gold Division finals at the Boo Williams tournament, won the Platinum Division in the Las Vegas Spring Showcase and lost in the quarterfinals of the Main Event, losing to Mean Streets out of Chicago. In the Las Vegas Spring Showcase, Williams had a breakout game against Houston Hoops.

"In that game, I took over in the end," said Williams. "I blocked shots, rebounded almost every ball on the defensive end and took over offensively as we won."

California Hoops advanced to the championship, where they defeated Utah Pump N Run in the finals.

"At first, I started out slow as it took some time for me and Chris Jones to get used to playing with different people from LA," continued Williams. "But at the end of the summer, everything jelled and it was really cool."

Williams has received over 17 scholarship offers. The list includes Miami, UNLV, Santa Clara, Utah, Fresno State, St. Mary's, San Diego, San Diego State, USF, UOP, Louisiana Tech, Northern Arizona, San Diego State, Santa Barbara, Long Beach State, Portland, Cal State Northridge and Portland. Other schools such as UTEP, Washington State and Cal have shown some interest.

"I am amazed and overwhelmed from April to know how Tim has grown in his basketball," said Rozalind Williams, Tim's mother. "He has had the passion for it and he has taken constructive criticism and he has strived to become a better player."

While she said that Tim is leaning towards staying on the west coast, he is going to leave all of his options open. "We are looking for a school that is good at developing big men and challenging him academically," continued Rozalind.

Mrs. Williams added her son is a 3.5 student and education is very important to her and their family. While he does not have any favorites, she said Tim has always liked Cal and its basketball program. One of William's former teammates at Antioch High last year, Eddie Miller, was a recruited walk-on for the Bears. It is not clear if Cal is intersted in Williams.

Mike Lewis, the coach of California Hoops, said over 20 schools have inquired about Williams, and he expects more offers to come down before the start of the high school basketball season.

"I have heard from a wide array of schools ranging from USC, UCLA, to Oregon and Fresno State about Tim," said Lewis. "Tim is a very good player, with a great attitude. He is a team player, who will do very well at the next level."

One of Williams' strengths according to McKelvy is his length and athleticism, and he is active around the basket.

"He has really worked hard on his game in summer workouts," said McKelvy. "He is a Pac-10 type of player in my opinion and I believe his best basketball is ahead of him in college."

When asked to talk about his game, Williams is keenly aware of what has helped him become a hot prospect. "Rebounding is one of my biggest strengths as well as my defense," said Williams. "Defensively, I am very good at playing help-side defense and blocking shots."

Offensively, he has a nice face up game and he can make the mid-range jumper consistently. Besides working on his game, he said he will sit down and weigh all his options in the next month. His leaders right now are Washington State, Santa Clara, St. Mary's and UNLV, but he said he is still open.

"I know I want to go on all of my visits," said Williams. "I will make the decision just before the basketball season starts."