Shannon Brown Excels

Shannon Brown, RivalsHoops.com's Number 7 rising senior from Proviso East High School in Maywood, IL, clearly showed why he is such a highly-regarded basketball player at last weekend's High School National Championship at the Penn Palestra.

The combo guard is a solid shooter and scorer. Brown can hit the three-point shot even when closely guarded. And he'll take his defender to the basket for a score. Brown has a great handle, excellent court vision and understanding of the game. He was clearly Proviso East's leader on the court.

His 21 points led the Illinois school to 69-62 win over Loyola High School from Los Angeles for fifth place (2-1) at the inaugural HSNC.

Brown, who is being recruited by the likes of Arizona, Connecticut, Dayton, Duke, Illinois, Iowa, Marquette, Maryland, Notre Dame and Syracuse, will cut the number of schools he will consider later this summer. He intends to officially visit the five schools that make his top list. There is no rush to judgement for this youth.

His father, Chris, said that Shannon has a 3.3 GPA. "He's an honors student," Mr. Brown said. Mr. Brown supports his son's decision to take his time about his future. "This decision is very important," Mr. Brown said. "He needs to choose what is best for him. I love him and trust him and will be fully behind whatever decision he makes."

Mr. Brown discussed the recruiting process. "It sometimes gets monotonous," he said. "But there are a lot of good people out there."

Brown got an unsolicited endorsement from perhaps the best known rising senior during a press conference in New Jersey last Thursday. Brown competed at last week's Nike All-America Invitational. LeBron James, during his press conference at the adidas ABCD camp, said, "Shannon Brown was the best player at Nike."

The 6-4, 185 pound combo guard from Maywood, IL, plays with the Illinois Warriors and will next participate in the AAU 17 and Under Super Showcase in Florida followed by the Kansas City Prep Invitational Basketball Tournament.