Two Schools in the Lead for Thomas
When RivalsHoops caught up with Charles Thomas, a power forward at Lanier High School in Jackson, Mississippi, he had just come home from working on his game.
“Right now I am around No. 50 [referring to the Rivals150],” he said. “But I am trying to get higher than that. I am not satisfied with my ranking. I am in the gym everyday working on my ball handling, doing drills like two ball dribbling.”
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The 6-foot-7, 220-pound power forward, who is actually No. 67 in the Rivals150, may need some work on his dribbling skills, but he certainly is one of the better inside/outside scoring threats in the class of 2004.
As Thomas put it: “My inside/outside game is hard to guard. I also try to bring a little defense to the table. I do not want to be a scorer that cannot defend.”
Oklahoma, Florida State, Georgia, Penn State, and Ole Miss are the five schools that are in the running for landing Thomas.
“All five have offered scholarships, but I like Oklahoma and Florida State the best right now. They are running neck and neck right now.” Thomas added, “I went to Oklahoma’s individual camp and could not believe how nice the offices, practice gyms, and weight room were. I was wowed.”
He went on to comment on Florida State: “Coach Hamilton coached my cousin Mario Bland. Mario told me that he is a good coach and a friend as well.”
At this point Thomas only has official visits scheduled with Florida State on Sept. 6 and Oklahoma on Sept. 20.
He is expecting in-the-home visits from Georgia and Ole Miss.
Concerning Georgia he said, “They just have a team of freshman and sophomores. I could come in and start, and what Carmelo Anthony did for Syracuse in his first year I could do for Georgia.”
Ole Miss is attractive because of one of their 2004 commitments.
“My life long teammate and friend Robert Clark is going there,” Thomas said. “We really know how to play with each other.”
Off the court Thomas is focused on raising his ACT score of 16. He is currently taking classes to prepare for the test and is confident he will bring it up.