USA Basketball: Moore taking off
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Class of 2014 Rivals150
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- Each Fall, USA Basketball holds a
developmental camp on the campus of their Olympic Training Facility in Colorado
Springs, Colo. This year, instead of bringing in just underclassmen competing
for the next national team they have also brought in several seniors under
consideration for the annual Hoops Summit game in the Spring. Saturday's first
session was action packed, intense and full of big time playmakers. 2015 big man
Doral Moore showed major improvement while seniors Kelly Oubre
and James Blackmon were among the many who had it rolling.
Moore taking
off
During the summer, Locust Grove (Ga.) Luella big man Doral Moore burst
onto the national scene. A seven-footer with above average hands, good touch and
a nice skill level, he entered the rankings for 2015 at No. 38 nationally. If
what he showed Saturday morning is any indication of the direction his game is
going in, then he may be 25-30 spots too low in the rankings.
In his first USA Basketball experience, the seven-footer was impressive in all
aspects of the game on Saturday. He competed well during one on one drills and
showed that he can play a power game as well as a skill game alternating dunks
with short jumpers and jump hooks. He rebounded, ran the floor and generally
looked like somebody that needs an elevation to five-star status.
Often times, players have trouble keeping up with the pace of action and
intensity of USA Basketball in their first appearance, so Moore's effectiveness
was even more impressive.
"It was a little surprising how hard everybody was playing but I really liked
it," Moore told Rivals.com. "I think I did a good job of competing but feel like
I can do even better as I get used to it."
On the school front, Moore said that he's wide open and he has had a multitude
of programs in the gym to see him.
Illinois are just a few of the programs that have been through and all
but Kentucky have offered. Kansas is expected in soon and both
Duke and North Carolina have made phone calls of inquiry.
Early wakeup
call no problem for Oubre
For the last two days, 6-foot-7 wing Kelly Oubre has been on an
official visit to Kansas. In order to make it to Colorado Springs for
Saturday's first session, the five-star prospect from Henderson (Nev.) Findlay
Prep had to leave Lawrence at four in the morning.
With little sleep, the southpaw looked plenty rested an effective during a
grueling two and a half hour workout. He rained in threes from all over the place,
he used his strength to bully his way to the hole and he worked hard. During one
on one drills he and fellow five-star Stanley Johnson pretty much beat
the heck out of each other.
Oubre confirmed to Rivals.com that the Jayhawks and Kentucky are his
top two and he reported that his visit to Lawrence was a success. He was able to
watch to full workouts, spend time with the players and gave high remarks to the
Late Night in the Phog experience. He'll be in Lexington for Kentucky's Big Blue
Madness in a few weeks and expects to have a decision in time for the early
signing period.
More Saturday
morning notes
There
wasn't a better scorer in the gym on Saturday morning than five-star shooting
guard James Blackmon. His trademark jumper was going in at a high rate
but he showed more athleticism than in the past and was outstanding off the
dribble. He's a high scoring guard and was hitting floaters, scoring at the rim
and burning the nets from deep. Blackmon confirmed that he will still take his
Kentucky official visit and that the Wildcats are under consideration along with
Louisville and Kansas. Though he claims no leaders and denied
having any, Kentucky and Michigan have been generating the most buzz of late.
Top 10
senior Myles Turner has been in the weight room. He is still lean, but
the five-star has put on some good strength and bulked up to 230 pounds per his
father. The added strength has really helped him around the basket. Turner can
still shoot the ball well when facing the hoop, but seeing him play physically
around the rim and push guys around was a nice development.
Class of
2016 four-star point guard
Derryck Thornton had a very good early
session. The 6-foot-1 point guard is a terrific on the ball defender and makes
things happen off the dribble. At times in the past he has forced his offense a
little too much but on Saturday morning he was patient, under control and making
teammates better.
The top
shooting guard in the class of 2014, Rashad Vaughn has immense physical
tools. He's a powerfully built 6-foot-5 shooting guard who can go right or left
and defenders bounce off of him. He is also extremely confident in his shooting
ability and was operating under the if it feels like leather let it fly rule for
shot selection during the first session. At times the result is a poor shot but
we would much rather a guy be too aggressive than need a fire started under him.
Unfortunately,
2014's No. 1 player
Jahlil Okafor went down with an ankle injury about
halfway through the first session. Before that, though, he and 2015 five-star
big man Diamond Stone were engaging in a seriously intense one on one
battle during drills. Both guys are strong, skilled and can counter just about
any move the defense makes. Watching their footwork, hands and touch while
beating each other silly was quite impressive.
Eric Bossi is the national basketball recruiting analyst for Rivals.com. You can click here to follow him on Twitter.
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