Tomorrow's Stars Played Last Night

The annual McDonald's High School All-American game took place last night, and the future stars of Duke, Kentucky, Syracuse, North Carolina and others took the United Center to show off their talents. There was a competitive game played, but as is with all star games its about the individuals, and in this high school game it is about what these guys show off for their future teams. There were the big names that you could only watch a 10 minutes special on, and then the top recruits that do not get quite as much fan fare. They were all there and all performed, who was the most impressive though.

Brad Beal, G, Florida:
He was the most impressive to me last night, the way he played and moved looked great. He was very smooth on the court, and his shot was entertaining to watch. Scored the first points of the game effortlessly from outside and inside the arc. I had only heard a little of him before last night, but afterward I left thinking that Florida may lose their front court players to graduation, but their guards are going to be among the top in the nation next year.

Austin Rivers, G, Duke:
The son of Doc Rivers is the top player in the class among many recruiting databases, and last night he was able to show why. Like Beal he looked real smooth in the way that he moved, especially on the offensive end. His shot looked great, and NBA range threes did not seem to pose a problem to him at all, but the most impressive play was when he attacked the rim and went across the lane in between defenders to lay in a reverse of the glass. Showed he is not just a shooter but a scorer, a real player.

James McAdoo, F, North Carolina:
The North Carolina front line is maybe the best set in the nation already, and now they are adding another athlete that can go inside and out. The most impressive part of McAdoo's game was not his great athleticness, but his ability to shoot from the outside. The versatility he brings with his game will give Roy Williams the opportunity to be versatile with his lineups, that if Harrison Barnes comes back could be the best in the nation.

Anthony Davis, F, Kentucky:
Anthony Davis not only grew a lot since he was a point guard in this class, he is a freak of an athlete, and there does not seem to be a lot he can not do. He can jump out of the gym and will be able to get John Calipari a lot of rebounds, he was the best athlete on the court last night.

Michael Gilchrist, F, Kentucky:
He is a beast on the boards, and can score from anywhere on the court. He was among the most impressive last night because of how he showed there are a number of things he could do on the court. When you think of a front court that could consist of Terrence Jones, Davis, and Gilchrist you think Calipari should be all set come the start of the 2011-12 season.

Shannon Scott, G, Ohio St.:
Now Ohio St. already has Aaron Craft to man the point guard role next year, but Scott is going to be on that court and playing either way. Maybe it was because he was playing defense in an all star game, but Scott was really impressive with what he was able to do last night. He was the quickest guy on the floor, and the way he read passing lanes and was able to get into people was really great.

Cody Zeller, F, Indiana:
Zellers has always had something to deal with, first it was being the youngest of a basketball family powerhouse, now it is going to be the savior to Indiana basketball and Tom Crean's job maybe. Well last night he showed the arsenal that would be able to help him live up to all that. He was able to do his work on the inside, but like his brothers he showed the touch from outside, hit a nice little baseline fade away. He is definitely going to be big man on campus from day one.

Kyle Wiltjer, F, Kentucky:
What gets you right away is his shot, and he showed that last night, as well as in winning the event's three point shooting contest. He will bring great diversity to Kentucky, if he can get on the court with all their talent, because he has a really pure stroke that he showed off last night. What might have been even better though, was when he went in for a little hook shot on the block. That is what he will need to succeed to the fullest, and it was impressive to see him do it against the best competition he has faced yet.

Myck Kabongo, G, Texas:
The Canadian guard is following in the footsteps of Cory Joseph. He was able to distribute the ball last night and find the open man a lot of the time. The most impressive part of last night was his quickness, he was so quick out there in a game of players with superior quickness. In losing Balbay in Texas he will be able to step right in and run that two guard set with either Jospeh, or J'Covan Brown.

Quinn Cook, G, Duke:
Cook was going in as the second best point guard heading to Duke last night, but what was impressive was his court presence. He seemed to know when to push it, when to pull it back, when to take his own shot. The other thing was his speed and quickness, he has such a good frame that the speed and quickness he showed was a little unexpected and a pleasant surprise, and quite impressive.

P.J. Hairston, G/F, North Carolina:
Hairston was rather impressive last night, he showed great range, hitting a number of NBA range threes, and really showing a smooth form. The thing about last night though, and it was an all star game so this may be skewed, was his selfishness and looking for his own shot. Now a lot of guys were looking for their own shot, but in looking for his own shot it just seemed a little more selfish than the others, less willing to move the ball to get his own shot. Just something from last night that will be interesting to see in the future under Williams.

Michael Carter-Williams, G, Syracuse:
The guard from Syracuse was one of the more impressive players when it comes to effort, he was really getting after it and showed the ability to really get into his guys defensively. He really impressed when he decided to take a charge in an all star game, and his motor. He also showed great quickness and the ability to get into the lane and make plays.

Rakeem Christmas, F, Syracuse:
The forward was really impressive in how he moved, at his size he was able to really run the court, get up and down at a good rate that will really help in the fastbreak game Syracuse likes to play. He also shot a little mid range jumper that looked smooth and was without hesitation which was nice. Unfortunately, he seemed to be disinterested at times and almost not into the game, which was troubling. He is going to need to show more initiative and hustle in the future.

Marshall Plumlee, F, Duke:
One thing he has going for him is his athleticness, he can definitely move around the court and for his size that is a great attribute. On the other hand while watching him last night all that came to mind was the other two brothers. You heard about their size, they are athletes, but then they only show flashes of really contributing for Coach K. I saw some potential there, but in reality it just seemed like you were watching the two other brothers in a different body.