Hard to believe another high school hoops season is almost in the books. While the NC State basketball coaches would have preferred to be in Brooklyn, N.Y., on Saturday in the ACC Tournament, expect a heavy presence instead at Reynolds Coliseum.
The main attraction is junior wing Wendell Moore Jr. of Concord (N.C.) Cox Mill, who plays Jacksonville (N.C.) Northside in the NCHSAA 3A state title game.
The five-star Moore, who Rivals.com ranks No. 24 nationally in the class of 2019, is going to be at the center of an intense recruitment with NC State, North Carolina, Duke and Wake Forest all heavily involved. Some have declared that UNC and Wake Forest were the leaders going into his junior year, but NC State has fought the good fight this winter.
Moore has been to two NC State home games at PNC Arena this season, and head coach Kevin Keatts has personally gone to watch him play. It’s no secret that the Wolfpack needed to make up ground on Moore. Former coach Mark Gottfried had offered Moore prior to the start of his freshman year. By the time Moore began his sophomore campaign, Gottfried’s staff essentially moved on. The hiring of Keatts breathed new life into Moore’s recruitment.
Moore had 29 points to lead Cox Mill to a 70-66 win over Eastern Guilford High last year in the state title game at the Dean E. Smith Center. He likely had many overtures from private schools in the region to transfer, but stayed loyal to Cox Mill. Instead, he got welcomed help with a new player transferring in — UNC senior signee Rechon “Leaky” Black. The small forward had played his first two years at Concord High, made the move to Montverde (Fla.) Academy, and then returned to Cox Mill. The other potential Division I prospect is a somewhat familiar name in ACC country — Caleb Stone-Carrawell. He is the son of former Duke forward Chris Carrawell, who is now an assistant coach at Marquette.
Moore has been a consistent force from all accounts throughout the season. Although Black returned, it’s Moore’s team. He’s one of the rare prospects who had a college ready body at age 13. He’s a full year younger than his grade, meaning he easily could be in the class of 2020 or conceivably even be an “old recruit” in the class of 2021. His basketball IQ is his greatest strength, which allows him to play point guard, shooting guard or small forward on the prep level. He’ll likely be a small forward in college and could be the kind of player who just smoothly blends in and gives a team whatever they lack.
•••
NC State fans will get a good look at senior combo guard target Anfernee Simons in the Jordan Brand Classic on April 8 in Brooklyn, N.Y. NBA scouts will also be watching his every move during the practices leading up to the game.
The 6-foot-4, 177-pound Simons is a post-graduate player, which meant he didn’t qualify for the McDonald’s All-American Game. The Jordan Brand Classic has different rules, but it is usually heavily centered around players, that played in the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League. Simons, who played on the Under Armour circuit, is one of five players who played for a non-EYBL traveling team program in the game. Three of the four committed players are headed to either Duke or North Carolina, which are both sponsored by Nike. Quentin Grimes is the lone outlier. He’s going to Kansas, which is sponsored by adidas.
NC State in theory could get a verbal commitment from Simons during the spring, but the reality is that his final decision won’t come until mid-May when he figures out if he wants to stay in the NBA Draft or goes to college. Simons graduated from high school last year, and was committed to Louisville at the time. When the bottom fell out with the Cardinals, he elected to open up his recruitment and played at Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy this season.
The prevailing wisdom is that college will win out over the NBA, but if he does really well at the Jordan Brand Classic and the NBA Draft combine, it could get dicey. The teams in the back end of the NBA Draft will most likely be playoff squads (unless they have acquired a pick through a trade). A stable franchise would be a positive, but that could also mean a good amount of time in the G-League. Simons’ professional path would likely be similar to Dejounte Murray, who spent one year at Washington before going No. 29 to the San Antonio Spurs in 2016. Murray played in 38 games as a 20-year-old rookie, but has become a solid role player this season.
Simons. in his latest diary with Rivals.com, mentioned NC State, Tennessee, Minnesota, Florida, SMU, Dayton, Central Florida and Illinois. Simons is one of just two undecided recruits in the Jordan Classic Game. It’s an interesting list for the nation’s No. 13-ranked player. He has officially visited Tennessee and NC State, and the connection to Minnesota is through the Pitino family. Simons also believes college basketball players should get paid through the NCAA, and that there should be a preps-to-pros option.
Simons is being told he’ll play point guard at NC State, but he’ll most likely play the same role that Allerik Freeman has filled this season, and that C.J. Bryce will get a chance to fill next year. It would be an embarrassment of riches on the perimeter if NC State has Simons, Bryce, Markell Johnson, Devon Daniels and Braxton Beverly as the core group. Five players for three spots would make things interesting for sure. Then add in point guards Lavar Batts and Blake Harris and it becomes seven for three positions.
The main attraction is junior wing Wendell Moore Jr. of Concord (N.C.) Cox Mill, who plays Jacksonville (N.C.) Northside in the NCHSAA 3A state title game.
The five-star Moore, who Rivals.com ranks No. 24 nationally in the class of 2019, is going to be at the center of an intense recruitment with NC State, North Carolina, Duke and Wake Forest all heavily involved. Some have declared that UNC and Wake Forest were the leaders going into his junior year, but NC State has fought the good fight this winter.
Moore has been to two NC State home games at PNC Arena this season, and head coach Kevin Keatts has personally gone to watch him play. It’s no secret that the Wolfpack needed to make up ground on Moore. Former coach Mark Gottfried had offered Moore prior to the start of his freshman year. By the time Moore began his sophomore campaign, Gottfried’s staff essentially moved on. The hiring of Keatts breathed new life into Moore’s recruitment.
Moore had 29 points to lead Cox Mill to a 70-66 win over Eastern Guilford High last year in the state title game at the Dean E. Smith Center. He likely had many overtures from private schools in the region to transfer, but stayed loyal to Cox Mill. Instead, he got welcomed help with a new player transferring in — UNC senior signee Rechon “Leaky” Black. The small forward had played his first two years at Concord High, made the move to Montverde (Fla.) Academy, and then returned to Cox Mill. The other potential Division I prospect is a somewhat familiar name in ACC country — Caleb Stone-Carrawell. He is the son of former Duke forward Chris Carrawell, who is now an assistant coach at Marquette.
Moore has been a consistent force from all accounts throughout the season. Although Black returned, it’s Moore’s team. He’s one of the rare prospects who had a college ready body at age 13. He’s a full year younger than his grade, meaning he easily could be in the class of 2020 or conceivably even be an “old recruit” in the class of 2021. His basketball IQ is his greatest strength, which allows him to play point guard, shooting guard or small forward on the prep level. He’ll likely be a small forward in college and could be the kind of player who just smoothly blends in and gives a team whatever they lack.
•••
NC State fans will get a good look at senior combo guard target Anfernee Simons in the Jordan Brand Classic on April 8 in Brooklyn, N.Y. NBA scouts will also be watching his every move during the practices leading up to the game.
The 6-foot-4, 177-pound Simons is a post-graduate player, which meant he didn’t qualify for the McDonald’s All-American Game. The Jordan Brand Classic has different rules, but it is usually heavily centered around players, that played in the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League. Simons, who played on the Under Armour circuit, is one of five players who played for a non-EYBL traveling team program in the game. Three of the four committed players are headed to either Duke or North Carolina, which are both sponsored by Nike. Quentin Grimes is the lone outlier. He’s going to Kansas, which is sponsored by adidas.
NC State in theory could get a verbal commitment from Simons during the spring, but the reality is that his final decision won’t come until mid-May when he figures out if he wants to stay in the NBA Draft or goes to college. Simons graduated from high school last year, and was committed to Louisville at the time. When the bottom fell out with the Cardinals, he elected to open up his recruitment and played at Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy this season.
The prevailing wisdom is that college will win out over the NBA, but if he does really well at the Jordan Brand Classic and the NBA Draft combine, it could get dicey. The teams in the back end of the NBA Draft will most likely be playoff squads (unless they have acquired a pick through a trade). A stable franchise would be a positive, but that could also mean a good amount of time in the G-League. Simons’ professional path would likely be similar to Dejounte Murray, who spent one year at Washington before going No. 29 to the San Antonio Spurs in 2016. Murray played in 38 games as a 20-year-old rookie, but has become a solid role player this season.
Simons. in his latest diary with Rivals.com, mentioned NC State, Tennessee, Minnesota, Florida, SMU, Dayton, Central Florida and Illinois. Simons is one of just two undecided recruits in the Jordan Classic Game. It’s an interesting list for the nation’s No. 13-ranked player. He has officially visited Tennessee and NC State, and the connection to Minnesota is through the Pitino family. Simons also believes college basketball players should get paid through the NCAA, and that there should be a preps-to-pros option.
Simons is being told he’ll play point guard at NC State, but he’ll most likely play the same role that Allerik Freeman has filled this season, and that C.J. Bryce will get a chance to fill next year. It would be an embarrassment of riches on the perimeter if NC State has Simons, Bryce, Markell Johnson, Devon Daniels and Braxton Beverly as the core group. Five players for three spots would make things interesting for sure. Then add in point guards Lavar Batts and Blake Harris and it becomes seven for three positions.
