Bruin Recruiting: Prep News Roundup (7/12)

By Bruin Basketball Report

Prep News Roundup is published every Monday.

Commits

Looking for signs of life in Pac-10 basketball? Good luck. A few months away from its final season as the 10-team entity we've known for years, the conference is dormant... Just one McDonald's All-American was signed by a team in the conference in the last signing period (Josh Smith by UCLA). Sports Illustrated 7/7

New UCLA point guard Lazeric Jones, a junior college transfer from Illinois, is playing in the Say No summer league at The HAX in Hawthorne this summer, and early reviews indicate he's going to be a solid contributor and help the Bruins address a weakness at the position. On Sunday, Jones played in a game with Bruins teammates Tyler Honeycutt and Reeves Nelson. Jones handled the ball well, displayed court leadership and scored several baskets on drives down the key. He has big hands and a nice touch from the free-throw line. LA Times 7/11

Recruits

On a team made up mostly of guys heading into college basketball, Winter Park's younger Austin Rivers was the lights-out shooter for the USA Basketball team that won the FIBA Americas Under-18 Championship. The rising senior guard led unbeaten Team USA in scoring (20.2 points per game) and steals (2.0) while ranking second in minutes played (23.0) and third in field-goal percentage (.583) in San Antonio. That's the city where his dad, Doc Rivers, played the final two seasons of a 13-year NBA career. Orlando Sentinel 7/6

Austin Rivers is the No. 2 recruit in the class of 2011. He spent much of last week engaged in thorough global hoops destruction at the FIBA Americas U18 Championship, including a 9-for-12 shooting night in a 35-point performance against Canada. And now, it's looking more and more like Rivers is going to take that prodigious talent to Duke. Why? Beyond the actual recruiting stuff -- Rivers has long been leaning toward Duke -- the guard walked out of the FIBA locker rooms in San Antonio wearing a particularly telling outfit. ESPN 7/8

Having drunk Germans spill beer on them was not the reception Quinn Cook and Justin Anderson expected at the FIBA Under-17 World Basketball Championship. But those Germans were just ecstatic soccer fans as Cook and Anderson were watching Germany's World Cup quarterfinal victory over Argentina -- a chance to see some local culture during the inaugural world basketball tournament. Washington Post 7/9

Kyle Caudill - Speed and agility aren't the name of his game, but Caudill is an absolutely massive human being. He has good touch around the rim with either hand, and knows how to use his body to create angles on the block. Still his lack of athleticism limits him from being a consistent finisher when going up against long and athletic players. He also needs to get into better shape, but his size, toughness, and reliable hands make him an interesting low block player out on the west coast. Section Sports 7/9

Branden Dawson- Dawson has always been on the cusp of the five-star/four-star borderline as a prospect. He has a college ready body, strong athleticism and is an exceptional defender, rebounder and finisher. At this event, however, Dawson has displayed an expanded skill set. He has shot the ball well from behind the arc and has looked good with the basketball in the open court. MO Sports 7/9

Josiah Turner- Outside of 2013 elite guard prospect Rodney Purvis, Turner has been the best point guard at the event. He has an impressive blend of strength and quickness which he uses to his advantage on both sides of the ball. His decision making has been solid, and he has finished plays in a variety of areas of the court. Steadily he is moving towards the top of the point guard rankings in 2011. MO Sports 7/9

Josiah Turner, having a monster summer on the Amateur Athletic Union travel circuit, has moved up to No. 12 nationally in www.rivals.com's latest top 150 boys basketball player rankings for 2011. The 6-foot-3 Turner, of Sacramento High School, is the No. 3-rated point guard behind Kentucky-bound Marquis Teague of Pike High School in Indianapolis and Myck Kabongo of Findley Prep in Henderson, Nev. Sacramento Bee 7/11

The guard drove downcourt with purpose, then flew toward the rim in a seemingly futile scoring attempt against more than one taller defender. The resounding dunk validated his judgment and made for one of the more memorable plays at the King City Classic. The player was Nick Johnson, a 6-foot-
2 guard for Findlay Prep in the Las Vegas area and the nephew of the late Hall of Famer Dennis Johnson. "I was still young and not serious about basketball when he was around," Johnson said. Kentucky Sports 7/11