UNC’s Trio Of Barnes, Bullock & Marshall Headline 2010 Nike Hoop Summit
Words. Aron Phillips
Featuring top-ranked athletes from throughout the nation, USA Basketball today announced the first nine members and the coaching staff for the 2010 USA Junior National Select Team, which will face off against the World Select Team in the 13th annual Nike Hoop Summit at 7:00 p.m. (PDT) on Saturday, April 10 at the Rose Garden in Portland, Ore.
The Nike Hoop Summit is the country’s premier annual basketball game for high-school age boys and features America’s elite, young athletes against a World Select Team comprised of top international players 19-years-old or younger.
The first nine members of the eventual 10-man USA roster include: guards Harrison Barnes (Ames H.S. / Ames, Iowa), Will Barton (Brewster Academy / Baltimore, Md.), Reggie Bullock (Kinston H.S. / Kinston, N.C.), Kyrie Irving (St. Patrick H.S. / Elizabeth, N.J.), Brandon Knight (Pine Crest H.S. / Lauderdale, Fla.) and Kendall Marshall (Bishop O’Connell H.S. / Arlington, Va.); forwards Tobias Harris (Half Hollow Hills West H.S. / Brookville, N.Y.) and Terrence Jones (Jefferson H.S. / Portland, Ore.); and Jared Sullinger (Northland H.S. / Columbus, Ohio) at center.
Serving as head coach for the USA will be Bob Cimmino, who has been the head coach at Mount Vernon High School (N.Y.) since 1994, compiling a 324-57 overall record (as of 09/09). Cimmino previously coached for USA Basketball at a 2004 skills development clinic in New York.
“It’s a tremendous honor to be associated with USA Basketball and the Nike Hoop Summit, and I’m absolutely thrilled to have the opportunity to work with 10 of the best players in the United States against 10 of the best players in the world,” Cimmino said. “It’s a high school coach’s dream.
“I think the roster has been set up so that the coaching staff has the talent, we just have to get down to business early and work very hard in our practices. We want to bring the title back to the U.S.”
Assisting Cimmino will be Rich Gray (St. Louis Eagles AAU, Mo.), who for more than 23 years has served as president of the St. Louis Basketball Club, a two-time AAU national championship program that has featured NBA talents such as Tyler Hansbrough, Larry Hughes and David Lee. Gray was an assistant coach for the USA in the 1997 Nike Hoop Summit, which the USA won 97-90, and an assistant coach for the USA North Team in the 1999 USA Basketball Youth Development Festival.
“I’m honored to be chosen again as a coach for USA Basketball. It is something that I will always cherish, and I cherished the last time that I had the chance to coach in the Hoop Summit,” Gray said. “That team was trying to come back after a loss the year before, much like the situation this year. The experience I gained, with the building of teamwork and getting the kids to understand the importance of USA, definitely gives me an advantage this time around.”
Players and coaches for the 2010 USA Junior National Select Team are selected by the USA Basketball Men’s Developmental National Team Committee, chaired in a non-voting position by Sean Ford, the USA Basketball Men’s National Team Director. The committee also includes AAU appointees Ron Crawford and Boo Williams, National Federation of High School appointees Eric Flannery and John Olive and athlete representative Kermit Holmes (1999 USA Pan American Games Team).
“I think these first nine players give this USA team a solid foundation, and we certainly have confidence in our accomplished coaching staff,” said Ford. “The committee has an important decision to make in filling the last roster spot in the next couple of weeks, and we are fortunate to have a lot of talent to choose from in this country. We aren’t looking for the 10 best athletes, we are looking for players that help us achieve balance and depth. This is a very tough game, and we are all determined to come away with a win in 2010.”
Seven of the nine players have signed a National Letter of Intent for 2010-11. Marshall, Barnes and Bullock signed with North Carolina, Barton signed with Memphis, Harris will play at Tennessee, Irving will play at Duke and Sullinger signed with Ohio State. Knight and Jones remain undecided about where they will play college basketball.
Including Barnes, Barton, Bullock, Harris, Irving, Knight and Sullinger, seven USA team members were listed on the prestigious Naismith Trophy Boy’s High School Player of the Year watch list released on Dec. 11.
Three players and have led their high school teams to rankings in the most recent USA Today Super 25 (as of Jan. 12). Ivring has led St. Patrick to a USA Today No. 1 national ranking and a No. 1 ranking in the East region; Sullinger has helped Northland to a No. 2 national ranking and a No. 1 Midwest region ranking; and Barnes at Ames High School lists No. 5 nationally and No. 2 in the Midwest region.
Six players led their teams to state championships at the conclusion of the 2008-09 season, including Barnes (Iowa 4A title), Harris (New York 1A & Federation title, with Long Island Lutheran), Irving (New Jersey Tournament of Champions & Non-Public Schools title), Jones (Oregon 5A title), Knight (Florida 3A title) and Sullinger (Ohio D1 title).
The 2010 World Select Team roster, which is expected to be announced in March, will consist of 10 or 11 players age 19-years-old or younger from FIBA’s five geographic zones: FIBA Africa, FIBA Americas, FIBA Asia, FIBA Europe and FIBA Oceania, with the approved sanctioning of the International Basketball Federation (FIBA), the world governing body of international basketball.
Tickets are now on sale, with reserved courtside seats priced $25 and $50 and all other general admission tickets at $10. Tickets can be purchased through the Rose Quarter Ticket Office, by calling 877-789-ROSE (7673) or by visiting www.rosequarter.com.
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