Nike Hoops Summit

Had a chance to watch some good young talent compete yesterday in the Nike Hoops Summit game. The US All-Stars pulled away from the World All-Stars in the second quarter and never really looked back, winning 100-80. The amazing thing about this game was how cohesive the US team was. Usually in games of this kind we're used to seeing an every man for himself style of play which leads to lots of turnovers. This team however played very team oriented basketball for the majority of the game and played very solid defensively as well on the other end of the floor.
There were plenty of players and story lines worth mentioning from this game, especially from the World All-Star team, since this is was the first time many people got to see any of those athletes play, but here are a few that I thought were newsworthy.

Derek Rose & O.J. Mayo
For all of the hype that has surrounded the budding rivalry between these two gifted players, they worked incredibly well as teammates. Mayo led all US players with 20 points, and had a much improved performance from the McDonald's game, while Rose was at his usual consistent best. They work so well together for the same reason opposites attract; they complement one another. Mayo loves to shoot and create for himself, while Rose is more of a traditional point guard. Memphis has to be very excited to be getting such an explosive, yet team oriented player to their program next year.
The US team was really playing its best basketball when both Rose and Mayo were on the court. They had 6 steals and 7 assists between the two of them. Several of those steals led to easy baskets at the other end of the floor, and were a big reason the US team was up 40-13 at one point in the second quarter.

Michael Beasley
Beasley certainly didn't play his best game, only going 3-15 from the field, he did manage 9 rebounds though. The real story had to do with his televised interview during the game regarding his future with Kansas State. Beasley said he had spoken with the Wildcat coaching staff, and would like to still play at K-State but would wait to see how things played out. The good news for Wildcat fans is that it doesn't appear as though Beasley has given up the idea of playing for K-State, in fact it seems as though he is leaning in that direction. Beasley's mother has stated that her son will still attend Kansas St in the fall. Despite all of the statements, Beasley still has listed Florida St, NC State, and Memphis as schools that he is considering in addition to Kansas St.
At this point you really can't blame Beasley for looking at other schools, Bob Huggins really dropped the floor out from under this kid. Kansas St can at least take solace at this point that Bill Walker has announced he will stay with the Wildcats rather than have to sit out another year as a transfer player.

Nicolas Batum
After hearing so much about Batum I finally got a chance to see him play yesterday and he didn't dissapoint. The 18-year old out of France is a very gifted athlete, and from what I saw may have the highest ceiling of any player on the court yesterday. Batum is listed at 6'8" and has a 7'1" wingspan which helped him tremendously on end of the court. He didn't seem to be intimidated by the US team, driving and dunking aggressively a couple of times during the course of the game.
Batum is more than just a slasher though; he showed great range on his shot going 3-5 from beyond the arc, on his way to leading all scorers with 23 points in 28 minutes. He is still about a year away from entering the draft which will give him time to add a little more weight (he is 209 pounds), and to continue developing his skills, which from reports he is already doing at an alarmingly fast rate. Batum is being projected by many right now as a lottery pick in 2008, and he should be very fun to watch in the European leagues in the next year.

Omri Casspi
Though he wasn't the most hyped player coming in, nor did he have the most impressive game, Omri Casspi definitely made an impression on the scouts in attendance. The forward out of Israel had a very respectable 14 points in 29 minutes, but it was the way in which he scored those points that made him stand out. With the World team being crushed in the second quarter Casspi decided to become a little more selfish with the basketball and proceeded to score 9 points in the span of just a few minutes.
He displayed a tremendous amount of toughness, clearly not intimidated by the US players as he drove to the basket. Casspi also displayed a very impressive court sense for an 18-year old player. Give him another year or two and Casspi will be a very solid role player in the NBA.