2008 Fullcourt Press All-West Camp:
Top 25 All-Star Selections
by Dinos Trigonis

(July 20, 2008)

This summer’s Fullcourt Press All-West Camp was held on July 11-13 at the new HAX Hangar in Hawthorne CA.  The 11^th version of the camp attracted 300-plus of the West Coast’s top prospects including players from California, Arizona, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, New Mexico, Colorado, Montana, Oklahoma, Texas, Mississippi and Georgia.

Media/scouts present include Dinos Trigonis (Fullcourt Press & Hoop Scoop), Etop Udo-Ema (Fullcourt Press & Hoopmasters), Frank Burlison (Long Beach Press-Telegram & Scouthoops.com), Joel Francisco (ESPN.com), Patrick Stanwood (Hoop Scoop & Hoop Masters), Greg Hicks (Scouthoops.com), Ronnie Flores (Student-Sports.com), Gerry Freitas (Hoop Review), Matt Rodriguez (BallisLife.com), Nick Koza (SportsAmp.com), Dave Nahabedian (Networx), Dave Keefer & Dave Rogahn (California Preps), Alan Utter and Bob Jacoby (Hoop Scoop) and Lee Hubbard (NorCal Preps) while colleges coaches on hand included Ben Howland (UCLA), Tim Floyd (USC), Lorenzo Romar (Washington), Lon Kruger (UNLV), Craig Robinson (Oregon State), Jim Boylan (Utah), Steve Fisher (San Diego State), Mark Fox (Nevada), Karl Hobbs (George Washington), Billy Grier (San Diego), Steve Cleveland (Fresno State), Bob Burton (Cal State Fullerton), Tom Asbury (Pepperdine), Bob Williams (UC-Santa Barbara), Bobby Braswell (Cal State Northridge), Gary Stewart (UC-Davis), Jim Wooldridge (UC-Riverside), Brian Katz (Sacramento State), Mike Adras (Northern Arizona) and assistants from Arizona, Stanford, Washington State, Cal, Arizona State, Oregon, Louisville, Maryland, Marquette, Boston College, Gonzaga, West Virginia, Colorado, Air Force, UTEP, SMU, Colorado State, St. Mary’s and many others.  The level of talent on display again reaffirmed this event as the top regional camp in the West.  

Below are the 25 players that were selected to the top cream of the crop game.  In a hard fought game, the Black squad beat the White team 107-98.

2008 Fullcourt Press All-West Camp

Cream of the Crop Top 25 Game Selections
(in alphabetical order)

Colin Borchert              6’8"      2009     Kellis (Glendale AZ)

Sleek and agile forward is quick in transition and a potent perimeter scorer.

Anthony Brown                        6’5"      2010     Ocean View (Huntington Beach CA)

One of the hottest names and fastest rising prospects in the 2010 class, Brown connected on 4/5 shots en route to 8 points here.  Presently checks in at #37 (Scout.com) and #49 (Rivals.com).

Derek Brown                6’1"      2010     Chino Hills (Chino CA)
Emerging 2010 point prospect showed well here – 9 points, 6 boards and a team high 5 assists.

Deonta Burton              6’1"      2010     Cabrillo (Long Beach CA)
Strong and physical lead guard had 9 points in this game.

Joe Burton                               6’8"      2009     West Valley (Hemet CA)
Skilled wide-body is arguably as good a post passer that exists in the nation.  Burton’s low post offensive game is difficult to stop down on the block.

Dominique Carr                        6’4"      2010     JW North (Riverside CA)
Versatile perimeter player is a name to track in 2010.

Terran Carter                6’5"      2009     Taft (Woodland Hills CA)

Undersized but productive forward gives maximum effort.

Rome Draper                6’5"      2009     Etiwanda (Etiwanda CA)
Big "wing" with a perimeter stroke that must be respected.

Myron Green                6’3"      2009     Dominguez (Compton CA) 
Soft shooting off-guard has great 3-point shooting range.  Very good student.

Cezar Guerrero             5’11"    2011     St. John Bosco (Bellflower CA)

Speedy point (currently ranked #4 in the rising soph class by Hoop Scoop) was efficient here – scoring 10 points and dishing out 4 assists.

Justin Hawkins             6’3"      2009     Taft (Woodland Hills CA)

Tremendous team player and "glue" guy, the UNLV-bound Hawkins was terrific in this game (14 points/5 boards).

Robert Mandingo                     6’4"      2009     Dominguez (Compton CA)
Excellent "lock-down" defender with an improving offensive game.

Anthony Marshall                     6’2"      2009     Mojave (Las Vegas NV)
Slithering scorer is explosive in transition and his reverse baseline stuff was a thing of beauty and a highlight of this game.

Austin Morgan             5’11"    2009     Reno (Reno NV)

Solid point brings stability to any team that he directs.  Although not flashy, I love his poise and court demeanor.

Roberto Nelson                        6’3"      2009     Santa Barbara (Santa Barbara CA)
Active combo-guard can shoot the rock with the best in the country.  "Berto" scored a team high 15 points to go along with 6 rebounds and 3 assists here.

Ryan Okwudibonye      6’7"      2010     Ocean View (Huntington Beach CA)
Sharp-shooting forward can connect from long distance – had two "threes" in this game.

Kyle Richardson                       6’7"      2009     Mayfair (Lakewood CA)
Pure "back-to-the-basket" post-forward has made great improvement over the past 6 months.  WCC and Big West programs are in the mix.

Marcus Ruppel             6’7"      2009     Deer Valley (Glendale AZ)
Athlete with polished offensive skills – scored 10 points (including two "threes") here.

Raveon Samuel                        6’5"      2008     Canyon Springs (North Las Vegas NV)
Strong and physical athletic wing attacks the basket with both force and altitude.

Shannon Sharpe                      6’1"      2008     Centennial (Corona CA)
As good an athlete at that size in the West, Sharpe’s impressive play in this game (6 points/4 assists/4 steals) and at this camp resulted in several D-I offers including Fresno State, Cal Poly and Cal State Northridge.

Darnell Shumpert                     6’8"      2008     Sahuarita (Tucson AZ)
Long and bouncy forward has great shot-blocking timing (game-high 4 blocks in this game).   Darnell added 9 points and a team-high 11 boards as well.  Intriguing long-term potential.

Michael Snaer              6’5"      2009     Rancho Verde (Moreno Valley CA)
Incredible slashing scorer has really improved his perimeter range, but his best attributes are his consistent willingness to compete and his defensive prowess.  Snaer’s play this spring and summer has brought him to the brink of McDonald’s All-American status.   Snaer is also an underrated passer - had a team-high 6 assists to along with 12 points and 5 boards here.

Hollis Thompson                     6’7"      2009     Loyola (Los Angeles CA)
Splendid wing forward with legitimate McDonald’s All-American aspirations, Hollis is an excellent outside shooter that moves extremely well without the ball as well as being an underrated defender.  Thompson was this game’s leading scorer – 16 points (on 7/12 shooting) to go along with an eye-popping 15 boards and 2 assists.  Personifies the term "student-athlete."

Jamal Trice                              6’4"      2008     Mater Dei (Santa Ana CA)
Presently, one of the top unsigned 2008 prospects still on the board, Trice is a strong defender with an excellent perimeter stroke.  TCU and UC-Riverside are among the schools showing interest.

Jeremy Tyler                6’10"    2010     San Diego (San Diego CA)
Dominant post presence played here like the #1 2010 prospect many believe that he is.

Alec Williams               6’6"      2009     J Serra (San Juan Capistrano CA)
San Diego State-bound combo-forward has a very accurate perimeter stroke and his offensive skills were apparent in this game – 11 points to go along with 7 boards and 2 blocks.

Michael Williams                      6’0"      2009     Taft (Woodland Hills CA)

Crafty point with an unorthodox but accurate three-point stroke.  Late bloomer is still just 16 years old.

Thurman Woods                      6’5"      2009     Dominguez (Compton CA)
Strong forward has long arms and an excellent mid-range game.

Kevin Young                6’8"      2009     Notre Dame Prep (Fitchburg MA)

Fresh off an impressive Reebok All-American Camp performance (made top all-star game there), Young has surfaced as one of this summer’s top national sleepers.  Perris CA native had 12 points in this game.

** 6’3" 2009 Darius Morris (Windward/Los Angeles CA) was injured and could not participate.

***Next time:  we take a look at the Top 50 Cream of the Crop selections.

****Photos courtesy of Nick Koza (SportsAmp.com)