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Adam Zagoria covers basketball at all levels. He is the author of two books and an award-winning journalist whose articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Sports Illustrated, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide.
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Wednesday / December 11.
  • ALEXANDRIA, Va. — One of the most entertaining scenes here at the Nike Global Challenge happened off the court Friday when North Carolina coach Roy Williams — and many others — got a good laugh at the expense of Phoenix Suns scout John Shumate.

    The laughs began when Dennis Marshall, the father of former Carolina point guard Kendall Marshall, approached Shumate to talk about his son, the Suns’ first-round draft pick.

    “Kendall Marshall’s dad came up to say hello and just to visit a little bit and I told him that John was down there,” Williams told SNY.tv. “I told him that John was down there, I said he would love to say hello to you because they’re thrilled with being able to draft him.

    ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Maybe it was the fact that he was coming off a 12-point performance Friday in Canada’s win over Brazil.

    Maybe it was the charged environment inside Episcopal High School featuring virtually every major college coach in the country.

    Maybe it was the chance to go up against his rival, Virginia wing Troy Williams.

    Whatever it was, Andrew Wiggins put on a show here Saturday afternoon in notching a team-best 23 points and 7 rebounds as Canada edged USA East, 101-96, in overtime at the Nike Global Challenge to remain undefeated (2-0) at the event.

    “I know [Friday] wasn’t my best game so I had to get more focused, come out hard,” Wiggins told SNY.tv in an exclusive interview following the game.

    ALEXANDRIA, Va. — When the Nike Global Challenge began here at Episcopal High School on Friday, virtually every high-major college coach in the nation descended upon the elite prep school.

    Except one.

    Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski has been busy in Las Vegas preparing Team USA for a gold medal run at the London Olympics.

    Coach K will actually be a few miles from the Nike event beginning Saturday, when Team USA trains in Washington, D.C., in preparation for Monday’s exhibition against Brazil at the Verizon Center.


    ALEXANDRIA, Va
    . — Rondae Jefferson can now add acting to his list of accomplishments.

    Already a talented basketball player, the 6-foot-7 wing from Chester (Pa.) recently starred with Rashawn Tucker in a re-make of a classic Spike Lee commercial (above).

    “Rashawn Tucker called me and he told me about the whole video and he said I was the only guy around that area. He said, ‘Let’s make it happen.’ And I’m not a guy to turn anybody down,” Jefferson said  after going for 17 points and 8 rebounds Friday evening as his USA Midwest team crushed Lithuania, 101-66, in the Nike Global Challenge at Episcopal High School.

    The Knicks have held firm that they will match any offer sheet signed by Jeremy Lin this offseason.

    As recently as Thursday, head coach Mike Woodson and General Manager Glen Grunwald reiterated those sentiments, but with Lin reportedly signing an offer sheet with the Houston Rockets on Friday afternoon, the Knicks are now officially on the clock.

    Lin has reportedly signed an offer sheet with the Rockets valued at $25.1 million over three years. The caveat with that offer sheet is while the first year of the deal will pay the worldwide phenomenon just $5 million, the third year jumps to a guaranteed $14.9 million.

    ALEXANDRIA, Va. — High school basketball players talk about “package deals” all the time, but they rarely come to fruition.

    Yet if childhood buddies Troy Williams and Anthony “Cat” Barber of Hampton, Va., are to be believed, they could end up playing together at Louisville or Alabama.

    “We talk about it all the time,” Barber said after Williams went off for 27 points and Barber had 7 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists as USA East routed China, 109-70, at the Nike Global Challenge .

    “We talk if I don’t go to Kansas, if I go to Alabama, he gonna go there. If I go to Louisville, he gonna go there just because he like playing with me and I like playing with him, too. But we haven’t decided nothing yet.”

    ALEXANDRIA, Va. — As the point guard for a Team Canada squad that includes Andrew Wiggins, Trey Lyles and Xavier Rathan-Mayes, Tyler Ennis has no shortage of weapons to feed the ball to.

    Ennis and his Canadian teammates were tested big-time by Brazil Thursday at the Nike Global Challenge before persevering with a 75-71 win in the first game for both teams.

    The 6-foot-3 Ennis, a rising senior at St. Benedict’s Prep, finished with 15 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists, including a clutch driving layup late to cut Brazil’s lead to one point in the final minutes.

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