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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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Thursday / March 28.
  • Jahlil Okafor, the No. 1 player in the Class of 2014, has cut his list to eight schools.

    He Tweeted: “In no particular order: My final 8 Arizona Baylor Duke Illinois Kentucky Kansas Michigan state Ohio state.”

    “I always knew that Baylor, Duke, Michigan State, Ohio State and Kansas would make the list because I had such great in-home visits with all of those schools and I’ve gotten really close to them,” the 6-foot-10 Whitney Young junior wrote in his USA Today blog. “They left a huge impression on me and my family.

    “With Illinois I just love what Coach (John) Groce is doing there and I really believe in what he’s done and what he’s capable of. Then Arizona is a school that’s always been there with Coach (Sean) Miller. I went out there my freshman year and I just love everything about it.

    Louisville and Kentucky have won the last two NCAA championships, yet one study says Louisville is significantly ahead of Kentucky in another category.

    Emory Sports Marketing Analytics conducted the study.

    “The intuition of this approach is that fan base quality is reflected in a school’s men’s basketball revenue relative to the team’s performance. To accomplish our analysis, we use a statistical model that predicts team revenues as a function of the team’s

    Bronx native Terry Larrier of the Phelps (Pa.) School is one of the top small forwards in the Class of 2014.

    He holds offers from Florida, Florida State, St. John’s, Minnesota, Providence, Penn State, Rutgers, George Mason, Seton Hall, West Virginia, Pittsburgh, USC, Memphis and Maryland,.

    Larrier will be contributing periodically to ZAGSBLOG entering his senior season. Here’s his first entry:

    Hello, world!

    Its your boy Terry Larrier of Team Scan reporting live from the airport.

    I’m finally finished up with school for the year and finishing up the EYBL final session this weekend was a relief. While I love my teammates for always playing so hard, it’s time to rest my body for the next couple of days, then it’s back in that gym to put in some work. My team has been fortunate enough to make the Nike Peach Jam so we will be getting prepared for that ASAP.

    Legendary Montrose Christian Coach Stu Vetter plans to leave the school at the end of the summer, the school announced Wednesday.

    “It’s the right time to step down,”  the 61-year-old Vetter, who coached Kevin Durant and Greivis Vasquez, among others, told the Washington Post.

    “At this stage of my life, I want to spend more time with my family and pursue other coaching, camp and business opportunities. It’s been a great 14 years and we’ve established ourselves as one of the best programs in the country, which is something I take pride in.”

    NEW YORK –– It has become a virtual cliché in professional sports.

    An athlete gets drafted and immediately buys his parents, or his mother, a brand new home.

    But in the case of former Syracuse point guard Michael Carter-Williams, the story has new meaning.

    After his family home in Hamilton, Mass., burned to the ground in March, Carter-Williams is looking to use his newfound status — and resources — as an NBA player to buy a new home — and launch a new life — for his family. The NBA Draft is June 27.

    By JEREMY WOO

    Special to ZAGSBLOG

    MINNEAPOLIS — Justise Winslow put it frankly.

    “We’ve got a big target on our backs.”

    After leading his Houston Hoops squad to a 16-2 record across four EYBL sessions and a berth in July’s finals at Peach Jam, nothing about that will have changed for a team that is clearly one of the league’s best.

    As part of a talented group that also features UNC commit Justin Jackson and highly-rated forward Kelly Oubre, Winslow began to find his personal groove in Minneapolis over the weekend after playing with a banged up knee in previous sessions.

    By JACK LeGWIN

    Special to ZAGSBLOG

    SUWANEE, Ga.Daniel Giddens leaves Wednesday to join the USA Basketball Developmental National Team mini-camp in Colorado Springs, Colo., and he can’t wait to get started.

    “I’m blessed to be a part of the program,” Giddens told SNY.tv at the Nike Memorial Invitational over the weekend. “I fly out on Wednesday to practice, and to be there for final cuts. It’s a great experience and I’m blessed to play with the best.”

    A 6-foot-10 center out of Atlanta (Ga.) Wheeler, Giddens is hoping to make the 2013 USA U16 National Team, which will compete in the FIBA Americas Championship next month in Uruguay. If the U.S. qualifies, the team will also compete in the 2014 USA U17 World Championship.

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