NORWALK, Ca. – As was the case during its four “pool-play games” over the weekend, “Team Harden” struggled in the first half of the championship game of the adidas Global Nations Monday night at Cerritos Community College in this Los Angeles suburb.
As, was also the case in those previous contests, Team Harden fired hard on all cylinders after intermission while rolling to a 123-96 victory over Team Canada.
Team Harden got double-figure scoring from seven of its 11 players – led by guard Jaylen Hands (a senior-to-be who attended Balboa Prep in San Diego as a junior must is soon like to relocate to another San Diego County school), who scored 18 points and was selected by event officials as the Most Outstanding Player following conclusion of the title game.
Trailing 56-50 at the half (there were four 10-minute quarters in each game) after playing poor defensively, in both transition and half-court settings, Team Harden blitzed the squad from beyond the northern borders of the U.S. of A., 43-19, in the third quarter to render the final 10 minutes just an opportunity for the crowd in the gym and the nationally televised audience to see most of this players one last time before December.
Six-foot-ten DeAndre Ayton (Phoenix Hillcrest Academy), considered by many to be the No. 1 prospect in the Class of 2017, scored 11 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in the second half for Team Harden to finish with 13 and 14, respectively, in just 19 on-court minutes.
In the third-place game, Team Rose led pretty much from start to finish while toppling Team Africa, 105-92, and avenging a pool-play loss on Sunday.
Charles O’Bannon Jr. (Las Vegas Bishop Gorman), who has a chance to join his father (Class of 1993, Lakewood, CA, Artesia) as a McDonald’s All-American next spring, led Team Rose with 21 points in 20 minutes.
In the loss, 7-foot-2 Chol Marial (from the Sudan by way of Cheshire Academy in Connecticut) continued to illustrated why he’s one of the five or so best prospects in the Class of 2019 while scoring 19 points and being credited with nine rebounds and three blocked shots.
Team Harden, which out-scored its five opponents by an average margin of 16 points, was wired to win the event before the first game was played with the bulk of the best players from the Class of 2017 in attendance were assigned to the squad.
Ironically enough, only Hands (Compton Magic) and fellow point guard Makai Ashton-Langford (adidas Super 64 champion Massachusetts Rivals) played on adidas-sponsored teams during the spring and summer circuits.
Ayton (California Supreme), Wendell Carter (CP3), Troy Brown Jr. (Las Vegas Prospects), Hamidou Diallo (New York Rens), P.J. Washington (Team Penny), Kevin Knox (Each 1, Teach 1) and D.J. Harvey (Team Takeover) played on the Nike/EYBL circuit while guard Trevon Duval (WE R 1) was the top player on the Under Armour circuit.
The best of the players from adidas-affiliated club programs who didn’t play on national television Monday night but played in the event over the weekend (games began Friday night at the Next Level facility in Garden Grove) were 2018 forward Zion Williamson (Spartanburg, SC, Day School/Game Elite of Georgia) and 2017 guard Nick Weatherspoon (Camden, MS, Velma Jackson/MBA Hoops).
Weatherspoon averaged 15.0 points in the three games he played for Team Rose while Williamson averaged 20.0 points and 4.0 rebounds – hitting 23 of 28 shots from the floor – in the three games he played with Team Wiggins.
Williamson was the best player on the floor in each of those games – including during the 101-83 loss to Team Harden on Saturday night in Garden Grove, when he hit 10 of 14 shots (including his only attempt from behind the arc) while scoring 25 points.
The left-handed Williamson should be right near the top of any Class of 2018 rankings and is a strong challenger to another leftyMarvin Bagley III (Chatsworth, CA, Sierra Canyon), as the No. 1 prospect in the class.
My “all-adidas Global Nations” 12-player selections (alpha listing/based on performance at event and not strictly “potential”):
*Thomas Allen (2017/6-2/Wolfeboro, NH, Brewster Academy/Team Rose)
*DeAndre Ayton (2017/6-11/Phoenix Hillcrest/Team Harden)
*Jules Bernard (2018/6-5/Los Angeles Windward/Team Lillard)
*Wendell Carter (2017/6-9/Atlanta Pace Academy/Team Harden)
*Lamine Diane (2017/6-7/Henderson, NV, Findlay Prep/Team Africa)
*Luguentz Dort (2018/6-4/Wasatch, UT, Academy/Team Canada)
*Trevon Duval (2017/6-2/High school TBD/Team Harden)
*Jaylen Hands (2017/6-3/High school TBD/Team Harden)
*Jordan Nwora (2017/6-7/Saxtons River, VT, Academy/Team Africa)
*Charles O’Bannon Jr. (2017/6-5/Las Vegas Bishop Gorman/Team Rose)
*Nickeil Dean Walker (2017/6-5/Chattanooga, TN, Hamilton Heights Christian/Team Canada)
*Zion Williamson (2018/6-6/Spartanburg, SC, Day School/Team Wiggins)
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