Strong field set as Classic at Damien tips off today

December 26, 2016 By Frank Burlison Leave a Comment

LAVERNE, Ca. – The first-ever Classic at Damien gets underway way on Monday, with the Gold and Silver brackets being contested on the Damien High campus and games in the Bronze Division held at San Dimas High and Life Pacific College.

The Gold (top) bracketed games commence at 10 a.m. when Lake Balboa Birmingham and Oak Park – two of the top programs from the San Fernando Valley region of Southern California – play in the Damien Athletic Center in what should be one of the more compelling matchups of the first day.

The first Silver game (in Damien’s Event Center, located just steps from the Athletic Center) tips off at 9:30 when L.A. Windward faces Palmdale Knight.

The top seed in the Gold competition is Santa Ana Mater Dei, with Woodland Hills atop the Silver bracket and La Canada heading the field in the Bronze.

For complete schedules and more information on the five-day event (that concludes Friday), go to:

www.classicatdamien.com

Frank Burlison is a well-regarded basketball writer who was inducted into the U.S. Basketball Writers Association Hall of Fame in 2005. His opinions on the potential of high school and college players are widely respected and sought by college coaches and NBA scouts, personnel directors and general managers from coast to coast. Oh, yes – he can offer plenty of thoughts on movies, television and pop music. Yes, he can rank those, too. Hint: He’s a big The Godfather, Larry Sanders, The Wire and The Beatles loyalist.

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George Raveling

I’ve known Frank for at least 35 years and have the utmost respect for his writing as well as his understanding of, and insight into, basketball. His ability to evaluate basketball prospects is almost impeccable. Most coaches and scouts watch a player and can tell you how good he is NOW. What separates Frank from the others is that he can watch the same player and tell you how good he can be two or three years down the line.

George Raveling

3x Pac-10 Coach of the Year, Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer

Director of International Basketball, Nike

Gary McKnight

Frank Burlison is one of the most knowledgeable basketball people in the business! His passion for the game puts him at the top of the list. There are very few people whose evaluation skills I trust like I do Frank’s!

Gary McKnight

Winningest coach (892-81) in California boys’ basketball history during his 29 seasons at Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei

Marques Johnson

I have been a fan of Frank Burlison’s skills as a talent evaluator for over twenty years. He stands out as one of the absolute best in the business.

Marques Johnson

1977 National Player of the Year, 5x NBA All-Star

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