Summer break can be a stressful time for the top, young basketball prospects in the country. They enjoy the time off from school but spend much of their time on the court rather than relaxing.
In addition to continuous AAU play, many take part in international competition. Ohio State commit Micah Potter played in Italy earlier this year. Signee Daniel Giddens tried out for Team USA U17 last year and played for the U16 squad in 2013, winning a FIBA gold medal in Uruguay. Him and classmate A.J. Harris competed for the USA South squad at the 2014 Nike Global Challenge.
If any of that is a precedent, you can expect to see at least one future Buckeye competing in some non-AAU events this summer.
Gary Trent Jr., who received an OSU offer in April, was the leading scorer during the EYBL's regular season at 22.1 points per game. His explosive scoring ability left little doubt that he'd be a good fit on the Team USA U16 squad. He officially made the team after Tuesday's tryouts helped cut the roster down from 16 to 12.
One of Trent Jr.'s teammates is Apple Valley High School (Minnesota) pal Tre Jones – the younger brother of former Duke point guard Tyus Jones. Westerville South's Kaleb Wesson tried out and is a part of the junior national team, but he did not make the 12-man squad.
The U16 men's national team will continue practicing through June 6 before heading to Argentina for the FIBA Americas U16 Championship.
As is the case with the Olympics, Team USA is historically dominant. So, it's no surprise Trent Jr. is taking an easygoing approach to the event.
"I just want to go out there and see how I compare to the top players in the country in my class. When I go there, I am just going to play hard and whatever happens, happens," Trent Jr. told GopherHole.com. "It always helps your game grow when you are playing against great competition. You always have to bring your “A” game or you will get exposed, so during that time, you just have to go out there and show what you can do."
Meanwhile, two Ohio State offerees are competing for the U.S. squad at the Adidas Eurocamp. Braxton Blackwell (Nashville, Tennessee) and Kobi Simmons (Alpharetta, Georgia) will head to Treviso, Italy this weekend as part of the 11-man team.
Unfortunately, as talented as those two are, it's unlikely either commit to the Buckeyes. Potter and Derek Funderburk Jr. took the last available scholarships in the 2016 class.
Dane Goodwin HIghlights
When Dane Goodwin (Upper Arlington) pledged to Ohio State, his father told Eleven Warriors they weren't concerned by the lack of mixtapes and assorted highlight packages on YouTube.
The logic is sound – he's already committed, that kind of attention can be detrimental to the player's progress and, above all else, mixtapes aren't necessarily a good indicator of how good that player is.
Having said that, we don't know much about Goodwin's game at all thanks to the lack of highlights out there. Here's his newest video, via NextUpRecruits.com:
Around The B1G
- Former Michigan forward Max Bielfeldt is headed to Indiana. The grad transfer will be immediately eligible and provide a boost to the Hoosiers' thin front-court depth.
- No current or committed Buckeyes on the USA U19 national team, but the Big Ten has four in camp: Tyus Battle (Michigan, 2016), Vince Edwards (Purdue), Diamond Stone (Maryland) and Caleb Swanigan (Purdue).
