MINNESOTA GETS THREE PLAYERS NAMED TO THE 2014 MCDONALDS ALL-AMERICAN BOYS BASKETBALL GAME

McDonald’s has put out a list of this year’s high school all-American boys basketball team. This year’s roster features three players from the state of Minnesota. Tyus Jones who plays basketball at Apple Valley high school and has signed to Duke University. Reid Travis from Minneapolis De La Salle High School and who will be attending Stanford University and Rashad Vaughn who went to Robbinsdale Cooper high school and is presently attending Findlay College Prep. Vaughn is the only recruit from Minnesota who is currently undecided on where he will be attending college.

 

The McDonald’s All American game will be Apr. 2 on ESPNU.

 

This is this year’s roster for the game:

 

EAST

 

Name Pos Hgt High School (Hometown) College

 

Cliff Alexander PF 6-9 Curie High School (Chicago, IL) Kansas

 

James Blackmon, Jr. SG 6-2 Marion High School (Marion, IN) Indiana

 

Justin Jackson SF 6-7 Homeschool Christian (Tomball, TX) North Carolina

 

Tyus Jones PG 6-1 Apple Valley High School (Apple Valley, MN) Duke

 

Kevon Looney PF 6-8 Milwaukee Hamilton High School (Milwaukee, WI) UCLA

 

Theo Pinson SF 6-6 Wesleyan Christian (Greensboro, NC) North Carolina

 

D’Angelo Russell SG 6-4 Montverde Academy (Louisville, KY) Ohio State

 

Karl Towns, Jr. C 6-11 St. Joseph High School (Metuchen, NJ) Kentucky

 

Romelo Trimble PG 6-2 O’Connell High School (Upper Marlboro, MD) Maryland

 

Myles Turner C 6-11 Trinity High School (Bedford, TX) Undecided

 

Isaiah Whitehead SG 6-4 Lincoln High School (Brooklyn, NY) Seton Hall

 

Justise Winslow SF 6-6 Saint John’s High School (Houston, TX) Duke    

WEST TEAM  

Name Pos Hgt High School (Hometown) College

 

Grayson Allen SG 6-4 Providence School of Jacksonville (Jacksonville, FL) Duke

 

Joel Berry PG 6-0 Lake Highland Prep (Apopka, FL) North Carolina

 

Devin Booker SG 6-5 Moss Point High School (Moss Point, MS) Kentucky

 

Stanley Johnson SF 6-6 Mater Dei High School (Fullerton, CA) Arizona

 

Trey Lyles PF 6-10 Arsenal Technical (Indianapolis, IN) Kentucky

 

Emmanuel Mudiay PG 6-5 Prime Prep Academy (Dallas, TX) Southern Methodist

 

Jahlil Okafor C 6-10 Whitney Young Magnet High School (Chicago, IL) Duke

 

Oubre SF 6-7 Findlay College Prep (Richmond, TX) Kansas

 

Reid Travis PF 6-8 De La Salle High School (Minneapolis, MN) Stanford

 

Tyler Ulis PG 5-9 Marian Catholic High School (Matteson, IL) Kentucky

 

Rashad Vaughn SG 6-6 Findlay College Prep (Golden Valley, MN) Undecided

 

Thomas Welsh C 6-11 Loyola High School (Los Angeles, CA) UCLA

TYUS JONES IS HEADED TO DUKE UNIVERSITY

In a packed Apple Valley high school gym Tyus Jones -- who is one of the top recruited boys’ basketball players in the country -- held a press conference to announce where he will be attending college.

There was a lot of excitement in the air. Also having his press conference at the same time was Jahlil Okafor who is from Chicago. Jones and Okafor are considered the two top players in the country 

The announcement was carried live on ESPNU. Pete Buesgens, the athletic director, spoke about Jones. Jones head coach Zach Goring spoke about the journey through high school. He talked about the talent of Jones. Goring said “Jones is a type of player who make his teammates better. He will leave Apple Valley as the all-time leading scorer.”

Jones got up and spoke and announced that he will be attending Duke University. Brother Jadee Jones talked about Tyus: “He is a good player and a very humble person. Coach K is a nice guy easy to build a relationship with and I’m relieved that the recruiting process is over.”

 I was able to record the announcement. Be patient there are some dead spots with the audio. Listen to Jones make the announcement which was broadcast on ESPNU.

After the announcement Jones took questions from the media.

Aaron Edwards from Metro Youth Sports Media shot the video coverage of the event.

TYUS JONES AND JAHLIL OKAFOR TO ANOUNCE THEIR COLLEGE CHOICE ON FRIDAY NOVEMBER 15

Tyus Jones and Jahlil Okafor are ready to tell the world where they will be attending college. They both have both narrowed down their schools lists down to Baylor, Duke and Kansas.

 

On Friday, Nov, 15 they will have press conferences at their respective schools at 3:00 pm central time to make their official announcement.

 

Jones is regarded as one of the top guards in the country and Okafor is regarded as one of the top centers in the country.

 

Duke Basketball Recruiting – Jahlil Okafor & Tyus Jones May Not be the Dynamic Duo

By David Aldridge:

"One of the biggest ideas in Duke basketball recruiting circles over the past few months has been that Jahlil Okafor and Tyus Jones, two of the top recruits in the class of 2014, would commit to Duke in a package deal. Jones is the top ranked point guard while Okafor is the top big man in the class of 2014.

Both players have talked openly about wanting to play together in college so it’s not a stretch that they could become Blue Devils, but it’s still early in the recruiting process and many things could change.

Jones and Okafor are considering Duke, Baylor, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan State, and Ohio State. If Mike Krzyzewski and his staff are able to land these two top prospects, they’ll have to earn it by beating out some of the other top recruiters in college basketball.

An article recently surfaced that Duke was the current leader in the recruitment of Jahlil Okafor. The report was based on comments from Okafor’s AAU coach, Mike Irvin, that he thought Duke had a great chance to land Okafor and Jones.

Okafor and his father quickly refuted the comments, stating he currently has no leader and that he wants to go through the full recruiting process before making his decision.

This might be creating some nervous anxiety among Duke fans who were already dreaming of pick-and-roll’s between Jones and Okafor in Cameron Indoor Stadium, but it’s simply a reminder that things are always fluid in the world of recruiting.

It’s also not a lock that the top high school point guard and top big man will eventually team up in college. Along with the schools both players are considering, Jahlil Okafor is also interested in Arizona and Illinois, while Tyus Jones has Minnesota on his list of schools.

As Jahlil Okafor’s father stated in an interview with ESPNChicago, “The ultimate goal is for both the boys to play together, but they may not find a situation that fits them both.”

Nothing is guaranteed.

While Duke will certainly be in the running to land both players and the staff has clearly made both guys a top priority for the class of 2014, the Blue Devils are pursuing many other excellent players in addition to Jones and Okafor. Duke has already received a commitment from four-star guard Grayson Allen and they are still being considered by multiple five-star players, including Kevon Looney, Justise Winslow, Myles Turner and Goodluck Okonoboh.

For a roster that already features some great young talent, the possibility of adding multiple five-star recruits in the class of 2014 means Coach K will keep the momentum rolling through the next couple years, even if that doesn’t include Tyus Jones or Jahlil Okafor.

The Duke basketball program is bigger than two gifted high school recruits. And if they chose to play elsewhere, Duke fans can wish them well and be excited about the other fantastic players Mike Krzyzewski recruits."

Follow @davidmaldridge

- See more at: http://dukereport.com/duke-recruiting/duke-basketball-recruiting-jahlil-okafor-tyus-jones-may-not-be-the-dynamic-duo/daldridge/#sthash.ic1NYRhG.dpuf

Duke Basketball Recruiting – Jahlil Okafor & Tyus Jones May Not be the Dynamic Duo

JAHLIL OKAFOR HAS NARROWED DOWN HIS COLLEGE CHOICES

Jahlil Okafor has trimmed his college selection down. Okafor is one of the top recruits in the class of 2014. Okafor is also a friend of Tyus Jones who is from Minnesota.  

According to Nick Jones of Scout.com, “Scout’s No. 1 overall player for 2014, Jahlil Okafor, took to Twitter on Wednesday to announce he has trimmed his list of prospective schools to eight.

“In no particular order: My final 8 Arizona, Baylor, Duke, Illinois, Kentucky, Kansas, Michigan State, Ohio St.,” The 6-foot-10, 270-pound center announced via his Twitter account @Jahprobound on Wednesday.

The Chicago native removed several schools from a previously-lengthy list. Some of the programs that did not make the final cut included Arkansas, DePaul, Louisville, North Carolina and Wisconsin.

Okafor has openly expressed his desire to team with close friend and No. 1 point guard Tyus Jones at the college level.

The package deal is in the works, but only a handful of schools are actively recruiting both prospects: UK, Baylor, Kansas, Duke, Michigan State and Ohio State. The duo will likely remain firm on their pledge to accompany each other at the next level as the take official visits together beginning in August.”