Article 325: A chat with Fenton

July 27, 2012

Central Catholic's John Fenton has had an eventful summer so far. He recently returned from the Reebok Breakout Challenge in Philadelphia. The 2013 post prospect from Modesto also has seen his recruiting pick up since last summer. Fenton is also playing with Fresno-based Organized Chaos during the July evaluation period.

The Reebok Challenge was a positive experience for Fenton. "The Reebok Challenge was great," said Fenton. "The competition was some of the best I've seen. I got to play against guys who I will probably see again in college competition. It got me a lot more exposure and I think I grew as a player from it."

Last summer, Fenton played with national prospect and eventual Stanford commit, Grant Verhoeven from Central Valley Christian School. "I learned a lot from Grant," says Fenton. "I played with a kid who had offers everywhere so I got to see where I should try to be as a player. I learned how to play against Division I type players and got better at adjusting my game in order to be more successful. Grant also has a great attitude towards his teammates. He has helped me become more cohesive with my teammates. I learned that the recruiting process could be crazy. Calls all the time from coaches, and coaches lining up to see Grant play. It is very busy but exciting."

Fenton's game was raw but full of potential last summer. "I have improved the most with awareness and reacting to how the defender plays me," says Fenton. "I have been working a lot on facing the basket to make quick moves. Last summer, I did not face the basket as much."

Organized Chaos Coach Chris Stahowski assesses Fenton's improvement. "John's footwork and ability to finish around the basket. He has worked on stepping his range out to 15 feet and his mobility has become better."

The 6-foot-9 and 230 pounds post prospect has gotten offers from Colgate, Holy Cross, and Pacific. He has serious interest from American University, Dartmouth, Denver University, James Madison, Santa Clara, and Yale.

Fenton has this take on the recruiting process so far. "There are several different conferences I am interested in. But I mainly want to play for a school with great academics and a nice campus. I think any schools from the Ivy League or Patriot League fit that well. I am hoping to get more looks from the West Coast. I do not prefer the West Coast but I want to have a lot of options."

"John would succeed in a system that runs double bigs," says Stahowski. "A team that runs half court sets and will defend the heck out of it in the half court."

Stahowski would like to see Fenton improve in certain aspects of the game still. "He still needs to find a counter move with his back to the basket. I'd like to see him be a little more comfortable going to the middle from the block."

"I feel like I need to work on getting more balanced when I make post moves," says Fenton. "I need to improve on finishing more around the rim with contested shots."

As July wraps up, Fenton should be getting further inquiries from college programs. Central Catholic finished a strong 26-7 this past season and returns a strong core including Fenton to build on. Watch for this treat to be unwrapped on the recruiting trail during the upcoming season in Modesto, Calif.

Article 324: Ferrari revving up

July 23, 2012

Burlingame High consistently has 20 win seasons on the hard court. This past season, the Panthers went 20-11 in the Peninsula Athletic League with a postseason loss to Sacred Heart Cathedral, the Northern California representative in the state finals. A key for the Panthers will be the further improvement of 2014 prospect Frankie Ferrari.

The 5-foot-10 and 150 pounds point guard has been on varsity since the middle of his freshman season and was a starter as a sophomore this past season. As a sophomore, he averaged 19 points, 5 rebounds, and 9 assists per game.

Ferrari likens his game to former Burlingame Panther and Stanford Cardinal, Drew Shiller, because he gets his teammates involved, is a floor leader, and has a high basketball IQ. In addition, Ferrari plays for his Lunardi's club during the summer to improve on his overall game as his father also coaches the club.

At the Bay Area Memorial Day Classic, NorCalPreps.com analyst Douglas Benton had this assessment of Ferrari at the event: "Just a sophomore, he has a great feel for the position in understanding how to draw defenses for open looks. He plays with good vision and has added confidence and range to his shot over the last year. At points, he can get too creative, which leads to unnecessary turnovers."

Ferrari plays with a finesse style as he understands that he will not always win with strength and quickness. As a result, he plays in a heady manner by making calculated decisions in his passing and shot selection.

This Panther played on the football team for his first two years but will not pursue the sport further. He also played on the baseball team but considers basketball to be his best sport. Ferrari is looking for more college looks during his junior year and wants to lead his team to winning CCS.

Burlingame has produced the aforementioned Shiller for the college level. Ferrari is looking to replicate that as he is looking for a school that is up tempo in its style of play and a family orientated environment with the coaching staff and players. Ferrari has a 3.20 GPA as his best subject is English and would like to major in Sports Medicine.

As the evaluation period heats up in July, watch for Ferrari to rev up. Then, watch Ferrari drive his Panthers the next two seasons in Burlingame, Calif.

Article 323: Rae Jackson update

July 19, 2012

During this past weekend at the Nor Cal Summer Tip Off at City College of San Francisco, 2013 prospect Rae Jackson provided an update on his recruiting. The Rodriguez star also revealed that he will be transferring to El Cerrito when the school year starts.

El Cerrito Head Coach Michael Booker says of his future point guard, "Rae has many strengths but I think his greatest strength is his triple threat ability. Rae has the ball handling skills needed to drive to the basket and finish strong with either hand, he has the ability to shoot his jump-shot off the dribble, spotting up or coming off screens and he has the court vision to find and pass to teammates for easy scoring opportunities."

At 6-foot-1 and 180 pounds, Jackson has great athleticism for a guard. During his Rodriguez years, he was called upon to be a scorer. But for the college level, he expects to be a point guard. During the summer, he has been playing for his Bay Area Magic club, coached by his father Rae Jackson Sr., and the Oakland Soldiers 17U club.

"Rae has a calm demeanor on the court but he plays with a high level of determination," says Booker. "He is a fierce competitor and he has an extreme amount of confidence in his abilities."

Jackson believes that he has improved on his shot selection and all around defense during the summer. He feels that his point guard skills are his ability to see the floor well and to distribute the ball. He wants to play for a college program that has a running mentality.

Cal State Northridge, Long Beach State, Oklahoma, San Diego State, San Jose State, Santa Clara, and Tulsa have expressed interest in Jackson. He believes the experience with the Soldiers has allowed him to play with stronger and more skilled players and realizes that he has more work to do and that he has to work to be stronger.

"I think Rae has the ability to play collegially at the division one level," says Booker. "I think that Rae at the next level would immediately help any program in need of a point guard/basketball player. Rae is a good student who meets all the requirements to attend a four year college, he is a good teammate, his skill level and basketball IQ is very good. He can defend his position and he understands a team defensive system. More importantly, he understands how to use his strengths to help his team succeed."

Later in the month, the Soldiers 17U club will be competing at Peach Jam in South Carolina. The exposure from this event should help with Jackson's recruiting. Then, watch for Jackson to make a difference for El Cerrito High in the fall.