July 12, 2004

Mark Melvin

Mark Melvin spent three days at the Nike Camp in Indianapolis last week. He breaks down the top players at the camp on their performance by position and how they stacked up overall.

Mark Melvin's top 30 players at Nike regardless of class, position.

1. Richard Hendrix Class of 2005 power forward/center Athens, Ala.
The 6-foot-9 power player has offers from UAB, North Carolina, Alabama and Tennessee among others

2. Josh McRoberts Class of 2005 power forward Carmel, Ind.
Committed to Duke

3. Louis Williams Class of 2005 shooting guard Snellville, Ga.
Committed to Georgia

4. Micah Downs Class of 2005 small forward Bothell, Wash.
Committed to Kansas

5. Martell Webster Class of 2005 small forward Seattle, Wash.
Arizona, Washington, UNC, Oklahoma, UCLA and Duke all on his list. Reportedly Arizona, Washington have offered

6. Tyler Hansbrough Class of 2005 power forward Poplar Bluff, Mo.
Will choose between Kansas, UNC, Missouri, and Kentucky.

7. Brandan Wright Class of 2006 center Brentwood, Tenn.
Will he bypass college for the NBA????

8. Jeremiah Rivers Class of 2006 combo guard Winter Park, Fla.
Son of former Proviso East legend/Boston Celtics head coach Doc Rivers.

9. Kyle Singler Class of 2007 small forward Medford, Ore.
6-foot-7, 180-pound sophomore stood out all camp

10. Kevin Durant Class of 2006 small forward Capitol Heights, Md.

11. Magnum Rolle Class of 2005 center St. Thomas, Virgin Islands
Illinois one of many involved with the former Florida State commitment

12. Bryan Davis Class of 2006 power forward Grand Prairie, Texas
The junior has offers from Illinois, Arizona, Kansas, Baylor and Texas

13. Justin Dentmon Class of 2005 point guard Carbondale, Ill./Winchenden Prep, Mass.
USC, Miami(Fla.), Illinois, Washington all involved

14. Jerryd Bayless Class of 2007 point guard Phoenix, Ariz.
6-foot-2 sophomore already has an Arizona offer

15. David Weaver Class of 2005 center Black Mountain, N.C.
Committed to Wake Forest

16. Andrew Bynum Class of 2005 center Plainsboro, N.J.

17. Ryan Wright Class of 2005 power forward Mississauga, Ontario
Illinois one of many schools involved

18. Keaton Grant Class of 2005 shooting guard Kissimmee, Fla.

19. DeShawn Sims Class of 2006 power forward Detroit, Mich.

20. Kevin Rogers Class of 2005 power forward Dallas
Has offers from Illinois, UConn, Arizona, Kansas, UNC, Oklahoma and Texas among others

21. Fendi Onobun Class of 2005 power forward Alief, Texas
Committed to Arizona

22. Jamar Smith Class of 2005 shooting guard Peoria, Ill.
Committed to Illinois

23. Cassan Breeden Class of 2005 small forward Cilo, S.C.
Auburn, Clemson, North Carolina State, Georgia Tech have all offered

24. Spencer Hawes Class of 2006 center Seattle, Wash.

25. Demond Carter Class of 2006 point guard LaPlace, Calif.

26. Jamal Boykin Class of 2005 power forward Los Angeles
Duke leads Illinois, Pitt, Georgia Tech, and Boston College

27. Darrell Arthur Class of 2006 power forward Dallas, Texas
South Oak Cliff player has offers from Kansas, Arizona and Texas

28. Julian Wright Class of 2005 small forward Homewood-Flossmoor, Ill.
Sprained ankle slowed him down at the camp. Looking at Illinois, DePaul with Arizona on the outside

29. Chris Douglas-Roberts Class of 2005 point guard Detroit, Mich.

30. Michael Mercer Class of 2005 shooting guard Snellville, Ga.
Committed to Georgia

Top Players by Position:

Centers:

1. Richard Hendrix

2. Brandan Wright

3. Magnum Rolle

4. David Weaver

5. Andrew Bynum

6. Spencer Hawes

7. Brian Zoubek Class of 2006 Haddonfield, N.J.

8. Eric Boateng Class of 2005 Middletown, Del.

9. Rashaad Singleton Class of 2005 Campbellton, Fla.
Committed to Georgia

10. Andre Ott Class of 2006 Germantown, Pa.

Power Forwards:
1. Josh McRoberts

2. Tyler Hansbrough

3. Bryan Davis

4. Ryan Wright

5. Kevin Rogers

6. Fendi Onobun

7. Jamal Boykin

8. Darrell Arthur

9. James Keefe Class of 2006 Santa Margarita, Calif.

10.Bryce Webster Class of 2006 Mendota Heights, Minn.

Small Forwards:
1. Micah Downs

2. Martell Webster

3. Kyle Singler

4. Kevin Durant

5. Deshawn Sims

6. Casaan Breedan

7. Julian Wright

8. Isiah Dahlman Class of 2006 Braham, Minn.

9. Chris Knight Class of 2005 Cincinnati, Ohio

10. Marcus Landry Class of 2005 Milwaukee, Wis.

Shooting Guards:

1. Louis Williams

2. Keaton Grant

3. Jamar Smith

4. A.J. Abrams Class of 2005 Austin, Texas
Committed to Texas

5. Jeremy Wise Class of 2006 Jackson, Miss.

6. Jerry Smith Class of 2006 Wauwatosa, Wis.

7. Christian Polk Class of 2006 Glendale, Ariz.

8. K.C. Rivers Class of 2005 Mouth of Wilson, Va.

9. Ray Reese Class of 2005 Los Angeles, Calif.

10. Billy Humphrey Class of 2005 Dacula, Ga.

Point Guards:

1. Jeremiah Rivers

2. Justin Dentmon

3. Jerryd Bayless

4. Demond Carter

5. Chris Douglas-Roberts

6. Michael Mercer

7. Dominic James Class of 2005 Richmond, Ind.
Committed to Marquette

8. Deonta Vaughn Class of 2005 Indianapolis, Ind.

9. Joe Johnson Class of 2006 Ingelwood, Calif.

10. Eric Price Class of 2005 Hargrave Military, Va.

Most Overrated Players at Nike:

1. Vernon Macklin Class of 2006 power forward out of Portsmouth, Va. I've seen him as high as top five, he isn't a top fifty player in my opinion.

2. Nic Wise Class of 2006 point guard out of Fresno, Texas is committed to Arizona, didn't impress.

3. Keith Brumbaugh Class of 2005 combo forward from Deland, Fla. Some have him as a top twenty player, not me, he is soft, no handle and a tweener(6-foot-8, 200-pounds).

4. Jon Brockman Class of 2005 power forward. The Snohomish, Wash. power forward has offers from UCLA and Washington, a big rep, but didn't do anything for me.

5. Kevin Long Class of 2007 top five prospect on many lists. The 6-foot-8, 240-pounder from Lake Oswego, Ore. isn't as good Kyle Singler and not even close to being as good as Chicago Simeon sophomore Derrick Rose.

6. C.J. Miles Class of 2005 small forward Dallas, Texas. At least at this event, the Dallas Skyline forward showed me nothing that would support his ranking (Top 15-30 range nationally).

Talk about this story with other Illini fans in the Illinois Sports Forum. Want more 'inside information'? then try the 7-day trial subscription to the Orange&Blue News.