On the summer’s last major stage for high school basketball, the Kentucky Wildcats again couldn’t stay out of the headlines.

During halftime of the nationally-televised Elite 24 showcase at Venice Beach, Calif., Kyle Wiltjer announced his commitment to UK. The 6-9 forward from Portland, Ore., then went on to win co-MVP of the game, scoring 20 points.

If recruiting is more than half the battle in college basketball, John Calipari is setting himself up to win a war (or at least a national championship). Read More »

It’s alright if you’re not familiar with Marquis Teague just yet. Unless you’re a diehard high school hoops fan, or from Indiana, chances are you’ve never even seen the kid play. But as the best point guard in the Class of 2011, and the younger brother of the Atlanta Hawks’ Jeff Teague, you should get to know him. Today, Teague has setup a 1:30 PM news conference to decide where he’s going to school in two years. And all signs point to it coming down to Kentucky and Louisville. Read More »

Rajon Rondo isn’t the only guy making his national magazine cover debut this month. On the other half of our Dime #56 double-cover we have Jared Sullinger, the first-ever Dime/2K Sports National High School Player of the Year.

If you haven’t seen Sullinger play yet, you can still catch him at the Jordan Brand Classic on April 17, or you can wait until he’s ripping it up at Ohio State next season. Read More »

All around the country, high school basketball is either already underway or getting started soon enough. In Dime #53 we had our high school season preview, and today, HighSchoolHoop.com unveils its updated ranking of the Top 50 players in America regardless of class or position. Read More »

After an up-and-down couple of weeks that saw them perform up to their potential and down to some lesser competition, Team Spain is right where they’re supposed to be at the FIBA European Championships: playing for the gold medal. In yesterday’s semifinal, Pau Gasol scored 18 points and Rudy Fernandez added 14 and three steals to lead Spain in a blowout win over Greece, while Ricky Rubio continued his underwhelming (at least stats-wise) tourney with a 5-point, 3-assist effort. Spain will face Serbia in the final, the team that upset them on the first day of the tournament. In Serbia’s semifinal, Milos Teodosic dropped 32 points (6 threes), and Nenad Krstic had 18 points to lead them past Slovenia … Read More »

We featured Tony Wroten in Dime #50 as one of the 50 people and personalities who will shape the next 50 issues of Dime. Here’s why…

The majority of my MLK Day was spent at the University of Washington’s Bank of America Arena, site of the annual King Holiday Hoopfest. Always a day to circle on the West Coast high school basketball calendar, yesterday’s main event saw Franklin H.S. (my alma mater) and Louisville-bound star PG Peyton Siva knock off cross-city rival Garfield H.S. and their star, sophomore Tony Wroten, arguably the best Class of 2011 player in the country. Read More »

Photo. Nike

NOTE: This is the second in a series of blogs reporting on the Nike Skills Academies by internationally renowned basketball strength & conditioning coach Alan Stein of www.StrongerTeam.com

I am back in my room at the Hilton Newark Airport Hotel, a couple of hours after finishing up the last workout at the Steve Nash Nike Skills Academy. This academy featured 20 of the nation’s top HS point guards, including Lance “Born Ready” Stephenson (NY), Tony Wroten (WA), John “The Next Derrick Rose” Wall (NC), and Abdul Gaddy (WA). Read More »