Bossi has a few Gopher nuggets in here:
NORTH AUGUSTA, S.C. --- It's day two of Nike's Peach Jam and national basketball analyst Eric Bossi is on hand for all the action. Follow along live for news and updates from the days action.
POINT GUARD NOAH WILLIAMS HAS A VISIT IN MIND
Seattle Rotary is having one of their best grassroots runs in a while and an underrated part of their success has been the play of Noah Williams. A big point guard with some versatility, he quietly does a lot.
Hometown Washington offered early and Williams says that they are the one school that he knows he will for sure take an official visit to. Washington State, Boise State, Gonzaga, Santa Clara and San Diego are among the others in the mix.
Recently, Williams was at Gonzaga for a team camp and said that the staff also gave him a tour of campus.
In making a decision, the opportunity to play point guard is going to be very important but Williams is open to playing whatever backcourt spot a coach may need from him.
TRAY JACKSON SHINES FOR MEANSTREETS, UPDATES RECRUITMENT
Brad Beal Elite and Meanstreets turned into an absolute war that came down the final shot. Meanstreets walked away with a one point victory and for that Tray Jackson deserves a lot of thanks. The 6-foot-8 combo forward was at times sensational but most of all he was steady and versatile.
Jackson defended in the post, he defended on the wing. He hit jump shots, he attacked off the dribble and he played all over the floor. Basically, he looked like that new age positionless basketball player that everybody wants.
Recently, Jackson took an official visit to Oklahoma and he also took unofficial visits to Missouri and Xavier. At Oklahoma he said he felt welcomed and needed, he said Missouri felt like family and he feels he fits Xavier's style. Head coaches from Mizzou and Xavier watched while OU had an assistant on hand.
After the summer finishes and he enrolls at Sunrise Christian in Kansas, he says that Minnesota -- Richard Pitino watched -- will be a place he sees.
Virginia Tech is another in the mix.
Jackson has four official visits left and Xavier and Missouri look very likely to get trips. Otherwise, Jackson is just working on continuing to be more diverse.
"I've been in the weight room working on my body to bang with the big guys," said Jackson. "I also want to be able to hang with the wing guys too."
HUGE CROWD OF COACHES FOR BRAD BEAL ELITE AND MEANSTREETS
The biggest crowd of coaches I've seen so far has shown up for Brad Beal Elite and Meanstreets. Why not? There's a massive amount of talent on the floor.
Headlined by top 40 rising senior E.J. Liddell, BBE also features Oregon bound Francis Okoro, Rivals150 guard Mario McKinney, 2020 top 30 guard Moses Moody and several others being recruited on the mid to high major level.
Meanstreets counters with Rivals150 ranked guards Brandon Newman and Armaan Franklin along with Rivals150 combo forward Tray Jackson and very intriguing three-star forward Chris Payton among others.
So, just who is watching you ask?
I've seen head coaches from Florida, Loyola (Chi.), Oregon, UIC, Purdue, Georgetown, Minnesota, Illinois, Kansas State, Iowa, Duke, Saint Louis, Ohio State, Virginia Tech, Missouri, SIU-Edwardsville, Florida Atlantic, Wisconsin, Boston College, North Carolina, Xavier, Indiana, Drake and Auburn. Among those with assistants I've seen on hand are Oklahoma, Texas Tech, Cincinnati, SMU, Nebraska, Michigan, UMKC, NC State, LIU Brooklyn, Valparaiso, Bradley, VCU and Western Michigan.
SHARIFE COOPER NOT WORRYING ABOUT RECRUITMENT YET
The AOT Running Rebels put a convincing win on the board on against the New Jersey Playaz and their point guard Sharife Cooper was a huge part of it.
He led the relentless attack with 25 points while getting his teammates involved and leading on both ends of the floor.
There's not any question that he'll be a big time target down the road, but when it comes to recruiting, he's not paying much attention. He has been on campus at Auburn but that's it so far and it will be a while before he gets too serious.
For now, he's letting his father handle things.
"I'm just focused on the here and now and finishing up with summer ball before I start to think about that stuff," said Cooper. "I'll like to get up and down in college and get my teammates involved. I'll be looking for a coach that believes in me and them."
Cooper did mention that he's getting to know Tom Crean and the staff at Georgia and that Alabama, Rutgers, Nebraska, UConn, Tennessee, Florida and many others are involved.
ZACH FREEMANTLE IS BEING UNDER RECRUITED
The New Jersey Playaz got beaten pretty soundly by the AOT Rebels, but three-star power forward Zach Freemantle was a standout.
At 6-foot-9 he is skilled, has toughness, scores over either shoulder and he can step out to shoot the ball with some range. He's a good athlete and he competes the entire game and could be a stretch five or a big four depending on system.
The likes of Bucknell, Monmouth, Lehigh, St. Bonaventure, Brown, St. Joseph's and others have offered and he would be a great pickup for any of them. However, given his size and production it's hard to believe he's not worth some exploration from high majors looking for skill on the interior.
AOT REBELS AND NEW JERSEY PLAYAZ START THINGS OFF
Today I'm starting off with the New Jersey Playaz and AOT Running Rebels. Headlined by the backcourt trio of newly minted 2020 five-star shooting guard B.J. Boston, top 30 2020 point guard Sharife Cooper and 2019 five-star wing Isaac Okoro, AOT brings the starpower.
Meanwhile, the Playaz are a tough and all-around solid bunch led by guard Al-Amir Dawes and underrated and skilled four man Zach Freemantle.
During the early parts of the game I've spotted head coaches from Drake, Northwestern, La Salle, Boston College, Georgia Tech, Georgia and Butler to go along with assistants from Valparaiso, Monmouth, LIU Brooklyn, Arkansas State, Tennessee State, Rutgers, Arkansas, Memphis, UMass, Alabama, Florida, Minnesota, N.C. State and UConn among many others.
https://illinois.rivals.com/news/eric-bossi-s-peach-jam-blog-thursday
Go Gophers!!
