November 2009 | Page 12 of 16 | Zagsblog
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Adam Zagoria covers basketball at all levels. He is the author of two books and an award-winning journalist whose articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Sports Illustrated, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide.
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Saturday / November 23.

Terrence Jones and his mother will meet this week to discuss his college options and he may wait until the late signing period in the spring.

“It’s kind of 50-50 [whether he will sign early or late],” Linda Mashia-Jones said of her son’s plans. “He’s just undecided.”

A 6-foot-8 forward from Portland (Ore.) Jefferson, Jones and his mother visited UCLA this past weekend. He is considering the Bruins, along with Oklahoma, Oregon, Washington and Kentucky.

The early signing period runs Nov. 11-18.

“Hopefully [we will meet] by Wednesday,” Linda said.

Asked if there was a favorite, she said: “They’re all equal at this point.”


NEW YORK — Times like these I’m glad I live in New York City and nowhere else in the world.

In the past three days, I was lucky enough to witness the Yankees celebrating their 27th world championship with a parade down the Canyon of Heroes; LeBron James making his lone Big Apple appearance of the season by dropping 33 on the Knicks; and Bruce Springsteen closing out a two-night stop at Madison Square Garden by playing The River in its entirety.

If only the lowly Knicks (1-6) stoked the New York fan base as much as Bruce.

I’ve probably seen 12-15 Springsteen shows in my life and this one ranks among the best. There wasn’t an empty seat in the joint.

The Knicks could have taken point guard Brandon Jennings in this year’s NBA Draft.

Jennings worked out at the team’s Westchester campus back in May, along with Tyreke Evans, Earl Clark and Austin Daye.

Instead, Knicks President Donnie Walsh opted to pick forward Jordan Hill with the No. 8 pick on draft night and Jennings went to the Milwaukee Bucks at No. 10.

On Saturday night, Jennings made the Knicks pay, dropping 18 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists as the Bucks absolutely slaughtered the Knicks, 102-87, in Milwaukee.

New York is now 1-6 on the season.

“I was a little upset because New York was one of my No. 1 teams I did want to go to at the time,” Jennings told The New York Times.

Latavious Williams made history Thursday when he became the first high school player ever to jump straight to the NBA D-League.

The Tulsa 66ers chose Williams with the 16th overall pick. Tulsa is an affiliate of the Oklahoma City Thunder.

His high school coach said Williams turned down a $100,000 guaranteed contract to play in China in favor of entering the D-League Draft because he felt it gave him a better shot at reaching the NBA. The average D-League salary is between $35,000-$40,000.

 “He had a contract on the table that could’ve paid him $100,000 or better in China but he had to weigh the pros and cons,” said Carlos Wilson of Humble (Texas) Christian Life Center. “It came down to taking the money and getting some financial stability for now, but still you’re a long way from the NBA when you’re in China. Or taking the least amount of money and being a step closer instead of four steps closer.”

C.J. Leslie is still plotting out his official visits and my not sign until the late signing period in the spring.

“He probably won’t sign until the spring. I can’t say for 100 percent sure,” Lisa Leslie, C.J.’s mom, said Saturday in a phone interview.

The 6-foot-8, 205-pound Leslie out of Raleigh (N.C.) Word of God Academy is the No. 4 power forward in the nation, according to Rivals.

He took his first official visit to Kentucky Oct. 28 for the Blue/White Scrimmage and was supposed to visit Florida this weekend (Nov. 7-8), but will have to reschedule because his high school team has a scrimmage today (Saturday).

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