BY JEREMY FUCHS
ROSELLE, N.J. — The NBA All-Star Game is set to take place on Sunday at Madison Square Garden, the so-called Mecca of New York City basketball.
But just 23 miles West, at the PrimeTime Shootout at Roselle Catholic High School last Sunday, a realization is taking place.
“Jersey has surpassed New York City in talent,” Tom Konchalski, a legendary NYC-based talent evaluator, told SNY.tv.
Indeed, New Jersey has become a talent hotbed, with former Elizabeth (N.J.) St. Patrick star Kyrie Irving (who was born in Australia) winning the All-Star Game MVP in 2014 and again set to represent the East in Sunday’s game.
NBA players Kenneth Faried, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and former Knick J.R. Smith all hail from the Garden State. At the collegiate level, Karl-Anthony Towns is making waves at No. 1 Kentucky, while future potential collegiate stars like Isaiah Briscoe (a McDonald’s All-American who will play Sunday on national TV before the All-Star Game), Tyus Battle, Chris Silva, Malachi Richardson, Markis McDuffie and Moustapha Diagne are next. New Jersey has become one of the best states for basketball talent in the country.
New York City didn’t produce a single McDonald’s All-American this year, while New Jersey has two in the Kentucky-Bound Briscoe and the Syracuse-bound Richardson.
“New Jersey high school basketball is just as good as it is anywhere in the country,” said Dave Boff, the coach of Roselle Catholic.
While New York City still puts out its share of talented players—from Kemba Walker, Kyle O’Quinn and Lance Stephenson in the pros, to up-and-comers like Georgetown-bound Jessie Govan and Cardozo High School’s Ray Salnave—there is more quality talent, and more depth in Jersey.
“We got kids now that are coming from other states that are enrolling in schools in New Jersey to play high school basketball,” Ed Bright, the president of the Jersey-based AAU team Sports University, told SNY.tv. “We’re at an all-time high.”
It’s that quality of talent that brought Pittsburgh coach Jamie Dixon to the Roselle Catholic gym on a recent stormy afternoon to check out the latest and greatest talent. “Lot of good players,” Dixon told SNY.tv. “High-level games all the way through.”
It didn’t used to be this way. For years, New York City was considered the Mecca. Lew Alcindor (who became Kareem Abdul-Jabbar), Dwayne “Pearl” Washington, Kenny Smith and Chris Mullin all hail from the city, not to mention guys like Lamar Odom, Metta World Peace and Stephon Marbury.
“New York was better [than New Jersey] 20 years ago,” Konchalski said.
But Jersey, according to Konchalski, takes high school basketball more seriously. And one product of the more serious Jersey scene is poised to be the next great NBA player.
Towns, who played at St. Joseph-Metuchen, is starting to find his stride at Kentucky, scoring 19 points and grabbing eight boards against Florida, and then following that up with 12 points and 13 boards the next game against LSU. He’s projected as a top-3 pick in the upcoming NBA Draft, with some saying he has a higher upside than Duke’s Jahlil Okafor and that teams like the Knicks should therefore “Play like Clowns for Towns.”
“From the time he’s been here, we knew he’s gonna be an NBA guy,” Dave Turco, Towns’ coach at St. Joe’s, told SNY.tv. “He’s obviously a lottery pick. I see him being an All-Star, being one of the best guys to come out of Kentucky.”
“I don’t see a player with the charisma, the talent, the smarts, and then everything else like Karl Towns,” Bright, his AAU coach, said. “I think he’s Anthony Davis with a three-point shot. And a better passer. And a better defensive player.”
Whether Towns comes to New York as a Knick next year, or plays somewhere else, one thing is clear: the state of Jersey basketball is better than ever.
“New Jersey is the place to be,” Bright said.
