NBAPA Top 100 Ends With Flourish
Ron Bailey, Publisher
June 24, 2007 – Heading into yesterday, the last day of the National Basketball Association Players Association’s Top 100 Camp, attendees were fatigued from not only three days of intense hoops games and instruction (the event itself stretched from the 20th to the 23rd), but also a prodigious schedule of life-skill classes. The looks on camper’s faces at the University of Virginia’s John Paul Jones Arena, in addition to the growing number of visits many made to the trainer’s table aptly revealing it.
Despite the sense of physical weariness that competing in eight games and completing two-a-day practices engendered, the NBAPA Top 100’s championship rounds did not disappoint. Following is a recap (team names were drawn quite naturally, from NBA franchises):
Gold Division Championship
Spurs 73 Suns 50
Led by junior center/forward Michael Dunigan’s (12 points, 9 rebounds) spirited inside play in which he rebounded, filled lanes and attacked the rim, the Spurs jumped to a 31-16 first half lead, and never looked back. Fellow junior guards Larry Drew (UNC-committed) and Ian Shumpert made timely plays, including the latter’s late first half three pointer that bulged his team’s lead to 19, right before the half.
Hailing from Chicago, Dunigan got his motor running on Saturday, frequently filling lanes, rebounding, and defending.
The game hinged on early, dominant big man play, despite the presence of highly considered Spur backcourt players Drew and Shumpert, along with their Suns counterparts Kemba Walker (7 points, 3 assists), and Jason Clark (2 points, 4 rebounds) – a pair of juniors headed to UConn and Georgetown respectively.
Silver Division Championship
Magic 77 Mavericks 66
Up 14 at halftime, the Magic rode the capable of shoulders of junior combo guard Elliot Williams (20 points, 3 assists) during a furious Mavericks second half comeback. Williams displayed some of the best ability to attack the rim in camp, several times finishing through contact for several and-one opportunities.
Leading the Mavs was junior power forward JaMychal Green (21 points, 2 rebounds, 2 blocks), who wasn’t going down without a fight; at around the second half’s eight minute mark, Green pounded the rim on back to back occasions, the last giving his team a 64-63 lead.
Elliot Williams, hailing from Tennesse, showed players from the Rocky Top State can indeed get to the rack.
Enter Williams, who as he did all game, provided a play when his team needed it most, this time attacking the rim, scoring, and earning a charity stripe opportunity resultantly. That sequence stunted the Mavs’ comeback, effectively sealing the game.
Bronze Division Championship
Pistons 67 Heat 62
The contest was a see-saw affair throughout, as slight leads being earned by both teams. At the eight minutes left in regulation mark, the Heat held a 49-48 advantage, setting the stage for a hotly contested finish.
With the score standing 62-54 in favor of the Pistons, gained in part by the aggressive, athletic play of junior forward Martez Walker (12 points, 4 rebounds), sophomore Kenny Boynton (7 points, 3 assists) attacked the rim for a layup, followed by creating a turnover defensively for the Heat. The extra possession allowed junior forward and future USC student-athlete Malik Story to drive to the rim, reducing the squad’s deficit to 62-58.
In a losing cause, Kenny Boynton showed he may just in fact be the best player in 'The Bottom', aka Miami, FL.
Walker went to work afterward, handling the ball in several NBA-esque
isolation clear outs for the Pistons, which despite not producing a wealth
of points, ran time off the clock. He was joined by junior forward Luke
Babbitt (12 points, 5 rebounds and has committed to Nevada) in leading
their Piston team, while junior power forward Kevin Jones (13 points,
9 rebounds) paced the Heat.