Heels Land Top Point Guard Target

Posted: May 23, 2007
Updated: May 24, 2007

North Carolina, which recently went through an entire recruiting cycle without landing a single prospect, has received a commitment from one of its top targets in the high school junior class.

Larry Drew Jr., a 5-10 point guard from California, picked the Tar Heels over Arizona and UCLA. He also had scholarship offers from Alabama, Arizona State, California, Connecticut, Florida, Gonzaga, Kentucky, Louisville, Oregon, Southern California, Stanford, Texas, Washington and others.

"Drew is a quick athlete who handles the ball well, plays under control and makes good decisions," said Brick Oettinger, the veteran basketball recruiting analyst for PrepStars.com and ACCSports.com. "He's not Ty Lawson or Raymond Felton in terms of speed. He's not a jet. But he's plenty quick and plenty fast, and he fits well with other good players. Offensively, (Drew) doesn't force shots, but when he has them open on the perimeter, he's a dangerous shooter."

Drew's father, Larry Sr., played point guard at Missouri and then for 10 years (1981-88; 1990-91) in the NBA. He recently completed his third season as an assistant coach with the Atlanta Hawks.

"Overall, (Larry Jr.) knows and understands the game very well, which you would expect from someone whose father played in the NBA," Oettinger said. "He has savvy and experience, and an appreciation for the intricacies of the game, to a degree that's impossible to teach in a short period of time."

Larry Jr. is ranked one of the top 50 high school juniors in the nation by PrepStars.com.

Drew is one of four juniors who have received early scholarship offers from the Tar Heels, along with Georgia power forward Al-Farouq Aminu, Virginia power forward Ed Davis and New Jersey center Samardo Samuels. UNC also continues to monitor a number of other prospects in the Class of 2008.

ACC Class Of 2008 Commitments (High School Juniors)

Boston College — none

Clemson — 7-0 North Carolina center Catalin Baciu, 6-1 Georgia guard Cashmere Wright

Duke — none

Florida State — none

Georgia Tech — none

Maryland — none

Miami — none

North Carolina — 5-10 California point guard Larry Drew Jr.

N.C. State — 6-2 Indiana guard Julius Mays, 6-5 North Carolina wing C.J. Williams

Virginia — none

Virginia Tech — 6-3 Virginia guard Shamarr Bowden, 6-6 North Carolina forward J.T. Thompson

Wake Forest — 7-0 North Carolina center Ty Walker

20 Comments

WRAL.com welcomes your comments on this story. All comments are moderated prior to publication based on our posting guidelines. Please review them prior to posting and if your message is not approved.

This story is closed for comments. Comments on WRAL.com news stories are accepted and moderated between the hours of 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. Monday through Friday.

page 1 \| 2
<prev	next>

sort order: oldest first | newest first

Answer to question below: Because of a variety of family/church obligations, I will be making only a limited appearance at the Tournament of Champions here in the Triangle this weekend. There will be a lot of prominent high school prospects on hand, including a bunch with ties to ACC schools. For the entire list, check out www.bobgibbons.net.

daveglenn2
May 25, 2007 8:57 a.m.

Report abuse

yeah Maddie I remember Steve Spurrier...didn't he leave dook in 89? yeah I thought so and he left because dook was then what they are now...1 dementional and just remember that the lacross thing is only a big deal because of the scandel, never had a huge following on the national scale before that hit the news last march. Steve proved he was very intelligent for leaving dook...what 7 years later he won a national title with the gators and that is certainly something that would be impossible for dook because last I remember they didn't even win a game last year did they? this is exactly why its important for people to understand what is so good about highschool sports, recruiting says it all. dook and notre dame are different but similar...nd is a power house so they say in football but subpar elsewhere...dook is a powerhouse so they say in mens basketball but subpar elsewhere... common ground is they both showed nothing this year and no promises for next either

DayumKrazy1
May 25, 2007 8:24 a.m.

Report abuse

Ah, thanks for the 411 rascal. I've only trolled on David's blog because in my opinion, it's the best source for "free" recruiting info and he's very neutral on the coverage, albeit a bit more inclined to Duke/UNC/NC State, but it's the triangle :D

BTW Dave, will you be attending the Tournament of Champions this weekend? I was actually working at Carmichael Gym last year (yes, I'm a State kid) and I definitely saw some big time recruits, which was kinda ironic how I was looking at rankings and seeing the same kids pass me by, very eerie stuff. I'm curious as to who are some of the relevant recruits that will be participating this year? (relevant to NC colleges)

I've heard word that both Mays and Williams will be participating but I'm interested in seeing who else is will be there. Also, is this the final tournament in the AAU circuit?

Sorry for all the questions, but I hope it's easier to get a straight answer here than from Mr. Telep. (nice guy, but very busy)

one00proof
May 24, 2007 5:03 p.m.

Report abuse

Ha! You win Maddie. Eighteen years ago Spurrier took Dook to the Independence Bowl, and lost. Wow, that's a real impressive football school ya got there in D-town.

bait taker
May 24, 2007 4:24 p.m.

Report abuse

steve spurrier

Maddie girl
May 24, 2007 4:10 p.m.

Report abuse

Hey notforlong, I WILL be commenting when football starts, in the mean time let me talk to STEVE SPURRIOR, I,m sure you remember him ??????????????

Maddie girl
May 24, 2007 4:08 p.m.

Report abuse

"But, as a Duke fan, I am happy that they have not fell into the trap of lowering their standards to field a better football team. "

Good point...they have just lowered them for the party boys of the Lacrosse team.

HockeyRules
May 24, 2007 2:18 p.m.

Report abuse

When real fans know and understand where the talent is coming from it always excites the school to know that they are getting good talent especially when we follow how well certain prospects are doing before college. There is a difference of knowing this and just knowing a logo/college name because of popularity, people at dook see things differently than at a state owned facility but the fact of the matter is dook is only recently known for a VERY SUBPAR MENS BASKETBALL PROGRAM and the LACROSS SCANDEL which by the way has far and away been just as popular since Roy Cooper dismissed all charges on those 3 boys and how its after effects shadow the chance of a national title in mens Lacross this weekend. I like college sports that show you where your talent comes from especially if the talent is local.

DayumKrazy1
May 24, 2007 1:55 p.m.

Report abuse

Heyman25, Talk about your low standards, last year at the Duke/UNC game in Wallace Wade I had to use the bathroom in an old wooden shack that the entire stadium had to share. Your facilities are a joke. Wannabe Ivy League schools like Stanford, Vanderbilt and Northwestern win football games all the time. Quit using the same, lame "our academic standards are just too high" excuse. It's getting old.

mellowed
May 24, 2007 1:23 p.m.

Report abuse

In defense of Maddie Girl, you know why Duke does not win in football? They can't get the players into school that UNC, State and even Wake Forest can. Those team's linebackers can run faster than Duke's halfbacks. Just not a level playing field at all. But, as a Duke fan, I am happy that they have not fell into the trap of lowering their standards to field a better football team. Keep after them, Maddie Girl!