School is around the corner...predictions, predictions???

I know its early but, I wanted to through it out there. Who's Who this upcoming high school season 2010-11??? I'm hearing Vaughan Panthers will be very tough to beat. Eastern, Oakwood, Henry Carr all in the mix. Hmmm? Should be interesting to see how this season plays out!

Andrew wiggins is back so Vaughn will be tough

Don't sleep on Oakwood. They have numbers, Sheldon, Kevin Grant, Isaiah Watkins, and Tyrell Green are back this year. They also have a number of returning seniors and some quality juniors coming up. Three of these kids played for the Ontario team (Kevin Grant, Isaiah Watkins-U17, and Tyrell Green-U15) and contributed significantly.
It's going to be a tough run but, they may be more well rounded than they were last year. They also know how to win. It'll be interesting.

thechosenballer wrote:Andrew wiggins is back so Vaughn will be tough

Is he here for next season or just between Prep Schools in the U.S.?

I'm sure that Oakwood is still a strong team, but, Julian Clarke did alot for them last year. His clutch shooting and leadership will not be easily replaced. He was the difference maker!

Oakwood will definitely be a contender. Kevin Blake is one of the top guards in the gta. Isiah also is starting to show and prove. With some solid juniors coming up the pipeline such as Tyrell Green, they will be looking to repeat as OFSAA champs.
Vaughan as well will have phenom Andrew Wiggins to the charge if he is there. Will have to wait until September but my sources say he's a lock at Vaughan. They will be solid with juniors Henry Tan and Troy Lewis as well, guards Shandon Mootsasamy and Tristan Newman may bypass there 2nd junior season and test the waters. The loss of Dingyl Walker to the prep route is also not 100% so...they will be tough.
Henry Carr, Pickering. Mother Theresa, Eastern Commerce, Campion, D'youville,Oakville Loyola will all be in the mix. With sleeper teams like Whitby Anderson,Thompson, Downsview, Denison ,Martingrove, J Clarke Richardson Emery and others too.

Oakwood should be powerful, but repeating will be very difficult.
Will Wiggins be eligible for Vaughan? My sources say no. Walker going prep is a done deal, so Vaughan will be inexperienced.
My front runner out of the gate is Loyola.

LOL....I don't think J Clarke Richardson is a sleeper team. I would consider them one of the favorites.

Yes, J Clarke came on strong in the second half of the season putting them in the Top 5, at one point #1. I'm not to sure of there roster, who's gone or who's back, but they will make noise for sure. Wiggins will be eligible, if he does stay. The powers that be, will make that happen. If high school basketball in Ontario is looking for an opportunity to strengthen itself back again, this year could be it. I have a feeling that several kids that are opting for the prep route will actually end up staying home. Just my opinion and gut instincts kicking in!

J Clarke is returning all their key players. They lost some players off the bench, but, all the players that do the damage are all returning next year for their fifth and final year.

So what are the top five teams expected to win this season

Thanks rerun. I'm familiar with their star player, Aaron Redpath and he will be one of the marquee players in the GTA.

Don't bet on Wiggins being eligible knowthegame. His circumstances are not a secret to the GTA.

I feel you Mr Bean. I really just want to see the kid play and get his schooling done. He has tremendous upside. Will have to wait and see, how it will play out. I'm not ruling out him headed south by Sept either. I never want to see a good kid effected by politics.

Unfortunately, every team will be impacted by the drain of talent to 'prep-schools'. A lot of the predictions will be subject to that reality. It's really a shame. This prep-school thing actually hurts us, it's short-sighted.
If all of our talent go to these schools (many of them horrible experiences for our athletes), then why would universities come to see our guys? This results in more of our kids going south to get seen. It becomes counter-productive.
We should be developing programs here so schools will come north to view talent, not encouraging our kids to go south, many before they're ready.

I don't think it hurts us, I do agree that it is the best route to take for the marquee players coming out of the GTA. It hurts us when yo have an influx of players that go down off of potential or for a political/economical numbers game. High school basketball will continue to grow and so will the players whether they stay or go. I feel all the marquee players that have gone prep have had success as well as ones that have stayed home and finished here.

Youngblood I agree with your opinion a 100% ,is that if palyers keep going down south it will become a cycle for future players ,but it is more difficult for players to get noticed in canada then in the states and and it puts pressure on players who have potential, to do prep in the states ,so they have better chance of getting accustomed to basketball in the states and experience better coaching and training.So this could be a factor as to why players go to prep,and plus basketball programs in ontario are only limited to a few schools in the gta ,what should happen is that every region in ontario should have a basketball program ,so this could prevent players from going down south resulting more unversities to come north and see our talent .Peel region for example have the most players from the gta to go to another school outside peel (e,g Andrew Wiggins lives in peel and attends Vaughan)or the amount of players going down south and we do have alot of talent ,that's in peel it's always the same schools that qualify for offsaa and don't go that far.I know i don't make sense a little but you no what i mean.Sorry if I'm of topic

The bottom line is this. Playing high school in the U.S and AAU during the summer is a key reason why Canada basketball has had so much success this summer with their feeder teams such as the Cadet(Bronze) and Jr Nats(Bronze). Both teams had at least 60 to 70% of they're players that attend prep schools in the U.S and have played the AAU circuit for a few years. Hence there being no way that the movement is affecting basketball in Canada. The top high school players that stay in Canada are also a part of the success. The numbers maybe less but they are there and contributing. Both routes staying are going are helping us make strides as a country internationally, and in years to come, hopefully add more numbers to the professional level, preferably the NBA.

Most people know my opininion on this:
I dont think that 90% of the guys attending really need to be down there. However, having said that, I respect their decisions ( and their parents decisions) wholeheartedly.
What we need to do in the basketball community is focus on the kids that remain here to play and work on their game in all aspects......................end of story. If the drain of kids continue to go down south, then so be it. Does it "hurt" the quality of play.........more than likely yes.
However, we must carry on and lets work on the players that are here to help advance their game and educate them on their choices. NCAA, CIS, JUCO etc. If the kids end up coming back, thats great too.
Bottom line is, there are still quality student-athletes here and its our duty to help them out both on and off the court.

Coach Mauro

Well said Coach Mauro.

I really agree with Mauro in this point. 'Knowthegame' isn't wrong just real. The dynamic creates a sellf-fulfilling prophesy that you must go south. Since that reality is here, Mauro's approach is the most realistic. Until Ontariio school come up to speed and start valuing athletics, the scholarship question is moot. By the 'means to that end' is still in question.
Having gone down on scholarship with all of the +'s and -'s and having sent a number of kids away to schools for a long time now I've come to understand that we really have to be more careful and research the 'prep school' thing carefully. Some are great and many are definitely not. It'll work for many kids and it'll ruin many others for years to come. BTW, many of those kids on the u17 team did not take the prep school route. We need the mix to properly develop. More money is always welcome here in Canada. Which is the reason many travel south in the 1st place. You put money in what you value.

At least the top players from the class of 2013 and 2014 are still here in canada so highschool ball will look better in a couple years

i agree^

why is andrew wiggins coming back? I thought he did well in the states during his freshmen year and he did well in Germany during the fiba nationals.

What about Tdsb ?