Cats counting on a-Mayes-ing player
How Jordin Mayes affects 2010-11 roster
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Jordin Mayes is No. 12 for Los Angeles Westchester in this highlight reel. Dwayne Polee (No. 0) is a former USC commit who once listed Arizona as a possibility.
RELATED LINKS AT TUCSONCITIZEN.COM:
- UA coach Sean Miller lands his first targeted West coast recruit
- Anthony Gimino asks is Derrick Williams a top 150 freshman now?
- Jordin Mayes’ father Darryel Mayes was a teammate of Sidney Green at UNLV during the 1979-80 season
By Javier Morales
Los Angeles Westchester guard Jordin Mayes looks back most fondly at his Player of the Game-type performance against the highly-touted John Wall last year as the highlight of his young career.
“It’s all about being confident,” Mayes told me Monday night. “I had one of my better games against John Wall because I believe in my ability.”
Wall, potentially the national freshman of the year at Kentucky, was overshadowed by Mayes in Westchester’s 76-57 win over Raleigh (N.C.) Word of God High School in last year’s City of Palms Classic. In Westchester’s next game — a victory over Lance Stephenson and Lincoln (N.Y.) for fifth place — Mayes produced 31 points.
The 6-2 point guard was selected to the event’s all-tournament team along with Wall and Stephenson and nine others, including Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei’s Gary Franklin (Cal recruit) and Tyler Lamb (UCLA signee).
With a couple of impressive performances against teams led by Wall and Stephenson it’s no wonder UA coach Sean Miller has never wavered in his pursuit of Mayes. The UA officially hosted Mayes and his father Darryel Mayes Saturday and Sunday and Jordin Mayes wasted little time offering his commitment after returning home to the Los Angeles area.
“I guess he just slept on it,” the elder Mayes told me Monday night after watching his son lead Westchester over Los Angeles Fairfax. “He called me in the morning and told me to go ahead and make the call that he wanted to go to Arizona.
“Coach Miller has indicated to us that Jordin would be a major part of his plans at Arizona if Jordan were to play there. Before we took the visit, we had the feeling that Sean was genuinely interested in having Jordin as part of his team.”
Some Arizona followers are asking: What happens now? Did Arizona sacrifice the chance of landing a five-star recruit in Josh Selby or Doron Lamb by accepting Mayes’ commitment?
Mayes and his father are not concerned about those comments because they know how honest Miller has been in his recruitment of the guard.
“Coach Miller has made it clear what he expects from Jordin,” Darryel Mayes said. “He wants Jordin to play at the No. 1 position (point guard) but also get out on the wing as the 2 (shooting guard) on the break. You see a lot of that from Nic Wise now.
“Jordin can fill that role. He can drop the trey from the wing or handle the ball and penetrate. If they are able to get that long rebound and run the floor, it’s like an ocean out there. There are plenty of options and Jordin can score from anywhere. What sets him apart is he can calculate when to take the higher percentage shot.”
Jordin Mayes added, “What Coach Miller runs is what I like to do — get out and push the ball and make things happen. But he wants you to play under control, too. My ability to shoot from the outside allows me to be able to penetrate as well. I can make the play off the dribble.”
Defensively, the younger Mayes has a wiry frame with long arms, similar to Jason Terry with his size. He has the ability to clog the passing lanes with his quickness and wingspan.
Before we get caught up in the ratings game — Mayes is No. 106 in the Class of 2010 as rated by Rivals.com while Selby is No. 4 and Lamb No. 21 — consider what my colleague Anthony Gimino wrote about the two best freshmen in the Pac-10: Derrick Williams of Arizona and Reggie Moore of Washington State.
Neither were rated by Rivals.com after their senior seasons. Twenty other freshmen in the Pac-10 were rated in the top 150. A couple have played well here and there — including Abdul Gaddy (No. 13) of Washington and UCLA forward Reeves Nelson (No. 82) — but none are on the same plateau as Williams and Moore.
These ratings are basically good for discussion, not much else.
With the commitment of Mayes and the signing of fellow Class of 2010 recruit Daniel Bejarano here is the position breakdown so far for Arizona’s roster next season:
PG: Lamont “MoMo” Jones, Soph.; Jordin Mayes, Fr.
SG: Kyle Fogg, Jr.; Daniel Bejarano, Fr.; Solomon Hill, Soph.; Brendon Lavender, Jr.; Jones and Mayes.
SF: Kevin Parrom, Soph.; Hill; Derrick Williams, Soph.; D.J. Shumpert, Jr.
PF: Jamelle Horne, Sr.; Williams; Parrom
PF-C: Williams; Kyryl Natyazhko, Soph.; Alex Jacobson, Jr.
With one scholarship to spare — unless others decide to transfer or other personnel decisions are made (i.e. player attends school on academic scholarship or other funding) — Miller will likely accept a commitment from Selby, Lamb or Manhattan (N.Y.) Rice High School forward Kadeem Jack.
One interesting aspect of the potential 2010-11 roster: Despite a decided New York influence with Parrom, Jones and assistant coach Emanuel “Book” Richardson, nine of the 12 players are from Arizona or California.
“Solomon Hill and I know each other well,” Jordin Mayes said of his former rival at Los Angeles Fairfax. “I just talked to him a little while ago. He knows we blew his team out tonight.”
The younger Mayes chuckled a little.
Nothing like feeling comfortable with a (future) teammate.
Tags: Darryel Mayes, Jordin Mayes, Sean Miller, Solomon Hill
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February 2nd, 2010 at 3:39 AM
I really wish AZ fans would stop talking about Selby, Lamb and Ray Mac. Trust your freaggin coaching staff who has us in the hunt for the reg season pac-10 title with a bunch of freshmen and sophmores.
Nof offense to the three named players but I could really care less what they do. Jordin Mayes is an Arizona guy now. Welcome him with open arms. Did you all notice what is going on with Wall and Calipari? Can you say prima donna? I want no part of those types here. Selby a one and done? Who knows? My point is there is just as much risk taking a guy like that as there is Mayes.
Mayes congrats on your decision to become a Wildcat. I’m excited as a fan. Can’t wait to get you suited up and running up and down the court at McKale. The fans will come around. You just have to show them what is up.
February 2nd, 2010 at 3:53 AM
I remember hearing about a very athletic SG from North Carolina by the name of Chris Hill. What will come of this guy now?
February 2nd, 2010 at 7:31 AM
On the money as far as I’m concerned Lutefan. The 3-4-5 star ratings remind me of “he said, she said” rumor mongering. Anthony Gimino points out how little these ratings REALLY mean.
Kerr, Arenas, Jefferson to name a few- how many recruiting stars did they come with? Oh yeah, Channing Frey?
Sean Miller has the CATS in such good hands; why 2nd guess?
February 2nd, 2010 at 8:07 AM
I am rooting for Kadeem Jack. Hopefully he’ll come out west and be another DWILL.
February 2nd, 2010 at 8:19 AM
Thanks Larry D.
jCat… I’m with you on Jack. It would be nice to have him verbal now too. I kind of think that with Mayes giving a verbal it might give our other recruits more incentive to step up and committ also, given we’re down to one schollie. I was also kinda of hoping that Kadeem would see we’re not about to toss our program into the hands of an one individual player land let him run everything, “getting his” on the way to the NBA. Hopefully Kadeem realizes were not going to be dominated offensively by a tremendously talented scoring pg, and that he can have a big role here. Hopefully this clears up the picture for some of those guys and they get their recruitment over with. Give us your verbal fellas.
February 2nd, 2010 at 8:25 AM
Completely agree with lutefan on this one. It seems to be that Miller is excellent at evaluating and scouting talent. He said from day one that D.Will was the most talented freshman in our class this year even though he was unranked. If you recall, we were all under the impression S. Hill was our most talented freshman because of his ranking…
I was kind of hoping we could land an impact freshman PG. Selby at one point was rated number one, I think. Still, I trust Millers ability to scout talent over mine any day.
February 2nd, 2010 at 8:30 AM
Another thing about Mayes and Bejarano – they were both rated much higher previously and have dropped for reasons that actually speak well of them as persons and do not diminish their basketball skills. Mayes has floated between playing PG and SG because of hte needs of the teams he has played on and as a result did not have a chance to stand out at a particular position. With Bejarano, not only did he have to deal with his Stepfather’s death, but he choose to stay at North rather than transfer to a basketball factory and maintain a higher profile. He also has played some at point to help his team. Given that AZ’s two best freshman happen to be the two lowest rated coming out of HS speaks volumes about the absurdity of the ranking system.
February 2nd, 2010 at 9:40 AM
Just want to second the point made by Irony- I love the fact that we’re getting guys with character to come to Arizona… cannot wait for Mayes and Bejarano to suit up.
Great job by Miller and staff…
February 2nd, 2010 at 9:44 AM
I’m excited about Mayes though I still am excited by the potential of adding one more high potential player to next year’s class to deepen the bench.
After the dust settled, we lost Budinger, Hill, Johnson (and Judkins) and added Williams, Parrom, Hill, Momo (and Kyryl).
Next year we lose Wise and we add Bejarano, Mayes and hopefully one more. We have a nice rotation going now but we are starting to be able to make it be a bit deeper especially if their are injuries like how Parrom being out hurt us this year.
It seems unclear who would be the starting point – momo, fogg or mayes – and obviously we seem to still be in the hunt for more point talent (or at least were up until the mayes signing). Jack would be a great add as well. We could use a real center assuming Kyryl doesn’t mature much faster than we’ve seen to date.
February 2nd, 2010 at 9:55 AM
Short NY Times story about Channing Frye:
http://offthedribble.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/01/30/for-suns-frye-a-big-improvement-from-long-range/
February 2nd, 2010 at 10:42 AM
williams makes goodman’s all freshman first team, nice to see him getting some recognition.
http://community.foxsports.com/goodmanonfox/blog/
February 2nd, 2010 at 10:42 AM
every once in a while a low ranked baller will outshine higher ranked ballers, but it by no means renders the ranking system to something as trivial as discussion starters. although it’s hit or miss on some of these hi-ranked ballers, for the majority it is sure money. why else would every top coach spend little time outside the top 100? sometimes in search of role players they accidently find a gem. hopefully mayes is that gem and becomes the next d-will. judging by his rep alone i truly believe he will.
February 2nd, 2010 at 11:05 AM
Glad to see folks like Lutefan commenting on here that get it about recruiting these 5 star athletes.
Does anybody remember a player named Derrick Williams? Oh I do, he’s one of the best freshmen in the country and didn’t he have 3 stars next to his name?
I too trust Miller and company with what they’re doing, I don’t care who they get Miller will blend a winning powerhouse here in due time.
February 2nd, 2010 at 11:10 AM
We may still get Selby or Lamb or McCallum. At some point you need to finish off the class. if Miller waits another three months for those three and doesn’t get them then its a problem. Mayes was previously ranked higher than he currently is and keep in mind Miller was a point guard and can coach him if he truly is a combo guard. I used to rember when Lute was winning big in the 90′s he always would discuss a recruit with the existing team members. if they didn’t like him after a vist he would be offered a scholarship. Mayes wants to be here and seems like a quality guy.
February 2nd, 2010 at 11:57 AM
I am excited about this Mayes kid and DB coming to Tucson next season, but I feel like we need to get bigger not continue to get guards that can’t decide whether they should play the 1 or the 2. I desperately want to see Williams be able to play in position at the 4. Obviously we need someone to step into the 5 and I don’t see K-Real making that leap next season. Jack would be a HUGE signing! Let’s hope it happens.
Javier, are there any other solid big men being recruited other than Jack?
Back to the current season – if we could go 6-3 again I think we would be in decent shape heading into the Pac 10 tourney. This weekends road games are gonna be huge! I would be satisfied with a split, but I really think they are both winnable – and after this weekend there are only 2 road games remaining. I am trying hard to remain rational, but the team has been playing so well recently I am beginning to think that IT (I don’t want to actually write for fear of jinxing us) is actually possible.
February 2nd, 2010 at 11:57 AM
We need players who WANT to be at Arizona. Mayes seems like a great kid with Arizona roots through the Stoudamire family. Miller is using the Arizona Wildcat family concept beautifully.
On another note: Is there any doubt on the current trajectory that Miller is anything less than PAC-10 Coach of the Year?
February 2nd, 2010 at 12:15 PM
So… back to business. What do we have to do to beat Udub up in Seattle??
February 2nd, 2010 at 12:22 PM
Score more points…
February 2nd, 2010 at 12:34 PM
lutefan — UW has been winning by 30 at home and losing by 15 on the road. Arizona shouldn’t think much about having beat the Huskies by 17 in Tucson. This game in Seattle will be infinitely tougher.
IMO, the Cats must avoid letting UW lure them into playing faster than Miller wants them to. The Huskies want to play like junk yard Dawgs and let their fans create a frenzy they can feed off of. They depend on streaks that are built on a hectic pace, forcing turnovers, getting steals, and running early offense.
It’s really hard for young visiting teams to keep their focus and force their preferred pace. That makes Nic Wise even more important than he usually is for this game. So he must stay out of foul trouble and play well overall. Romar also does not have an answer for Derrick Williams, so he too needs to stay out of foul trouble. Lastly, Washington depends on their athleticism to win the rebounding battle. Arizona has the athletes to beat the Huskies in that department if they have the focus and desire to get it done. I think rebounds and turnovers will be the key stats (assuming foul trouble does not rear its head).
February 2nd, 2010 at 1:01 PM
Good analysis Portland. I agree that not much can be garnered from the previous game in Tucson. It was a very odd game, with Horne acting as a shooting star for UA and Elston Turner keeping UW in the game. These are rare events indeed. Turner has basically done nothing else all year except for that game.
One thing we cannot count on is Pondexter being a no-show for this game. He was non-existent on the UA/ASU road trip. That won’t happen again.
As you said, our best chance is to really pound it inside with DWill, as UW has very little post presence. Both teams are really similar in that they have multiple athletic players that can run, dribble and crash the boards. Neither team is a great shooting team. Should be a fun game to watch and I anticipate a huge effort from both sides. Another key could be free throw shooting in a tight game, as UA has a great weapon in Wise, and UW has horrible FT shooting.
February 2nd, 2010 at 2:21 PM
Foul trouble is something I have been just waiting to happen to us. Miraculously we haven’t had any in THE PAC-10 SEASON.
Something I have come to observe that may or may not have any basis: Romar and Ernie Kent are still coaching in the Pac-10 of yesteryear. They play uptempo without any structure. Romar loosely bases his offense off what Lute used to do. Furthermore, I don’t think either coach has much structure to their defense. With the arrival of Howland, Sendek, Dawkins, Bennett (and departure), and Miller I think we are seeing what the lack of structure is costing those two teams.
I think Udub has all the tools to beat us. But I’m hoping Miller can outcoach Romar. I think we can credit much of our recent success to Miller’s coaching. He’s pushing all the right buttons. Miller’s using the bench just right, giving players rest and keeping them out of foul trouble. He’s not overusing Williams (ever notice how he goes to Williams a few times early and then backs off till the second half?). He continues to insert BLAv (who really helped against Furd), Momo, Kyryl, etc. And he has Fogg playing on another level. Plus he has dealt with Horne and his ankle sprain in just the right manner. He draws up plays when we need one. He takes the proper timeouts. And our defense against the three has never been better. ASU is a great example of pushing the ball at the proper moments but playing the half-court sets when necessary. The guy is really doing a fantastic job.
We finally look to have disciplined team. I’m loving it.
February 2nd, 2010 at 2:57 PM
Sorry guys this is way off target. But I was reading an article about picks for Pac-10 Football for next year and it had Big Rob gone (which I already knew) but then to my surprise it had Nic Grisgby gone also. Did I miss something? Did he declare, suspended, Quit? If anyone has some info please let me know. Here is the link
http://wiredoregon.com/2010-pac-10-football-outlook/
February 2nd, 2010 at 3:36 PM
It’s great to have Mayes on board. At this point I think that Coach Miller is simply amazing and he will know best which type of players will drive in his system. And given how well Williams is playing and how much better his post game is getting as the season is moving along, I would absolutely sign with Arizona in a heartbeat if I was a budding post player like Kadeem Jack. Maybe this is a bit over the top, but based on his footwork and strength (geez what a force he could be if he bulks up a bit) DWill reminds me of Blake Griffin. Did you see him dancing/spinning around people last year? Amazing, and DWill is doing some of the same things.
I have now read a couple of times that Washington plays much better at home, but I am not sure if I am buying it. Yes, it will a huge game (probably the biggest until the road game at Cal) and I am worried about it. BUT Washington lost to Oregon at home. Secondly, we can’t really make the comparison yet as the Arizona-Wash game will be the first return game for both teams. Sure, they have a better record at home, but is that due to the way they play or due the competition they played at home vs on the road? As others have pointed out Arizona matches up pretty well with Washington. If Horne and Parrom can limit Pondexter (leading scorer and rebounder for Wash) I think that the Cats can “easily” win this. That’s just my take on it though. Can’t wait to read Javier’s analysis.
February 2nd, 2010 at 4:19 PM
Playing at home, since losing to Oregon, Washington has won 3 in a row by large margins: over Stanford by 33, over Cal by 15, and over WSU by 28. Playing on the road, Arizona lost at Corvallis, but on the other hand UA has won 3 of their last 4: at UCLA by 14, at Oregon by 14, and at ASU by 19. That says that on a bad night, either team can lose to a weaker opponent, but on a good night they can dominate. Recently, Washington has played exceptionally well at home. We know that Arizona has won 4 in a row and is playing very well. I expect each team to rise to the occasion on Thursday and, if so, I would think UW would deserve to be a slight favorite but that either team could win. This could be a multiple-overtime shoot-out like some recent UA-UW contests. Remember the Brandon Roy versus Hassan Adams cage match that had Marques Johnson groping for superlatives? This has the potential to be the kind of game that makes college hoops such a great product.
BTW, as much excitement as there will be around the Seattle game, the Saturday game at WSU will count for just as much in the final W-L record. I hope Arizona can keep up their pattern of getting ready and playing very well on the 2nd game of the trip.
February 2nd, 2010 at 4:31 PM
Good call on being prepared for WSU as well. Trying to keep focused one game at a time.
February 2nd, 2010 at 4:33 PM
STR, with all due respect, there isn’t much to buy when it comes to UDub playing at home. They have lost at home once this year and once all of last year. Last year they lost a ridiculous double OT game to Cal, that they had won before a boneheaded foul at the end of regulation (insert Horne joke here). This year, as you point out, they lost to Oregon. I was at the game and Oregon shot the ball ridiculously well. Porter and Armstead could not miss. It was unlike any other Oregon game this year. They were just on fire. UW is very tough at home as their recent 25 pt thrashing of Cal suggests. All that said, Go Cats, get the W.
February 2nd, 2010 at 5:03 PM
Mayes…welcome aboard. Any friend of the Stoudimires is a friend of Arizona…for obvious reasons.
Just based on Miller’s past talent pool and what he did at Xavier, is there any of us in this room that can question his judgement? I don’t dismiss the concerns and reasoning of those that feel we jeopardized a crack at Selby or Lamb, its just that this seems like a good fit. And nobody is saying that the fat lady has sang on those two…
Good analysis by Portland Catfan on Udub. I think that it will come down to how the crowd affects our shooting percentage. I haven’t really seen it mentioned yet but has
anyone noticed our weak side help on defense? We are almost uncanny at sneaking a hand in a hand to knock away the ball and getting into the head of a shooter. Washington and WSU can expect a steady diet of that.
(Submitted by Android. Expect writing errors…its a phone keypad)
February 2nd, 2010 at 7:47 PM
AzT, I didn’t see the Oregon game and didn’t look at the box score. Was pretty surprised that they lost though. Porter especially has underperformed in my opinion, and if you say he couldn’t miss that game that changes things and really makes it a fluke considering how he is playing. I still think the Cats match up very well and have played surprisingly well on the road. Winning at Oregon any year is a big deal.
Nobody going to give me a hard time about comparing DWill to Blake Griffin?
February 2nd, 2010 at 9:08 PM
Don it says Nic is back:
“Back: A whole lot of offense, including QB Nick Foles, who passed for 2,486 yards with 19 TDs and nine interceptions; WR Juron Criner, who caught 45 passes for 582 yards and nine TDs; WR Delashaun Dean, who caught 42 passes for 396 yards; WR David Roberts, who caught 43 passes for 410 yards; RB Nic Grigsby, who battled a shoulder injury in 2009 but still rushed for 567 yards and five TDs; RB Keola Antolin, who led the team with 637 rushing yards. On defense, the ’Cats return CB Trevin Wade, who led the team with five interceptions and also had 71 tackles.”
February 2nd, 2010 at 9:34 PM
STR, it was a wild game. My buddy and I left shocked (along with the rest of Hec Ed). Oregon put on a display. They couldn’t miss inside or out and their guards did anything they wanted (even against Overton). After sweeping the Wash schools on the road we thought UO was going to be in the hunt for the Pac10 title. Fortunately they regressed to the Ernie Kent school of undisciplined shots and no defense. But that display from UO made me realize that if they shoot like that, they can beat anyone. UW just caught them on the wrong day. Hopefully UO doesn’t have a similar performance in Tucson.
February 3rd, 2010 at 7:55 AM
Before we get too wrapped up in throwing out the rankings, I would like to remind everyone that guys like Williams are the exception, not the rule. Guys like Chris Rodgers (5 star and top 10-15 overall) are also the exception, and not the rule. Mike Bibby’s, are more often Mike Bibby’s than they are not. We would really benefit from a guy like Selby for next year and Mayes for three years after that. A one and done does a really good job of filling a need for a year while the heir apparent develops.
February 3rd, 2010 at 9:56 AM
AzT, are you going to watch the Arizona-Washington game in person as well? Would be a great game to see in person.
February 3rd, 2010 at 11:08 AM
STR, unfortunately I can’t make the Thurs game. This will be the first UA/UW game I’ve missed in the last 3 years. They’ve lost the last 2 with me there in person, so maybe I won’t jinx UA this year. I am going to the game on Sat and will happily root against the Sun Devils.
February 3rd, 2010 at 1:19 PM
We definitely need to continue to recruit the best players possible. Getting a guy like Josh Selby or Doron Lamb would benefit the team tremendously, regardless of how long they stuck around.
I personally believe that even though Jordin is rated as a 3-star shooting guard, Coach Miller probably see’s him as one of the top point guards in the west (as he was previously ranked prior to being moved to SG due to his AAU team’s specific needs). Jordin’s dad has experience playing college hoops and I like how they say he’s got a high basketball IQ (similar to being a coach’s son). While most scouts have him pegged as a 3-star shooting guard (probably an accurate description of his ability to play that position) I think Miller see’s him as a PG, and probably values him higher because of the way he intends to use him on the team.
That being said, we definitely need elite level talent players if we want to play at that ball at that level. We need to continue to pick up guys like Chase and RJ and Mike Bibby and AI and all sorts of other elite players. If Jordin ends up being good, then great. But it’ll be the exception and not the rule.
February 3rd, 2010 at 2:22 PM
AzT, too bad you can’t make it. Would have been great to read your first hand impressions afterward. Enjoy rooting against the Sun Devils though.