16U Hawks remind coach of '99 championship squad – Arkansas Online
LAS VEGAS — Arkansas Hawks founder and coach Bill Ingram has been coaching youth basketball since 1998 and has had numerous outstanding teams, but this year’s 16-Under Hawks are among the best.
His 1999 Hawks won the AAU national championship in Cleveland, led by former Little Rock Central and University Arkansas forward Joe Johnson, who just completed his 16th NBA season. The Hawks’ remaining starting five also signed with Division I schools.
Point guard Jarrett Hart of Little Rock Central signed with Oklahoma, forward Carl Baker of Palestine-Wheatley signed with Arkansas and center Richard Kirkland of Watson Chapel and shooting guard Emmanuel Wade of Marianna each signed with Ole Miss.
The average margin of victory for the Hawks in the 1999 national tournament was 21.5 points per game. They had a 98-88 victory over Martin Brother Select of Iowa in the championship game that featured two 2003 NBA first-round draft picks and a second-round pick.
Guard Kirk Hinrich was selected seventh overall by the Chicago Bulls and power forward Nick Collison was selected 12th overall by the Seattle SuperSonics. Guard Kyle Korver was a second-round pick of the New Jersey Nets.
Ingram said he believes his 2016 16U Hawks squad is special and is excited to have them for another year.
“This group is very similar,” Ingram said. “We have five high major guys for sure, maybe six.”
The Hawks were 32-5 for the year going into Saturday’s game against Castle Athletics in the Elite 32 Championship Bracket at the Adidas Summer Championships.
Junior forwards Reggie Perry, 6-10, 225 pounds, of Thomasville, Ga., and Ethan Henderson, 6-8, 190, of Little Rock Parkview, are major targets for Arkansas.
Perry has scholarship offers from Arkansas, Florida State, Mississippi State, Alabama, Iowa State, Miami and others. He said he’s looking to make his college decision in August. He and his parents visited Fayetteville on June 27.
“The facilities, the tour of the university, the academics and the coaching staff,” Perry said when asked what stood out about the visit. “I really like the coaching staff.”
Henderson has scholarship offers from Arkansas, LSU, Notre Dame, Indiana, Texas and Arizona State. Future150 ranks him the No. 38 overall prospect in the nation for the 2018 class.
Hawks sophomore point guard Justice Hill, 5-11, 160, of Little Rock Christian, committed to Arkansas Coach Mike Anderson on Feb. 13 and declared he was ready to recruit other future Hogs. Perry has been on Hill’s radar ever since.
“Yeah, he’s a pretty good recruiter,” Perry said. “He stays on top of me.”
When Little Rock Parkview guard Khalil Garland recently committed to the Razorbacks, Hill started it again.
“So he was like, ‘Reg, when you and Ethan going to commit?’ ” Perry said. “He does stuff like that.”
Perry’s stock on the national level has escalated during spring and summer basketball. He was averaging 16.7 points, 6.7 rebounds and an assist per game prior to Saturday’s game.
Future150 ranks him as the No. 3 small forward and No. 11 overall prospect in the nation for the 2018 class. He said there is talk among the Hawks of taking their talents to the same school.
“We talk about it all the time,” Perry said. “We talked about it last night [Wednesday].”
At some point, all four Arkansas coaches attended a Hawks game this week. Henderson, who was averaging 16 points and 4.3 rebounds per game this week, said he liked seeing the coaches.
Henderson, who said he talks to Arkansas associate head coach Melvin Watkins on a daily basis, helped the Hawks win the St. Louis Three Stripes Alliance Championship on July 14-17.
“Coach Anderson and I were on the phone talking about my strengths and weaknesses from St. Louis,” Henderson said.
Hill said he’s working hard on Perry and Henderson.
“I’m trying to get them to come,” Hill said. “Ethan talks about committing early, but Reggie is one of the tougher ones because of the variety of offers, but we’re still working on it.”
The thought of the three going to Fayetteville excites Hill, he said.
“If we all go, it’s going to be like playing together now,” Hill said. “If we go up there, we’re going to be hard to beat.”
Junior guard Desi Sills, 6-0, 170, of Jonesboro, received a scholarship offer from Alabama-Birmingham on July 11 and added another from UALR on Thursday. He will likely add more in the future.
“I’m just happy people are interested in me,” Sills said. “I’m just a young buck going into the 11th grade.”
Sills was averaging 18 points, 7 rebounds and 2.7 assists in the first three games this week.
“He’s a top-five power conference player and he’s showing it every game in Vegas,” Ingram said.
One of the most improved players for the Hawks is junior guard Isaiah Joe, 6-2, 160, of Fort Smith Northside. He averaged 15.3 points, 2.3 rebounds and an assist this week.
An outstanding outside shooter, Joe had a game-high 26 points in a 94-86 overtime victory over New England Playaz on Thursday. He doesn’t have a scholarship offer, but Ingram said he sees that changing.
“He probably has some big news coming out soon in the next couple of days,” Ingram said.
Junior Caleb Stokes, 6-8, 250, is the sixth player whom Ingram said he believes could garner some major college offers. He provided much needed scoring off the bench in the victory over New England Playaz, when he contributed 12 points.
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Sports on 07/24/2016
