2008 King James Classic: Top Perimeter Players
April 29, 2008
John Brumbaugh
From DraftExpress:
Richmond led his Rising Stars Gold team to the championship game of the King James Classic before falling to Boston based B.A.B.C. Despite the relatively modest numbers posted throughout the tournament (averaged around 12 points per game in the 3 games we took in), it was easy to see why recruiting analysts consider him a top 10 player in his class.
Standing a legit 6’6 and blessed with long arms, he already owns a physical package that not many college seniors can offer. Throw in a frame that could easily add another 20 pounds and a very strong lower body, and it’s easy to see why he stands apart from the bulk of other wings in the class of 2010. The Illini commit was forced to play out of position for a large part of the tournament, playing power forward for much of the time that we observed him in Akron due to his squad‘s lack of size. However, there were spurts of time where he played on the wing and we were able to get a glimpse of the special player he has the potential to become.
The first thing that immediately stood out about Jereme is his outstanding athleticism, especially his ability to finish around the rim. His undeveloped upper body is compensated by his strong legs and explosive leaping ability from a static position, a rarity from a player so young. This power enabled him to finish nearly everything around the rim, whether it be from his own drives to the cup or putbacks from crashing the offensive glass. Not only one to score in the paint, he also showed off a silky smooth jumper out to the three point line and an explosive first step when attacking the rim. The tools boasted by the lanky wing backed up the herald he has received thus far at such a young age.
Like many young players, Richmond’s ball handling could use a bit of work. He didn’t put the ball on the floor more than a few times in a straight line and looked a bit uncomfortable when pressured with the ball in his hands. Consistency issues have also plagued Jereme in the past, especially on the defensive side of the court. While all of the natural tools are there for him to be a very nice defender, he often looks disinterested on this end and relies completely on his athleticism.
More concerning then his weaknesses on the court are those unrelated to the game of basketball. Richmond was thrown off his high school team in February after having a heated argument with his head coach, which was reportedly one of many incidents involving this talented youngster. These issues will ultimately prove to be more crucial then Jereme’s game on court game, but Michael Beasley has shown that talented players with consistency and character issues can turn things around when placed in the right situations. Having just turned 16 years old, time is certainly on Richmond’s side but he will definitely need to resolve problems if he hopes to live up to the star billing that has preceded him thus far.