Sebastian Who? Darius Washington Continues His Tear
By Justin Young and Kevin Young, NBADraft.net
7/16/02

N. Augusta, SC - Darius Washington proved that there aren’t many players in the grassroots level that are better than he is. He and his team the Tallahassee Wildcats met up with defending Nike Peach Jam champs Team Texas on Monday afternoon.

After giving super junior Sebastian Telfair a run for his money last week at the ABCD camp in New Jersey, Washington continued his “See I told ya so” tour in a classic performance. His lightning quick speed and deadly jumper propelled the Wildcats every time they needed a bucket. His talent was uncontainable thus proving that he in fact could be the best junior point guard of his class. Or at least he thinks he is.

“Right now I think so. No, I know so. I know so. I’m playing my best I’ve played but I can’t stop right now. I got to keep working hard and getting better,” Washington said after the game. “I think I held my own against Sebastian. He knows now that he’s got some competition down in Florida. I gotta go out every game without any doubts and prove to everyone that I can’t be stopped. I belong with the best.”

But a player this good doesn’t have much to work on, right? Not so fast. According to the Orlando native, his game is far from complete. “Everything needs improvement. There isn’t anything in particular. There is always room for improvement. Always,” he said.

Not to feed his ego or play up to the hype, Washington is the truth. He can ball. As he said, there is always room for improvement. But with him, it’s hard to find any flaws. When we first saw him, we instantly thought of Raymond Felton, North Carolina’s super freshman, because of his blazing speed. Then Washington began to shoot. And then shoot some more. Inside. Outside. Driving layups. In transition. You name it, he did it. He finished the night with 30 points on 10 of 17 shooting in the 78-71 victory.
 
Washington is one of the rare players that can take a game over when needed. He played with so much poise and control it is hard to believe that he just turned 16. Unfortunately for the college game, he won’t be seeing any NCAA action for the next two years.

Tallahassee isn’t a one man team. They are loaded. So loaded in fact, nine of the 13 players on the roster are high major prospects. Let’s take a look at some of them. Starting with Washington’s backcourt teammate TJ Bannister, a 5-11 rising senior point guard.

Bannister is a solid point guard that can blow by defenders with a nice dribble drive. He did a good job of feeding the ball into the post and finding Washington coming off of high screens. He still needs to develop a nice shot from deep but with a team so loaded, Bannister didn’t need to focus on his offense. He finished the night with 9 points, 7 assists and 3 steals. Sources close to the Auburn program tell us that the Tigers are hot in the pursuit for his signature.

Akini Adkins, a 6-10 rising senior forward, worked extremely hard inside the paint for rebounds. His long arms were always around the ball. Although he looks a lot like a typical skinny (although calling him skinny doesn’t give him justice) Kentucky post player, he lists Alabama, FSU, Tennessee, Wake Forest, Cincinnati and Michigan as his favorites.

Florida bound Chris Richards will be a favorite in the SEC. He has a very good nose for the ball. He plays good defense and cleans the glass better than most. He has an imposing body frame right now. After his senior year and at least two years under Billy Donavan, Richard’s will have a body that most NBA players covet.

Several players have compared Richards to recently drafted Chris Wilcox. The comparison is fitting because of Richards quick elevation and good defense. His dunks don’t come close to Wilcox’s though. But after a couple of years, we may be looking at one of the top players in the country.

Team Texas’ star point guard junior Jason Horton really impressed us with his ball handling skills. He proved that he can go both left and right without any problems at all. There were times when he tried to be too fancy with no look passes and crafty dribbling. When he finally settled down, he played a very solid game. He definitely sets the pace for the entire team. He likes to run but he can also set up a play and execute it. Horton finished the game with 14 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists.

6-11 Stephen Verwers is a name that may raise some questions. Why? He doesn’t go to high school. Verwers is a home schooler who is taking advantage of the summer circuit. He played extremely well against the much bigger and stronger Florida front line. Heck, he even took two offensive charges. We liked Verwers knowledge of the game and his ability to get after rebounds and block shots. He finished the game with 12 points and 11 rebounds.