We’ll let him¬†introduce himself:
“My name is Tobias Harris. I’m 16 yrs old. 6’8 225 pounds. I love to play the game of basketball. I’m a small foward – 3 or 4, which ever way you wanna put it.”
Harris, from Half Hollow Hills West High (N.Y.) on Long Island, is probably in one of the most confusing stages of his life.
He’s in the midst of¬†in-home visits from coaches, all trying to sell their programs to him… and mom.
“Coach Boeheim and Coach Hopkins are two great coaches and people. I really enjoyed the in-home visit. They showed me their offense and how I would be able to play in their system. They look for me to be able to play the 3 or the 4 but to me it doesn’t matter. I just want to show my whole game. My mom got to understand more about the academics and the whole system which was good, as well.”
(Editor’s Note: Good to see Hop doing his part in the above picture – the envelope stuffed with money and the gift SU hat in the Manny’s bag. I kid! I kid!)
There’s a match between where Harris wants to play and what the SU coaching staff views him as.
And there’s¬†this:¬†“He’s the best offensive forward in the country,” (a Big East assistant coach) said. “He can face up, he can post up, he can drive. He can do everything.”
It would be nice if it were simple, but of course it’s not. If a school’s been decent in the last 30 years, Harris likely has an offer from them.
He’s at the point where there’s probably no wrong decision. He’s got 60-year-old men like Jim Boeheim, Gary Williams and the never-dead Jim Calhoun hot-tossing promises at him and the never-ending parade of campus tours making his head spin.
It’s easy to look from the outside and think it’s nice to have all those choices, but there’s gonna be a long list of losers when his choice is made final.
Does the recent announcement of Carmelo Anthony’s jersey retirement play any factor in Harris’ decision? Or the new Melo Center set to open soon?
And oh by the way, supposedly Carmelo himself will be dropping by campus today: (this via Scoop Jardine’s Twitter last night)
Dr. Doom’s decision to retire Anthony’s jersey has been seen by some as too soon, although if it helps get Tobias Harris in an Orange jersey, it may have been worth it.
