On Thursday & Friday, Pool Play heated up at the various sites of the four tournaments being held in Las Vegas during the second 10-day evaluation period of July. There were scattered thundershowers all week in Sin City, but the action was non-stop. It appears the best overall tournament in terms of quality teams is the Adidas Super 64. We caught some of the action at Rancho High School on Thursday and checked out the Center Stage Tournament presented by StarVision Sports on Friday afternoon. We completed our day at the Create-N-Finish Cup that was captured by an AAU team from Southern California.

By Ronnie Flores, Senior Editor

Even with Jeremy Tyler about to embark on a journey through Europe before his hopeful final destination, specifically the 2011 NBA Draft, his former AAU team seems to be just fine without his 6-foot-11 body planted in the middle.

Last summer, Tyler helped the California Supreme take home the tourney title at the Main Event. This year, that tournament is down in terms of talented teams, and the Cal Supreme is competing at the Reebok Summer Championships where the stakes are said to be a little higher.

So far, it looks like they are not missing a beat, as Cal Supreme rolled to a 75-55 victory over Texas Bluchips Navy in the championship game of the Create-N-Finish Cup on Friday night.

The mini-tournament at Foothill High School pitting the top eight seeded teams at the Reebok Summer Championships was more of a coronation that a competition to see which teams would emerge as the favorite to capture the open division title on Sunday night. The California Supreme jumped out to an early lead and never let up.

Point guard Gary Franklin Jr. (Mater Dei, Santa Ana) led the way for Cal Supreme with 15 points. The six-foot point guard continued to show why he's the most talented player in the Summer Championships consistently playing at a high level. Some prospects are perhaps just as talented and even ranked higher, but Franklin Jr. plays within the context of winning better than any player at this tournament. He's been stroking the long-range shots with solid accuracy, hitting three of six three-pointers in the title game, but he feels he can do more.

"I am going to get people involved early and then try to hit my open shots," Franklin Jr. said after the mini-tournament championship game on Friday night. " As a bigger guard I also want to rebound more."

Cal Supreme took an early 9-2 lead on a follow up basket by post-grad Jamaal Franklin (Serrano, Phelan), but the Texans came roaring back and trialed 12-10 with 11:30 remaining in the first half. Cal Supreme then surged again, building a 21-10 lead after a triple by Franklin Jr.

When Keala King (Mater Dei, San Ana via Compton Dominguez) nailed a three-pointer with 45 seconds remaining in the first half, Cal Supreme had built a 38-23 lead and went into halftime leading 38-25.

In the second half, a 29-footer by Franklin Jr. gave the Golden State boys a 53-35 lead and they had the lead to as high as 71-44 on Franklin Jr.'s final three-pointer of the ball game before Texas Bluechips Navy outscored Cal Supreme, 11-4, to close the game out. The final point were just a formality, there was no question which team had emerged as the open division favorite.

Tyler Lamb, Mater Dei's third standout perimeter player on Cal Supreme, finished with 14 points and six rebounds. King, who has been drawing raves from national scouts for his summer play, added 11 while Jamaal Franklin finished with eight points.

For Texas Bluechips Navy, 6-foot-5 Jaron Johnson (John Tyler, Tyler, Texas) scored a game-high 17 points in a losing effort.

When asked what it would mean to him if his team won the Summer Championships, Franklin Jr. wanted to focus on the team and not himself, which isn't surprising considering the way he conducts himself off the court.

"I think it means a lot to me," said Franklin Jr., whose father is the head coach of his AAU team. "Last year we won the Main Event, and people said this tournament has better teams. We want to prove to everyone we can compete in this tournament. We just came from the (Nike) Peach Jam, where there probably was better competition, so we're playing at a higher level."

If Franklin can continue to play and push his team to compete at their current level, he'll join Brandon Jennings (the recent No.10 pick in the NBA Draft) and John Wall (an incoming freshman at Kentucky who many feel is already the top prospect for the 2010 NBA Draft) as the top floor general at the last four championship teams at Reebok's main July showcase event. Jennings and Wall captured MVP honors at the first two Summer Championships, while Jennings was the point guard on a Southern California All-Stars AAU team that won the 2006, and final, Big Time Tournament that Sonny Vaccaro made synonymous with Sin City.

If that were to happen, that would put Franklin Jr. in fine company indeed.

Create N Finish Cup Results:
Seventh Place: D-One Sports (N.C) 95, Dakota Schoolers (S.D) 90
high scorer -- Cory Jacobson (Viborg, S.D.) 29 points
Fifth Place: MBA Elite (Miss.) 74, New York Panthers 62
high scorer -- LaQuinton Ross (Murrah, Jackson, Miss.) 26 points
Third Place: Playaz Basketball Club (N.J.) 72, Team Detroit 65
high scorer -- Myles Davis (St. Peter's, Plainfield, N.J.) 25 points
Championship: California Supreme 75, Texas Bluechips Navy 55
MVP: Gary Franklin Jr. (Mater Dei, Santa Ana)

Belmont Shore Decimated by Injury

*On Friday at the Rebook Summer Championships, 6-foot-7 DeAndre Daniels was in street clothes for a Belmont Shore club that resembled a M.A.S.H. unit more than an AAU basketball team. In a close 79-78 loss to Grassroots Canada Elite at the GBOA Challenge of Champions on Wednesday, Daniels was hit on the wrist and winced in pain but continued to play.

"It hurt at the moment, but I wasn't thinking about it during the game, I was just concentrating on the game," Daniels said. "I didn't get an X-Ray by a trainer, but I talked to three different trainers and they all told me I may have a fracture. When I get back home I'm probably going to put a cast on it."

Daniels, from Taft of Woodland Hills, is not the only player for Belmont Shore on the sidelines for the rest of the summer. Point guard Cezar Guerrero, who is now back at St. John Bosco of Bellflower after spending his sophomore season at City of Industry Workman, has a hairline fracture on his pinkie finger and is not playing in Las Vegas. Six-foot-7 Jordan Salley (La Verne Lutheran) is also out with an ACL injury. According to Belmont Shore coach Dinos Trigonis, Salley will likely miss some of his senior season at La Verne Lutheran.

As for Daniels, no West Coast player drew as many early raves from college coaches and fellow AAU coaches for his Sin City performance. His outside game is improving, his rebounding is ever-present and his face-up game is expanding. Most recruiting experts are in the opinion that Daniels is a top 25-40 talent in the country, but there is some confusion as to if he's a 2010 or 2011 prospect. He'll likely only play one season for the Toreadors, which could hurt his chances to participate in national all-star games since the McDonald's All-American voting system is never consistent with allowing or not allowing fifth-year players in the prestigious game. The committee might penalize him if he spends the 2010-2011 season at a prep school.

Who's the Best in Las Vegas?

With Brandon Knight (Pine Crest, Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.) injured at the recent Nike Peach Jam and with many of the nation's top prospects such as Jared Sullinger (Northland, Columbus, Ohio), Harrison Barnes (Ames, Iowa), and EA SPORTS National Sophomore of the Year Michael Gilchrist (St. Patrick's, Elizabeth, N.J) set to participate at the AAU Nationals in Orlando early next week, the popular question in Sin City has been, "Who is the best player in Las Vegas?"

It's no secret the top-tier players in the Class of 2010 have not stepped up like their 2011 counterparts have. With that in mind, it's disappointing to see no single player has stepped up to take that mantle

Six-foot-4 Tony Wroten Jr. (Garfield, Seattle) has the talent to be that player, but his performances are not drawing the rave reviews that they did in the summer of 2008. That may be a case of scouts already holding him to a higher standard than his peers, but there is still more positives to talk about than any negatives. In Seattle Rotary's 67-62 victory over the Memphis Magic, Wroten was making passes that few, if any, player can make at the prep level. He can pass effectively and accurately while pushing off with the left or right hand and his court awareness and basketball I.Q. is very high. He finished the five-point win with 15 points.

On the other hand, Wroten Jr. hasn't grown or advanced physically in the last calendar year. On Friday afternoon at the Center Stage Tournament, Wroten Jr. wasn't hitting his outside shots, but he still made a positive impact, including a highlight blocked shot that he pinned on the glass, in a 86-54 victory of the SYF Players of Indiana. In Friday night's heralded 73-66 victory over the Mac Irvin Fire in a possible preview of Sunday's Center Stage 17U Championship game, Wroten Jr. netted 11 points. He needs to continue to hone his jump shot, but he does have legitimate point guard skills.

Read Below for more of the out-of-state prospects that caught our eye in Las Vegas; check back on late Saturday night for more updates and reports on California players:

*Ryan Harrow (Walton, Marietta, Ga.): The six-foot point guard had the most impressive performance of any perimeter player in the first three days of evaluation in the Atlanta Celtics J-Smoov's one-point victory over Pump N Run Elite. Harrow led the way with a game-high 27 points. He displayed a great first step and the ability to finish lower percentage shots near the rim, including a wicked tear drop high off glass. He also can finish clutch plays and has the innate ability to keeps his dribble alive in tight space in or near the key, which is not easy for any guard to do at any level.

*Luke Cothron (McDonald, Red Springs, N.C.): There were some great games at the Adidas Super 64 on Thursday, with the best being a 93-92 victory by the Atlanta Celtics J-Smoov over Pump N Run Elite. Cothron has crafty moves and could be a potential pro if he plays hard and to his potential on a consistent basis. He was on his game against Pump N Run, finishing with 16 points and showing good anticipation skills on the defensive end. He even blocked a potential game-winning shot in the closing seconds to cap his fine all-around effort. Atlanta Celtics teammate Trae Golden (McEachern, Powder Springs, Ga.) added 20 points. Golden is a talented high school player, but his ceiling for potential improvement remains to be seen.

*Joshua Hairston, who prepped last season at Courtland High School in Virginia, reportedly is headed for national power Montrose Christian in Rockville, Maryland. The 6-foot-9 forward netted 27 points in a losing effort for the D.C. Assault against the California Supreme at the GBOA Challenge of Champions. Hairston, a Duke commit, is a borderline McDonald's All-American candidate for 2010 so it will be interesting to see his progression this winter if indeed he's part of coach Stu Vetter's program.

*Josh Smith (Kentwood, Wash.): Playing alongside Wroten with Seattle Rotary, Smith has gotten a lot of attention as a returning all-american for his high school team. He an intriguing post prospect with a solid skill set, but he has to improve his physical conditioning. He also has to move better to find the basketball and beat his man to the spot in order to maximize his scoring opportunities. Unlike many young bigs, Smith doesn't get frustrated when he's not touching the ball. That's always nice too see in a young post.

On Friday night in arguably the best game of the StarVision Sports Center Stage tournament, Smith came up big in Seattle Rotary Select's 73-66 victory over Mac Irvin Fire. His performance was a complete turnaround from the earlier game against the SYF Players, as he scored 21 points and came up with at least five rim-rattling dunks. Noted national scout Clarke Francis of the HoopScoop said it was the best he's seen Smith play in quite some time.

*Shaquille Thomas (Mountain State, Beckley, W.V.): The 6-foot-8 forward dominated at times in a 78-61 victory over Team Odom. The victors were just stronger and more athletic than team Odom. Thomas finished with 14 points for the Playaz Club Gold. His AAU teammate, Fuquan Edwin (Catholic, Patterson, N.J.) also looked good against Team Odom with 22 points. He's a Seton Hall commit.

*LaQuinton Ross (Murrah, Jackson, Miss.): During the fifth place game of the Reebok Create-N-Finish Cup, Ross' play for MBA Elite was lethargic. He was once considered on par with the very best players in the talented Class of 2011 such as Wroten Jr. and Gilchrist, but he doesn't play with the urgency, within the context of winning, necessary to keep pace with those top talents in various national rankings. The question is, when will Ross demonstrate his considerable package of skills in a complete performance on both ends of the floor? Despite some shortcomings, he can get the basket at will and has a good shooting touch. He showed the ability to get to the line in MBA Elite's 74-62 victory over the New York Panthers, canning 14 of 16 free throws and finishing with 26 points.

*The prospect that turned the most heads and had college coaches buzzing the most about his potential was 7-foot-1 junior-to-be Jordan Omogbehin (National Christian Academy, Md.) for Team Takeover Orange at the Center Stage Tournament. A native of Nigeria, Omogbehin is rough around the edges offensively, but his skill level at that size is something every college coach in America would love to work with. He can run the floor and can finish with authority, to say the least. What he does need to work on is catching the ball in traffic and moving without the ball to make himself available for a post entry pass. In a competitive game against the Mac Irvin Fire, Omogbehin was aggressive on both ends of the floor. After he received a technical in an altercation with a Mac Irvin player, however, he didn't touch the ball much.