Player Diary: Stevie Taylor '11

Since my last entry I’ve been to a lot of camps and AAU tournaments. First I would like to talk about the Bob Gibbons TOC in North Carolina. My dad and I took a plane to North Carolina and as soon as we landed I told my dad that I was going to make the all- tournament team. I did! The first game I had 15 points and 5 assists, and when we went up by 20, they had to stop the game with 4 minutes to go in the 4^th quarter. Throughout the whole tournament we were blowing teams out by 20 points.

In the championship game we played the M33M Memphis, which also was the team we played in the U-14 AAU Nationals last summer. I’m happy to report that we beat them by 15 points for the second time in a row. In that game I had 23 points and 6 assists. The experience was unbelievable, and all of the universities that we played at were top notch. We played at Duke, North Carolina, and NC State. Me personally, I liked North Carolina the best because it was so big and everything was painted baby blue. I have to say, the Gibbons was the best tournament I’ve been to ever.

A few weeks back I attended the Xavier Elite Camp in Cincinnati. At Xavier, I played really well. The first game I played on the main court against some top players. The coach at Xavier spoke to me at the camp and told me he liked my game and was going to start recruiting me really hard. I like Xavier a lot and I hope they keep watching me.

I had to leave early on Saturday morning because I had to go play with my high school team at Ohio State. The Ohio State Team Camp was another great experience for my team and I. We went 2-2 the first day and we got the 5^th seed going into the playoffs. We won the first game on Sunday, but then we lost the next game.

This past weekend I played in the RBK Breakout Underclassmen Camp in Chicago, Illinois. The breakout camp was invitation only and everybody there could play. I played really well in every game. In the first two games I went for 20 points each game. There were a lot of individual match-ups that people wanted to see and most of them turned out really well and were fun to watch. I got hurt the last game on Saturday so that kept me from playing in any games on Sunday, including the all-star game. The Reebok Camp was great and I think I made a big impression.

During the last couple of weeks I have been playing in a summer league that features pro and college level athletes. Last week I led my team in scoring with 12 points, but we kind of got blown out. Next week is a big showdown between my squad and my brother’s team. I hope my thumb is better because I plan on going at my brother for real.

I was supposed to be attending the Cincinnati Elite Camp this week but I didn’t make it because of my thumb injury. However, I will be going down to the UC Team Camp on Friday with my high school team. I was hoping to get an offer from UC but that may be tough now that I missed the elite camp.

Well that’s all for now. Look for my next entry in the next couple of weeks. The next time we talk I will tell you what went down at the Adidas Take Five Classic in Cincinnati, the Adidas Super 64 in Vegas and of course the NCAA First Team Program in early August. See ya.

Player Diary: Steve Rennard '10

So here’s a normal schedule in my life. School just ended a few weeks ago and I’ve been working hard with my high school and AAU teams. My AAU team (Team NJABC) has been very busy these past couple months. We’ve been in a number of big tournaments such as the the Playaz Spring Fling, a couple of Hoop Group Jam Fests, and the Rumble in the Bronx. Coming up we have the West Virginia Jam Fest, Hoop Group Reebok Summer Classic, and the Super Showcase in Florida. We decided to do the Super Showcase this year instead of the Main Event in Las Vegas, but both are very competitive. Last year we made it to the elite eight in the Main Event, but lost on a buzzer beater to Houston Hoops. I’m definitely looking forward to the traveling and playing the best teams from all over the country.

For my high school team (St. Joe’s Metuchen, NJ), starting this week we have league games in Elizabeth and Linden on Mondays and Wednesdays. The rest of the week we have individual skills training and weight lifting at St. Joe’s. We go through our lifting program for an hour and then have skills training with Coach Turco and Coach Dolan. We are also going to team camps at a few colleges and at Eastern.

St Joe's just signed up to do a speed and agility training program at the Basketball Shooting Academy (TBSA) in Edison. I usually get there an hour early to get some shots up before we start. Then afterwards I stay and run some games with the guys there.
Last weekend (June 15 – 17) I was at Princeton Elite Camp. I thought the new coach there (Coach Johnson) really knew what he was doing. He is trying to give the kids on his team more freedom to create, and I like his coaching style. We are definitely going to keep in touch. I am going to attend the Temple elite camp in Philadelphia in a few weeks. Supposedly the competition there should be tough so I’m looking forward to it. The Headliner tryout camp held in Rebounds just passed also. From that camp I got invited to the Breakout camp in Chicago.

One thing that I also enjoy doing when I’m not playing basketball is drawing for a new company that my friend and I started up. We sell mostly T-Shirts and hoodies, and it’s really starting to take off. I just designed a T-Shirt for two DJs and I am working on another one for a new Ice Coffee drink that is going to be hitting the stores soon called “Mojava”. Oh yea, you can check out some of the stuff on http://uniiqz.com/.

Well it’s been, and still going to be, a very busy summer. The summer after sophomore year is an important time to start thinking about college, and it’s been exciting so far. I have to keep working hard if I want to get to the level where I want to play. It’s been a good experience, and I’ll keep you updated as time goes on.

Player Diary: Stevie Taylor '11

Hey whats up? This is a day in my life. Each day I start my day off the same way. First, I wake up figuring out what I’m about to wear to school in the morning. After that I get a ride to school with my brother (Robbie). At school for me its fun because I get to see my friends and get to further my education. Everyday during my lunch period I go in the coach’s office to get a basketball and go in the gym to get some shots up by myself. While I’m there I work on free throws, pull up jumpers from both wings. After that I put my school clothes on and go to class.

My daily basketball schedule has been crazy the last couple of weeks. Normally, after school, I lift weights then Coach Vic picks me up from school and I work out at the local YMCA for a couple of hours with some of the other top guys around Columbus. We work on lots of shooting drills from every spot on the court and then we play one-on-one, three-on-three or some other games. After that, we usually go to an open gym where we get a good run for a couple of hours. After that, my brother and me either work out with Coach PJ, or my dad works us out at the high school. Because my dad has a key to the high school gym, we workout almost every day. We do skills and drills for a couple of hours then I go one-on-one with my brother a little bit. Oh yea, I’m beating my older brother now, but not all the time just yet.

I have been real busy so far this AAU season. I just got back form a tournament in Italy a number of weeks ago. We finished second and I got the tournament MVP. My team, the Ohio Basketball Club, won the Pittsburgh Jam Fest a few weeks ago and I made the all-tournament team. We lost in the elite eight the last two tournaments, then we took a two-week break from tournaments.

Tomorrow [Friday 5/23/08] we are heading down to the Bob Gibbons Tournament of Champions in North Carolina. The competition is going to be crazy and we have some really tough teams in our pool. It looks like we got Rich Soil in our pool with my boy Najee Whitehead who played with me on Team Phenom last summer. They also got D. Grace and Tavon Sledge so you know it’s going to be hot. We get to play at Duke, NC State and maybe North Carolina.

Yesterday [Wednesday 5/21/08] my dad took me and my brother down to an open gym at the University of Dayton and we ran with the team. Those guys did not give me the basketball that much but my shot was falling when I got it. The rest of the summer is real busy. I’m going to team camps with my high school at the University of Cincinnati and Ohio State, plus some elite camps at UC, West Virginia and Akron. I may get an invitation to the Reebok Underclassmen Camp in June then I go to the NCAA First Team event in Arizona sometime in August.

Now you know whats up with my crazy schedule but you know I have to do it to make it. Well that's all for now. I will get back at you soon. Keep ballin y'all.

New Feature:

I will be starting a new feature here for Northstar Basketball. Player diaries will now be a part of the site. Basically, I'll be having different kids writing "journal entries" that I will then put on the website. My hope is to get players from all over America, and have them be from numerous classes. As of now, I have five players lined up, one from every class between 2008 and 2012:

2008: Erving Walker, NY, University of Florida
2009: Derek Elston, IN
2010: Steve Rennard, NJ
2011: Stevie Taylor, OH
2012: Justin Anderson, VA

I will also try to get some other kids, and have already been in contact with a few regarding the subject. Most of the players will not be starting until they finish up the school year, although
at least one, Taylor, is starting prior to the end of the school year. In fact, I have already received Stevie's first entry, and it will be posted tonight. Be sure to keep checking back to see Northstar Basketball's new feature and get an inside look at some of the nation's best ballers.