WarTiger 3,909 Posted November 20, 2009 Share Posted November 20, 2009 Major props to Lebo and staff for bringing in such a highly ranked class for next season. Auburn Basketball Signs Six In Early Signing Period Class Ranked 5th Nationally By Hoopscoop Nov. 18, 2009 AUBURN - Shawn Kemp, a 6-foot-10, 215-pound center from Canton, Ga.; Heath Houston, a 6-foot-7, 225-pound forward from Powder Springs, Ga.; Jalen Steele, a 6-foot-2, 180-pound guard from Knoxville, Tenn.; Anthony Salter, a 5-foot-11 point guard from Tallahassee, Fla.; Allen Payne, a 6-foot-6, 205-pound forward from Cincinnati, Ohio; and Adrian Forbes, a 6-foot-8, 230-pound power forward from Spanish Town, Jamaica; have signed national letters of intent to attend Auburn University and play basketball in 2010-11, head coach Jeff Lebo announced Wednesday. "I think we really helped ourselves in some areas," said Lebo, whose class has been ranked fifth nationally by HoopScoop magazine. "Obviously, we lose a lot of players so this is going to be a big class for us. We lose guys who played a lot for us so we are looking for some immediate impact from this class. "We feel really good about our class. They come from winning programs and are used to winning. They are tough kids, and you hope that they come in and contribute right away. That is why you recruit them. This is a big class for us. There is no doubt about it." Kemp attends Hargrave Military Academy where he scored 21 points, making 9-of-12 shots from the field in a recent scrimmage against prep school power Oak Hill Academy. Playing his high school basketball at Cherokee County High in Powder Springs, Ga., he is the son of former NBA All-Star Shawn Kemp. He averaged 12 points and eight rebounds and had 78 blocks as a senior for Cherokee County in 2008-09. "Shawn Kemp has tremendous upside," said Lebo. "He is 6-foot-10, can shoot the ball from the perimeter and has a legitimate low post game. Shawn is a kid who has really unlimited potential to go certainly to the next level with his play. He can block shots. He can run. He has size. He is already 6-foot-10 and long at Hargrave this year and can really, really run the floor. He is just on the first step of becoming a very good basketball player. He will bring tremendous inside help to us." Houston is a four-year starter at Hillview High and is a face-up power forward with 20-foot range. He plans to major in aerospace engineering. "Heath Houston is a very strong inside player," said Lebo. "He is kind of an undersized player who can play the four and the three for us. He is big, strong, has a tremendous upside and is explosive around the basket area." Steele averaged 21 points, seven rebounds and almost five assists per game as a junior last year in leading Knoxville Fulton High to back-to-back state championships as he was named the Class 2A State Tournament MVP in 2009. Steele, who made 100 three-pointers last season, has led Fulton to a 58-8 record the last two seasons. "Jalen Steele is a kid who is a winner,* said Lebo. *He has won two state championships already. He is one of the top perimeter shooters in the country. He will be a guy with the loss of Tay Waller, who is going to be able to come in and shoot the ball from the perimeter for us. He has been very well coached in high school and will be able to make the transition to college very well." Salter is ranked as the No. 3 overall junior college player in the country by Rivals' JUCO Junction on Nov. 12. He was an All-Region selection last year as a freshman at Iowa Western Community College in Council Bluffs, Iowa, where he averaged 15.4 points and 3.8 assists while shooting 48 percent from the field. He was a Class 4A All-State selection at Tallahassee (Fla.) Rickards High after averaging 19 points, six assists and four rebounds per game as a senior in 2007-08. "Anthony Salter may be the top junior college point guard in the country," said Lebo. *He is very good in transition. He is very quick, can score, can shoot the three and is very good at the mid-range stop and pop area. He played at Iowa Western, which is one of the top junior college programs in the country. He is from Tallahassee (Fla.) so he is excited about coming back close to home.* Payne averaged 15 points and eight rebounds at Cincinnati*s Winton Woods High School as a junior last season. "Allen Payne is a small forward, and he has a very good upside," said Lebo. "He's trying to make the transition from a post guy in high school to a perimeter-type player in college. He has good athleticism on the wing and can run and play inside and out." Forbes, who is ranked as the No. 10 overall junior college player in the country by Rivals* JUCO Junction on Nov. 12, averaged 6.3 points and 5.4 rebounds last season as a freshman at Trinity Valley Community College in Athens, Texas. He also played for the Jamaican National Team over the summer. "Adrian Forbes is a big junior college player who has a lot of potential and has played for a very good junior college program," said Lebo. "He is big and strong at 6-foot-8 and 230 pounds to help us inside." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PChamp119 96 Posted November 20, 2009 Share Posted November 20, 2009 One thing that I do enjoy about college basketball, compared to football, is that the signing period is during the season. This way, when coaches leave, the kids have to stay. In football, so many athletes are bound to the assistants that recruited them. When Trooper or Gus leave, they will likely take some talent with them. If this class is as good as stated, the question is if Lebo will get to witness it as their coach or will the new coach get to inherit it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rtftiger 40 Posted November 20, 2009 Share Posted November 20, 2009 This makes next season even more exciting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TitanTiger 20,499 Posted November 21, 2009 Share Posted November 21, 2009 One thing that I do enjoy about college basketball, compared to football, is that the signing period is during the season. This way, when coaches leave, the kids have to stay. In football, so many athletes are bound to the assistants that recruited them. When Trooper or Gus leave, they will likely take some talent with them. If this class is as good as stated, the question is if Lebo will get to witness it as their coach or will the new coach get to inherit it? If we don't figure out the chemistry and get to playing better soon, no. We're down 15 to UCF early in the second half. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikey98 0 Posted November 21, 2009 Share Posted November 21, 2009 Just unacceptable to get smoked by Mizz St. and now UCF. Unprepared, too many turnovers... One of better classes in the past few years, but I don't see us in the top 25 of the other major sites. I'm assuming they aren't considering the JUCO haul we got. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TitanTiger 20,499 Posted November 21, 2009 Share Posted November 21, 2009 Played much better in the second half. After scoring only 24 the 1st half we scored 50 in the second, but the deficit was too much. Tigers went down 84-74. UCF is now 3-0. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PChamp119 96 Posted November 21, 2009 Share Posted November 21, 2009 I know I'm a negative nancy, but this season is pretty much over already. This team won't even make the NIT, mark it down. Lebo should ask Weis for advice. He better hope Jay Jacobs isn't paying attention and has his mind glued on Chizik. There's always next year with next years talent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WarTiger 3,909 Posted November 21, 2009 Author Share Posted November 21, 2009 Cool. 3 games in and pchamp is giving up already. What a shock. Great news is that since he's giving up, he shouldn't be back in the bball forum the rest of the season polluting every thread with his negative auburn hating rhetoric. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
outoftowntiger 0 Posted November 21, 2009 Share Posted November 21, 2009 I know I'm a negative nancy, but this season is pretty much over already. This team won't even make the NIT, mark it down. Lebo should ask Weis for advice. He better hope Jay Jacobs isn't paying attention and has his mind glued on Chizik. There's always next year with next years talent. I think I'll save this one. We certainly have not looked good so far, but it is a long season. Not that I have to tell you, a McDonald's All-American. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikey98 0 Posted November 21, 2009 Share Posted November 21, 2009 It was early losses like this last year that prevented us getting a bid to the tourney. 1st SEC team to lose to UCF, I think they were 0-27 before last night against SEC. We can all take solace that the SEC looks weak as a whole and we have time to "right" the ship before league play. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auburnfan91 1,407 Posted November 21, 2009 Share Posted November 21, 2009 We can all take solace that the SEC looks weak as a whole and we have time to "right" the ship before league play. Uh, Tennessee is pretty good this year and Kentucky is overrated but they're still a good team. I don't buy into this that the SEC is weak so we will be good. It may be weaker than some other conferences but that doesn't mean that Auburn will be able to dominate the SEC or even win a lot. I didn't want to comment after the Missouri State game because it was just 1 game. I thought Auburn would bounce back and beat UCF but instead they lost again. I know it's still early in the year but it's hard to even be thinking about SEC play just yet after back-to-back losses. With all that being said, I'm not going to give up hope yet, it's still early so let's just win the rest of our non-conference games then worry about the SEC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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