Mike Anderson calls it “The Fastest 40 Minutes in Basketball.”
Nolan Richardson calls it “40 Minutes of Hell.”
Little Rock Hall Coach Jon Coleman calls it the perfect system for his star player, 6-9 junior power forward Bobby Portis, and Clarksville guard Dedrick Lee, both of whom have orally committed to the Arkansas Razorbacks for the Class of 2013.
“I think that it’s a very good fit for him (Portis) and for the Razorback program,” Coleman said Thursday, five days after Portis committed to Anderson, Arkansas’ first-year head. “Bobby is a super athlete and has a very big upside. And I think he fits Coach Anderson’s style of play.
“Clarksville does a lot of pressing and trapping, so again, I think that will fall in line with what Coach Anderson will do. He (Lee) reminds you of (former Arkansas guard) Corey Beck, but Lee’s a better shooter.”
Anderson, who spent 17 years as an Arkansas assistant for Richardson’s pressing, fast-paced Arkansas teams, has set a precedent in gaining commitments from Portis and Lee, Coleman said.
“I think it’s always a good thing for the Razorbacks to target the best in-state players,” Coleman said.
“I think they’re the two best players in that class, and already he has commitments from both of them. You can tell he’s targeting the better in-state players.”
Portis averaged about eight points and five rebounds as a sophomore, starting at power forward and center for a Little Rock Hall team that won its second consecutive Class 7A state championship.
The Warriors had four returning senior starters on that team, and two of them, forwards David Rivers (Nebraska) and Myles Taylor (Tennessee-Martin), received NCAA Division I scholarships.
“Bobby is a very good athlete who can run the floor and he can also step outside and shoot the jump shot,” said Coleman, who led Hall to the 2011 state title as interim head coach before having the interim tag removed after the season. “He’ll fit right in with their (the Razorbacks’) pressing style of play.”
Portis seemed to come into his own this summer when he played for the Arkansas Wings’ 16-under and 17-under teams. Coleman gave credit to Wings founder and president Ron Crawford for Portis’ summer improvement.
In addition to taking part in the top amateur basketball tournaments in the nation this summer, Coleman said Portis benefited when Crawford brought Ganon Baker, a well-known skills development coach, and former NBA player Dee Brown to Little Rock this summer for an instructional camp.
“Coach Crawford did a great job helping him get better as far as on the block and also helped him in a lot of individual drills through Ganon Baker’s trainers,” Coleman said. “So he had a real big summer.”
Lee, a 6-2 shooting guard, also won a state title in March, leading Clarksville to the 4A crown before committing to the Razorbacks in May. Coleman became familiar with Lee by seeing him play in the Fort Smith Coca-Cola Classic and in the Jammin’ for Jackets tournament in Little Rock.
“I think he’s a super player because one, he shoots the ball extremely well,” Coleman said of Lee. “Two, he has the ability to play point guard, and again, he’s an athletic kid.”
Coleman has two other players on his Little Rock Hall team whom he expects to eventually receive Division I scholarships. Senior guard Quan Jones, who also played for the Wings’ 17-under team, is being recruited by Missouri-Kansas City. And junior guard Javan Perry is receiving recruiting letters from Arkansas, TCU, Tennessee-Martin and Missouri State.
“We have a very talented team coming back,” Coleman said. “While we lost four starters, we have six lettermen coming back. We have a very talented senior group. Bobby is a member of a junior class that could probably be one of the better classes to come through Hall.”