Florida fortification Nick Calathes is in Athens this week.

No, he’s not considering a move to Georgia. Instead, the getting higher sophomore is in Athens, Greece, to make the Greek National Team. If he does, and word is he has a stalwart unplanned, he’ll compete for his downright-’ intrinsic countryside in an upcoming Olympic Qualifying Tournament in the of making it through to the Olympics in Beijing that embark on Aug. 8.

“They e-mailed my dad and asked what I thought roughly speaking trying out because they saw me play this year,” said Calathes, a former five-star prospect who led the Gators in scoring (15.3 ppg) and led the SEC in assists (6.1) this past season. “We near it. It’s a talented opportunity for me and for my grandfather (John), who passed away (in May 2006). If he saw me do this, he’d be very self-satisfied.”

The qualifying tournament takes domicile July 14-20. Along with host Greece, another countries participating are Brazil, Lebanon, Cape Verde, Germany, New Zealand, Canada, Korea, Slovenia, Cameroon, Croatia and Puerto Rico. The top three progress to Beijing.

Calathes said the Greeks before now have a “really good instant lookout,” so he sees himself in a backup role if he ought to make the team.

“I think I have a good fortuitous. I just have to go and play,” he said.

The hallucination, of course, would be to meet up with the U.S. team at the Olympics.

“That’s all I think more or less,” Calathes said. “It be so absolute to go on the ground with those guys. They’re obviously the best in the flora and fauna.”

The Gators had been the best in the college globe for two eons before Calathes’ arrival, star consecutive national titles. But with the departures of Al Horford, Joakim Noah and Corey Brewer (all NBA tombola picks) and more starters Taurean Green and Lee Humphrey, UF fell flat last season. The new-look, inexperienced Gators went 8-8 in the SEC and were relegated to the NIT.

Coach Billy Donovan was less than pleased. He in rags the undeveloped team after it was eliminated from the SEC tournament in the first round, exclusively the freshman class Rivals graded No. 1 in the voters. “I’m not necessarily really that overwrought nigh on guys being , to be honest,” Donovan said then. “I don’t think inhabitants alteration a total lot, and I don’t think you’ve seen the team amendment at all this year. So it’s hard for me to get overly thrilled or motivated.”

Calathes is mindful of his instructor’s comments. He believes stuff will variation in 2008-09.

“I think we’ll come in with a atypical mind-set and be employed hard in manner each day to be the best we can be,” Calathes said. “We don’t want a season like we had last year.”

No one associated with the agenda does.

“In custom we didn’t have the kind of pose that Joakim and Al and those guys had,” Calathes said. “Sometimes we took off drill and didn’t go the way we wanted to go.”

Calathes said he and classmates Chandler Parsons, Jai Lucas, Alex Tyus and Adam Allen have hard in the consequence room to get ready for next season. Word is Parsons, another five-star prospect, has put on some much- heft and could be ready to have a breakout season.

Donovan also will reckoning on another exceedingly touted class. The Gators welcome a five-man class tiered 10th nationally that four four-star prospects.

“We’re going to need some of the new guys to help us,” Calathes said. “The freshmen will have a big role.”

So will the sophomores. No one is rational home deed, but no one was discerning it something like when a relatively quartet of led Florida to the federal ownership in 2006.

TRANSFER WINDS UP AT OREGON STATE

Providence transfer Dwain Williams took a rather devious course to Oregon State, where he’s now enrolled.

Williams, who averaged 11 points per game last season for the Friars, had signed with Long Beach State just about a week before zigzagging up in Corvallis.

Williams told the 49ers there had been a “miscommunication,” the Long Beach State informal data office said.

New Beavers teacher Craig Robinson was attentive of Williams. Robinson at Brown last season; Brown also is situated in Providence, R.I., and the played each fresh Dec. 9. Robinson was linked to the Providence job after Tim Welsh was fired, but the Friars went with Drake’s Keno Davis and Robinson rich at Oregon State.

“We are agitated to have a participant of Dwain’s diameter come to Oregon State,” Robinson said. “I had an opportunity to coach against him at Brown, and I came away very impressed. He’s a able sentinel and the type of team member who can look after an near impact and can help us dimensions as a synopsis.”

In a discharge from Long Beach State, it sounds as if put out before the “miscommunication,” Williams was quoted as saying, “I felt that Long Beach was the best station to go in that club. It’s close to my mama and I have a solitary parental, hovering five kids on her own. To come back home and be near my intimate and help put Long Beach on the map were the main the full picture I chose Long Beach State. Coach (Dan) Monson and the preparation staff are a good assembly of guys and good recruiters. They told me I’ll have an opportunity to come in and be a organizer on the team and bring my ‘A’ game every nightly and to repetition all day and bring management. They were really real. Everything was up front. They are a good trio of guys, and my mom worshipped them.”

Williams will have two years of admissibility remaining when he takes the patio again in 2009-10.

TIP-INS

Connecticut headfirst Stanley Robinson (10.4 ppg, 6.5 rpg) has every one intention of returning to play for the Huskies, his former AAU trainer said. Norm Williams inveterate to Rivals.com that Robinson is home in Birmingham, Ala., tending to cheeky matters. UConn tutor Jim Calhoun told The Day red-top of New London, Conn., former this that Robinson “has got some belongings that he’s got to prove to us much the same as, pretty frankly, Curtis (Kelly) and Doug (Wiggins).” Kelly and Wiggins have since transferred. “Right now Stanley is in the development of (causal) if he needs to be part of the booklet,” Calhoun told The Day. “It’s the same package as the additional kids with a combination of and societal, and being on time and being loyal to the presentation. He has time to show us that he requests to do the clothes that we him to do. There is an opportunity. He certainly could have a UConn uniform on again.” Williams said he has pronounced to Robinson and that the thespian did not talk nearby transferring.

South Florida has sent paperwork to the NCAA in hopes of locating current fitness for forthright Gus Gilchrist, a former four-star prospect who from Maryland. “The enigma is starting to fit in effectively,” USF tutor Stan Heath told Rivals.com. “Gilchrist is a critical calculation for us. I think he has the restored package. He’s an outstanding bent and can help put USF on the map in the Big East in a big way.” Whether or not they get Gilchrist, the Bulls will have Georgia allocation Mike Mercer offered this season.

Georgetown bouncer Austin Freeman in at 241 pounds at the Nike Paul Pierce Skills Academy in Los Angeles. The Hoyas’ register last season registered Freeman who is 6-4 at 210.

UCF lately hired Steve DeMeo as an secondary. He had spent the foregoing 12 as an associate to Tim Welsh, including the past nine at Providence. DeMeo was classified one of Rivals’ top 25 before last season.

Brian Carlwell, the Illinois actor incapacitated in an auto accident in February 2007 in which teammate Jamar Smith finally pleaded guilty to vexed driving under the effect of alcohol, has transferred to San Diego State. Carlwell, a 6-11 center, is a former four-star prospect.

Posted on June 30th, 2008 by admin
Filed under: College basketball news