|
June 19, 2007
Home -
Samardo Tracker Index
| |
Samardo has Committed to
University of Louisville
 Huge and ridiculously awesome news from
the recruiting world late Tuesday night as Samardo
Samuels, the sixth best player in the country according
to Scout, has committed to play basketball for Rick Pitino
and the Louisville Cardinals.
The 6-foot-9, 230-pound big man out of St. Benedict Prep
in Newark, N.J. had long been considered North
Carolina's but changed his mind. "They offered me a
better opportunity to play and show my talent," Samuels
told Scout.com. "I'll be surrounded by good players and
we can win a national championship in my first year and
I can get a lot of playing time."
A native of Jamaica who has only been playing basketball
for about four years, Samuels has the body and uses it
to snag anything that comes off of the rim, or toss
anything that's heading towards it. He also possesses a
great deal of raw offensive skill that will only improve
as he begins to further understand the game. He averaged
19 points and 12 rebounds for St. Benedict's, which
finished 24-1 and was ranked No. 1 in the nation by USA
Today for one week before falling to in-state rival St.
Patrick.
"Some compare him to Elton Brand, Chris Webber and even
Karl Malone," Karriem Memminger, one of his AAU coaches
for the Metro Hawks and a close family friend told The
Courier-Journal. "He's a guy you know is going to give
you 20-15 (points-rebounds) and maybe even 25-12 every
game."
Samuels said that he thought his visit to Louisville
last weekend was going to be "just another trip," but he
was swayed by the two hours he spent talking with Pitino
as well as the time he spent quickly bonding with fellow
Jersey natives Earl Clark and Derrick Caracter. "I
bonded with them," he said. "That made it real easy.
They were cool. They wanted me to come."
The other great thing about Samuels' commitment is that
he is close friends with the guy who might wind up being
the crown jewel of Pitino's '08 class: Tyreke Evans.
"From what he told me, he's pretty much down,"
Samuels said of Tyreke. "Hopefully, I can get a couple
players to come with me now."
The relatively unexpected verbal from Samuels also helps
alleviate many of the fears that arose last week when
San Diego big man Jeff Withey decommitted from the
Cards. "
Fans will be able to see Samuels on Dec. 13 when his St.
Benedict squad takes on Oak Hill in Marshall County, KY
in a game that will be televised by ESPN2.
As an appetizer, you can check out highlights of the
future Cardinal and current man child in the video
below:
|
|
