By Ryan Canner-O'Mealy, Special to SI.com, SchoolSports.com
INDIANAPOLIS -- Friday provided plenty of action at the Nike All-America Camp, featuring both standout performances and intriguing subplots.
1. Tyreke Evans, American Christian School (Aston, Pa.) Evans is an ultra-smooth combo guard who is rated the top rising junior in the country by SchoolSports.com. On Friday, he showed why. Playing on a bum ankle that was bad enough for his doctor to recommend that he skip this week's camp, the 6-foot-5 Evans displayed a devastating handle, a solid outside shot and the ability to finish in traffic. His signature move came in his second game of the day when, on a 2-on-1 break, he dribbled behind his back, faked a pass to his teammate and scored off the glass with a finger roll.
2. Donte Greene, Towson Catholic (Towson, Md.) Greene has been a busy man lately, but it hasn't affected his play. Coming off the 2006 FIBA Americas U-18 Championship in San Antonio, Greene arrived at the Nike Camp at 3 p.m. and by 4:30 he was drilling 3-pointers. The 6-foot-10 Greene, who has committed to Syracuse, showed the same versatility as his favorite NBA player, Kevin Garnett, with range that extended beyond the 3-point line. Greene's ability to play on the perimeter, combined with his height, makes him almost impossible to guard, as he proved on Friday.
3. Nick Calathes, Lake Howell (Winter Haven, Fla.) Some might look at the 6-foot-4 Calathes as just a shooter, but that's only part of his game. The Florida-bound guard flashed every part of his game on Friday, hitting from deep beyond the arc and driving to the basket while finishing in traffic. It's clear that Calathes has gotten stronger over the past year -- where he once struggled to finish in the lane, he now has the power to draw contact and still convert the hoop.
4. E'Twaun Moore, East Chicago Central (East Chicago, Ind.) At All-Star showcases like this one, it's not often you find a player as efficient as Moore. The 6-foot-3 guard ran the point for his squad and got his teammates involved, but proved he could score with ease. Moore never took a bad shot, drilling all three of his attempted 3-pointers in the afternoon game, finishing with 19 points.
5. Jai Lucas, Bellaire (Bellaire, Texas) Lucas is one of the rarest commodities in hoops: a pure point guard who can shoot it from the outside. The son of former NBA player and coach John Lucas, Jai Lucas has proven to be an effective floor leader, but really excels when his defender steps off him. Lucas can hit easily from beyond the 3-point arc, but also has a near-automatic mid-range game, which sets him apart from a lot of other guards.
• With all the stars on the court, unquestionably the biggest star of the day was in the stands. Michael Jordan was in attendance, checking out his son Jeffrey's game. Jeffrey, a 6-foot point guard, will be a senior at Loyola Academy (Wilmette, Ill.) in the fall. More than anything, it was a line on Jeffrey's bio that raised the most eyebrows. His favorite NBA team, it turns out, isn't the Chicago Bulls, where his father became a legend, or the Charlotte Bobcats, where his dad now owns a piece of the team. Instead, he is a Cleveland Cavaliers fan, the franchise that his father tortured countless times.
• There were plenty of players worth following on the court, but there was still a lot of attention paid to those not in action. Players like Donte Greene of Towson Catholic (Towson, Md.) and Samardo Samuels of St. Benedict's Prep (Newark, N.J.) saw their first action on Friday, but top-10 rising seniors Kyle Singler of South Medford (Medford, Ore.) and Jerryd Bayless of St. Mary's (Phoenix) have still not suited up. Bayless arrived at camp on Thursday night but did not hit the court on Friday. Singler was expected to arrive and start playing on Saturday.
• The crowd at Nike was treated to a matchup between two of the top rising juniors in the country on Friday night, when Samuels' team went up against a squad led by Evans. Although Samuels is a power forward and Evans a combo guard, it was fun to see them go back and forth. Even though it looked like Evans was barely breaking a sweat, he was a one-man fast break, while the 6-foot-8 Samuels was a force down low. Samuels' team held on for a three-point win when Evans' prayer from halfcourt rimmed out at the buzzer.
• Chris Wright of Trotwood-Madison (Trotwood, Ohio) staked an early claim to the best dunker award. In the evening session, he skied for three monster slams, including the dunk of the day, a high-flying, one-handed slam while drawing a foul. He also flushed a beautiful alley-oop lob for an exclamation point on his day. Challenging Wright for top honors could be 6-foot-6 Norcross (Norcross, Ga.) forward Jordan DeMercy, who threw down a pair of monster follow slams in traffic.
• If you're looking for an exciting backcourt, the team to see is Washington. This squad started two young, sub-6-foot guards and together they ran all over the opposition. Rising sophomore Tommy Mason-Griffin of James Madison (Houston) and rising junior Angelo Johnson of Stoneridge Prep (Simi Valley, Calif.) are both 5-foot-10, but they make up for a lack of height with speed, toughness and court vision. Playing together, they are a nightmare for opposing coaches, creating chances for teammates while hitting jumpers and floaters in the lane.
• When it's time to break for lunch, the Nike All-America Camp is usually just heating up. Around that time, the counselor games begin, featuring some of the top college talent in the country. Glen "Big Baby" Davis of LSU could be seen working on his outside shot, while members of the defending national champ Florida Gators were participating in scrimmages.
