TNHSBBALLFAN

No but all of these kids mentioned in this post should have good options.

James Scales won POY by Coaches Aaron Wheeler won POY by Media Wheeler was voted MVP of IMAC Tournament

Agreed. Wheeler is the best player on the best team in District 2AAA.

Carter has lost 4 of their last 5 by double digits with arguably the best player in ET. They also have a good supporting cast. During this 5 game stretch, they lost to a talented Jeff County team - a team they beat by 25 early in the season. I don't think anyone is surprised based upon recent performance but most are curious to know why Carter collapsed late in the season?

Agreed. Cherokee has a decent chance at home but it will be tough for SC and Jeff. ME should make the finals. ME is getting excellent point guard play and Wheeler is strong around the basket. The supporting cast is playing pretty well too!

Your initail post asked if anyone east of Nashville could beat the Toppers. Most of the comments have been back and forth between SH and Hampton. Not much has been said about SH and 3A competition in East TN - districts 1, 2, 3 and 4. How do you think they will stack up?

Wheeler is a junior.

If you find these stats, please try to find the top 5 or 10 in each category. Someone at WMTN in Morristown might have the numbers. I've seen Scales play and he is very talented.

Aaron Wheeler - Morristown East

Bearden should be one of the AAA teams from ET going to state. Other teams to watch will be West and Oak Ridge. All three would compete well with Science Hill. I have never commented about officiating on a message board but it seems to be getting worse. I know it is a thankless job but the quality of officiating has deteriorated. Some associations are worse than others and some don't put a lot of thought into scheduling. I saw an official calling a game at his alma mater recently which should never be allowed. However, to be fair I have seen some really good officials lately too! I just wish three would show up on the same night.

No question about it! Carter is definitely being penalized for some reason. Maybe the loss to Daniel Boone but they are a pretty good team also. However, it really doesn't matter as long as they take care of business on the court. It should be an interesting stretch run in this district.

Any seniors in this group?

I know Hale is a sophmore. What are the other 4 starters?

Plain and Simple - it's breaking the rules. It's worse when a coach is involved even for observation only.

I have nothing wrong with GP, but what they have done the past 2 off-seasons with transfers is a little more out there then just transferring from one school to the other. I'm glad to see GP, and their massive team, all they need is a TRUE point guard and they will have a great shot at state. Their addition to that district has made it the most competitive basketball district I can remember having around here. Appreciate the words about their team, but my point is Jose Agosto is the only true transfer to the program, and his family knew Raul and wanted him to play here, simple as that. As mentioned before, Morrease Barber transfered here for VERY real and personal reasons that in no way had anything to do with basketball (the kid is a stand-up guy in a sit-down world if you ask me). We have his brother Walt (who is primarily a football player) as a result of him seeing how things have been for Morrease here. Contrast that to the literally dozens of "transfers" within Knox County, and well . . . we are hardly running a basketball mill up here in Gatlinburg. You hit the nail on the head on the point guard (my son). He would love nothing more than to move to 2 guard, and has been shooting well enough to fill the spot left by McKinley Maples - but he is doing his best to fill the 1 spot, and is working hard in this off season to play the role his team currently needs. We shall see how it goes. You have made this comment a couple of times about Barber. The bottom line he is still a transfer regardless of his personal situation. I hate that a young man has these issues at a young age and I appreciate him trying to make things right but he is still a transfer. By the rules, he should have sit out 1 year and played this year. As much as I dislike some of the TSSAA bylaws, they are very clear on the transfer rule.

Maybe the other coaches didn't think those SC players were as good as others in the league. I realize that SC won the championship but maybe SC just had solid players from top to bottom with only 3 or 4 that really stood out. That Flynn kid is a no-brainer.....and personally, I thought Seymour had the most talented athletes in the league. SC folks should be basking in the glory of a championship and not whining about the all-district team, because in the end that championship year is what people will remember! I agree with Seymour having a lot of talent but are post season awards being handed out for talent or achievement. I'm sure SC would rather have the Championships but one or two kids were just left out. I saw the Houser kid pitch against Jeff County and he certainly deserved to be on the All District team.

As a fan in the stands watching the all district presentation last night, I was embarrassed for the IMAC. Regardless for the reason, SC derserved to have a least one more on the all district team (if not two). If they select an all tournament team, we will see if the coaches step up and make the proper selections. If this is a knock on the SC coach, it should not be taken out on the players. Do your talking on the field!!!

Well said. Neither player or coach deserved to be ejected. The whole situation escalated when the umpire indicated he was ejecting both players. Traywich got upset at that point as would most coaches in the same situation. The umpires got it right after everyone calmed down.

Do you know when East plays West?

I'm not sure how the 2 districts will match up top to bottom but I'm sure the IMAC will be much stronger with the addition of Seymour, South Doyle and Sevier County. All 3 teams have good talent and all are very well coached. Sevier County and South Doyle came out of the toughest AAA district in the state and Seymour always has a strong program. All 3 have a solid group of seniors as well. Look for improved competition in the regions!

Here it is. It appropriately does not state more than it should. http://www.themountainpress.com/pages/e_edition

I would advise listening to MMcCroskey. I think it is important to remember there are more important things in life than winning basketball games. Coach Placeres did what he thought was best for the players in question, and I am confident he made the correct decision that was in no way, shape, or form affected by any desire to throw the game. Let me ask you these questions: Is a one game suspension adequate for the "violation of team rules"? If not, would he let them sit for the next game? Why didn't this happen earlier? If someone knows the situation "inside and out", they know this didn't just happen this week.

You are right on target. The coach has known about these issues for some time but chose the consolation game of the district tournament to suspend these players for a "violation of team rules". I too, applaud any coach for taking disciplinary actions but the timing of these suspensions is a llittle odd. If you are really serious about teaching the kids a lesson, take the action when it really means something. This action could have been taken earlier but the coach chose not to do so.

Right premise, bad assumption. I know the story (both in and out) on each one of the kids that were looking to come to GP and those that did. AAU connections are certainly at play here, but your wrong assumption is who is contacting whom. Be fair and look at the progress Placeres made in the years before ANY transfers looked GPs way, it was tremendous and real. How many other coaches play semi-pro ball like Placeres as well? Add the fact that GP is considered one of the best acedemic public schools in the SE, and it isnt hard to understand why we will continue to draw interest, and WELCOME it! The question from an earlier post was why is the GP coach is being singled out. I only offered my opinion. Six total transfers in one year is highly unusual especially when 4 come from out of state. You might find this in the inner city but I doubt that you see this very often at a rural high school. By the way, most are aware of the academic performance of the school and it's something the community should be very proud of.

Why is the GP coach being singled out when Coach Wright (which is a good friend) is given a free pass with regards to recruiting? Everything is done above board at Fulton but players like Campbell, Styles, Gallman, Bryant and others certainly have helped the success of their team. Maybe because 6 kids transferred in one year! Everyone forgets about Jezreel (Hampton, VA) and Suarez (Las Vegas). They left school before the season started. Four transfers from out of state in one year draws a lot of attention. The other two transferred from SC. How many others were contacted that didn't transfer? When kids transfer within a city, county or just across a county line, not much is said. Most of these contacts are made through AAU connections. I'm not saying this is right but you asked why the GP coach is being singled out.