The Next Lebron James

[RE Tycoon]

Has anybody heard of Nic Wise? This article says alot of schools are after him but no mention of SMU (granted he is only 14). The article claims that he will make a commitment as a frosh in High School as well as saying TCU is pursuing him. I know it's a very very veryy big long shot for us to get him, but I'd like SMU to at least be mentioned.

I posted the whole article below in case you don't want to register to read it.

<A HREF="http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/story.hts/sports/bk/bkn/1762334" TARGET=_blank>http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/story.hts/sports/bk/bkn/1762334</A>

James would be helped if he had Wise parents
By JOHN P. LOPEZ
Copyright 2003 Houston Chronicle
HE signed his first autograph when he was in sixth grade.

Various charlatans and hangers-on tried to make him believe they could help him earn a Division I basketball scholarship, or punch his ticket to the NBA, when all he really wanted was to have next on the playground.

He has been tugged at, admired and treated like some kind of icon since the most tender of ages, all because what he can do with a basketball few others will ever do.

He is a phenom, the acknowledged king at his position for his age, ranked No. 1 by scouting services locally, on the state level and in most cases nationally.

He has been lied to and promised the world. He cannot walk into a gymnasium anywhere in the country without everyone in the place taking notice, most eventually slinking over to his side just so they can tell their friends they spoke with him or perhaps whisper some promise into his ear.

But his name is not LeBron James. His name is Nic Wise, and he is a freshman at Cinco Ranch High School.

The shadiness that has surrounded James, the Ohio legend who has a Hummer in the driveway and in essence traded in his high school career for a pair of expensive throwback jerseys, is not the only example of what can go wrong when boundless young talent meets shady opportunity. It is only the most stomach-turning and public example.

There is a lot of good in the cultish world of youth, prep and AAU basketball, but shameless tactics often surround so many young stars that it can boggle the mind and scar the soul.

I know, because I've coached Nic Wise in summer leagues and tournaments and will do so again this year. I've seen him put up 43 points and 14 assists on the defending AAU national runners-up and then get swarmed by fans, autograph seekers and recruiting-service gurus as if he were some kind of LeNic, not a 14-year-old just trying to play the game.

I've seen him look at a three-point deficit with barely more than a minute left at the AAU National Tournament in Orlando, Fla., and then carry his team to a seven-point victory. Nearly 2,000 fans stood and applauded as he walked off the floor, and Nic smiled uncomfortably. All he really wanted to do was get back to the room and defend his last PlayStation2 win.

I've seen Nic and his parents prodded and glad-handed by shoe company executives and tournament directors all over the state and nation, trying to make an impression or a promise.

But here is one promise that will indeed be kept: Nic Wise will not become the next LeBron James.

Not because his marquee value and lure to so many agents and wannabes will never approach that of the besieged Akron superstar. They will.

Texas, Arizona, Florida, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas A&M, Houston, TCU and others already are recruiting Nic, and he likely will become the first player in the history of Texas basketball to make a scholarship commitment as a high school freshman.

You may not yet know Wise, whose father, Greg Wise, is the head basketball coach at No. 1-ranked Hightower. But he is that good.

He is a spectacular 5-10 point guard -- strong and gifted, imaginative, and more keenly aware of how to run a game and where to get the ball than most Division I point guards I've seen playing today. He has the heart of a lion and the kind of creativity that allows him to show me something new almost every day, despite my having coached him in more than 100 games and so many practices.

He has had the basketball on a string since he was 10 years old, and all the basketball world's temptations have been there almost as long.

That's why I don't blame LeBron James for everything that has gone wrong with his high school basketball career. I don't even blame all those hoping to snatch a piece of him. They are just trying to make a living, even if their tactics often have been questionable at best.

I blame those who are supposed to love him. Those who are supposed to care and look out for his best interests. His mother and his coach.

In today's corrupt-them-while-they're-young society, it is the teenagers who often hear how they should just say no. But their parents often say yes.

What is the message to James when his mother says yes to a loan for a $60,000 Hummer, with payment on the loan dependent on James' NBA value?

The loan was not deemed illegal, according to Ohio high school basketball rules. But it was wrong. The free jerseys were what ended James' prep career, but he had been shown the path to his undoing long before he was caught.

Nic Wise has parents who can say no. He has two brothers and a sister who treat him like the kid he is, not their meal ticket. They don't just preach; they listen. And this is what James and the many more like him playing in the limelight need.

"We talk a lot about every situation," Greg Wise said. "I ask Nic his opinion or what he thinks, instead of just telling him what I think. I want to see where he's coming from so he can feel comfortable about talking about anything. We've got an open relationship, and that solves a lot of stuff."

Nic could have played for his father's Hightower team this season but wanted to play at least one year at Cinco Ranch, where he went to middle school. Greg and LaVerie Wise supported the decision.

This summer, Nic can attend any camp or play with any varsity-level traveling team in the state, but he wants to spend time with the friends he has made in his age group. He will. And by the way, lucky me.

"He's pretty well-grounded so far," Greg Wise said. "We talk to him about being responsible and understanding what's going to come as he gets older. He has his whole life. The kids that he plays with, the people that coach him in high school and in the summer, that makes a big difference. That's what is important right now. The future will always be there."

Don't blame LeBron James. And don't tell only the phenoms to just say no. Tell the parents.




[This message has been edited by Current STUDent (edited 02-03-2003).]