USD Men's Basketball 1999-2000

m~rn ~urn~~ C ONTIN U ED IMPACT PLAYERS Obviously, with players leaving college basketball early for the NBA, recent high schoolers can keep an elite program fly– ing high. Or they can elevate a sagging school with a boost from youthful legs. Tom Konchalski, perhaps the nation's most respected recruiting analyst, pegged two players last year who greatly boost– ed their programs - St. John's point guard Erick Barkley, who helped the for– merly rudderless Johnnies to the Elite Eight, and DePaul forward Quentin Richardson, who reminded people in Chicago of Mark Aguirre. You can bet we asked him again. "A lot of it has to do with need," Kon– chalski says. "St. John's needed a point guard badly last season, and Barkley moved right in. Who needs one now? Duke. And they've got Jason Williams. He's placed himself in the highest profile program with a great opportunity to play major, major minutes." Williams, a 6-2 point guard from Metuchen (N.J.) St. Joseph's High, will replace William Avery, who left for the NBA, as the Blue Devils lead guard. He has a complete game, except for his streaky three-point shooting. But if he gets hot from behind the arc, look out. "He's strong physically," Konchalski says. "It won't be an adjustment physically for him like it is for most kids. He has a major college body right now and on defense, he applies more pressure than Kenneth Starr." "Jason is a tough kid," says fellow blue-chipper Mike Dunleavy Jr. Williams also enters into a good sit– uation in Durham - there are three other McDonald's All-Americans in the recruit– ing class and other returning players who know what it's like to get screamed at by smart-alecky college students in hos– tile gyms. With Coach Kas teacher, that's a wonderful learning environment. Williams loves to tell a story about when he was young and playing every sport around, from hoops to soccer to C ONTIN U ED 6-9 swingman DerMarr Johnson passed on the NBA, choosing instead to take a shot with Cincinnati.