As I ready for a trip to North Augusta, South Carolina  to cover the Nike Peach Jam Festival, I had the pleasure of a call from future Dukie Nolan Smith of Oak Hill Academy.  Nolan participated in the Adidas Camp in Georgia this past weekend, where he garnered the #3 ranking in the camp from Dave Telep.  In his last game, he dished out 4 assists and grabbed 5 rebounds to go with 21 points and the consensus was that he was clearly one of the better players that participated in the event.  He is currently in yet another camp and called me from New Jersey, taking time out of his busy schedule to chat with The Blue Devil Nation.

BDN-  How did things go at the Adidas Camp for you?

NS- It was a good experience.  I worked a lot on my point guard skills, trying to get teammates involved and continued to perfect my handle.

BDN-  I understand that some of the Duke staff was in attendance.  How did that go for you and do you feel they liked your progress?

NS- Yes!  They were very supportive and expressed happiness with how far I have come since my injury which kept me out of the TOC and other events.  I was happy I got to represent my country, but I still wasn't 100% in San Antonio, but happy with our success. 

BDN-  So, how is the injury coming along?

NS- I am wearing a brace but I am getting better each time out.  I am able to cut more and I am gaining confidence in pushing off on drives and my timing is coming along too..  I am about 90% of the way back.

BDN- So, why did you choose to play basketball for Duke University?

NS- I love the family environment, the tradition and a chance to work on my game  with coaches like Collins and Dawkins.  How many people can play for the next Olympic Coach in Coach K and play day in and day out against great competition?

BDN- There are rumors  that you may be asked to play the PG spot at Duke.  Are you confident in that?

NS- Definitely.  I feel I can play the 1 or 2.  I have no problem running the point and enjoy pushing the ball up the court and getting my teammates involved. I'm willing to do whatever it takes to make my teammates and myself better.

BDN- Which Duke coaches participated in your recruitment?

NS- They were all a part of it, but I developed a special bond with Coach Dawkins during the process and could really relate to him.  Coach K kept in touch too, checking in to see how things were going.

BDN- You are rumored to still be growing ... how tall are you and what size sneaker do you wear?

NS- Yeah, I think I am still growing into my body.  I am 6-3 and wear a size 16 shoe.

BDN- What do you feel the strengths of your game are?

NS- I'd say my penetration to the basket, my decision making, having the ability to create opportunities for others an myself.

BDN- What do you think you need to work on?

NS- I think I need work on my strength and explosiveness, especially coming back from my injury.

BDN- Give me three words that would best describe Nolan Smith.

NS- energetic, passionate, fun.

BDN- Give me three word that best describe Duke basketball.

NS- family, hard working, enthusiasm  and winning.

BDN- That's four words.  Have been talking to Nate James?

NS- Chuckling, huh? ... (I wondered if he knew what I was talking about, see interview above where there are similarities, which IMO, is a testament to consistency from K and his program)

BDN- Oak Hill recently signed Compton's Brandon Jennings.  Can you co-exist with him?

NS- Oh yeah!  No problem there.  I have talked with Coach Smith and we will employ a three guard offense, where the two of us will be like dual points and Alex Legion will join us.  We can all co-exist and have the common goal of winning. (I then thought about how this would prepare him for Duke's motion offense and the fact that he will play with talented players should put him ahead of the curve.)

BDN- So what are your goals for the coming season?

NS- To be the very best player I can while working on my handle, getting my teammates involved and winning the High School National Championship.

Oak Hill lost a star in the talented Michael Beasley who transferred from the school, but head coach Steve Smith is known for rebuilding quickly.  Julian Vaughn will play for them this year and he of course played at Reston, Va at Grant Hill's former Alma mater. Add Mike Holmes, Howard Thomkins to the aforementioned Alex Legion and the beat should go on.

He  was recently inducted into the National Honor Society.  He appears to be a kid that knows the importance of keeping his grades up, as well as his basketball skills.  Nolan made every recruiting types top five at Adidas and after he leaves Northeast this weekend, he will head to Vegas, continuing his busy Summer of  basketball.  He took pride in representing his country in San Antonio for the the USA U-18 team, that won the North American event to advance to the future U-19 setting.  His knee is coming along nicely and it is important to keep in mind that he has been playing for just over a month now, meaning he will continue to get better.  His AAU team is DC Assault which is coached by Curtis Malone, who is quick praise Smith. Nolan averaged over 16 PPG and 6 assists as a junior.

  The happy go lucky Nolan Smith posing in Cameron.

These are the kind of interviews you can expect in the BDN Newsletter. You will hear from prospects at events like Peach Jam and from the recruiting trail.  The newsletter will feature interviews and views that we can't always print here.  IOW, the good stuff.  So, do not miss a bounce of the ball.  More information is located in an earlier link below and you can click the pay pal subscribe button to the left column of the articles which will allow you to receive news right away.  You will then need to send your e-mail to watzonebdn@aim.com .  The information will start to pour in starting Friday.  You will get illustration too, meaning  photos that are protected by copyright laws and that are actually tekn at the events.  That's something you do not see much of from some sites. So while there are some great premium boards out there,  it is time for a great newsletter to go along with them.  You will look foward to seeing what comes in the mail, knowing that news has developed or that you'll read a great interview that is nowhere else on the net, yet it is at your fingertips.  The proceeds from newsletter helps this site grow and allows us to continue to bring unique coverage.  The proceeds go into travel costs for events, upgrades to equipment and hopefully podcasting. Help me bring you the very best in coverage and young aspiring writers work.  This is our way of giving something back for your contributions.

Introducing the BDN Recruitng Newsletter-

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