Big Al or Marvin, whom had the better stats in HS?

[Blunt91]

I was just thinking how does Marvin Williams numbers compare to Al Harrington as a senior in Highschool? Has Harrington always had a lowpost game? or was it something he had to work on? Seems like Marvin might be further along at the same age in the shooting category. I think Al has had to work on his shooting( in particular his 3pointshooting) while playing in the NBA. I am just trying to guage and see who had the most potential coming out of highschool and coming into the NBA.

[Diesel]

From what I have read, Al always had a lowpost game..

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Al Harrington was voted the top high school player in the country and from what I've seen, I would agree. He is the best of the high school prospects in this draft, and his stock could continue to rise until he is picked around 5-9.

My report is based on the two occasions I have seen him play, the McDonald's All-American game, and the Hoop Summit against the international team. His game and size are very similar to that of Antoine Walker. He is a 6'8 PF/SF who excels at putting the ball on the floor and creating his own shot. Has a lot of nifty one-on-one moves and used the glass well. Very good ball handler for his size. Seems to stay in control most of the time, the opposite of Walker. Haven't seen him shoot much from the outside. When I have, he looked just average. His game is suited better to the NBA than college, due to his great one-on-ability and overall game. Doesn't seem to be incredibly athletic, but is very quick with the ball. Most polished player in this year's high school class. Not sure about his post-up moves.

He is somewhat thin, but not nearly as thin as Lewis. Should put on 10-20 lbs. and hit the weight room. Great instincts and potential are there. Could be an NBA all-star in 3-4 years. I have only seen him play in these two all-star games, so I cannot really give a completely accurate report. When I see him play, I think Antoine Walker. He is less advanced than Antoine Walker right now, but I think he could end up being better. That is because he stays in control and seems to be a more intelligent ballplayer than Walker.

Teams will try to trade up to 5-9 to get him.

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1st Round (25): INDIANA PACERS

St. Patrick's High School

Position: Small Forward

Height. 6-8

Weight. 238

High School: ST. PATRICK'S HIGH SCHOOL, Elizabeth, NJ

Age: 18

# 18 years old (his birthdate of 2/17 is the same as Michael Jordan)

# USA Today and Naismith National High School Player of the Year

# Averaged 22.1 ppg and 15.1 rebounds

# Scored 26 points and grabbed 9 rebounds in the Nike Hoops Summitt Game in San Antonio

# When he or Rashard Lewis are selected in the first round, it will mark the fourth consecutive draft that a high school player has been picked in the first round

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[Packfill]

Does it matter? For what it is worth Al played for a pretty big time high school program, not sure the same is true for Marvin.

[Blunt91]

Yeah it matters if you are trying to gauge Marvins's potential. Doesn't seem like he was as highly thought of as Al.

[Packfill]

Again, the stats do not really matter. It is high school, there are hundreds of guys in high school who average 25/10 a year but will never sniff the NBA let alone D-1 hoops.

[Lascar78]

agreed.

these stats are meaningless. At best you can compare how highly they were regarded coming out of highschool. That still doesn't mean much, but it's alot more significant than numbers at that level.

[Diesel]

St. Patrick's in NJ was not a pretty big H.S. Program??

It was not like Crenshaw or Oak Hill or etc..

Marvin Elected to go to the weaker program in Seattle.

In comparison. It's hard to compare HSers especially in different years. I mean, Al Jefferson was averaging 60 ppg for a while in Printiss Miss. Come to find out that he was the biggest thing in Printiss...

However, from watching them both play as young players, I say Al had the edge.

[AHF]

The best way to determine who was better at a young age would have been to look where they were drafted straight out of HS or after one year of college. Now you have to compare Marvin being picked #2 overall in what appears to be a fairly deep draft with a year of college experience to Harrington going #25 in a year with a good mixed-lot draft. Interestingly, Tyrone Lue was picked a couple spots ahead of Al in the 1998 draft.

Overall, though, who cares? Lets just root for both Marvin and Al to flourish in Atlanta this year. HS stats and HS rankings don't mean much once you step on the floor in the NBA - like that former highly regarded HSer Felipe Lopez who went just before Al in 1998.

[thesheedera]

Marvin was almost a lock for the lottery out of highschool had he chosen to skip college. If Al had come around a few years later, he would have probably been a definite lock for the lottery. Al probably has the edge here, but you also would have to consider the strength of their draft classes.

Many people have said that Marvin was the best high school player to actually got to college that year.

Definitely have different skills. Marvin was a late bloomer with his size and was brought up learning the game from a guard's perspctive.

Their skills complment each other well, and I hope Al's being a good mentor to Marvin (and Josh) with helping them learn the ropes from a guy who has experience trying to make it as a young man in the league.

[Diesel]

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The best way to determine who was better at a young age would have been to look where they were drafted straight out of HS or after one year of college.

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That's some major BS...

What you don't understand is that the climate changed for HSers after Lebron James. During Al's time, it was considered a great risk to get HSers, but HSers had built up such a track record, that by the time you get to Lebron James, Dwight Howard, Picking a HSer first was not only acceptable, it was expected...

Now, where does your major BS lead...

It leads one to believe that Todd Fuller and Samakia Walker were better Prospects than Kobe and J.Oneal?

J.Oneal led his HS team to the State Championship three times in a row and was named Mr. Basketball for the state of S.C. J.Oneal would have been drafted first or second if drafting HSers were envogue. By the same token, if you took Marvin back to Al's day, I'm sure Marvin would not have been a first rounder.