Snohomish High basketball star Jon Brockman is expected to make a big decision this fall.
Nope, he’s still too young to vote in the Bush vs. Kerry showdown.
Brockman, 17, told the Hoopmaster.com web site in late July that six schools – Duke, North Carolina, Washington, UCLA, Arizona and Gonzaga – are in hot pursuit of him. Snohomish coach Len Bone said on Monday the senior-to-be will select a school sometime this fall.
In the meantime, the gifted 6-foot-8, 245-pound inside force has been working to round out his game. Specifically, Brockman wants to improve his face-the-basket offense, including moves off the dribble, and increase his shooting range, Bone said.
Last year Brockman averaged 22 points and 13 rebounds per game for Snohomish to earn The Herald’s All-Area Player of the Year boys basketball honor. This summer he traveled across the country with his Friends of Hoop AAU team and competed for the USA National Elite team in France.
“He’s really just working hard,” Bone said of Brockman, who is ranked No. 31 among all 2005 national recruits and No. 7 among power forwards according to RivalsHoops’ recent poll. “He pushes himself. He’s going to get better at those things.”
Brockman has drawn interest from many of the nation’s top Division I programs because he has size and talent, but also because he simply outworks the competition.
“What (college) coaches tell me, and I know this, is nobody plays harder than him,” Bone said. “They’re out watching him play and he’s the guy playing hardest.
“You can find guys that are like that, but they’re rare. College coaches are going to love that part of him, the effort and the passion.”
As Jon Brockman gets closer to mapping out his future, his older brother, Paul Brockman, continues his recovery. Paul, who also starred at Snohomish until he tore an anterior cruciate ligament last year before his senior season, will redshirt this season at Seattle Pacific University.
“He’s making some good progress,” Bone said. “He’s right where he wants to be. He’s going to redshirt, practice and get healthy.”
Paul’s injury was devastating but it has driven him to bounce back.
“I think it’s probably helped him be more determined,” Bone said. “The frustrating thing was that several colleges kind of backed away (after the injury) and decided that they weren’t gonna recruit him anymore.”
“He is very determined to get healthy again. He’s gonna be a good college player.”
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