Having already landed the top New York City player in the Class of 2011 in Maurice Harkless, St. John's has now gotten a verbal pledge from the best 2012 player in the Big Apple, point guard Jevon Thomas.
Thomas, the No. 14 point guard in the class of 2012 per Rivals, called Red Storm head coach Steve Lavin Tuesday night to commit.

Asked what he liked about the Johnnies, the 6-foot, 175-pound Thomas said by text message, "Coaching staff and I'm just trying to bring NYC basketball back!!"

Thomas also had interest from Washington, Villanova, Syracuse, Wake Forest and West Virginia,

"Jevon will bring back that electric energy and fire back to the Garden and New York," said Casey Williams, Thomas' AAU coach.

"He's a great leader on the court and he's a New Yorker. He will bring lots of fire and the will to win."

Harkless is one of five commits St. John's has for 2011, with as many as five more scholarships to give for 2011.

The St. John's staff followed Thomas this summer, watching him with the Gauchos at the Peach Jam, among other events. Thomas briefly transferred from Our Savior New American on Long Island to St. Benedict's Prep in Newark, N.J., but is now back at Our Savior, where he is taking sophomore classes.

In order to graduate for 2012, he will have to take summer school classes for the next two summers even as he plays summer ball with the Gauchos, said New York recruiting expert Tom Konchalski.

"He was a freshman last year," said Konchalski. "Now he's taking sophomore classes. Our Savior says they can get him out in two years but he has to go to summer school for the next two years. He's 2012 or 2013."

Thomas said he planned to graduate in 2012.

"Taking online classes now and I took summer classes," he said.

Another source added, "He'll be fine."

Whatever the case, Konchalski calls him a potential program-changer.

"He's an elite guard who has another gear," he said. "He's very explosive, skilled, gets into the lane, really pushes the ball in the open floor. He can shoot the ball from the perimeter. He's very, very good."

http://web.sny.tv/news/article.jsp?ymd=20101027&content_id=15862452&oid=2&vkey=21

Maurice Wingate & Stacey Davis
NYCHoops.net Staff Writer

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The World Basketball Festival will take NYC by storm this week August 12-15th, featuring a showcase of members of the USA Basketball National Team as well as top high school stars at Rucker Park in the Battle of the Boroughs.

 
On Friday, a double-header will be played at Rucker Park in Harlem. Puerto Rico vs. Brazil National Team scrimmage and then top High School players go at it in the Battle of the Boroughs (Game 1) and(Game 2). In addition there will be a U19 / Grassroots China HS vs. New York HS

4:00pm - 5:00pm Battle of the Boroughs (Game 1) Brooklyn vs. the Bronx
7:00pm - 8:00pm Battle of the Boroughs (Game 2) Harlem vs. Queens

By ZACH BRAZILLER

Last Updated: 3:44 AM, July 9, 2010

Posted: 1:22 AM, July 9, 2010

READING, Pa. – Jevon Thomas is on the move again. But this time, the talented point guard insists, it’s for good.

The 6-foot Thomas exclusively told The Post he is all set to attend St. Benedict’s Prep (N.J.), a national powerhouse that regularly churns out high-major prospects, in the fall after a one-year stay at Our Savior New American (L.I.). St. Benedict’s, which finished 20-1 and was ranked fourth by USA Today under current Wagner College coach Dan Hurley last winter, will be Thomas’ third school in as many years; he attended Thomas Edison in Queens as a freshman.

“I wanted to play at a high level and win,” he said.

Thomas’ one season at Edison was a struggle. He fell behind academically, had disciplinary problems, and only appeared in three games for the Inventors. He caught up in the classroom at Our Savior, but yearned to play at a higher level.

More than the opportunity to play with better talent, get further away from his dangerous South Jamaica neighborhood and play a national schedule full of high-level tournaments, Thomas was drawn to the school by Roshown McLeod, the new coach. McLeod, a former standout at New Jersey powerhouse St. Anthony, played college basketball at St. John’s and Duke, was the 20th pick in the 1998 NBA Draft and played four seasons in the league.

“He understands me because he’s been there before,” Thomas said of McLeod, who has served as an assistant coach at Indiana and Fairfield. “He knows the game because he played at a high level.”

Although Thomas has already bounced around, colleges and scouting services are enamored with the slick, pass-first Thomas. He has received significant interest from Syracuse, Villanova, Xavier, St. John’s, Wake Forest, West Virginia, and Washington. Scout.com ranks Thomas as the 15th-best point guard in the Class of 2012. McLeod, for one, is ecstatic to have Thomas in the fold, a player, he said, that makes a difference,

“He’ll make us a better team,” the coach said. “He’s a floor general. He’s a kid that makes others better on the floor and that’s what stood out to me.”

In addition to their basketball background, the two are also similar in their upbringing. Like Thomas, McLeod grew up in a rough neighborhood – Jersey City. Thomas has lost friends to shootings and his brother, Christopher Ramsey, 25, who introduced him to basketball, was murdered last year.

“I tell him its how you take your environment,” McLeod said. “It made him realize how important his life is. This will benefit him in the long run and map out his life and what he wants to do next.”

That’s where St. Benedict’s fits in. It's a place, Thomas feels, that can assure him of a safe environment where his talent can be nurtured and realized, not just be labeled as potential. For those reasons, Thomas has found his last stop, he hopes, before college.

“I’m done this time,” Thomas promised, paused, then smiled. “This is my last stop.”