A day after 2010 basketball recruit Jordin Mayes witnessed a young Arizona team defeat California to climb atop the Pacific 10 Conference, the Westchester High School guard verbally committed to the Wildcats.
“”It was the right place for me,”” said Mayes on Monday night after his team defeated their Los Angeles archrival Fairfax High School. “”(The fans) were real supportive of the team.””
He is the second verbal commitment to Arizona’s 2010 recruiting class. Wing Daniel Bejarano of Phoenix’s North High School gave the Wildcats a commitment during the fall semester.
Mayes wasn’t all alone during his recruitment. His father, Darryel Mayes, played point guard for the University of Nevada, Las Vegas in the 1980s under head coach Jerry Tarkanian, one of college basketball’s winningest coaches.
The elder Mayes said the McKale Center atmosphere resembled UNLV back in the day and paralleled the Runnin’ Rebels’ location, where college hoops rules.
“”The thing is, it’s a college town,”” Darryel Mayes said. “”The University of Arizona basketball program is the best-selling ticket in Tucson.
“”(Jordin) wanted to rock the floor,”” he added. “”Jordin wants to wear that ‘A’ on his chest.””
The No. 106 overall prospect according to Rivals.com, Mayes is listed as a shooting guard by most recruiting services but his father said that’s because Mayes plays the off-guard spot, a position where his always-loaded Westchester team needs him most. But in college, Jordin Mayes — at 6-foot-1, 170 pounds, — will play the point guard position, where he has played the majority of his basketball career, said Darryel, who coached Jordin in middle school.
But that doesn’t mean he won’t shoot.
Darryel Mayes said that Arizona basketball head coach Sean Miller envisions Jordin playing the same role as senior point guard Nic Wise. With ball-handling wings like freshmen Solomon Hill and Kevin Parrom able to bring the ball up the court after rebounds, the nation’s 28th-best shooting guard will be able to take advantage of fast breaks even if the ball isn’t in his hands.
“”The type of scorer Jordin is,”” Darryel said, “”you want him to get as many open shots as he can get.””
While Darryel Mayes said his son will find comfort in Miller’s “”freelance”” system, Jordin Mayes also enjoyed the camaraderie with the Arizona players on his visit to Tucson. Helping the Wildcats’ recruiting cause was his familiarity with Hill, who played at Fairfax High School, the very school Mayes’ team beat Monday night. Jordin Mayes also saw freshman forward Derrick Williams in Amateur Athletic Union tournaments while Williams was at La Mirada High School in La Mirada, Calif.
His recruitment also keeps the pipeline going through Westchester High School, the alma mater of former Wildcat guard Hassan Adams and NBA players Amir Johnson and Gabe Pruitt. With his recruitment over, Jordin Mayes said he’s happy the process has come to a conclusion.
“”It’s very stressing, all these coaches calling, figuring who’s real and who’s not,”” Jordin Mayes said.
