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Timmy Allen #RedMtn has picked up an offer from new head coach Wyking Jones and CAL @timmybuckets35 that Swiss Army Knife ala Draymond Green pic.twitter.com/NpdSlokNR4
— Compton Magic (@Compton_Magic) April 26, 2017
Timmy Allen out of Mesa Ridge, Arizona, is a 6’5 wing prospect who just picked up a scholarship offer from Wyking Jones and the Bears.
Here is where Allen ranks among the major scouting services.
247Sports: 4 stars, 107th nationally, 27th ranked small forward, 3rd overall in Arizona
ESPN: 4 stars, 21st ranked small forward, 2nd overall in Arizona
Scout: 4 stars, 93rd nationally, 27th ranked small forward
Rivals: 3 stars
The Red Mountain High School product holds offers from Arizona State, Creighton, Iowa State, San Diego State, UCLA, USC, and Utah.
Just a few weeks ago, Allen’s AAU squad — the Compton Magic — made headlines for stomping LaVar and LaMelo Ball’s Big Ballers team 109-57. Allen played a big part in holding the ballyhooed Ball to just 15 points. Here’s some more on that contest from USA Today:
Timmy Allen, who heckled Ball while running up and down the court at times Saturday while shutting down LaMelo, made sure to catch Ball’s attention after the crowd-pleasing dunk that put Compton ahead 74-24.
“I don’t like to back down to anybody, no matter who you are and LaVar is nobody different,’’ Allen told USA TODAY Sports. “So I said some stuff back.’’
Among the words Allen directed at Ball: “Big Baller, what?”
Earlier in the game, Ball had shouted that players such as Allen couldn’t guard LaMelo, who scored 92 points during a high school game last season but on Saturday managed only 15 points.
From looking at this highlight video of Allen it becomes apparent that he loves driving to the hoop. His size and frame makes it easy for him to finish through contact, which he does frequently in the video. He’s also capable of throwing down some monster dunks and catching alley-oops. While he is good at getting to the hoop, he heavily favors driving right and finishing with his right hand. He even finished with his right hand on a couple of occasions when he drove left. He does show off the ability to adjust and finish reverse-layups several times, though, which is a nice skill to have in your repertoire. He can also knock down long-range jumpers, as he shot 43 percent from deep according to Max Preps. Allen connected on 58 percent from the field but, on the other hand, he needs to improve from the free throw line (53 percent). He appears to have the athleticism — when coupled with his size — to be a plus defender at the next level, too.
Allen averaged 20 points, 8 rebounds, and three assists per game in his first season playing for Red Mountain High School after transferring from Desert Ridge to be closer to his mom’s cancer treatment center. Red Mountain head coach Todd Fazio mentions Allen’s basketball IQ and competitiveness as two of his standout attributes.
An interesting side note on Allen and his Compton Magic AAU team is that there is a bit of history with Matt Bradley, a current member of the 2018 Cal basketball recruiting class. Bradley’s AAU team loses to Compton in the final seconds of the game before things get heated between Bradley and three Compton players (Allen, Jules Bernard, Isaiah Mobley) holding offers from Cal.
I’m sure they could put their differences aside if they all end up being Golden Bears.
Now that we’re getting looks at more and more players being offered scholarships by Jones and the new staff at Cal, what do you guys think about the prospects we’re targeting for 2018? Sound off below!
Go Bears!