Who's who of college coaches follow Miller Grove
Miller Grove is the local team to follow to find a who's who of college coaches at a high school basketball game.
Big-name coaches are regularly in the stands, foremost North Carolina's Roy Williams and Duke's Mike Krzyzewski, scouting the DeKalb school's deep roster of talent.
Miller Grove, the two-time defending Class AAAA state champion, has six players who have been offered college scholarships. Tony Parker, a 6-foot-9, 270-pound power forward, is the No. 1 recruiting target.
"It's pretty cool, you get to a game and you're not quite sure who will be there," Miller Grove coach Sharman White said. "Then you'll see one big-name coach in the crowd, then another and then another. It's an honor for our program."
Parker holds more than 50 early scholarship offers, among them North Carolina, Duke, Georgia Tech and Georgia. Parker is so highly regarded that both Williams and Krzyzewski made rare one-day recruiting trips to Georgia to evaluate Parker.
"You can't help but notice the big-name coaches at courtside because everybody recognizes them from TV," Parker said. "It's fun, but once the game starts, you don't really pay attention to who is watching because you're focused on winning."
Williams was besieged at Miller Grove's 49-46 win over Southwest DeKalb last weekend, signing autographs and posing for photos while catching glimpses of the game.
Georgia Tech's Paul Hewitt and Georgia's Mark Fox attended the same game as Williams. They've been regulars at Miller Grove games, but don't generate nearly the same celebrity attention as Williams and Krzyzewski.
Last Friday's game was a big attraction to college scouts, matching Miller Grove against Southwest DeKalb, which was led by 6-8 power forward Shaq Goodwin, another elite 2012 prospect. Parker had 12 points and 15 rebounds, while Goodwin scored 16.
"Coach Williams was real animated after the game after watching both of those guys play," White said. "He spoke very highly of Tony, as well as our team as a whole. He said he would definitely be in contact because he wants Tony at North Carolina."
Miller Grove swingman Brandon Morris has received a dozen early scholarship offers, with Georgia and Clemson among them, while forward Henry Brooks was recently offered by Minnesota coach Tubby Smith.
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