this kid darn near came to our school, had we recruited him like other schools do, he prob would've ... His teammate LY was martell webster, their HS team has not qualified for one of the 16 state spots in last 4 years ... I would be surprised if they don't this year, but then again LY they had 2 lottery picks on roster and couldnt ...
High hopes for UW, Hawes
Wednesday, October 5, 2005
By DAN RALEY
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER
The former NBA player sat in the middle of a bleacher section filled to
capacity with enthusiastic high school kids, teachers and assorted others
that came to the Seattle Prep gym Monday to hear Spencer Hawes rubberstamp a
college choice that was no longer a secret.
Steve Hawes was asked if his 6-foot-11 1/2 nephew -- who, in a news
conference broadcast live on local radio, confirmed his intentions to sign
with Washington and not North Carolina -- had significant pro potential, as
has been readily suggested.
"He's got more skills than I ever had," said Steve Hawes, who played for the
Houston Rockets, Portland Trail Blazers, Atlanta Hawks and Sonics from
1975-84. "But it's a long way from here to there."
It's fewer than two miles from Prep to the UW, and the younger Hawes decided
to take this basketball route, considered unconventional with defending NCAA
champ North Carolina in the mix. His physical stature, glowing reputation
and unbridled confidence have now created almost unreal expectations
surrounding the Huskies, something he didn't feel necessary to dispel.
"I won't settle for anything less than winning a national championship,"
Hawes said.
The battle for the services of this mobile big man that possesses
ball-handling abilities and a 3-point shooting touch was impressive enough.
On his recruiting visit to Chapel Hill last month, everyone seemed to know
Hawes as he was escorted around town, treating him as if he were a rock
star. He met Dean Smith. He saw Michael Jordan on a video screen. He watched
a championship ring presentation. He was swayed by all the attention and
energy given North Carolina basketball.
Hawes admittedly was ready to commit to the Tar Heels on the spot, but
forced himself to get on the plane back to the Northwest without saying
anything. He saved his final recruiting trip for the UW last weekend. He
told coach Lorenzo Romar he would become a Husky late Saturday night.
"It was a real close decision," Hawes explained. "It came down to the last
day. Especially on the visit (to North Carolina), it was real tempting. I
had to get home and settle down a bit and be rational."
His college basketball intentions leaked out Monday, with Hawes
unintentionally confirming things by showing up to play pickup ball with
current UW players with reporters present. The high-fives were a giveaway.
Hawes, whose third choice was Stanford, said he struggled with telling North
Carolina coach Roy Williams he wasn't coming: "I was dreading have to make
that call and talk to him."
"I had to bring him the phone," confirmed the player's mother, Lisa.
"He took it well," Hawes said of Williams' response.
Hawes follows his father, Jeff, and uncle, Steve, into the UW basketball
program. Jeff Hawes, a 6-6 forward and a 24-point scorer as a senior at
Mercer Island High School, picked the Huskies over Stanford and Harvard.
"I'm surprised he could say no to Stanford and North Carolina," Jeff Hawes
said of his much taller son. "That was difficult. That was just one gutsy
call."
The 6-9 Steve Hawes, a 28-point scorer for Mercer Island High, had a
recruiting decision similar to that of Spencer Hawes. Thirty-seven years
ago, he picked Washington over Duke. The two talked about this, about
turning down an elite Atlantic Coast Conference team.
"But the decision was 100 percent his," Steve Hawes said.
The younger Hawes, who might have entertained early entry to the NBA had the
rules not changed and could be just a one-year player for the UW, said his
chief motivation for staying home was the challenge of doing the unthinkable
-- trying to win a national championship for a school that has never come
close.
"It's an opportunity to take a hometown program that's never been there
before and raise it up, hopefully, to that of North Carolina," he said.
High hopes for UW, Hawes
Wednesday, October 5, 2005
By DAN RALEY
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER
The former NBA player sat in the middle of a bleacher section filled to
capacity with enthusiastic high school kids, teachers and assorted others
that came to the Seattle Prep gym Monday to hear Spencer Hawes rubberstamp a
college choice that was no longer a secret.
Steve Hawes was asked if his 6-foot-11 1/2 nephew -- who, in a news
conference broadcast live on local radio, confirmed his intentions to sign
with Washington and not North Carolina -- had significant pro potential, as
has been readily suggested.
"He's got more skills than I ever had," said Steve Hawes, who played for the
Houston Rockets, Portland Trail Blazers, Atlanta Hawks and Sonics from
1975-84. "But it's a long way from here to there."
It's fewer than two miles from Prep to the UW, and the younger Hawes decided
to take this basketball route, considered unconventional with defending NCAA
champ North Carolina in the mix. His physical stature, glowing reputation
and unbridled confidence have now created almost unreal expectations
surrounding the Huskies, something he didn't feel necessary to dispel.
"I won't settle for anything less than winning a national championship,"
Hawes said.
The battle for the services of this mobile big man that possesses
ball-handling abilities and a 3-point shooting touch was impressive enough.
On his recruiting visit to Chapel Hill last month, everyone seemed to know
Hawes as he was escorted around town, treating him as if he were a rock
star. He met Dean Smith. He saw Michael Jordan on a video screen. He watched
a championship ring presentation. He was swayed by all the attention and
energy given North Carolina basketball.
Hawes admittedly was ready to commit to the Tar Heels on the spot, but
forced himself to get on the plane back to the Northwest without saying
anything. He saved his final recruiting trip for the UW last weekend. He
told coach Lorenzo Romar he would become a Husky late Saturday night.
"It was a real close decision," Hawes explained. "It came down to the last
day. Especially on the visit (to North Carolina), it was real tempting. I
had to get home and settle down a bit and be rational."
His college basketball intentions leaked out Monday, with Hawes
unintentionally confirming things by showing up to play pickup ball with
current UW players with reporters present. The high-fives were a giveaway.
Hawes, whose third choice was Stanford, said he struggled with telling North
Carolina coach Roy Williams he wasn't coming: "I was dreading have to make
that call and talk to him."
"I had to bring him the phone," confirmed the player's mother, Lisa.
"He took it well," Hawes said of Williams' response.
Hawes follows his father, Jeff, and uncle, Steve, into the UW basketball
program. Jeff Hawes, a 6-6 forward and a 24-point scorer as a senior at
Mercer Island High School, picked the Huskies over Stanford and Harvard.
"I'm surprised he could say no to Stanford and North Carolina," Jeff Hawes
said of his much taller son. "That was difficult. That was just one gutsy
call."
The 6-9 Steve Hawes, a 28-point scorer for Mercer Island High, had a
recruiting decision similar to that of Spencer Hawes. Thirty-seven years
ago, he picked Washington over Duke. The two talked about this, about
turning down an elite Atlantic Coast Conference team.
"But the decision was 100 percent his," Steve Hawes said.
The younger Hawes, who might have entertained early entry to the NBA had the
rules not changed and could be just a one-year player for the UW, said his
chief motivation for staying home was the challenge of doing the unthinkable
-- trying to win a national championship for a school that has never come
close.
"It's an opportunity to take a hometown program that's never been there
before and raise it up, hopefully, to that of North Carolina," he said.
