Tuesday, April 20, 1999Tristate stars impress NBA scouts
Posey, Levett, Padgett step up at pre-draft camp
BY MIKE DeCOURCY
The Cincinnati EnquirerIf the way to the hearts of NBA scouts and general managers is through their pre-draft camps, Xavier forward James Posey and University of Cincinnati guard Melvin Levett are just about there.
They were named along with Kentucky forward Scott Padgett to the seven-member all-tournament team this past weekend at the Nike Desert Classic in Phoenix, an event gathering the top senior college basketball players who are seeking a spot in June's NBA draft.
The others were guards Kris Clack and Laron Profit of Maryland, center Lari Ketner of Massachusetts and forward Michael Batiste of Arizona State.
The league's scouting service supervises three organized “all-star” events in advance of its annual player draft. Levett played in the first two, including the Portsmouth Invitational earlier this month. He went to Portsmouth even though it is generally reserved for players not invited to Phoenix because he wanted pro scouts to see him as much as possible.
Teaming with Xavier guard Lenny Brown on the Pacific team, Levett led all scorers with a 14-point average and shot .385 from three-point range despite the longer distance required of pros.
He is hoping now to get the opportunity to participate in the NBA Pre-Draft Camp in Chicago in early June.
Posey is well-established to be selected in the first round after averaging 11.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.3 steals at Phoenix.
Padgett was 6-of-12 from three-pont range and was the only player to reach double figures in all three of his games. He averaged 13.3 points and 7.7 rebounds and made himself look quick with five steals.
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