The club basketball scene is heating up, and for some local players, it has been a fruitful time. Many of the East Valley’s best went to Las Vegas last weekend and were seen by dozens of college coaches and national evaluators.
For most, this is the first time since last summer that college coaches have seen them play against the country’s elite competition.
Basha guard Jaron Hopkins has seen his recruiting interest pick up, as he has reportedly been offered scholarships by Arizona, Nebraska and Texas El-Paso in the past couple weeks. …

As the son of a college basketball coach, Brian Smith is used to moving.
His father, Tubby Smith, had stints at South Carolina, Kentucky, Tulsa, Georgia and Kentucky again as Brian grew up, which forced him to adapt to new situations quickly.
So a cross-country relocation for a job is just par for the course in this coaching family. Smith, an assistant athletic director and coach at Windermere Prep in Fla., was hired Wednesday as the new boys basketball coach at Rancho Solano Prep, which is opening a new campus in Scottsdale …

Corona del Sol point guard Casey Benson and Paradise Valley swingman Paul Watson have been named to national All-American teams by Maxpreps.com.
The website broke down the country’s top high school players by class, and Benson, a sophomore, was chosen as a third-team selection among players set to graduate in 2014. Benson was second on Corona del Sol with averages of 15.2 points and 3.6 assists per game last season, helping the Aztecs to a 32-1 record and the Division I state championship.
Watson was named an honorable mention among juniors. He …

Rancho Solano Prep hired Brian Smith as its new boys basketball coach on Wednesday.
Smith, son of former University of Kentucky and current University of Minnesota basketball coach Tubby Smith, comes from Windermere Prep School in Florida, where he served as assistant athletic director and assistant basketball coach since August 2009.  Prior to that, Brian was the junior varsity coach at Southwest High School in Minneapolis.
In addition to his new role as basketball coach, Brian Smith will serve as an assistant athletic director and physical education teacher at Rancho Solano, which …

Division I boys basketball champion Corona del Sol is one of 10 boys basketball teams nationally to be recognized on Maxpreps’ Tour of Champions. There will be a ceremony at the school on Thursday in which the Aztecs will be presented an Army National Guard National Rankings Trophy.
The presentation is planned for 11 a.m. near the school’s front office.
Corona del Sol went 32-1 this season, defeating Laveen Cesar Chavez in the championship game. The Aztecs finished the season on a 30-game winning streak. Shooting guard Calaen Robinson was named the …

The defection of John Burns to Basha has left the Mesquite boys basketball program with a coaching vacancy.
Athletic director Jason Grantham said he is finalizing the paperwork and will begin accepting applications within the next few days. This process is going to be fluid because the school is also in the midst of choosing a new principal.
Current principal Cecillia Peterson is resigning at the end of the year, but Grantham said the incoming principal could be named as early as next week. Grantham said Mesquite won’t be interviewing candidates until …

Basha boys basketball coach John Burns will meet his team for the first time on Monday, he said.
It will be a more important introduction than usual, as star juniors Torren Jones and Jaron Hopkins still debate their transfer options.
On Tuesday, Hopkins said a decision had not been made and that the plan is still to wait until the end of the club basketball season to choose between staying and leaving. Cheryl Jones, Torren’s mom, said in a text message on Wednesday that ‘we will gather as much info as possible …

Hosea Graham resigned as boys basketball coach at Seton Catholic in 2007 to watch his son, Martin, play in college, and he doesn’t have any regrets.
But now he’s ready to be on the sidelines once again.
After a year serving as the junior varsity coach at Mountain Pointe, Graham has been hired to take over the Westwood program.
“When I stepped down, I was doing it for a reason and I would never give up that opportunity to go watch my son,” Graham said. “But who I am is coach Graham, and …

Athletic director Brent Rincon and his selection committee interviewed nine candidates for Basha’s vacant boys basketball position on Tuesday.
The search has narrowed in on three candidates, said principal Ken James, and a hire could be made as early as Thursday.
“Can’t go wrong with any of them,” James said in an email.
According to sources, the finalists are likely Mesquite coach John Burns, former Chaparral coach Commander King and Estrella Foothills coach Ty Amundsen. Burns is the front-runner to land the job because of a prior relationship with James, multiple sources said.
Basha …

Aaron Windler took over the Chaparral boys basketball program in 2008 after a 10-15 season. At that time, the school’s baseball and football teams were entrenched in dominance and it seemed surprising that the basketball team lagged behind. Chaparral has top-notch facilities and is the type of school that naturally draws  athletes.
Windler didn’t waste any time, immediately turning Chaparral into a basketball power. The Firebirds went 22-8 in his first year and made back-to-back state championship games in his final two. He resigned before the start of this season.
“When I …