Preps – Page 140 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

The average NBA player reportedly earned $5.15 million last season, but players and team owners can’t reach agreement on a new labor deal. When hall of famer Elgin Baylor played for the Minneapolis Lakers in the late 1950’s he was one of the top players in the league but earned $7,500, according to Minnesota native Ed Cohen who represented Baylor.

Michigan senior guard Courtney Boylan, who played for Chaska High School, is the women’s Big Ten player of the week after scoring a career high 21 points in a road win at Florida. The 5-7 Boylan tied a career single game high of seven rebounds.

Jay Pivec, the former head coach at Minneapolis Community and Technical College, takes his 2-0 Dakota Community and Technical College team to Rochester on Friday night. This is the initial season for DCTC basketball and the Blue Knights will play Rochester Community and Technical College, a team ranked No.2 in the NJCAA Men’s Basketball Division III poll.

The Twins are renting Target Field to country music stars Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw for a concert on Sunday, July 8. It will be the first concert in the two-year-old stadium’s history but certainly not the last. A source told Sports Headliners that smaller concerts using a portion of the stadium are possible next year and beyond. Look for full stadium concerts like the Chesney and McGraw show in possibly 2013 or further out.

The Minnesota State High School League pays a total of $50,000 for rental of the Metrodome for semifinals and finals games in soccer and football this month, according to Bill Lester, executive director of the Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission. The league also pays 10 percent admissions tax and event costs such as ushering.

Wild forwards Dany Heatley and Mikko Koivu and defenseman Marek Zidlicky have been named to the 2012 NHL All-Star ballot. Players appearing on the ballot were selected by the NHL’s Hockey Operations Department.

Author Jim Hoey has written a new book that will challenge anyone who likes Minnesota boys’ hockey tournament trivia. The book is titled Puck Heaven, and Hoey also authored Minnesota Twins Trivia.

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Despite national attention, don’t expect 15-year-old Apple Valley High School point guard Tyus Jones to announce his college choice soon.

Local basketball authority Rene Pulley and others rate Jones the No. 1 point guard in America for the class of 2014. Pulley, who is CEO of Howard Pulley Basketball, has been involved with local basketball for years, but thinks Jones could be considered the greatest Minnesota prep ever by 2014.

Jones told Sports Headliners he has college scholarship offers from nine schools but is in no hurry to choose a college and might wait until his senior season at Apple Valley. “I don’t think I’ll make an early commitment, probably (decide) later in my high school career,” he said.

The offers are from Arizona, Baylor, Iowa, Iowa State, Marquette, Michigan State, Minnesota, Ohio State and Providence. “I don’t think I have any favorites,” Jones said.

While some local preps might be overly dazzled about leaving the state, expect Jones to give the Gophers fair consideration. He’s an intelligent and mature young man who values classroom work, staying modest and treating others with respect.

Jones has a family connection to former Gophers captain Al Nuness. Jones’ dad, Robert, is Nuness’ nephew. Jared Nuness, Al’s son, is part of the basketball support staff at Baylor.

Al Nuness told Sports Headliners almost two years ago that Jones was better as an eighth grader than former North High and 1997 Minnesota Mr. Basketball Khalid El–Amin. Pulley said last week that Jones, already 6-foot-1 compared with El-Amin at 5-6 as a 15-year-old, is the better player at that age.

Jones, who admires New Orleans’ point guard Chris Paul’s “pass first, score second” approach, likely will be taller than 6-1 when he arrives on a college campus. “My dad is 6-7, so hopefully I will still have a growth spurt and get a few inches…in the years to come,” he said.

Jones said he won’t play football this year for Apple Valley, but might go out for baseball in 2012. He has experienced a busy spring and summer of basketball including being named the youngest player for the USA development team for players 16 and under.

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Category: Preps

Notes Plus

Tyus Jones: No College Favorites, or Decision for Awhile