Boost Mobile Elite 24 Caps off Anthony Bennett’s Huge Summer!
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PHOTO COURTESY: Kelly Kline
VENICE BEACH, CA-– NPH #1-Ranked, Anthony Bennett [CIA Bounce] entered the summer as a top 35-50 player in the 2012 class (in North America) but finished it as a consensus top 10 player playing in one of the most honorable events, the Boost Mobile Elite 24 presented by ESPN Rise.
Boost Mobile Elite 24 tipped off on Wednesday night at the HAX in Long Beach, CA with “Midnight Run.” An NBA lineup of Tyreke Evans, Brandon Jennings, Kenneth Faried, Kemba Walker and Derrick Williams took on the “Elite 24” high school kids, rotating five in at a time in a scrimmage like setting that lacked defense and intensity.
On Friday under the sun just footsteps from the Venice Beach sand, Bennett competed in the Under Amour Slam Dunk contest with Kevin Durant, Brandon Jennings and others as judges. He didn’t win the contest but had a strong outing with a reverse dunk. The event was capped off on Saturday with the Elite 24 game as Bennett was part of the Marques Johnson squad which was coached by Grant Rice of Bishop Gorman HS (Las Vegas, NV) with Tyreke Evans, Kemba Walker and John Wall rounding up the staff as assistants. Bennett’s team (Marques Johnson) defeated Raymond Lewis 142-132 in an up and down battle. In limited minutes, Bennett put the Venice Beach crowd on their feet several times during this game with throw down after thrown down, in transition and put backs.
Bennett was on a mission all summer as he elevated his game to a level that all of Canada knew he was capable of…the rest of the world finally knows we have a star in the making.
Q&A with Anthony Bennett at Boost Mobile Elite 24
Q: After playing in various elite tournaments and events this summer such as EYBL, Pangos All-American and Nike Camp, where does Elite 24 rank?
Bennett: It’s definitely up there because you play against great players; get to see a lot of celebrities and LA people.
Q: What are you going to take away from the NBA guys who were coaching you (Tyreke Evans, Kemba Walker and John Wall)?
Bennett: They kept saying to always go hard and don’t take time for granted because someone out in the world is working harder than you, taking that away with me.
Q: How does it feel to be part of a game that previous Canadians such as Myck Kabongo, Tristian Thompson and Cory Joseph were a part of?
Bennett: It’s an honor as I feel I’m representing for my country. Just to come out here and do my thing, put on a show for Canada.
Q: Do you feel like you’re representing Canada when you step on the court among Americans, especially as the only Canadian?
Bennett: Yeah I feel like I’m representing Canada well. Everyone looks up to me back there saying I’m going to be a big star. I’m going to continue to work hard and hope everything comes true.
Q: Currently your list of schools is at 9, when do you plan to trim that down? Any official visits set up?
Bennett: Looking to cut it down in mid September. I don’t have any officials set up yet.
