Darryel Mayes understands completely what his son, Jordin Mayes, is going through in the recruiting process, having experienced it himself in the late 1970s before he signed with UNLV when Jerry Tarkanian was in the midst of building that program into a power.

“Arizona really reminds me of UNLV back in the day,” the elder Mayes told me Sunday night after he and his son watched Arizona beat Cal 76-72 at McKale Center. “Tark got up there at UNLV and built that program from dust. Arizona is working its way back with Sean Miller. The communities are also similar. They look at their team as their pro team because they don’t have a pro team.

“I think it was important that Jordin got to see that kind of atmosphere (at McKale Center). This is why we waited to take this visit, so Jordin can see everything — the preparation, the practice, the execution in the game — of all that goes into Sean Miller’s coaching style.”

Mayes, a 6-2, 175, combo guard from Los Angeles Westchester, took three official visits previously to Boston College, Utah and Cal, but each were prior to the basketball season.

“It’s a lot different watching a football game (during a recruiting trip) as opposed to being in the war room, looking first-hand at how a coach like Sean Miller prepares his team for a game,” Darryel Mayes said. “I thought it was very important for Jordin to see that and to feel that. By watching the process, Jordin can envision himself into what Arizona is trying to do.

“A lot of what Miller does, Jordin’s used to doing at Westchester. Arizona plays an uptempo style. Jordin is an uptempo guy. Miller likes that hard-nosed man-to-man, lockdown defense. Jordin does that at Westchester. The bottom line is Jordin got a good, bright picture about what Arizona is all about. In practice (Saturday), he saw them going through the offense, and he saw how he could fit right in.”

Darryel Mayes has a strong feeling Miller wants his son to make that fit, despite Arizona in recent weeks hosting Rivals.com five-star recruits Josh Selby of Baltimore Lake Clifton and Doron Lamb of Mouth of Wilson (Va.) Oak Hill Academy.

Miller and his staff, according to Mayes’ father, made it known that “they want Jordin” and that they “would continue to recruit Jordin if Jordin does not commit in the next couple of days.”

“I am going to give Jordin a few days before we sit down and and see where he’s at,” the elder Mayes continued. “Sean said he will stay in close contact and that if Jordin is ready to commit, he will be there ready for him.”

Jordin Mayes is rated a three-star player by Rivals.com, the No. 106th prospect of the Class of 2010. Selby is rated No. 4 and Lamb 21st in the class. Detroit Country Day School point guard Ray McCallum, who took an official visit to Arizona on Nov. 1, is rated a four-star player at No. 60. Mayes, Selby, Lamb and McCallum play similar roles, although McCallum and Selby are more prototypical point guards.

Mayes and Lamb play more of both the point and shooting guard positions.

“(Mayes) is more of a combo right now, but he showed this past summer that he can see court, make the pass to the open man, especially in the transition game,” recruiting scout Van Coleman of Hoopmasters.com reported Saturday. “No question he can score when game is on line, too.”

Darryel Mayes, who was also a guard in Tarkanian’s transition style of offense, believes other recruiting services have the wrong impression of his son’s capabilities. For instance, Rivals.com ranked his son No. 48 of the Class of 2010 last summer before having him slip 58 spots.

“What matters to us the most is that Jordin has always been on Arizona’s list,” the elder Mayes said. “Different reporters want to visualize Jordin a certain way. They are perplexed by him. I don’t understand it.

“Jordin went from his sophomore year as the No. 1 point guard in the West coast and something like No. 6 or 7 in the country, according to some, to being a question mark? As a junior (last year) he played more at shooting guard because his team needed him to score. So these people stopped rating him as a point guard but as a shooting guard instead.

“We believe, if anything, that he became more versatile, more of a threat. He proved in the AAU circuit he can handle the point guard. That’s when some people rated him No. 1 in the West coast at the position. He knows he can play the point. He blossomed more as an overall player as a junior because he was called upon more to shoot and score.”

Darryel Mayes offered this question as it pertains to the highly-competitive nature of Los Angeles-area prep basketball: “How many players do you know lead their team to a city and state title with a 35-2 record and then are right back at it doing the same thing the next year?”

Westchester is 18-3 and rated No. 3 in the state by MaxPreps.com.

One recruiting Web site — HighSchoolHoop.com — has Mayes in its top 50 at No. 48.

“Jordin has a lot of maturing to do and he needs to get bigger and stronger, but he’s determined to get there,” said Darryel Mayes, who acknowledges that Arizona is also highly interested in Selby and Lamb.

“The thing about recruiting is you have no control over other recruits. Regardless of where you go, you still have to get in there and compete. There’s nothing given to these recruits. The way the game is now, these coaches have to win and they to win now. They will go with players they know will pick up their system. Any good coach will also tell you that competition makes a player better.”

Darryel Mayes said he and his son think more about the system in which Jordin hopes to grow in rather than “worry about players like Selby and Lamb and what they’re going to do.”

“This a decision based on where Jordin feels he will fit in the best and grow as a player,” the elder Mayes said. “Sean Miller recognizes the magnitude of Jordin at Westchester. Jordin is a leader and he also has a very good basketball IQ. He was raised on basketball and I’m always in his ear, motivating him and pushing him along.”

When told that his son has the makings of another Jason Gardner — a winner and bold leader who was more substance than style — Darryel Mayes said, “I can see that. I can definitely see that. He can be a valuable piece to any program.”

This entry was posted on Monday, February 1st, 2010 at 2:49 am and is filed under Sports. Tags for this post: Class of 2010 recruits, Darryel Mayes, Jordin Mayes, Sean Miller. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.