LAS VEGAS — Rosco Allen received a pass on the wing during a workout session Thursday night at Bishop Gorman High School and aggressively attacked the basket past a defender like a guard, not a 6-foot-8-inch forward.

UCLA coach Ben Howland, in attendance to watch Allen and fellow Class of 2012 standout Shabazz Muhammad, is accustomed to watching Allen belie his height and handle the ball without difficulty.

What Allen did next after driving past the defender is an uncommon sight for any coach watching this generation of recruits: He laid the ball in rather than attempt a highlight-reel dunk. His father, Daniel Allen, credits that style of play to his son’s basketball development in Hungary, where the family lived regularly until moving to Las Vegas five years ago. They still own a house in Budapest and travel there often.

“The game is a little bit different there in Europe,” Daniel Allen told me. “It’s a little more physical, a little more fundamental. That’s why you’ll hardly ever see him dunk the ball. He’d rather make a three-pointer. He tells me that he’ll take three points over two any day.”

The name Dirk Nowitzki does not conjure images of a 7-foot dunking machine, although he is among the taller basketball players in the NBA. The German-born player is known for his perimeter play, including the three-point shot, because of his European background.

Rosco Allen, a Hungarian-American, who is likely to grow to at least 6-10 by the time he graduates from Gorman in two years, embodies some of the same characteristics as Nowitzki on the court.

“Working from the wing, I feel most comfortable,” the younger Allen said. “I know I can post up if I have to, or if there is a smaller player on me. Being able to play inside and out has helped me become a better basketball player.

“Growing up in Hungary helped me because all I did there was play point guard.”

Since he was a freshman at Gorman, Allen said he has grown seven inches. The growth spurt has not hindered his coordination.

“I think he is still growing,” the elder Allen said. “You look at him, and he’s still just a kid. The weight will come (he is listed at 205 pounds). He’ll find it somehow, especially with colleges like Arizona that have a great weight-training facility.

“The Arizona coaches have told us that they have kids come in and they put 15 to 20 pounds on them. That’s something that will definitely be good for Rosco’s stature.”

UA coach Sean Miller, who hosted the Allens during an unofficial visit to McKale Center in early June, was not in attendance Thursday night. Miller and assistant coaches Archie Miller and Book Richardson were busy at the time with an in-home visit with 5-star point guard Josiah Turner in Sacramento.

Attempts to reach the Turners were unsuccessful. Per NCAA rules, Miller and his staff can not talk to the media about the visit. History suggests the visit with Turner went well because recruits, such as Rosco Allen, are enamored with Miller’s straight-forward style.

“The thing I like about him the most is his honesty,” the younger Allen told me. “He’s been on me from the beginning, and he’s been upfront with me about how I would fit into his system. They like to run and that fits my style.”

The elder Allen went so far as to call Sean Miller “brilliant”.

“I thought Coach Miller was brilliant when we visited there,” he said. “He told us that Rosco is the first kid he didn’t have to apologize to about the heat in Tucson because we live in Vegas. He has a great sense of humor.

“I was fascinated overall with the visit,” he continued. “That school, being at the center of a million people, was interesting. It is the mecca for all of those people, whether it’s cultural arts, ballet, drama, basketball or football … Those people rally around that school.

“There’s some great places to eat, too. Rosco will eat anything if it’s free. If he does not have to cook it, he’ll eat it.”

Miller told Gorman coach Grant Rice that he will watch Allen, Muhammad and Class of 2012 forward Ben Carter, among others, work out Saturday. Miller was in Las Vegas earlier in the day visiting Class of 2011 commit Nick Johnson at Findlay Prep in Henderson. The Wildcats are also recruiting Class of 2012 center Landen Lucas from Findlay.

Kentucky coaches will also be in attendance Saturday at Bishop Gorman, according to Rice. Coaches from ASU, North Carolina, Cal and Stanford will be at the school Friday.

Former UA player and assistant coach Josh Pastner, now the head coach at Memphis, was in attendance Thursday along with Tigers assistant Jack Murphy, a former UA student manager. They were on hand mostly to watch Muhammad and former Marana Mountain View forward Demetris Morant, a junior who transferred to Gorman this summer. Arizona is also recruiting Morant.

Duke assistant coach Steve Wojciechowski was also there Thursday to observe Muhammad and Muhammad’s younger brother Rashaad, a freshman point guard.

Coaches other than Howland who observed Allen on Thursday — the start of the off-campus contact period for coaches until Oct. 5 — included Utah coach Jim Boylen and a Harvard assistant. Allen’s father beams when talking about his son’s recruitment by Harvard, Northwestern and Stanford.

“His (3.85) GPA is very good,” the elder Allen said. “As parents, we are more proud of that than what he’s done in basketball. Even if you make the pros, by the time you’re 35 or 36, you’re no longer at that level. His education will allow him to be prepared for that.”

Daniel Allen added that his son could play in Hungary’s equivalent of the NBA D-League now. Rosco was born in Budapest. His mother his Hungarian. His parents met when Daniel Allen, a San Francisco native, lived in Europe for 20 years, part of which was spent playing basketball.

The elder Allen said the level of talent in Hungary goes from the NB1 league to the NB2 and then the NB3.

“Teams similar to say the Lakers and Warriors here bring in young players to develop,” he said. “They come in and play and once they’re ready, they climb the ladder. There’s no college recruiting like over here. Rosco has a couple of friends who grew up with him who are playing in the NB1 right now. He’s actually been told that they’d like him to go over and play in the NB1 because even at his age (16) he can play in the NB1 over there.”

The younger Allen chuckled about the thought of earning a paycheck by playing in Hungary right now.

“I liked living there,” he said, “but I like playing in the U.S. a lot more.”

This entry was posted on Friday, September 10th, 2010 at 12:50 am and is filed under Sports. Tags for this post: Archie Miller, Book Richardson, Class of 2012 recruits, Daniel Allen, Demetris Morant, Jack Murphy, Josh Pastner, Rosco Allen, Sean Miller, Shabazz Muhamad. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.