UA coach Sean Miller is becoming more visible to players from elite prep schools (US Presswire Photo)

Arizona’s recruitment of players from top-flight prep programs, such as Mouth of Wilson (Va.) Oak Hill Academy and Henderson (Nev.) Findlay Prep, has never been as prevalent as it is now.

The number of players attending such institutions who are interested in Arizona increased by one Monday. Class of 2011 point guard Quinn Cook is leaving Hyattesville (Md.) DeMatha for Oak Hill, where he will become a teammate of UA commit Sidiki Johnson. Johnson transferred to Oak Hill from Newark (N.J.) St. Benedict’s in May (he originally is from St. Raymond’s in the Bronx).

A couple of weeks ago, Class of 2011 small forward prospect Amir Garrett announced that he was leaving Lawndale (Calif.) Leuzinger for Findlay.

This exposure bodes well for UA coach Sean Miller‘s recruiting efforts, even if, for example, Class of 2011 shooting guard Nick Johnson decides to go elsewhere after completing his eligibility at Findlay. Making a name for himself, his staff and program to these high-profile recruits is extremely important especially because Miller did not attract such talent at Xavier.

Whereas they did not know much about Miller or his coaching style as recently as two years ago, these prep-school recruits have their eyes open now to his program. They no longer see Arizona as Lute Olson’s program. The reason: Arizona is now where it’s at with players who play for these college breeding operations.

Miller signed two from these institutions before he coached a game at Arizona: Lamont “MoMo” Jones from Oak Hill and Kevin Parrom from South Kent (Conn.) Prep.

Former UA coach Lute Olson tried to recruit talent out of Oak Hill Academy but struck out when three of its stars did not qualify academically or opted to go elsewhere — Orlando Vega, Stephen Jackson and Brandon Jennings (the NBA rookie sensation who played a year in Italy rather than honoring his letter of intent). Ben Davis is an Oak Hill alum, but he attended Florida and Kansas before landing in Tucson in 1994.

Cook’s transfer from DeMatha to Oak Hill was strictly a basketball decision, according to his mother Janet Cook in a Washington Post article.

“We’re an educated family, and we’re thinking outside the box here,” she said, referencing that this was not a decision based on academics. “This is about getting focused and preparing for the transition to college.”

Focused is the key word. The main reason why these prospects transfer from a traditional high school team to these high-profile programs is to get a taste of what college basketball is like before they advance to the next level. They experience travel and playing against the best talent at their age level — and, of course, the exposure.

That’s ironic in Cook’s case inasmuch as he is leaving DeMatha to escape his celebrity status at the school.

Cook, a member of the USA Basketball under-17 national team that will compete in the FIBA World Championships, has already experienced basketball at a level higher than the standard high school standout. In the last month alone, he has competed in the Pangos All-America Camp in Long Beach, Chris Paul Point Guard Camp in Winston-Salem, N.C., and trained with the U.S. team in San Antonio with other high-profile players.

If Cook happens to commit to Arizona — he told me last month that he plans an unofficial visit in August — Miller knows he will bring in a seasoned player who, for example, can weather a Pac-10 road trip more so than others. Cook will demand instant playing time. The same goes for Nick Johnson, who Miller has pursued aggressively since he took the UA job last April. And don’t forget Kadeem Jack, the ever-elusive recruit who remains interested in Arizona after deciding to attend South Kent instead.

Another Class of 2011 guard recruit Jahii Carson does not play for a private prep school. He instead hails from a public high school — Mesa. Carson apparently will stay at Mesa. Damien Leonard, a Class of 2011 sharpshooter from J.L. Mann High School in Greenville, S.C., is staying put at Mann for now. He lists his final five as Arizona, South Carolina, Clemson, Oklahoma State and Virginia Tech. He will likely take an official visit to Tucson in September or October.

Arizona signee Daniel Bejarano also avoided prep school by sticking with his roots at Phoenix North. The decision to stay was for the best from a team standpoint because the Mustangs won consecutive state titles to end his career.

“I could have played for a prep school,” Bejarano told me in April. “Some people asked me about it, but I just couldn’t see leaving my guys behind at North. I grew up with those guys. We’ve been teammates since we were freshmen. They’re like brothers to me.

“I knew that during the summer I would be playing some good players anyway (during the AAU circuit). And I always challenge myself to be a better player. I know that I improved a lot as a player playing at North.”

As recently as 10 years ago, it was unheard of for a player from DeMatha leaving for a higher profile program. Morgan Wootten built that into an elite program in his 46 years there (1956 to 2002) as a head coach. Former NBA stars Adrian Dantley and Danny Ferry played for Wootten. Even the venerable John Wooden once said of Wootten, “I stand in awe of him.”

Now, a player is leaving Wootten’s once-proud institution for what appears to be greener pastures. Talk about a sign of the times.

Cook’s move to Oak Hill also signals that Maryland and Georgetown are now considered long shots. He removes himself from Maryland and Georgetown fans at DeMatha bothering him about his next move. Kentucky and Duke are prominently mentioned with Cook. He also lists Arizona, North Carolina, Villanova, St. John’s and UConn as possibilities.

Miller and Co. are also prominently involved with other Findlay prospects such Class of 2012 recruit power forward Winston Shepard and Class of 2013 target Nigel Williams-Goss.

Of this group of six — Cook, Nick Johnson, Garrett, Jack, Shepard and Williams-Goss — the UA would be considered a success if it can land one of them (in addition to Sidiki Johnson) in the next two to three years. With the increased amount of prep-school players interested in Arizona, odds are Miller will sign one of them. If that happens, it will be a triumph for him beyond the normal scope of recruiting.

Kadeem Jack, now a Class of 2011 recruit out of South Kent (Conn.) Prep, now has Kansas, West Virginia, Kentucky and North Carolina challenging Arizona and others for his services after next season (Kadeem Jack photo)

The secret is out and the recruiting aura of Trinidad and Tobago native Kadeem Jack is developing from one top program to another.

The Class of 2011 recruit who graduated and played at Manhattan (N.Y) Rice High School, is now heavily involved with Kansas and West Virginia. Jack, a 6-8, 215-pound forward who will attend South Kent (Conn.) Prep next year, is contemplating a visit to Kansas or West Virginia to take part in their elite camps this month.

“Kansas is definitely one of the schools that I’m interested in,” Jack is quoted as saying by JayhawkSlant.com, a Kansas Rivals.com site. “Kansas is definitely a program I’m going to seriously consider – most definitely. I’ve talked to Coach (Bill) Self … I’ve been able to talk to a couple of members of the coaching staff from Kansas.

“Kansas got involved with my recruitment when they found out I was going to attend South Kent next year. The coaching staff at Kansas is interested in me and I’m interested in Kansas. I like the style of play and I like the coaching staff. Kansas is definitely an option I’m going to consider.”

So in a matter of two to three months since the end of Rice’s season, Jack has gone from being recruited by Arizona, UCLA, UConn, Miami and Arkansas to being courted also by Kentucky, North Carolina, Kansas and West Virginia. Nobody ever said recruiting is easy. Arizona not securing Jack when it had the chance is similar to not snatching that last item on a store’s shelf and then seeing others clamor for it.

Jack, who has only played four seasons of organized basketball and has more of a soccer background, visited only Arizona officially during the season. At one point, his mentor Damian Leslie, mentioned that Arizona was Jack’s leader because the budding prospect had no other trips planned.

The story goes that Arizona mailed him a national letter of intent for him to sign during halftime of the Jordan Brand Classic regional all-star game April 17. Jack said he balked at that idea because he wanted to visit other schools before making a decision.

Jack later took trips to Miami and Arkansas before he opted to attend South Kent instead of a Division I institution in 2010-11. He reconsidered that notion when North Carolina and Kentucky started to show interest in early May, but he stuck to his decision to attend South Kent. Lately, Kansas and West Virginia have come calling.

Jack has maintained, however, that Arizona is in the picture.

“Arizona is definitely still in my recruiting process,” Jack communicated to me via text message recently.

Class of 2011 guard Nick Johnson has built some muscle over the last year and seems to be more explosive as a player (Photo by Gary Randazzo, WildcatSportsReport.com)

Gary Randazzo of WildcatSportsReport.com is in Los Angeles this weekend observing some potential UA recruits from the Class of 2011, 2012 and 2013 and he had these immediate observations of some of the recruits from Sunday’s action in the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League:

• Sidiki Johnson, PF, 6-9, Mouth of Wilson (Va.) Oak Hill: “Real deal. Going to be great.”
• Jahii Carson, PG, 5-11, Mesa: “Incredible hops. Pure point guard who can score whenever he wants.”
• Nick Johnson, SG, 6-3, Henderson (Nev.) Findlay Prep: “Way more explosive than I remember him to be, and has added some good muscle. Has room to grow, though. Had a chance to dunk on a guy, but backed off and ended up having his shot blocked. He needs to bring it. If he does, he’s elite.”

  Other recruiting note from across the country at the Bob Gibbons Tournament of Champions in North Carolina:

  Jack-ed up about prep school. Former Manhattan (N.Y.) Rice High School forward Kadeem Jack is playing for New England Playaz AAU team this weekend in the state that includes his dream program: The North Carolina Tarheels.

  But not even the lure of the Tarheels’ national championships, army of NBA players past and present and coach Roy Williams was strong enough to sway Jack away from his decision to attend prep school next year.

  Arizona fans upset over Jack’s decision to bypass significant minutes next season with the Cats for the opportunity to mature as a player and student at South Kent (Conn.) Prep School should now look at the budding prospect in a different light. For him to say thanks but no thanks to North Carolina means he is genuine with his approach to be the best that he can be before he takes the next step.

  Don’t forget that Jack, playing in the Bob Gibbons Tournament of Champions this weekend, had not yet played an organized basketball game as recently as five years ago.

  “When I walked into school a few weeks ago, my old AAU coach told me he had good news,” Jack told Fox Sports columnist Jeff Goodman on Thursday. “News that may change my decision. That’s when he told me North Carolina called.

  “That’s when I was starting to re-evaluate everything. That maybe I was ready to make the jump. But then a lot of other people brought me back down to earth and made me realize this (going to prep school) is what’s best for me and my future.”

  Jack is every much a part of Arizona’s Class of 2011 recruiting plans as is potential targets such as Carson and Damien Leonard of Greenville (S.C.) J.L. Mann. The only difference now is that Arizona will be challenged by the likes of North Carolina and Kentucky next spring instead of only Miami and Arkansas.

  By the way, that “old AAU coach” Jack told Goodman about is Moe Hicks, also his former coach at Rice. Hicks ran the New York Gauchos AAU program and is now with St. John’s coach Steve Lavin in an administrative role. Interesting to note that Jack is no longer with the Gauchos but with the Playaz instead. Most of that has to do with his move from New York to Connecticut to attend prep school.