U players don't get invitations to Portsmouth

Even Tubby Smith's phone calls weren't enough to help Minnesota basketball players Dan Coleman, Lawrence McKenzie and Spencer Tollackson earn spots at the Portsmouth Invitational, an annual NBA predraft camp for college seniors. The camp, at Portsmouth, Va., began Wednesday and ends Saturday.

Coleman has said he hopes to play overseas. And his uncle, Ben, who played in the NBA, said an opportunity to play in front of NBA and European scouts at the Portsmouth Invitational would have been "a plus" for his nephew.

McKenzie was disappointed that Portsmouth Invitational officials passed on him. Such Big Ten players as Illinois' Shaun Pruitt, Ohio State's Jamar Butler and Wisconsin's Brian Butch all were invited.

But McKenzie's father, Larry, said he is confident his son will get an opportunity to play overseas after signing with an agent this weekend.

"From talking to some people, there's going to be some opportunities," he said. "That's not the end of the world."

Minnesota recruits Devoe Joseph and Ralph Sampson III will compete in televised all-star games this weekend. Joseph will compete for the World team at the 2008 Nike Hoop Summit in Portland, Ore., this afternoon, and Sampson will play for the U.S. All-Stars in the Capital Classic on the University of Maryland campus on Sunday.

The Nike Hoop Summit with be nationally televised on Fox Sports Net, and the Capital Classic will be shown live on regional TV.

Many fans will get their first opportunity to watch Joseph, who played high school basketball in Canada. Joseph's AAU coach, Ro Russell, said Joseph views the Nike Hoop Summit as a chance to show he's as talented as top American players.

"People are saying, 'Well, he's from Canada, and he's dominating Canada,' " he said. "People will be able to see how good he really is."

As next week's national signing day for high school basketball players approaches, Gophers fans await the decision of 6-11 center Krys Faber, a star at Ribet Academy in Los Angeles who has attracted more interest recently from big schools like USC and UCLA.

But even if the Bruins come calling for Faber, his high school coach, Willie Middlebrooks, said he believes Minnesota will remain the front-runner, even after a recruiting trip to DePaul today. "If everything was [finalized] today, he'd be a Gopher," he said.