Rancho Alamitos May Stand Alone in This Mutual Admiration Society : CIF PREVIEW: Fifth of 10 Parts

Garden Grove League coaches are pretty cocky these days.

Oh, it’s not about their own teams, mind you. They still adhere to the time-honored practice of accentuating the negative about their teams’ chances for success.

Rancho Alamitos High School, last season’s league champ, is the unanimous choice to take the league title. Well, unanimous minus one. Rancho Alamitos Coach Pat Adams chose La Quinta to win the championship. La Quinta Coach Jim Perry welcomes the compliment . . . and predicts his team will finish fourth.

Coaches say their teams are either too small, too young or too weak. Perry said his team has trouble rebounding because they’re “too nice.” Their teams need A) a center, B) a shooter or C) a season of experience to become a contender.

It’s just a bit amazing that all these bad teams, could make up such a good league.

“This is the best shape the league’s been in for some time,” said Tony Lipold, who has coached Bolsa Grande for eight seasons. “A lot of talent, a lot of balance. It’s going to be a super year for basketball around here.”

Presenting the new and improved Garden Grove League.

It has experience.

Four first team all-league players return from last season. Guard Roger Carter is back at Rancho Alamitos, as is the Vaqueros’ 7-foot 1-inch center, Lee Valasquez. Los Amigos Coach Glenn Marx has guard Geno Howard returning. Point guard Nam Cao, all 5-7 of him, is back at Bolsa Grande.

It has youth.

Sophomore Raschawn Lacy will start at guard for Los Amigos. Marx, who coached former UCLA star Nigel Miguel at Notre Dame High School, says Lacy and Howard may be the finest guard combination he has seen. La Quinta sophomore Ari Buford, the Aztecs’ sixth man last season, has earned a starting spot.

“In three years he’ll definitely be a Division I college basketball player,” Perry said.

It has transfers.

Lipold bolstered his program when 6-2 Joe Small from Westchester and 6-2 Andy Teschler, a transfer student from Germany, enrolled at Bolsa Grande this year. Teschler played on a national traveling team in Germany.

“There are five teams that really have a chance for the title,” Marz said. “It’s a tribute to the talent and coaching in the league. I really think we’ll be one of the most balanced and most exciting leagues to watch.”

You’ll have to pardon the coaches if they gush. Talent hasn’t always been in ready supply in the school district. Junior high schools in the Garden Grove Unified School District do not not participate in interscholastic sports.

“We get players who have no experience in organized basketball,” Marx said. “We basically have to start from scratch with a lot of the kids. These kids are already two years behind other players by the time they get to high school.”

This season, the league’s talent seems to be a little more on time.

Here’s a closer look at the Garden Grove League:

BOLSA GRANDE: Returning starters--Nam Cao (5-7, G), Tom Afdahl (6-2, G/F), Hung Nguyen (6-1, F).

Top Newcomers--Joe Small (6-2, F), Andy Teschler (6-2, F), Mark MacElwee (6-4, C), Thurman Brown (6-0, G), Chris Constant (6-5, C).

Outlook--The Matadors are small. How small? Lipold is considering starting 6-2 guard/forward Afdahl at center. His reasoning is simple. Constant still needs some work, and 6-4 MacElwee sustained a knee injury during summer play and Lipold isn’t sure when he’ll be ready. So if he’s going to be small, Lipold figures he might as well be very fast and small. Cao will once again be the focal point of the offense, handling the ball on the fast break.

GARDEN GROVE: Returning starters--Mark Kiefer (6-2, F).

Top Newcomers--Jeff Kanegae (6-0, G), Henry Fournier (6-2, F), Jeff Finch (6-5, C), Greg Lorenz (6-0, G/F).

Outlook--The Argonauts made it to the playoffs last season for the first time since 1972. Coach Gene Campbell returns only one starter, the 6-2 Kiefer, whom he describes as “a throwback to the All-American kid.” Kiefer averaged eight points a game last season, but Campbell has said the offense will be structured to get him the ball more this season. He’s got a good shooting touch from 15 feet, but expect him to operate more from the inside. The team’s best perimeter shooter, Kanegae, averaged about 14 minutes of playing time and will start at shooting guard.

LA QUINTA: Returning starters--John Lee (5-8, G).

Top Newcomers--Ari Buford (6-3, F), Mike Whitcomb (6-6, F), Bart Recktenwald (5-11, G/F), Brian Joe (6-8, C), Chris Jackson (6-2, G), Richard Dennison (6-0, G), Eric Ramsey (5-7, G).

Outlook--Point guard John Lee is Perry’s only returning starter, but, as he showed at times last season, Buford is a great leaper and the Aztecs’ most talented player. Perry says Buford’s biggest problem is his youth. “He has a tendency to lose concentration sometimes,” Perry said. “It’s a typical problem with a young kid.” Juniors Mike Whitcomb (6-6) and Brian Joe (6-8) will start on the La Quinta front line.

LOS AMIGOS: Returning starters--Geno Howard (5-10, G), Steve Davis (6-6, F).

Top newcomers--Phillip Garcia (6-7, C), Derrick Hyatt (6-5, F), Mark Hyatt (6-3, F), Van Skipps (6-2, G), Jason Anderson (6-2, G), Kyle Martell (6-2, G).

Outlook--Rancho Alamitos has the tallest player in the league in Velazquez, but the Lobos are the tallest team overall. Eleven of Marx’ 13 players are at least 6-feet. Garcia, Hyatt and Davis give the Lobos a formidable front line physically. They are slightly lacking in experience, though. Howard and Lacy will probably have to carry the offensive load for the early part of the season. By the time the Lobos get to league play, they should definitely be one of the teams to beat for the championship.

RANCHO ALAMITOS: Returning starters--Roger Carter (6-3, G), Lee Velasquez (7-1, C).

Top Newcomers--Craig Paquette (6-0, F), Mark Flores (6-1, F), Randy Morales (5-7, G).

Outlook--Carter averaged 14.3 points a game last season, and will probably make an even bigger offensive contribution this season. Velasquez is a proven intimidator on the defensive end and says his goal is to block 200 shots this season. But the senior has yet to develop a shooting touch, and can slow down the Vaquero running game. Three players-Paquette, Flores and Morales, from a Rancho Alamitos J.V. team that went 17-4 last season-will fill out the starting lineup.

SANTIAGO: Returning starters--Rick Burns (6-4, F).

Top Newcomers--Peter Avila (6-0, G), Val Potestas (5-7, G), John Klungreseter (6-7, C), Sun Yong Kim (6-1, F)

Outlook--Most coaches think five of the six league teams have a real chance of contending for the title. Guess which is the odd school out. The Cavaliers return one starter. First-year Coach Ed Coyle, in his own words, “cleaned house on players who didn’t want to work hard.” What he has left, besides Burns is a good shooter in Avila, a burly center in the 6-7, 220-pound Klungreseter and a good ballhandler in Potestas. Still, the Cavaliers don’t figure to threaten league contenders.