Basketball Players See Pros and Cons in Early Signing

Kevin Holland had had enough of “the hassle of it all.”

The phone calls averaged more than half a dozen a night. The knocks on the front door of his Cerritos home came at all hours, seven days a week.

So when the annual college basketball early signing period for letters of intent arrived last month, the highly recruited 6-8 forward and center from Cerritos High School couldn’t wait to announce his decision to attend DePaul University next fall.

As the premier “big man” in the area this year, Holland is expected to make Cerritos a title contender in the San Gabriel Valley League.

His decision is part of a nationwide trend among highly sought blue-chip prospects who sign letters of intent before their senior seasons in high school. (In the Southern Section, the official starting day for games was Monday.)

68 Top Prospects Signed Early

According to a survey conducted last year by Eastern Basketball magazine, 68 of the top 100 basketball players on the East Coast signed early letters of intent in 1984.

And the trend is expected to continue. According to Don Mead, founder of Don Mead and Associates, a highly regarded scouting service in Irvine, most of the top prospects in Southern California have already committed themselves.

“Of the players in the area that have major college potential, about 40% have already signed,” Mead said. “But of the really top ones, 80% have signed.”

The trend has accelerated each season since the Collegiate Commissioners Assn. agreed to the one-week early signing period in 1983.

Coaches and administrators differ on the value of the system, but the bottom line for quality players such as Holland is eliminating the pressure to perform in a player’s senior year.

Proponents say early signing has allowed players a chance to relax and have a good time on the court. Opponents charge that it has taken much of the luster from the high school season.

But for Holland and others, including 6-8 center Jaime Cardriche of St. Anthony, who recently signed with Oklahoma State, the early signing offered a chance to get their thoughts back on high school play.

“It’s good that he (Holland) signed. It will take the pressure off him,” said Cerritos assistant coach Bob Lougee, who said that he and head Coach Ian Desborough feel Holland has matured since his junior year.

Got Calls at Home All the Time

“I just wanted to get it out of the way,” Holland said. “It was a hassle. Coaches would call the house all the time.

“At first I was excited about it (the recruiting interest), but after a while it became bothersome. I couldn’t do my homework because the phone would ring every 30 minutes.”

Holland, a B student, decided on DePaul after visits to the Chicago school and to New Mexico, Arizona and Wake Forest. He sees both pros and cons in his decision to sign early. The phones don’t ring as much now, he has a better chance to concentrate on his homework and he appears relaxed now that the pressure is gone.

But he also says he owes Cerritos a great season.

“I’ve got to push myself,” he said. “Some players that sign (early) have a tendency to let down in high school. I have an obligation to play.”