The Class of ’97 : Some Say Woodbridge’s Chris Burgess Is the Finest High School Basketball Prospect in the Nation

Chris Burgess will hear several names mentioned during his senior year.

Not Kevin Augustine’s, Eric Chenowith’s or Robert Griffin’s, some of the county’s top basketball players who will challenge Burgess for player-of-the-year honors.

Not Mike Krzyzewski’s , Jim Harrick’s or Roger Reid’s--the head coaches at Duke, UCLA and Brigham Young--whose institutions are leading the pack of suitors seeking Burgess’ signature on a letter of intent.

Instead Burgess, a 6-foot-10, 240-pound senior at Woodbridge High, will be reminded of Kevin Garnett, Kobe Bryant and Jermaine O’Neal. Perhaps Shawn Kemp.

Maybe Moses Malone.

They all made it to the NBA without playing college basketball, Chris. What are your plans?

Why shouldn’t Burgess, a two-time Times all-county selection who headlines the Class of 1997, reconsider his plans to take a scholarship when a million-dollar pro contract might beckon?

Burgess, 17, still doesn’t think he’s ready.

“If someone legitimate came up and said, ‘You would be drafted in the top 12,’ I think I would really consider it,” Burgess said. “But if they’re saying, ‘You have a chance to be drafted,’ I know I wouldn’t be interested.

“For me, getting something beyond basketball--a job--is important. I’d like to go into communications, broadcasting. So school is important. But I do think of basketball so much.”

Burgess has other people thinking about him as well.

“He is arguably the No. 1 prospect in the nation, but that’s a tough call,” said Bob Gibbons, college recruiting analyst and editor and publisher of All Star Sports Publications in Lenoir, N.C.

“There is 6-9 Lamar Odom from Christ The King High in New York, and who I think is this year’s Kobe Bryant, as in most likely to go to the pros. But he’s not as physically developed or as mature as Chris. Chris is a rarity--size, strength, very mature body, and has the skills of a guard. There’s not a college coach in country that wouldn’t kill to have him in their program.”

Joel Francisco, who owns Long Beach-based SoCal’s Finest basketball scouting service, is just as high on Burgess.

“He’s regarded as one of top five prospects in the country,” Francisco said. “He has good all-around skills, an outside shot, and can fill the lane on the break. If there is a weakness, it’s finishing plays on the inside, capitalizing on offensive rebounds. But among big guys, he may be the best.”

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Height is not in short supply in the Burgess family.

Sandy Burgess, Chris’ mother, a runner-up in the Miss Utah pageant, is 6-2. His father, Ken, is 6-6. Chris is the third (and tallest) of five children. Older brother, Benjamin, is 6-0; sister Angela (now playing basketball at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Ore.) is 6-5; 15-year-old brother Josh is 6-3; 10-year-old brother David is 5-10.

Burgess was already 5-10 in the fourth grade. “All legs,” Sandy recalls.

Baseball and soccer were his first loves, especially soccer. That’s where Burgess, as an attacking midfielder, showed his first knack for scoring; he could score from nearly midfield.

“Coaches would look at him and mutter, ‘No way that kid is in the fourth grade,’ ” Sandy said. “I’d say, ‘Oh yes he is.’ Then they would look at me and say “I guess he is.’ ”

Even though he grew fast, Burgess never had to wait for his coordination to catch up. “He’s always been gifted that way,” Ken said.

Basketball captured his attention in the fifth grade. When the family returned to Irvine after living two years in Beaver Creek, Ohio, Burgess joined the local Boys Club team.

“In his first game, he didn’t score a point,” Ken said. “He spent every spare moment the next week on a basketball court. The next week, he scored all of his team’s eight points. That’s when he got the spark.”

Said Sandy: “He’s always been determined to be the best at what he does.”

That includes playing the piano, which he often does when he’s not on the basketball court. He has been playing since he was about 10, and was a soloist at his elementary school graduation. He says it relaxes him.

“He plays a great ‘Flight of the Bumblebee,’ ” Sandy said.

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When John Halagan was called out of his classroom to meet a transfer student from Mater Dei, he had no idea who was waiting for him.

Burgess was supposed to be part of the class that included Augustine, David Castleton and Mike Lippold. But freshmen, no matter how exceptional, usually don’t get much playing time at Mater Dei. Burgess found himself lucky to play 10 to 15 minutes per game.

Then another high school phenom, Schea Cotton, transferred to Mater Dei from Bellflower St. John Bosco. Burgess was buried deeper on the bench, and decided he needed a change.

Even though Mater Dei has continued winning Division I-A section titles--the streak stands at five in a row--Coach Gary McKnight still wishes Burgess had stayed.

“I’d love to have kept him,” McKnight said. “Obviously, he got a lot of freedom at Woodbridge. But I think we would have won the state with him last year, giving us another big man with Mike Vukovich.

“Just watching him his freshman year you knew he had everything going, from athleticism to court savvy and feistiness. He’s a real tough kid and very intelligent.”

Even though Burgess has a championship ring from his freshman season, he said transferring was the best move.

“When I transferred, I had low confidence at Mater Dei, probably because their program is so unbelievably talented,” Burgess said. “Even the 10th man has to play hard for his spot; the bench guys can kick your butt on a regular basis.

“I was probably the seventh or eighth man coming off the bench. When I transferred, I was so much taller and bigger than everyone [at Woodbridge], it was like, ‘Wow, they’ve got to fight their way to get past me.’ It gave me so much more confidence.”

It also gave Halagan the kind of center most coaches dream about. As a sophomore Burgess averaged 21.9 points and 11.4 rebounds. Last year, he led the county in scoring (26.3) and was fourth in rebounding (10.6).

“Right from the start he fit in,” Halagan said. “Not only basketball, but his friends were here and it had some bearing on his performance. I won’t say he’s putting up these numbers because of Woodbridge. He would put them up anywhere.

“His biggest improvement has been in maturity. When people see a 6-10 guy, they forget he can still be a kid. Chris has really improved in the mental preparation and dealing with adversity. When Chris burst on the scene with us, it was his first time playing prime-time minutes. The expectations were incredibly high for a sophomore. But he took a good team and made us very good.”

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There is some unfinished business for Burgess at Woodbridge.

Start with a Division II-A section title or a state title--or both. This is Burgess’ last chance to win either, though he would also be happy to win a Sea View League title.

Both of the Warriors’ previous playoff runs ended in losses to Riverside North. Last year’s semifinal defeat resulted in rumors Burgess was transferring again.

“My mom was in the stands, getting frustrated because we weren’t playing that well,” Burgess said. “As the clock was ticking down and it was apparent we would lose, Mom said to no one in particular, ‘I’m taking him to [Mouth of Wilson, Va.] Oak Hill.’ She didn’t mean it, but the word got around that I wanted to transfer. So I told people I wasn’t going anywhere.”

The Warriors won one Division II state title, with future NBA player Adam Keefe, in 1987. Although Burgess is taller and heavier, he often is compared to Keefe.

Burgess is eager to leave a similar legacy.

“My main goal is to win a [section] championship. It’s the main goal team-wise. We still have to win league. But I know if I don’t win one, people will ask why,” he said.

“I think we have a shot at [the section] and at state--and I know we’ll have [defending state champion Compton] Dominguez in our bracket. But this will be the best Woodbridge team I’ve been on, with William Stovall, Brandon Beeson, [Servite transfer] Peter Martinelli and Brad Thomas [a transfer from North Carolina]. We have three-to-four Division I [college] quality players. We’ve never had that here.”

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Burgess, who is getting his home visits from recruiters this month, plans to take all his recruiting trips by October. He said he will declare his choice early; he does not want to go into his final season distracted by choosing a school.

“Duke, UCLA, Kentucky, BYU, North Carolina--that’s where I plan to go,” Burgess said. “One or two might be above the others, but they have the advantage that I know them real well.”

Of course there will be people--not necessarily with his best interests at heart--telling him college would be a lateral step. They will tell him if the NBA is his goal, don’t waste another two or three years getting there. They will argue ‘take the money now; by the time your first contract is up, your game will be at the point you can command the really big dollars.’

Gibbons hopes Burgess doesn’t listen.

“I’d never tell any kid, from a purist standpoint, to go from high school to the pros,” Gibbons said. “But he’s not my son and I’m not in a position to be a millionaire overnight.

“The question is, does he stack up with players who have gone recently? From an idealistic standpoint, no. But from a realistic standpoint, Chris is more qualified physically. He does not have the athleticism of a Kevin Garnett, but he has as many skills and a more mature body. He has an NBA body right now.

“I can’t refute the arguments that high school basketball players should be able to sign contracts, like they do in baseball and hockey. But in basketball, you’re fighting a well-established tradition of NCAA programs, where kids get a chance at education, acquire some learning skills and prove themselves good college players before they go to the pros.

“Inevitably some will fail; be in and out of pros by the time they’re 21. Most are ill-prepared to handle their affairs because of no training. Basketball doesn’t teach you how to handle your money.”