The Next Lincoln Legend Was Born Ready

Joel Huerto is managing editor of One Man Fastbreak.net and a sports consultant with Opposing Views.com. He has been a member of the sports media for almost 20 years, which included nine years as a news editor at the Los Angeles Times. He will cover a variety of topics, from coach and player profiles to hot-button issues. Joel is also known as "maniLA ice" for his cool demeanor in the friendly confines of the YMCA hardwood. He loves to shoot the "tear drop" and prefers to play zone to hide his deficiencies on defense.

Abraham Lincoln High in Brooklyn has seen its share of success stories. The school's alumni reads like a book of famous people.

John Forsythe, Louis Gossett Jr., Harvey Keitel, Neil Diamond and Neil Sedaka all attended Lincoln. Arthur Miller, who authored "Death of a Salesman," was a member of the Lincoln Class of 1932. The 1955 pop-classic song, "The Lion Sleeps Tonight," was the creation of youngsters from nearby Coney Island who called themselves The Tokens.

Director Spike Lee did not attend Lincoln, but he used the school as the home of fictional basketball superstar Jesus Shuttlesworth (played by NBA star Ray Allen) in the 1998 movie, "He Got Game."

Lee may have to revisit that storyline in 2009 and give Lance Stephenson the starring role. Stephenson, 18, is one of the nation's most sought-after prep recruits and there is nothing about his game that is fictitious. He's hoping to follow the path taken by Lincoln alums Stephon Marbury and Sebastian Telfair, who parlayed their NYC high school hoops legends into careers in the NBA.

Depending on which Internet publication you are reading, Stephenson is somewhere between No. 1 to No. 9 among prep prospects. Rivals.com has given him a five-star rating. Then again, Maalik Wayns of Roman Catholic High (Pa.) is ranked No. 25 on the Rivals list and he also has a five-star rating. I'm guessing Rivals gave 25 players five stars to avoid any favoritism.

During a nationally televised game Thursday night, Stephenson scored 32 points in a loss to Duncanville High (Texas), which boasts three studs of its own in Shawn Williams, Roger Franklin and Julian Washburn. Williams has committed to Texas and Franklin is headed to Oklahoma State. Washburn is the son of former NBA player Chris Washburn.

Even though his team lost, Stephenson was the best player on the court. Kansas coach Bill Self and Oklahoma State's Travis Ford were in attendance, but Ford was only there to support his guy, Franklin. Self is one of nine coaches hoping to land the 6-5, 200-pound Stephenson, who is undecided.

Other teams in the running are UCLA, USC, St. John's, Memphis, North Carolina, Pittsburgh, Seton Hall and Indiana. The Hoosiers are longshots in the Stephenson Sweepstakes, but rumor has it newly minted Bloomington leader Tom Crean just bought the unlimited texting plan so don't count him out.

Comments

[Reverend Paul Revere]

Stephenson is a beast. Peep "Gunnin for that #1 Spot" and check him goin up against Beasley, Jerryd Bayless, Kyle Singler, Kevin Love, Donte Greene and the rest when they were seniors in HS and he was just 15. The kid is a the truth.