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Cliff Alexander
Cliffton Nirgel Alexander (born November 16, 1995) is an American professional basketball player for the Guaiqueríes de Margarita of the Superliga Profesional de Baloncesto (SPB). He completed his freshman season at the University of Kansas for the Jayhawks' on their 2014–15 team. He declared himself eligible for the 2015 NBA draft but was undrafted. He played one season for the Portland Trail Blazers and earned a second year of NBA service with the Brooklyn Nets.
He played in high school at Curie High School in Chicago where he won Naismith and Mr. Basketball USA recognition as national player of the year. He did not play organized basketball until eighth grade, but by late in his freshman season he became a notable contributor to his high school's varsity team. He was ranked among the top 20 prospects in the national class of 2014 prior to his sophomore season. As a junior, he moved into the top 10 of the national class and was recognized as an All-American. By the beginning of his senior season, he was considered to be a top 5 player by most talent evaluators and his stock was still on the rise. Following a Martin Luther King Day performance during his senior year against the number one team in the country, many experts considered him to be the best player in the national class of 2014.
In 2013, he represented USA Basketball in international play. Several talent scouts praised his powerful game. As a high schooler, Alexander felt he was most often compared to Amar'e Stoudemire. He was also contrasted with crosstown rival Jahlil Okafor, especially as a senior when they vied for national attention. Alexander was heavily recruited by many top Division I basketball programs and his recruitment was widely followed. He played in the 2014 McDonald's All-American Boys Game, 2014 Jordan Brand Classic and the 2014 Nike Hoop Summit, earning co-MVP of the Jordan Brand Classic. Alexander led Curie to the 2014 Chicago Public High School League city championship in a quadruple-overtime game against Okafor that was the lead story on SportsCenter. The championship was later forfeited. As a freshman with Kansas, he did not play in the latter part of the season after the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) launched an investigation into his eligibility.
Alexander, who was also a highly regarded football player, did not play organized basketball until eighth grade. Alexander played on Curie's 2010–11 varsity team as a freshman, but had little impact at first and sat out some games in December. He missed the first ten games due to a heart murmur. In late December, he started getting local attention as part of the reason Curie remained undefeated. During the Chicago Public High School League (CPL) and Illinois High School Association (IHSA) playoffs, he contributed significant performances. On March 9, 2011, Curie was eliminated from the IHSA playoffs in a Class 4A sectional semifinal by Lyons Township High School as freshman Alexander posted 9 points, 13 rebounds, and 2 blocks in a 66–64 loss. His late-season contributions gave Curie an added dimension, as the team finished with a 28–3 record. Following his freshman season, Alexander began to be recognized by local evaluators as a potential top national recruit. After Jabari Parker and Jahlil Okafor, Alexander was already considered the best Chicago area basketball prospect. He earned Red-Central all-conference recognition.
As late as August 2011, Alexander remained unrecognized by most national evaluators. However, as Alexander entered his sophomore season, he was one of three area prospects that were firmly among the national class of 2014's top 25 prospects (along with Whitney M. Young Magnet High School teammates Okafor and Paul White). As of September 1, 2011, Alexander was ranked 13 by ESPN.com and 9 by Rivals.com. On December 30 in the Pontiac Holiday Tournament, Parker's Simeon Career Academy defeated Alexander's Curie 44–27 as Alexander was almost shut out by Simeon's Steve Taylor. On January 22, 2013, Okafor and Alexander went head to head in CPL play. Curie defeated Young by a 57–46 margin as Alexander had 10 points, six rebounds and three blocks before having a personal foul disqualification. Despite fouling out, Alexander had the better game with nearly a dozen Division I programs in attendance. Curie had a rematch against Simeon in the February 17 CPL championship game with Alexander again being ineffective on offense with four points against Parker and Taylor as Curie lost 53–49. The game broadcast on ESPN3. Following the season, a statewide panel of sportswriters and broadcaster voted Alexander as an Associated Press boys basketball Class 4A all-state honorable mention honoree.
At the June 2012 Pangos All-American Camp, Alexander was selected as the Most Outstanding Player. Alexander, who was already a top 5 recruit according to some sources, endured a Summer 2012 foot injury that sidelined him. By mid-July 2012, as ESPN's number 10 ranked prospect, he received an offer from Kentucky and was being recruited by DePaul, Indiana, Ohio State and Wisconsin. Upon receiving his offer from Kentucky, he told Rivals.com that his two leading schools were Kentucky and Michigan State.
By the fall of his junior season, the Illinois class of 2014 was being mentioned as one of the all-time great statewide classes of basketball players. Chicago Sun-Times writer Joe Henricksen noted that there was a high chance that this would be the fifth Illinois class and first since 2002 to include three McDonald's All-Americans. He also noted that the class has a chance to rival if not surpass the classes of 1998 and 2011 which each had nine top 100 players.
On November 30, at a Draffenville, Kentucky tournament game against Oak Hill Academy, Alexander scored 26 of his team's 39 points on 12–14 field goal shooting in a 72–39 defeat. On December 29, Curie again faced Parker and Simeon in the Pontiac Holiday Tournament (this time in the semifinals). Alexander posted 21 points on 9–10 field goal shooting, but Simeon still prevailed 62–57. Notably, Parker assumed Alexander as a defensive assignment after Alexander gave Curie a 48–47 lead with 4:58 time remaining and Alexander went scoreless the rest of the game. Despite 11 points, 9 rebounds and 8 blocked shots from Alexander, Curie was eliminated from the CPL playoffs in a February 11 quarterfinals 60–58 loss to the Billy Garrett, Jr.-led Morgan Park High School that went on to become 2013 IHSA Class 3A state champion. On February 26, the Associated Press Illinois Class 4A basketball rankings showed Whitney Young at number 1, and it was also expected that Young's road to the sectional finals would include a March 6 meeting with Curie. According to Henricksen, the March 6 state playoff meeting between Young and Curie was anticipated because it would pit Okafor against Alexander, making it the most highly touted IHSA playoff matchup of centers since 1988 when LaPhonso Ellis led East Saint Louis' Lincoln High School against Eric Anderson's St. Francis de Sales High School. Mike Helfgot of the Chicago Tribune said that there have not been many matchups between big men this good with so much at stake. On March 2, Alexander attended Senior night at University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign's Assembly Hall. The February 2013 Great Plains blizzard caused controversial postponements of several IHSA games including the March 6 Young-Curie game, which was delayed one day. Young defeated Curie 62–58 as the supporting cast made up for Alexander's 14–13 scoring edge over Okafor.
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Cliff Alexander
Cliffton Nirgel Alexander (born November 16, 1995) is an American professional basketball player for the Guaiqueríes de Margarita of the Superliga Profesional de Baloncesto (SPB). He completed his freshman season at the University of Kansas for the Jayhawks' on their 2014–15 team. He declared himself eligible for the 2015 NBA draft but was undrafted. He played one season for the Portland Trail Blazers and earned a second year of NBA service with the Brooklyn Nets.
He played in high school at Curie High School in Chicago where he won Naismith and Mr. Basketball USA recognition as national player of the year. He did not play organized basketball until eighth grade, but by late in his freshman season he became a notable contributor to his high school's varsity team. He was ranked among the top 20 prospects in the national class of 2014 prior to his sophomore season. As a junior, he moved into the top 10 of the national class and was recognized as an All-American. By the beginning of his senior season, he was considered to be a top 5 player by most talent evaluators and his stock was still on the rise. Following a Martin Luther King Day performance during his senior year against the number one team in the country, many experts considered him to be the best player in the national class of 2014.
In 2013, he represented USA Basketball in international play. Several talent scouts praised his powerful game. As a high schooler, Alexander felt he was most often compared to Amar'e Stoudemire. He was also contrasted with crosstown rival Jahlil Okafor, especially as a senior when they vied for national attention. Alexander was heavily recruited by many top Division I basketball programs and his recruitment was widely followed. He played in the 2014 McDonald's All-American Boys Game, 2014 Jordan Brand Classic and the 2014 Nike Hoop Summit, earning co-MVP of the Jordan Brand Classic. Alexander led Curie to the 2014 Chicago Public High School League city championship in a quadruple-overtime game against Okafor that was the lead story on SportsCenter. The championship was later forfeited. As a freshman with Kansas, he did not play in the latter part of the season after the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) launched an investigation into his eligibility.
Alexander, who was also a highly regarded football player, did not play organized basketball until eighth grade. Alexander played on Curie's 2010–11 varsity team as a freshman, but had little impact at first and sat out some games in December. He missed the first ten games due to a heart murmur. In late December, he started getting local attention as part of the reason Curie remained undefeated. During the Chicago Public High School League (CPL) and Illinois High School Association (IHSA) playoffs, he contributed significant performances. On March 9, 2011, Curie was eliminated from the IHSA playoffs in a Class 4A sectional semifinal by Lyons Township High School as freshman Alexander posted 9 points, 13 rebounds, and 2 blocks in a 66–64 loss. His late-season contributions gave Curie an added dimension, as the team finished with a 28–3 record. Following his freshman season, Alexander began to be recognized by local evaluators as a potential top national recruit. After Jabari Parker and Jahlil Okafor, Alexander was already considered the best Chicago area basketball prospect. He earned Red-Central all-conference recognition.
As late as August 2011, Alexander remained unrecognized by most national evaluators. However, as Alexander entered his sophomore season, he was one of three area prospects that were firmly among the national class of 2014's top 25 prospects (along with Whitney M. Young Magnet High School teammates Okafor and Paul White). As of September 1, 2011, Alexander was ranked 13 by ESPN.com and 9 by Rivals.com. On December 30 in the Pontiac Holiday Tournament, Parker's Simeon Career Academy defeated Alexander's Curie 44–27 as Alexander was almost shut out by Simeon's Steve Taylor. On January 22, 2013, Okafor and Alexander went head to head in CPL play. Curie defeated Young by a 57–46 margin as Alexander had 10 points, six rebounds and three blocks before having a personal foul disqualification. Despite fouling out, Alexander had the better game with nearly a dozen Division I programs in attendance. Curie had a rematch against Simeon in the February 17 CPL championship game with Alexander again being ineffective on offense with four points against Parker and Taylor as Curie lost 53–49. The game broadcast on ESPN3. Following the season, a statewide panel of sportswriters and broadcaster voted Alexander as an Associated Press boys basketball Class 4A all-state honorable mention honoree.
At the June 2012 Pangos All-American Camp, Alexander was selected as the Most Outstanding Player. Alexander, who was already a top 5 recruit according to some sources, endured a Summer 2012 foot injury that sidelined him. By mid-July 2012, as ESPN's number 10 ranked prospect, he received an offer from Kentucky and was being recruited by DePaul, Indiana, Ohio State and Wisconsin. Upon receiving his offer from Kentucky, he told Rivals.com that his two leading schools were Kentucky and Michigan State.
By the fall of his junior season, the Illinois class of 2014 was being mentioned as one of the all-time great statewide classes of basketball players. Chicago Sun-Times writer Joe Henricksen noted that there was a high chance that this would be the fifth Illinois class and first since 2002 to include three McDonald's All-Americans. He also noted that the class has a chance to rival if not surpass the classes of 1998 and 2011 which each had nine top 100 players.
On November 30, at a Draffenville, Kentucky tournament game against Oak Hill Academy, Alexander scored 26 of his team's 39 points on 12–14 field goal shooting in a 72–39 defeat. On December 29, Curie again faced Parker and Simeon in the Pontiac Holiday Tournament (this time in the semifinals). Alexander posted 21 points on 9–10 field goal shooting, but Simeon still prevailed 62–57. Notably, Parker assumed Alexander as a defensive assignment after Alexander gave Curie a 48–47 lead with 4:58 time remaining and Alexander went scoreless the rest of the game. Despite 11 points, 9 rebounds and 8 blocked shots from Alexander, Curie was eliminated from the CPL playoffs in a February 11 quarterfinals 60–58 loss to the Billy Garrett, Jr.-led Morgan Park High School that went on to become 2013 IHSA Class 3A state champion. On February 26, the Associated Press Illinois Class 4A basketball rankings showed Whitney Young at number 1, and it was also expected that Young's road to the sectional finals would include a March 6 meeting with Curie. According to Henricksen, the March 6 state playoff meeting between Young and Curie was anticipated because it would pit Okafor against Alexander, making it the most highly touted IHSA playoff matchup of centers since 1988 when LaPhonso Ellis led East Saint Louis' Lincoln High School against Eric Anderson's St. Francis de Sales High School. Mike Helfgot of the Chicago Tribune said that there have not been many matchups between big men this good with so much at stake. On March 2, Alexander attended Senior night at University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign's Assembly Hall. The February 2013 Great Plains blizzard caused controversial postponements of several IHSA games including the March 6 Young-Curie game, which was delayed one day. Young defeated Curie 62–58 as the supporting cast made up for Alexander's 14–13 scoring edge over Okafor.
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