The Head Of The Class
By Scott Whittle
His name is Austin Harvell. Virtually unknown to the basketball world, largely in part to a broken leg he sustained only two games into his freshman season at Clements High School that put and end to his season. Disappointed but not deterred from his dream he continued to work and was committed to getting back on the court to do what he loved.
Entering his sophomore campaign with the Colts, the 6’5 guard from Athens, Alabama wasted no time making up for lost time on the floor by turning in a 30 point and 14 rebound performance in the season opener. A few games into the season, Harvell and his Clements teammates participated in the Bracy Invitational Christmas tournament at Deshler High School. Harvell was impressive in warmups and even more impressive finding out he had just turned 15-years old. It's not often you find a full time basketball player with such a physique at that age. He was playing against 6A Athens in their first game and immediately impacted the game with his athleticism and physicality. But what really impressed me was his ability to shoot the ball from anywhere on the floor. I continued to follow Austin throughout the school year, attending over a dozen of his regular season games.
Harvell is arguably the top player in the class and his performances with the Nike Elite Stars have solidified his position. He's one of the few kids in the class that is competing on the 17U level but also being the best player on the floor for the most part.
Playing 17s with the Nike Elite Stars couldn’t have yielded better results. Harvell is averaging 23.2 points per game along with 7.1 rebounds, 1.8 blocks and 2.6 assists. After the first live period, where he participated in Shun Williams On The Radar Hoops Showcase in Atlanta, he immediately started receiving interest in several SEC schools as well as other mid-high majors.
He has picked up interest from Georgia, Auburn, Miss St, Ole Miss, Samford, Troy, South Alabama, Murray St, Rice, Kansas St, Middle Tenn St and Georgia Tech. Alabama and Troy have already been in to see him while North Alabama made the first official offer.
Earlier this week we sat down with Austin for a short Q&A so people can get to know him. Here is what he had to say.
What’s something about your game that you want to most improve on?
I need to work on my ball handling and sitting low on defense when guarding little guards..i also need to work on finishing through contact.
What’s your pregame routine? Any superstitions?
My pregame routine, I usually eat some type of candy to get me hyper and I always listen to one of my favorite songs “My Year by Young Nudy.”
How has the recruitment process been thus far ?
I think my recruitment has been going great right now. I got my first offer from UNA and I got interest from Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, Miss St, Murray St, Rice, Kansas St, Troy, Georgia Tech, and Samford.
What are you looking for in a college at the next level?
Coaching is very important to me, a team that’s family oriented that fits my style of play.
Who are your influences on and off the court?
My Mama and my mentor Mario really influences my game because they always tell me what I’m doing wrong and always telling me what I need to start doing more to improve my game.
What NBA player do you feel like you most model?
Everyone tells me Jimmy Butler, LeBron James and KD, but I feel like I have a little of all of those guys in me. They are obviously some of the best players in the game so just to be compared is special to me.
What do you enjoy doing when you aren’t playing basketball?
When i’m not playing basketball I usually just chill and play music or go chill with my homies.
Entering his sophomore campaign with the Colts, the 6’5 guard from Athens, Alabama wasted no time making up for lost time on the floor by turning in a 30 point and 14 rebound performance in the season opener. A few games into the season, Harvell and his Clements teammates participated in the Bracy Invitational Christmas tournament at Deshler High School. Harvell was impressive in warmups and even more impressive finding out he had just turned 15-years old. It's not often you find a full time basketball player with such a physique at that age. He was playing against 6A Athens in their first game and immediately impacted the game with his athleticism and physicality. But what really impressed me was his ability to shoot the ball from anywhere on the floor. I continued to follow Austin throughout the school year, attending over a dozen of his regular season games.
Harvell is arguably the top player in the class and his performances with the Nike Elite Stars have solidified his position. He's one of the few kids in the class that is competing on the 17U level but also being the best player on the floor for the most part.
Playing 17s with the Nike Elite Stars couldn’t have yielded better results. Harvell is averaging 23.2 points per game along with 7.1 rebounds, 1.8 blocks and 2.6 assists. After the first live period, where he participated in Shun Williams On The Radar Hoops Showcase in Atlanta, he immediately started receiving interest in several SEC schools as well as other mid-high majors.
He has picked up interest from Georgia, Auburn, Miss St, Ole Miss, Samford, Troy, South Alabama, Murray St, Rice, Kansas St, Middle Tenn St and Georgia Tech. Alabama and Troy have already been in to see him while North Alabama made the first official offer.
Earlier this week we sat down with Austin for a short Q&A so people can get to know him. Here is what he had to say.
What’s something about your game that you want to most improve on?
I need to work on my ball handling and sitting low on defense when guarding little guards..i also need to work on finishing through contact.
What’s your pregame routine? Any superstitions?
My pregame routine, I usually eat some type of candy to get me hyper and I always listen to one of my favorite songs “My Year by Young Nudy.”
How has the recruitment process been thus far ?
I think my recruitment has been going great right now. I got my first offer from UNA and I got interest from Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, Miss St, Murray St, Rice, Kansas St, Troy, Georgia Tech, and Samford.
What are you looking for in a college at the next level?
Coaching is very important to me, a team that’s family oriented that fits my style of play.
Who are your influences on and off the court?
My Mama and my mentor Mario really influences my game because they always tell me what I’m doing wrong and always telling me what I need to start doing more to improve my game.
What NBA player do you feel like you most model?
Everyone tells me Jimmy Butler, LeBron James and KD, but I feel like I have a little of all of those guys in me. They are obviously some of the best players in the game so just to be compared is special to me.
What do you enjoy doing when you aren’t playing basketball?
When i’m not playing basketball I usually just chill and play music or go chill with my homies.