PHILADELPHIA -- Tobias Harris received the basketball on the wing just outside the 3-point line. The 6-foot-8, 225-pound
Harris then dribbled the ball through his legs, took his defender off the dribble and hesitated ever so slightly before driving to the basket for a layup off the glass.
Fouled on the move, he added a free throw to complete the three-point play.
The move unfolded at the Reebok All-American Camp at Philadelphia University, where Harris is among 150 of the top prep players in the nation competing for college scholarships that could forever change their lives.
Virtually every major college coach in the country is here, and Rick Pitino of Louisville, Billy Donovan of Florida, Bill Self of Kansas and Fred Hill of Rutgers were among those watching Harris, who suffered a sprained ankle but will still play in Thursday's Underclassmen All-Star Game.
The son of former NBA player's agent Torrel Harris, Tobias is a rising junior at Half Hollow Hills West High School in
Dix Hills, N.Y. If ever anyone was being groomed for a career in big-time hoops, it is Tobias Harris. Channing Frye of the
Portland Trail Blazers is his cousin. Tobias' older sister, Tesia, started last year as a freshman on the Delaware basketball
team and is being touted by her coach as a future WNBA player. And every summer, Harris works out for several weeks in
August with former NBA star George "The Iceman" Gervin, a onetime client of his father's.
"I look at [Frye] and how he improved from when he was 14, how much better he got, so I see that in him and that just
makes me work harder," Tobias, 15, said after a game here Wednesday night. "I like to work out a lot on my game.
I love the game of basketball."
Harris, who holds a 3.5 GPA and likes to play Nintendo Wii when he's not on the court, is still growing into his body and could top out at 6-10 or so. He already holds scholarship offers from Louisville, Texas, Rutgers, UConn, Indiana,
Maryland, Arizona, Marquette, Baylor, St. John's, West Virginia, Virginia Tech, Miami, Virginia, Delaware and Hofstra.
So far this summer he has visited many of those schools unofficially and for team camps.
"My dad mostly handles all that so I don't get caught up in it, but when I do get phonecalls I still know that I'm only
going into 11th grade so I have a lot of work to do," Harris said.
The third of Torrel and Lisa Harris' six children -- all of whom have names that start with 'T' -- Tobias has been
learning about basketball from his father since there was a little ball in his crib.
"I like basketball," Torrel said. "Having sons, you play basketball all the time. Then they grew up and they liked it, so you
just play games. And then as they got serious about it, they got into it more, working out and taking it more seriously."
Torrel played at Duquesne and once had a tryout with the Atlanta Hawks. Now he is a licensee for Nintendo and designs
a clothing line known as Torrel Torrel that is worn by such stars as Jay-Z, 50 Cent, Nas and Busta Rhymes.
"I like being a trendsetter for clothing," he said.
He said Lisa has asked him about his motivation in terms of his sons and basketball.
"My wife says, 'Don't do it for you. Make sure you do it for your kids,'" Torrel said.
So a few years ago, Torrel had a long conversation with his sons, and they all said that they wanted to pursue
basketball at the highest level. Tobias never turns down an opportunity to work out on his game, his dad says.
Harris has 3-point range as a shooter and can cause mismatches for defenders. If they are too small, he can post them up.
If they are too slow, he can take them off the dribble. Renardo Sidney, a 6-10 forward considered one of the top players in the Class of 2008,
had trouble guarding Harris in a game here. On the other hand, Harris has to improve his agility in order to covering
opposing perimeter players.
"When a big guy guards him, it's like a mismatch nightmare for a team," Torrel said.
"Tobias Harris has a world of potential," said Queens-based recruiting analyst Tom Konchalski. "He has a very high
level of skill for a 6-7 kid. He's Bambi physically. He so coltish physically. He's got to grow into his body, but he has
a very good sense of the game and he's very skilled for 6-7. His body has got to blossom. He's just waiting on his body to develop."
Harris works with an agility trainer twice a week to improve his speed and quickness.
"Our goal is to get him before he goes to college to be able to guard a three [small forward,]" Torrel said.
As far as colleges go, Torrel and Tobias both like Rutgers. Torrel has known Rutgers assistant Craig Carter for many years
and Torrel told Carter a few years ago that he had a young son to keep an eye on.
"Rutgers was one of the first schools that started recruiting Tobias when he was young," Torrel said
"They're guys that have a vision about where they want to take their program, and they believe they're going to take it
there. And from the things that they're showing so far regarding their program, they look like they're on their way."
Still, Rutgers has finished near the bottom of the Big East in recent years and is still rebuilding. The Scarlet Knights
are bringing in a class that includes McDonald's All-American Mike Rosario of Jersey City St. Anthony and 6-9 center Greg
Echenique of St. Benedict's Prep.
Torrel says his son wants a chance to win an NCAA championship.
"He wants to be in a position where he can win a national championship when he goes to college," Torrel said.
"He wants to win a national championship and then he wants to go to the NBA."
"The question is, What schools are going to have a realistic chance of winning the national championship? The other thing
is what school is really going to prepare him for the next level to get to the league?"
Watching Frye's game evolve has been a motivating factor for Tobias.
"Channing was not a good high school basketball player. Channing was big and goofy," Torrel said. "And then to see
Channing four years later be a lottery pick, that was also a good motivation that he can do it."
And, of course, training every summer with The Iceman can only help him, too.
"He teaches me a lot of IQ stuff, knowing how to feel the game," Tobias said. "He's a Hall of Famer so you can't
get it from nobody better."