Corey Edwards - PG - Christ The King HS - Middle Village, NY - GEORGE MASON

Point guard
Middle Village (NY) Christ The King
AAU: New Heights

Ht: 5-foot-10
Wt: 160 lbs
Class: 2011 (High School)

http://stjohns.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=2&pr_key=90722

Corey Edwards is a tough 5-foot-10 sophomore that plays for Christ the King HS in Middle Village, NY. But to be the starting point guard on an elite varsity team, Edwards had to show and prove when it came to his upperclassmen teammates if he was to be successful with the CTK Royals in the upcoming season.

Playing along side of the stellar senior shooting guard/wing Sean Johnson, the burning question would be, how well do they work together. According to assistant coach Greg Lempko they've worked it out. "Underclassmen always have to prove themselves to the upperclassmen on the team but Corey has already done that. He runs the show," say Lempko.

Edwards has accomplished that by being a terrific defensive player and an a skilled pass first point guard. "Corey's teammates realize that when they pass the ball to him they will get it back if they're open," says Lempko.

As Christ the King goes into their first non-league game on Wednesday against Jamaica High School, another potential challenge for the young point guard should be the transition from being coached by longtime head coach Bob Oliva to being coached by Joe Arbitello who is also the assistant athletic director at Christ the King. Lempko says that really isn't a problem because, "Corey was never really coached by Oliva. Corey was out last year with a shoulder injury and played AAU for New Heights and I coached him during our summer league. So there really wasn't a transition."

As far as the current coaching situation at Christ the King, even though Coach Oliva is out due to a heart ailment, "He is technically still the coach of the team," says Lempko. "Until an interim coach is found, the team is coached by Joe Arbitello, Myself, Artie Cox and Derrick Phelps. Right now Arbitello is 'detained' with his first child," Lempko would go on to say.

As far as recruiting goes, Lempko says, "I know Corey has received a few letters but his Dad is very conscience of his son focusing on school and playing basketball. He feels the college recruiting will take care of itself."

After impressive showings during the summer with New Heights and during the Five-Star camp, Edwards should attract attention, especially if he performs as predicted with the Royals during the upcoming season.

"There's plenty of time for Corey to start thinking about colleges," say Lempko.

ESPN Insider

Evaluation
May, 2008: Edwards is a very talented and creative point guard who still needs to learn who to channel his abilities instead of simply trying to make a play with the ball every time down the floor. But he has excellent ball skills and an ability to find and get into very small gaps within a defense. He can stop on a dime or instantly change direction with a variety of moves, but most notably a lightning quick cross on the perimeter and a spin once inside the paint. He also has excellent vision and is a more than willing passer, although this too is another area where increased patience and feel for the game will only help him down the road. He also needs to make his perimeter jump shot a more consistent part of his offensive arsenal since he almost never looks for that shot now. Overall, he is a very talented young player who could be very good when he learns how to play the team game instead of simply one on one basketball.

i will see him 2marrow.  will give details on game.

saw him tonight.... not impresssed.

first off he has NO SHOT.  there was a reason he scored only 1 point today.  he CAN'T SHOOT.  period..

on defense, specifically in reboudning situations, the kid just stands there.  he's not nearly as involved as he should be.  other times on D he showed glimpses of being a good defender, but most of the time he seemd to just be walking around and relaxing.

passing wise, he's pretty good.  he finds his guys and has pretty good court vision.

his bball iq was horrible.  he cost his team the game, as one team down the court, he had sean johnson open but instead ran into THREE boys/girls defenders.  sean johnson was wide open...

the next time down the floor, he shot a erratic three point shot, when SJ was open.  he has to be smart with the ball, esp. when he has no shot.

he's only a sophomore, so things can change.  but i was not impressed with him.

Sophomore guard Corey Edwards of Christ the King tells NBE that he has scholarship offers from St. John’s and Auburn while Seton Hall, Villanova, Kentucky, George Mason and Princeton have also expressed early interest.

he had an outstanding game today.  i was wrong about him.  he hit a few clutch 3 pointers and played very good D.  he set up his teammates and is a good athlete.  he's a big east player.  he has to refine his skills a bit offensively.  if he does that, he'll be a big east point guard.

he had an outstanding game today.  i was wrong about him.  he hit a few clutch 3 pointers and played very good D.  he set up his teammates and is a good athlete.  he's a big east player.  he has to refine his skills a bit offensively.  if he does that, he'll be a big east point guard.

Really?  Randomhero was not impressed.

 

i've heard good things about him all year.  it just so happens that i saw him on his worst day.  not to mention the first half today he had 3 fouls (maybe i'm just a bad jinx)

ESPN

February, 2009: Edwards has the correct temperament and disposition to man the point guard position, looking to get his teammates involved before he seeks his own scoring opportunities. Edwards has very good vision and passing skills, easily spotting open teammates for scoring chances. He excels on the break always dribbling with his head up to get the ball to open men. He has a tendency to leave his feet for passes, which results in turnovers at times. Edwards has decent, but elite lateral quickness with the ball; therefore, he has to learn a few tricks to negate any speed disadvantages that he will face. He allows quicker guards to speed him up on the perimeter, which ultimately results in turnovers as well for Edwards. He needs to learn to change speeds to keep defenders off balance. Edwards has decent strength and he needs to learn to put quicker guards on his hip and just back them down, instead of over-dribbling and giving the ball up in attempts to blow past them. Edwards can get into the lane, but he needs to become a better finisher at the hoop as well as add a floater to his offensive arsenal, as he tends to over-penetrate and get into trouble. He also needs to add a mid-range pull %u2013up to his game. Edwards does a decent job of pressuring opposing guard the length of the court, but tends to get caught when he gamble and reaches for steals.

December, 2008: Edwards has good, but not elite quickness, which he uses to his advantage when he works off the dribble. He does a very good job of using his quickness to get to the paint thus breaking down opposing defenses. Edwards does not look for his own offense when in the teeth of the defense, instead preferring to dish the ball to open teammates. He has unbelievable vision and passing skills, doing a great job of creating offense for his teammate. Edwards keeps his head up on the break, a characteristic that coaches love in point guard, and spots open teammates for lay-ups attempts. He needs to improve his consistency from the perimeter just to make sure that defenders remain honest and driving lanes will continue to exist for Edwards, instead of defenders negating his penetration by backing off him. He has a tendency to dribble into traffic and get himself into trouble at times. When Edwards faces a zone defense, he could help himself as well as his team by quickly driving the gaps in the zone and dishing to open teammates. At this point however, Edwards has a tendency to over-analyze the zone and wait too long to make decisions. Using pass fakes will also make the zone move and open up lanes for Edwards to pass or drive.

Hey whats up everyone. My names Ray Anczelowicz, I run the scouting service site, www.GothamHoops.com.

Here's my scouting report on St. John's '11 recruit Corey Edwards:

http://www.gothamhoops.com/?p=39

Thanks a lot. Tell your friends about it! lol

http://www.fiveborosports.com/ssp/news?news_id=3636

Young said St. John’s, George Mason, Marquette, Rutgers and Fordham have all shown interest in Edwards, but he stressed that the pure point guard is far from his peak.

http://w3.nbebasketball.com/2009/07/31/summer-in-the-city-news-notes-12-noon-update/

Christ the King (NYC) 2011 point guard Corey Edwards has new interest this month from West Virginia and Providence with George Mason, Arizona, Xavier, Villanova and Marquette continuing to show interest along with offers from St. John’s, Auburn and Rutgers.

http://w3.nbebasketball.com/2009/09/01/corey-edwards-recruiting-update/

Corey Edwards might want to consider purchasing a new cell phone.

College assistant coaches from all over were dialing in to the junior point guard at Christ The King this summer.

“So many coaches called, I can’t even remember some of the schools that are recruiting me,” says Edwards.

While Edwards can’t recall some of the schools from down south and out west that expressed interest, one thing is certain.


“I want to go to a Big East school,” said Edwards, who’s being actively pursued by Marquette, St. John’s, Pittsburgh, Arizona, Auburn and a slew of others.

“I’ve narrowed my list down to Big East schools. I want to stay close to home.”

Edwards visited Marquette recently, where he was impressed with the coaching staff and comical antics of funnyman forward Jeronne Maymon.

“He’s a clown,” said Edwards of the Marquette freshman. “He loves to mess around.”

While Edwards isn’t in love with the idea of living in cold Milwaukee weather, he likes the Eagles’ tradition of producing solid guards.

“I want to go to a school for guards, and the Big East is one of the best conferences in the country and has good guards everywhere.”

Edwards, he of the electrifying handle, averaged 12 points and seven dimes at CTK last season.

He spent the summer improving his jumpshot and decision making.

What does he look to bring to the table in 2009-10?

“I want to bring some leadership, and some more scoring. I basically just want to run the show.”

Run the show Edwards will, but he’d also like to avenge a season-ending loss to Rice last season.

Rice, of course, has another budding Big East prospect in guard-swingman Jermaine Sanders.

“He’s one of the most versatile dudes I’ve played against,” said Edwards of his counterpart.

“He can play anywhere from the two to the five.”

Edwards, a Queens, N.Y. native, does not have any visits lined up this fall.

“Right now I’m just getting ready for the year, getting ready for workouts and staying focused,” he said.

Unless your a Big East rep, don’t count on Edwards to return your phone call.

http://w3.nbebasketball.com/2010/01/31/corey-edwards-seeing-big-east-interest/

COREY EDWARDS SEEING BIG EAST INTEREST
January 31, 2010 by NBE Blogger · Leave a Comment

Christ the King junior guard hopes to play college basketball in Big East

by MATT WHITFIELD

Saturday at the Newark Invitational at the Prudential Center saw some exciting basketball action. Near the top of the list was Christ the King’s 75-72 overtime win over St. Peter’s Prep.

Scoring five of Christ the King’s 10 overtime points was junior point guard Corey Edwards, who finished with 14 in the game. Edwards showed his ability to drive past defenders and find the open man or draw contact going to the rim. On Saturday, 12 of his 14 points came from the foul line. Edwards flashes the ‘NYC’ handle and has no problem going left or right with the ball in his hands.

Following the game, Edwards told NBE that he has offers from George Mason, VCU, Auburn, Seton Hall and St. John’s while West Virginia and Villanova are showing interest. Head coaches from Villanova, Hofstra and George Mason have been to see him this season and Seton Hall had an assistant on hand Saturday taking in the game.

“Yeah, I think the Big East schools will start to come later on in the season,” said Edwards when asked if he saw himself in the Big East in the future. “But, right now, you can’t hope for that, you just to go through the season.

“That’s my goal to make it to the Big East.”

Edwards, who many regard as the top pure point guard in his class in NYC, has the bloodlines to do it. His father, David Edwards, began his college career at Georgetown before transferring to Texas A&M after a season. The elder Edwards averaged over 40 points a game as a 5-foot-9 senior guard at Jackson High School in Queens (NY) and now is helping his son with his own game, which very well could end up in the Big East come the fall of 2011.

I can't imagine he'll be here if Grace and Stith are aboard.

We'll see how long Stith is here.

You can never have enough good guards.  I want Norm to recruit scoring guards.

You can never have enough good guards.  I want Norm to recruit scoring guards.

"You can never have enough good guards" is something coaches and fans say. I doubt Edwards will want to come into a moribund program with two point guards already on the roster.

He isn't good enough to play in the Big East. I wouldn't sign him however I know he would love to come to St. John's.