PHILADELPHIA -- In the span of just a few months, J.J. Moore has gone from playing in relative obscurity on Long Island to being the object of attention for virtually every team in the Big East.
"I blew up this spring," Moore said, referring to his performances at the Bob Gibbons Tournament of Champions in North Carolina and the Rutgers Spring Fling.
A 6-foot-5, 190-pound small forward from Brentwood, N.Y., Moore performed in front of coaches from Pittsburgh, Louisville, Marquette, St. John's, Rutgers, UConn and Providence during action Thursday at the Reebok All-American Camp at Philadelphia University. He dropped a game-high 18 points, including two 3-pointers, in an 89-70 win over the Allen Iverson team Thursday.
"I think he can be really good," said Kelvin Jefferson, who is coaching Moore on the Jamal Crawford team and will likely be his coach next season at South Kent (Conn). "He's got great size, a great physique. He's very athletic and he can shoot the ball. He can do a lot of different things. He can finish around the rim. He can catch off penetration and make threes.
"He's having a great camp. He can add to his game as far as slashing to the rim, as far as becoming a better defender. He's a good 3-point shooter, but if he becomes a consistent 3-point shooter and good mid-range shooter, then all of a sudden, wow."
Moore said he plans on transferring to South Kent for next year. He would join a team that will feature several other New York transplants -- Mike Buffalo (Wings Academy), Joel "Air Jamaica" Wright (Thomas Jefferson) and Russ Smith (Archbishop Molloy) are all moving from the New York area to South Kent.
In his first year as coach there last season, Jefferson coached both Omari Lawrence, who will be a freshman at St. John's, and Kevin Parrom, who is headed to Arizona.
As for Moore's college options, he said he hopes to visit Louisville, Marquette, Providence and Rutgers in August. He also mentioned that Syracuse had always been a dream school. He has already attended camps at Rutgers, St. John's and UConn.
"They're all good schools," he said. "They're all beautiful."