Look Out For Longar

While watching an Oklahoma Sooners basketball game with friends the other day, someone chimed in and said, "I know a guy who thinks Longar Longar is going to be a lottery pick in a couple years." As the rest of the room laughed, I sat quietly considering this prediction. After a minute or two, when the thought had cleared from everyone else's mind, I said, "I think I agree." No one had any idea what I was talking about because, to them, it was a one-time joke that had long since passed. But I think it could be much more than a joke.

Longar Longar is a graduate of John Marshall High School in Rochester, Minnesota. He came to the U.S. just a few years prior to that, having never played basketball. But Longar is a long, athletic 6'11'', so he started playing as a teenager. Just a few years later, Longar had made a believer out of me.

In his first varsity season, Longar displayed an amazing array of dunks and blocked shots that we hadn't seen around these parts since long before I was born. In fact, I would challenge anyone to find someone who has ever shown that type of athleticism coming out of Rochester. Half court ally-oops, throwing back shots from two feet above the rim, these things had never been seen in Rochester high school basketball before Longar.

Even then, Longar wasn't a great player. He was incredibly fun to watch, but a liability on the court much of the time. His coming out party was a process that took the majority of his senior season, but he saved the best for the last game of his high school career.

In the opening round of the state tournament, JM was given the unenviable fate of going to Minneapolis North. North had a point guard named Lawrence McKenzie who is now playing with Longar at OU, as well as a 7-footer to match up against Longar. But this 7-footer was more than just an inch or two taller, he was about 60-pounds heavier and a top prospect across the country.

In the single most impressive game by a high school basketball player I have ever witnessed, Longar destroyed the North center. By pulling out moves he had never shown before, Longar single-handedly kept his team in the hunt right up until the end. North narrowly won the game, but everyone in that gym would remember the name Longar Longar.

Now Longar is getting limited playing time for the Sooners, who recently upset 11th ranked U-Conn. Longar played seven minutes, didn't attempt a shot, hauled in a couple rebounds, chalked up an assist and was charged with three fouls. It was a pretty typical game for Longar, but it won't be for long. I don't even think it will take until next year for Longar to start contributing more to his Sooner squad. By March Madness, he will be known well beyond the campus in Norman, Oklahoma.

Will Longar be a lottery pick this spring? No. Next spring? I doubt it. But before he's finished with his career at Oklahoma, look for Longar Longar to be one of the most talked-about players in Dick Vitale's arsenal. Take it from me, "He's awesome, baby!"