Gary Parrish

Just to recap ...

The week started with Carl Henry telling the Kansas City Star that his older son, C.J. Henry, is just as good as future Kansas teammate Sherron Collins even though C.J. hasn't played organized basketball in four years and despite the fact that he has never been considered an elite prospect. Carl added that both his sons plan to be one-and-done prospects and hinted that the reason Xavier isn't already at Kansas is because he doesn't want to go to class. Then the proud papa told a Kansas City radio station Tuesday that both his sons -- C.J. Henry and McDonald's All-American Xavier Henry -- might actually choose to enroll at Kentucky instead of Kansas because that's what Xavier wanted to do all along. But by late Tuesdya Xavier was text-messaging folks that he really is going to enroll at Kansas, cross his heart and hope to die.

Unreal, right?

In fairness, there's still a decent chance this all ends well for the Henry family.

But it sure as hell isn't off to a great start.

(Either way, I'm back to vacation .)

Lance Stephenson is committed to Cincinnati .

Xavier Henry might go to Kentucky (instead of Kansas).

I'm still on vacation ... but it doesn't really feel like it today.

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I will be out this week to recharge in advance of the July recruiting period.

Actually, that's not true.

I will be out this week, but not necessarily to recharge. It's just that CBS is nice enough to give us paid vacations -- as opposed to the unpaid vacations some newspaper friends are forced to take -- and this week (i.e., the week after the NBA Draft) is a good week because this week is typically slow. In fact, the only nationally relevant thing that can be anticipated is that Lance Stephenson might commit to Cincinnati.

He visited UC this weekend.

The McDonald's All-American (whose sexual assault case was adjourned Monday morning until July 15) could commit to Cincinnati later this week -- at which point a likely NCAA investigation will start being planned and talk radio hosts will begin to ask why UC was willing to take Stephenson when so many other schools (Florida, Arizona, Kentucky, Kansas, Maryland, etc.) were not.

It should be fun stuff.

But I'll never know because, like I said, I'll be out this week.

I'll return July 6 at the LeBron James Skills Academy in Akron, Ohio.

My complete July schedule looks like this:

July 6-7: LeBron James Skills Academy in Akron, Ohio
July 8-9: King City Classic in Cleveland, Ohio
July 12-15: Nike Peach Jam in North Augusta, S.C.
July 22-26: Adidas Super 64 /Reebok Summer Championships /The Main Event in Las Vegas

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Former Kentucky student Matt Pilgrim is expected to visit Memphis Sunday and could announce a transfer to the C-USA school in the next week, a source close to Pilgrim told CBSSports.com on Saturday.

An initial attempt to reach Pilgrim for comment was unsuccessful.

This development is interesting because Pilgrim transferred from Hampton to Kentucky after the 2007-08 season, sat out last season per NCAA transfer rules and was expected to play for the Wildcats in 2009-10. But that all changed when John Calipari left Memphis for Kentucky, oversigned and thus needed to move players out of the program to allow his six incoming freshmen to enroll.

One of the players moved out was Pilgrim.

He did not want to leave.

And that's one of the reasons why a source close to Pilgrim told CBSSports.com that Calipari is working with new Memphis coach Josh Pastner to make this likely transition go as smoothly as possible. According to a source close to Pilgrim, Calipari and Pastner have been in contact, and Calipari has told Pastner he will not only release Pilgrim to Memphis, but that he will back Pilgrim's expected request of a waiver that, if granted, would allow Pilgrim to play for the Tigers this season.

Under normal circumstances, Pilgrim would have to sit out another year before becoming eligible in 2010-11. But the hope is that the NCAA recognizes that Pilgrim is only transferring for a second time because he was nudged out of Kentucky. In other words, Pilgrim had no say in the matter. And a source close to Pilgrim said there is precedent for the NCAA to grant a waiver under these circumstances.

Pilgrim's connection to Memphis is through Tiger assistant Glynn Cyprien.

Cyprien spent the past two years on Billy Gillispie's staff at UK.

He worked in practices with Pilgrim all last season.

Former Duke starter Elliot Williams has informed Josh Pastner's staff that he plans to transfer (as expected ) to Memphis, sources close to the program told CBSSports.com on Saturday.

Williams' father, Mexwayne Williams, later confirmed the news to CBSSports.com via text message.

An official announcement should come next week.

Williams is a 6-foot-4 guard from Memphis who initially chose Duke over Memphis, Tennessee and Virginia. He started the final 12 games for the Blue Devils last season, but decided to transfer because of what Duke called "family medical reasons." Multiple sources have told CBSSports.com the specific reason is that Williams' mother is battling cancer, an unfortunate development that should allow the former McDonald's All-American to receive a waiver from the NCAA what will make him eligible to play for the Tigers this season.

Sources said Williams will apply for the waiver soon.

He should be a starter for Memphis in its first season under Josh Pastner.

Jordan Hill went in the first round.

Chase Budinger went in the second round.

And that means that Arizona still leads the nation in NBA Draft picks since 1989, i.e., when the draft was shortened to two rounds. More than anything else, it's a testament to the Hall of Fame career of Lute Olson. But it also shows why Sean Miller found the vacancy too intriguing to pass up.

Here's the updated list ...

-- NBA DRAFT PICKS SINCE 1989 --

1. Arizona (31)
2. Duke (29)
3. UCLA (28)
4. North Carolina (25)
5. Connecticut (23)

(Also worth noting: First-round pick Brandon Jennings signed with Arizona, although he never went to college.)

College basketball coaches and players are using Twitter.

I'm using their Tweets to fill my blog.

Every afternoon.

" Music is one of my biggest passions outside of basketball and I love Motown and so much of Michael's music. What an incredible entertainer."

-- UCLA coach Ben Howland

Click here to follow Gary Parrish on Twitter.

One of the more interesting ways to follow the NBA Draft was -- surprise, surprise -- via Twitter .

Kevin Love was Tweeting every pick, seemingly confused at times about why his new GM selected 17 point guards. Kevin Durant was welcoming James Harden to Oklahoma City. Hasheem Thabeet was typing about the joy of looking at stars from a rooftop (or something like that). And then there was former Xavier standout Stanley Burrell, who started by rooting for Derrick Brown and then turned to defending Derrick Brown before ultimately criticizing Sean Miller.

It was fascinating stuff.

Burrell -- who played at Xavier from 2004 to 2008 -- started by predicting Brown would go here or there in the first round. It never happened, of course. So Burrell Tweeted that he was "jinxing my boy. im pulling for u and your fam D Brown. u deserve this!" Naturally, when Brown started slipping, some Xavier fans ripped his decision to leave school early. Why? Because that's what fans do. They love you when you play for their favorite team. But if you ever leave early they mock you if the decision doesn't go as planned.

Happens every year.

It happened this year.

But Burrell didn't like the tone.

So he took the time to defend Brown.

"Come on X-fans.. save the criticism on D Brown. My man is a special talent and he WILL be drafted tonight and he WILL make a roster. watch!"

Then ...

"if i recieve one more negative msg about D Brown, i will find a way to block that person. D is chasing a dream! Hes from xu- Support him!!!"

And then ...

"some of u fans really amaze me some time!!! makes the true xu fans, look bad."

And then (when Brown slipped well into the second round) ...

"Lets face it... SM isnt trying to develop pros. It was all about him! Look ive spoke to SM ONE time since grad. from X. Family huh? NOT! ... SM taught me many things that im thankful for. Most recently, this world is cut throat! GET YOURS WHILE U CAN! Wow!"

"SM" stands for former Xavier coach and current Arizona coach Sean Miller.

Brown confirmed as much in a later Tweet.

He then ranted against Miller in a magnificent way.

"I said what I said about Sean for a few reasons. 1) The fact that ive talked to a coach ONE TIME since grad. that i gave my blood, sweat, and tears for(for 4 yrs) is BULLSHIT! I sacrificed (just like the rest of my teammates) for Sean and our team...He made me believe that we were really like family to eachother. when really that was just a scheme to get us all to buy in to the "team system". He proved me right when i realized we only spoke once for about 15 secs when i attended the temple vs xu home game. i understand coach is really busy but i truly believed in the guy & what he taught me. i see now that really its all about getting yours while u can in any way u can. i remember reading a quote in the paper from Sean where he said, we win at XU without having a single pro on our roster. * Now even if thats true, do u really need to put us out there like that? Because we too want to provide for our families after college. And no, a comment like that wont keep us from being drafted into the NBA but it does show how Sean wanted all the success to be about him and his coaching. Lets not get my words mixed-up, sean is an amazing coach but if yall think that his coaching ALONE was the reason for all the success we had, YOURE WRONG! It also took guys in the locker room willing to give whats best for them PERSONALLY for the good of the team, the university's name & its winning tradition. Sean was just the one that seriously benefited financially. I have a degree and some of the most amazing memories from XU but the things ive learned since leaving xu makes me wish i would've done what was best for me and mine and not the other way around. Cuz thats what its about, right? Its not! but i learned the hard way. so i say congrats to D Brown for choosing to do whats best for him and his family (not saying that playing for coach mack would've hurt him for next yr because coach mack is a GREAT COACH that is definitely ready for this opportunity) but D Brown reached out and grabbed a piece for himself tonight, instead of just being on the giving end (like we were all trained to do at xu)."

Duke transfer Elliot Williams plans to move "closer to home" and ask the NCAA for a waiver to play next season because his mother is battling cancer. He will reportedly choose between Memphis, Tennessee, Kentucky and Vanderbilt. But the problem with those two statements is that they don't seem to jibe, because there's no chance the Memphis native would get a waiver to play at Tennessee or Kentucky, and even Vanderbilt is a stretch.

At least that's what one Division I coach told CBSSports.com.

According to a Division I coach who has dealt with transfers, the NCAA has "tightened up" the criteria for waivers since allowing Tyler Smith to transfer from Iowa to Tennessee without penalty when Smith's father was battling cancer. Smith wanted to "be closer to home" because of his father's illness, so he picked Tennessee, which is 248 miles from his home in Pulaski, Tenn. The NCAA granted the waiver. But the source said the guidelines are now stricter (even if they aren't clearly defined).

"I know a player who transferred to a school 106 miles from his home, and the NCAA denied the waiver," the source said. "They wanted to know that the player was going to have 'day-to-day responsibilities' with the family member before granting the waiver, and they said that you can't have 'day-to-day responsibilities' if you're 106 miles away."

Assuming that ruling is consistent with the NCAA's current way of thinking, it appears unlikely that Williams could get a waiver to play at any of the schools he's considering except for Memphis. Consider:

• Vanderbilt is 212 miles from Memphis.
• Tennessee is 391 miles from Memphis.
• Kentucky is 423 miles from Memphis.

In conclusion, best I can tell, unless Elliot Williams wants to sit out a year, he must transfer to Memphis.

And that's why it seems to be a near certainty that he'll play for the Tigers next season.

College basketball coaches and players are using Twitter.

I'm using their Tweets to fill my blog.

Every afternoon.

" [Jrue] Holiday and [B.J.] Mullins were not productive players for their respective teams why would they be any different at the next level? "

-- Virginia Tech coach Seth Greenberg

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Scout.com's Dave Telep is reporting that John Wall has achieved a qualifying standardized test score, meaning the star of Kentucky's top-ranked recruiting class is one step closer to being cleared to play as a freshman.

Is he in the clear yet?

No, not exactly.

Wall must still get through the NCAA's Clearing House. But most insiders have long believed the test score would be the biggest hurdle, and with that out of the way it now seems likely that the projected No. 1 pick in the 2010 NBA Draft will be running the point for John Calipari.

The final sentence in the AP story about Elliot Williams' transfer from Duke might've been the most interesting.

"His departure leaves senior Jon Scheyer and junior Nolan Smith as the only returning guards on the roster."

Does everybody realize that?

And it's not even returning guards.

Duke signed zero guards in the Class of 2009.

So barring some late development/surprise, Duke will start next season with Nolan Smith, Jon Scheyer and no other scholarship player who is considered a guard. Smith is a 6-foot-2 guard and Scheyer is a 6-5 guard. Beyond that, the next shortest player on the roster is a 6-7 forward (Olek Czyz) who has never proved to be a Duke-level player. And beyond that, it's a bunch of even taller dudes.

So no, this is not ideal.

Unless Kyle Singler can play shooting guard, of course.

The best player almost nobody has seen play is Craig Brackins.

He's a 6-foot-10 rising junior at Iowa State.

He could be a lottery pick next year.

But before that, he'll have an opportunity to establish himself as a true college star thanks to a nationally televised contest against Duke that was announced Wednesday. The Cyclones will play the Blue Devils Jan. 6 in Chicago. And though Mike Krzyzewski should have the better team, Greg McDermott will have the best player.

"It’s great to add a program of Duke’s stature to our non-conference schedule," McDermott said. "Certainly, our players will be excited about the opportunity for our team to measure itself against one of the nation’s elite programs."

Brackins averaged 20.2 points and 9.5 rebounds per game last season.

He got 42 points and 14 rebounds in a January loss to Bill Self's Kansas Jayhawks.

College basketball coaches and players are using Twitter.

I'm using their Tweets to fill my blog.

Every afternoon.

" My wife had a dream last night that I was elected President but wouldn't give up coaching. She knows me too well."

-- George Mason coach Jim Larranaga

Click here to follow Gary Parrish on Twitter.

Mexwayne Williams told CBSSports.com last month that his son, Elliot, planned to play his sophomore season at Duke despite multiple sources claiming that the former McDonald's All-American was on the verge of transferring closer to his Memphis home due to circumstances that could allow him to change schools without penalty.

Apparently, that plan has now changed.

Williams has been granted a release from Duke.

“Our thoughts and prayers go out to Elliot and his family,” said Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski. “We fully support him in his efforts to be closer to them during this trying time. He is a good young man with an opportunity to become an outstanding player. We wish him well as he determines his future. He will always be a part of our program and we will always be in his corner."

According to multiple sources, the "family medical reason" that led to Williams' release has to do with his mother. Those same sources said the University of Memphis is the most likely destination for the 6-foot-4 guard, although Ole Miss and Vanderbilt might also be considered "close enough to home" to allow Williams to play next season as opposed to having to sit out a year per normal NCAA transfer rules.

Williams started at Duke toward the end of his freshman season.

He chose Duke out of high school over Memphis, Tennessee and Virginia.