Lanky Stanback gets ready for recruiting blitz to come

At 6 feet 10 inches and rising, Trevor Stanback runs the floor fluidly in size 16 shoes and releases a smooth left-handed jump shot. Recruiting analysts are following his moves and projecting his future.

A big-time talent, he's awaiting the offers sure to come from the college basketball coaches who run the biggest programs.

Soon, he will start his freshman year in high school.

"People who are tall, they get a lot of attention," said Stanback, just beginning to learn the definition of recruiting attention.

Stanback, 14, enrolled at West Hills Chaminade High in Los Angeles, recently received his first college scholarship offer from Southern California. Eventually he can expect to hear from Duke, North Carolina, Kansas, Kentucky and the rest.

But the coaches at UNLV might know him best, mostly because he's the brother of former Rebels standout Chace Stanback.

There are more mature and polished players than Trevor Stanback on display this week in the Las Vegas Fab 48 tournament, held mainly at the Bishop Gorman and Palo Verde high school gyms.

Jordan McLaughlin, Emmanuel Mudiay and Stanley Johnson are some of the stars from the junior class, with Aaron Gordon and Chris Wood standing out among the seniors. Wood, a 6-8 forward from Findlay Prep playing for the Las Vegas Prospects, is a UNLV commit.

Another standout is 7-5 Mamadou Ndiaye, from Huntington Beach, Calif. Yet while Ndiaye is a curiosity because of his freakish size, Stanback has more athletic gifts and a much higher ceiling. He's probably not done growing, either.

"I grew 7 inches over the fifth-grade summer," said Stanback, who went from 5-9 to 6-4 before he entered sixth grade. "As far as tall people go, I don't have any growing pains in my knees. I'm supposed to be 7-2."

Doctors told Stanback, who has the wingspan, athletic ability and instincts of a skilled shot blocker, he can expect to add 4 inches over the next four years. Ranked in the top 15 in his class now, Stanback could rank second to none by the time he's a senior. But he's not good enough yet to beat his brother in one-on-one.

Chace Stanback, who is considering several offers to play overseas, just finished his three-year UNLV career with 1,219 points, putting him in the top 25 on the Rebels' all-time scoring list. The 6-8 forward, who transferred after a year at UCLA, made his mark with his jumper.

"I'm more of a post guy, and he's more of a 3-point shooter. But I'm working on my jump shot so I'll be able to go on the perimeter," Trevor said. "We're really close. He's been a great influence, pushing me to do better and playing against me."

He watched his older brother play several times for the Rebels at the Thomas & Mack Center, and Chace sat courtside to watch Trevor's games this week.

Trevor Stanback, a straight-A student, is not always dominant on the court. His last-minute dunk helped seal a 67-65 win for his Pump n Run Elite team Thursday, when he totaled eight points and seven rebounds. In a Friday afternoon game, he was held to four points in a 25-point loss.

But his potential to be a dominant player is evident, and he's ready for the recruiting attention headed his way.

"A lot of people have been coming to our games, and a lot of college coaches have been saying good things about me," he said. "I think it's going to be crazy, but I'm pretty sure I'm going to like it."

Contact reporter Matt Youmans at myoumans@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2907. Follow him on Twitter: @mattyoumans247.