Does a 6-foot-2 version of former Texas standout P.J. Tucker sound appealing?
According to Mark Komara, the man who runs the Southeast Elite, an AAU organization based in Huntsville, Ala., that’s what can be expected from Varez Ward, the 6-foot-2 combination guard from the Patterson School in Lenoir, N.C..
Kansas State offered Ward, who was previously committed to Cincinnati, a scholarship after watching him in the Pearland Classic over the weekend. Frank Martin was there, and Komara said Thursday that Ward would be a fine fit with the Wildcats.
Then again, he also said Ward would fit in well with Texas, Arkansas, Marquette and Florida State – the other schools who have also offered.
“He’s the best on-the-ball defender I’ve ever had in my program,” Komara said. “If he gets up in you, it’s all over.”
Ward apparently made quite the impression at the Pearland with his head-to-head performance against Nolan Dennis, who is considered a top-five recruit in the Class of 2009.
“We told Varez, ‘There are a bunch of coaches here to see this cat,’” Komara said. “I told him to get 35, but win the game… I think he had 25.”
With Ward, it’s not just defense. There isn’t much he can’t do, according to Komara. Because he played alongside Courtney Fortson, one of the top point guards in the Class of 2008, at Patterson, he was over-looked.
“Varez is the type of guy that, at the end of the game, if you look at the stat sheet, he’s got 16 points, seven rebounds, four or five assists and he defended the other team’s best player,” Komara said. “… He does all of the little things. He can play the point. If you run a three-guard set, he can defend a 3.”
Komara, who has been the subject of some unwanted NCAA attention in the past, has a healthy respect for Martin.
“It’s on Frank,” said Komara, who added that Ward has qualified. “There is playing time there. Varez has to finish up strong at Patterson, and he’ll be fine. He’s worked hard at it. He deserves this. With Frank’s toughness, his discipline… Frank Martin is a tough son of a gun who has paid his dues. He knows the game. I trust him.
“Varez is going after playing time. I don’t care if it’s UCLA or Jacksonville State – wherever Varez goes, the coach will have trouble keeping him off the floor. You can’t. He does everything.”
With that said, some of Komara’s players have played for Rick Barnes, and with the shaky situation in the Longhorns’ backcourt – really, what is A.J. Abrams thinking? – that’s also a spot where Ward could thrive.
If anybody fits Rick Barnes’ scheme – or Frank Martin’s – it’s Varez Ward,” Komara said. “They’re tough S.O.B.s, and they like tough kids.”