Phoenix, AZ – Jeff Meadows is known all over the country as one of the voices in the grassroots game of basketball. Spending years on the grind finding the next top talent in youth basketball around the country.

Meadows runs the national website www.hoopsreport.com and has put several players on the map. He does it so fast that  his eye for talent blinks and you may miss one, not Meadows. Meadows can see more thank you may think. He knows the game, works out several players from state to state and is the Guru of basketball in the Southwest.

Sometimes he scouts and you don’t see him in the gym, Wrong, he may sit up top and watch for hours each game and than show up at the end of the event, and say “Great game son”, talking to Jaron Hopkins after the Pangos All American Camp last month in Long Beach.

Let’s go one on one with Jeff Meadows.

Bryce Meadows & Jeff Meadows in Texas for a Spring event, his son was ranked Top MS Prospect

AC (Area Codes Basketball) & JM (Jeff Meadows)

AC: HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN INVOLVED IN BASKETBALL?

JM: I’ve been involved in the grassroots basketball as a coach, organization president & or scout for 21 years.

AC: WHERE DO YOU LIVE?

JM: I reside in Phoenix, AZ.

AC: WHAT DO YOU LOOK FOR IN A PLAYER TO BE A COLLEGE PROSPECT?

JM: My views of what a college prospect is a young man that is focused in all aspects of his life that he has control of on and off the court and as far as the physical attributes goes he must have a passion for the game, he must “BE ABOUT IT”! Meaning that know matter when he steps on the court know matter who he’s matched up against, he puts forth a valiant effort because effort is the one thing that a player has control of once he’s on the court.

Meadows at the EYBL League by NIKE in Hampton, VA

AC: NAME SOME OF THE KIDS YOU HELPED/MENTORED?

JM: Wow, let me see, Mike Bibby whom we’re all familiar with, Anthony Oates who played at UMass, Jermain Watts who played at DePaul, man, pretty much any kid that has come through the state of Arizona from 1991 to know I’ve had something to do with or played some sort of role in his career weather in middle school or high school.

AC: WHAT ARE YOUR GOALS IN BASKETBALL?

JM: You know Chad, the way things have been going the last couple of years I’m really not sure, so many opportunities have come my way in so many different areas that I never thought or imagined would, so to answer your question, I’m not sure exactly where in the grassroots game I will end up or what level but I do know that it will be at the highest level, that I do know but for now, I’m just enjoying the ride and luvin what I do.

AC: TALK ABOUT EVENTS, CAMPS, SHOWCASES OR TOURNAMENTS YOU RUN?

JM: Coming up this September I have two events Junior Phenom & Phenom 150 “Boot Camps” and in 2013 I have a couple of events lined up which I will be sure to give you the press release the minute I finish putting everything together.

Kevin O’Neill (USC) and Jeff Meadows in the USC Basketball Office

AC: HOW CAN WE CLEAN UP AAU AND CLUB BASKETBALL WITH COACHES DOING IT FOR THE RIGHT REASONS AND BETTER TEACHING IN THE GAME?

JM: Well, just like any other sport, profession or whatever it is that you do, it will never be free of evil doers or wrong doers in my mind that will always be a part of the game and to be honest with you, the game is so much cleaner than it was back when I was in the game as an AAU coach 1998-2003 things were totally out of control then and it has been cleaned up but I’m sure that the parties that are doing it for the wrong reasons eventually get found out as they always do.

AC: WATCHING MOST PLAYERS PLAY, WHERE SHOULD THEY IMPROVE? DO YOU SEE POOR FUNDAMENTALS? HOW TO FIX THAT PROBLEM?

JM: I attend quite a few top events across the country each spring and summer and I must say that I’m very pleased with today’s talented players, I think they have lot’s of creativity, individuality and physical abilities that are unmatched and yes, players are lacking in fundamentals and we really can’t hold 15U-17U AAU coaches totally accountable due the fact that their season starts as soon as the high school season ends which points in the direction of the high school coach to pretty much do the majority of the fundamental teachings of the game, I’m sure that there wouldn’t be a mutiny among players across the country if we as grassroots leaders made fundamentals a requirement for all players and as far as today’s game goes, I absolutely love it, its filled with individuality, gracefulness, great athleticism and unbelievable talents, I wished I could’ve played in today’s era, with all of the freedom that coaches give today’s players, if I played now who knows where I would’ve ended up but I do feel that today’s players in most cases definitely need a mentality overhaul and major attitude adjustments, not every young man but most of them and it all starts at home.

AC: DO YOU HAVE A WEBSITE OR TWITTER FOR COACHES, PLAYERS, FANS & PARENTS TO FOLLOW?

JM: Yes, everyone can follow me on twitter @ Meadows_scout

Meadows mentors plenty of the Top players like Danny Powell (Eastern Washington)

AC: ANYTHING YOU WOULD LIKE TO SAY OR ADD?

JM: I would like to say thank you Chad for the interview I really appreciate it, I’m not sure if the state of Arizona is sure of what they have in you as the scout to rep for them. Whenever you have an event all players from all corners of the state should be lined up which they do because as they know your events are top notch, maximum exposure events and if a player has any abilities the world’s gonna know about them due to the many major contacts that you have at all levels and not only that, you help today’s youth in so many different ways,”You gets it done in a major way ma man” and as far as shout outs, I’d like to shout out a dear friend in Dave Grace who’s always had may back since way back, Brian Hopkins and the Hopkins family, Nick Irvin, The Big Dawg Etop Udo-Ema, Dinos Trigonis, Gary Franklin, Jules Milstead, Patrick Stanwood, Clark Francis, Paul Biancardi, Dwayne Russell, Lew Roberts, Horace Nysmith, Lord Ice Smith, Van Coleman, Brian Merritt, Reggie Rankin, Anthony Brown, Merle Code, Vince Baldwin, two guys that I looked up to as a player that made me want to go into scouting Sports Illustrated columnist Tom Concholski and Arizona Republic Sport’s Editor Richard Obert, HoopsReport’s President Nathan McCauley who’s been the best boss that a creative writer such as myself could wish for and last but not least I have to give a special shout out to my fiancé Anita, she definitely hold’s me down on the daily. The list goes on and on and on, if I forgot anyone please forgive me, it happens all the time.

THANK YOU JEFF MEADOWS FOR ALL YOUR WORK IN THE BASKETBALL COMMUNITY.