Let's play name recognition.
In fact, let's make it interesting. If you get this on the first take, I owe you one at the bar.
He's from the Midwest. He's a shooting guard with an improved jump shot. He finishes the fast break in a way so violent the rim could press assault charges. He attended the Jordan camp, and he's young enough for most of this campus to call him "Junior."
If you said LeBron James, remember that I like Long Islands. If you said Shannon Brown, I was just joking about owing you one.
Shannon Brown is the second-best shooting guard in the nation in his class. No. 1 is King James. No. 3, who cares. Shannon Brown and his high-rising act are calling Breslin Center home this fall.
If you're in the dark about Brown, don't feel bad. With LeBron inking a multimillion dollar deal with Nike and inspiring basketball in Cleveland for the first time since Craig Ehlo made Michael Jordan a household name - you know the shot I'm talking about - someone was bound to fall by the wayside.
If you can call it a wayside. Brown cashed in for 23 points in the 2003 McDonald's All-American Game and had some people thinking he should've won their dunk contest, too. At the Jordan Capital Classic - another showcase of the high school senior elite - in Washington, D.C., last spring, Brown's 27 points shared MVP honors with LeBron's 34. But again, King was getting all the attention then and deservedly so.
Which brings us to the now. LeBron's cruising through the Cavs' summer league games and Shannon's playing pickup at Breslin. LeBron's on conference calls with his manager, business manager and accountant, and Shannon's ready for IAH 201.
Two different guys, two different paths for their young lives. LeBron might be Cleveland's Jesus Shuttlesworth, but he might not. Brown might be the next player in green and white hoisting a trophy with Tom Izzo, but then again, he might not.
But I think the odds are better on the latter. The Midwest has known about Brown for a minute. Two seasons ago, he was one of the top shooting guards in the state of Illinois as a sophomore. His partner in the backcourt for Proviso East High School was Dee Brown - no relation.
Yeah, that Dee Brown. The one-man fast break who torched MSU with 24 points, five boards and five steals last February in a 30-point MSU loss to Illinois. Same Dee Brown who scored 47 overseas at the Junior World Championships playing alongside Paul Davis and Maurice Ager.
But this isn't about the other Brown. This is about one of the best shooting guards Izzo's ever recruited.
Don't get me wrong, Shannon Brown is not exactly the best kept secret in the world of college basketball recruiting. He was positively sweated by the major universities and dazzled the camps before landing at MSU. As soon as the college basketball world knew that LeBron was giving college about as much consideration as the 2004 NCAA selection committee will give to the Wolverines - sorry, fellas - Shannon Brown was a hot commodity.
The missing link? I don't know about that. I don't know if a skinny, fresh-faced, 6-foot-3 kid bridges the gap between the Elite Eight at the national crown. Too early to speculate.
But it's not to late to prepare. Coming into fall, there's no evidence that Shannon Brown isn't the truth. He might almost make East Lansing forget what was so special about that tall Slovenian dude anyway.
But if you ever find yourself watching MSU playing on CBS in late March, think back to when you read about a kid named Shannon Brown during Welcome Weekend.
Look me up, too. I'll probably be the one at the end of the bar, surrounded by a sea of Long Islands as far as I can see.
Patrick Walters can be reached at walter88@msu.edu.
