Rainbows land JUCO forward

Rainbows bring in future forward from Diablo Valley

Brandon Adams, a 6-foot-7 forward out of Diablo Valley (Calif.) Junior College, has committed to play basketball at the University of Hawaii.

Adams led the Vikings to the Big 8 conference title and a 26-8 overall record on 13.4 points and 7.1 rebounds per game. He's also an accomplished shot-blocker, with 50 on the season.

"I just got back (from a visitation Monday)," Adams said. "I love it. The scenery, basically just looking at the ocean, there's nothing there. I was just ... 'Wow.' "

Diablo Valley coach Steve Coccimiglio, a 1979 Hawaii-Hilo graduate, said Adams, a formidable leaper, would greatly benefit from a redshirt year.

"He's really right now kind of a 'tweener," Coccimiglio said. "His game right now is between a 3 and a 4. He can score on the block pretty well, and he actually shoots the ball from the perimeter halfway decent. He's gotta work on just his decision-making right now, passing out of double-teams in the post."

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More help is on the way -- eventually -- for the depleted frontcourt of the Hawaii men's basketball team.

Junior college transfer Brandon Adams, a 6-foot-7, 210-pound forward at Diablo Valley (Calif.) Junior College, sent his letter of intent yesterday to play for the Rainbow Warriors, just a day removed from a visit to Hawaii.

Adams, who is from Seattle, will be a junior with two years of eligibility remaining, but both he and Diablo Valley coach Steve Coccimiglio think it would be best for the player to get a full redshirt season under his belt before suiting up for a game in Division I.

Coccimiglio said he and Hawaii coach Bob Nash were on the same page in that regard.

The Diablo Valley coach, a player at Hawaii-Hilo from 1975 to 1979, thinks Adams will be a great fit in Hawaii because of his laid-back personality.

"I think he will be very well-liked," Coccimiglio said. "A very respectful young man, he's humble, he's got a great smile. All those things, I think he'll mix in really well with the Aloha spirit and the culture of the state of Hawaii."

Adams saw the Hawaii campus over the weekend and said he has no problem furthering his studies in film while he acclimates to the team.

He joins European signees Petras Balocka (6-foot-8, 250-pound junior forward) and Lasha Parghalava (6-foot-2, 195-pound junior guard) in the 'Bows' spring recruiting class. Adam Jesperson (6-foot-7, 210-pound freshman forward) signed in the fall and Hiram Thompson (6-foot-4, 185-pound sophomore guard) re-signed after returning from a church mission.

There was believed to be interest from several other Western Athletic Conference schools for the Big 8 Conference MVP and leading scorer (13.4 points per game) for the 2007-08 champion Vikings.

He helped Diablo Valley to a 53-14 record in two years, including 26-8 last year.

"Some of the schools I didn't check out because I liked Hawaii. I liked the people, the weather, the whole atmosphere, I liked everything about it," Adams said. "I didn't want to sit there and wait on it. (I asked myself), 'What am I waiting for?'"

Another factor was that "80 percent" of the schools interested in Adams expected him to play right away, Coccimiglio said.

A former track star who posted a high-jump of over 6-11, Adams' primary strengths are his hustle (leading to 7.1 rebounds per game) and overall athleticism.

"Brandon has just a great motor," Coccimiglio said. He plays hard, and he doesn't take any plays off. He jumps well off two feet and one foot ... and he can multiple-jump without gathering himself pretty easily."