Randolph Morris article from CNN/SI

Caught this today about Morris. All you can say, is after reading this, my hopes of him having a year in college are even smaller. Here is a link to the full story about players going pro early. It also mentions Marbury and Bosh as well. The Morris story is the sidebar piece. This kid sure has a lot of pressure on him.

Center of attention
One phenom's weighty NBA decision

Like most high school seniors, Randolph Morris is trying to figure out his postgraduation plans.

Unlike his classmates at Landmark Christian High in Fairburn, Ga., however, one of Morris' potential options involves making several million dollars by this time next year.

A 7-foot center with silky-smooth post moves whose resemblance to Tim Duncan goes well beyond his No. 21 jersey, Morris is considered one of the top 10 prospects in the high school class of 2004. Two of his Atlanta Celtics AAU teammates, center Dwight Howard and small forward Josh Smith, are widely expected to enter next June's draft, with Howard projected to go No. 1. Many wonder whether Morris will join them.

But here is where Morris' story differs from those of many others who have faced the same decision. He is a highly articulate 3.6 student from a stable family who scored an 1,100 on his SAT. He plays at an academically driven school where the team's cumulative GPA is a 3.5 and every player runs if any one of them gets a C in a class.

If any 18-year-old has the maturity to stave off the NBA's temptations for a year or two, Morris is it.

"If I don't take the money, it's still going to be there when I decide to go," said Morris. "You have to look at the NBA as a job," said Morris. "They don't care about you as much as a person, just how much you can score, how many rebounds you can get."

To that end, Morris often uses the word "family" to describe his two college finalists, Georgia Tech and Kentucky. ("It will come down to the location for Georgia Tech and the overall tradition at Kentucky," said Morris.) He plans to make a decision in the spring.

In the meantime, if he has as strong a senior season as expected, the NBA question will continue to linger. Representatives from several teams, as well as Marty Blake, the league's director of scouting, have already contacted Landmark coach Brian Bartley, and at least one agent has tried to approach Morris with gifts. Morris has consulted with previous players who have faced the same decision, including Donnell Harvey and James Lang, and he and Bartley have had several conversations about the many recent early-entry failures.

"He's a very intelligent guy," said Bartley. "I just pray he makes the right decision."
-- Stewart Mandel