Gransberry hopes camp boosts pro basketball draft stock

• By ROBIN FAMBROUGH
• Advocate sportswriter
• Published: Jun 1, 2008 - UPDATED: 12:05 a.m.

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His former coaches think Kentrell Gransberry could be another Dennis Rodman or Ben Wallace.

Gransberry just wants to find a spot in the NBA. That’s why the ex-Woodlawn High star, who was briefly part of the LSU program, is making the rounds trying to impress NBA scouts after earning first-team All-Big East honors for the University of South Florida this spring.

After workouts in Philadelphia and a camp in Virginia, the 6-foot-9, 270-pound Gransberry spent four days last week at the NBA Pre-Draft Camp at the Disney Wide World of Sports Complex in the Orlando area.

“I’m just trying to make an impression,” Gransberry said. “I got a lot of exposure playing against really good competition in the Big East.

“This camp gives me another chance to show what I can do and show people that I’m willing to work hard and do whatever it takes.”

More than 60 seniors from colleges across the nation participated in the camp. In addition to being divided into teams for games, the players were put through a battery of tests similar to the ones conducted by the NFL at its pre-draft combine.

Gransberry, who played for two Class 5A title teams at Woodlawn and was the MVP of the 2003 title game, had the only double-digit rebound game during the first four camp games, pulling down 10 rebounds in one 20-minute stint. He averaged eight rebounds in his early games and scored 10 points, making 4 of 7 shots from the floor, during the first two games, according to a USF press release. A tired Gransberry said he had to fight through soreness and fatigue during Friday’s final camp games.

“I don’t know I did statistically, but I felt good about it,” Gransberry said. “If I can just put something in the back of the minds of the some of these (NBA) GMs, showing them I can help their team it will be worth it.”

As a senior for South Florida, Gransberry averaged 16.0 points and 10.8 rebounds per game. He also made 51.8 percent of his shots from the floor.

In 2006-07, Gransberry finished third in the nation in rebounding with an 11.4 average after gaining his eligibility following his transfer from LSU, where he never played in a regular-season game. He also averaged 15.6 points per game and was a second-team Big East pick.

Gransberry played two years at San Jacinto Junior College in Texas after graduating from Woodlawn. A talented receiver in football, Gransberry originally signed with Louisiana Tech to play football, then opted to take the basketball route. Off the court, Gransberry has also succeeded, earning a degree in communications in December.

“I talked to Kentrell one day last week,” former Woodlawn coach Kenny Almond, now head coach at East Ascension, said. “I think all those underclassmen coming out for the draft might have hurt him draftwise.

“But I told him all you’ve got to do is be like Dennis Rodman. Rebounding is his thing … he’s the guy who uses his body and knows how to get the ball. I think Kentrell can be a big Rodman if he puts his mind to it. If Big Baby (former LSU standout Glen “Big Baby” Davis of the Boston Celtics) can make it, I really believe Kentrell can make it. He just needs to be a warrior every minute of every game.”