Long will be asked to step up
File photo/News & Messenger
Cameron Long is a Freedom High School graduate.
Scoring was not expected from the former Freedom High School star, though he contributed at times when he did step onto the hardwood for the Patriots.
This year, after marquee players Folarin Campbell and Will Thomas graduated in the spring, Long is going to be asked to grow up along with the rest of the young program coach Jim Larranaga has built.
“What we’ve told Cam now is (he’s) got to step up and take Folarin’s job,” said Larranaga, entering his 12th season in Fairfax. “You’ve got to score, you’ve got to rebound, you’ve got to get assists, steals, you’ve got to defend. You’ve got to contribute in a lot of different ways and be a team leader even though you’re just a sophomore.”
Taking over for someone like Campbell (the only GMU player to record 1,400 points, 400 rebounds, 300 assists, 150 3-pointers, 100 steals and 50 blocks) is no small request. Campbell, fourth all-time in assists and eighth in scoring, moved from the wing to point guard last year, allowing him to use his athletic ability to create opportunities for himself as well as teammates.
This year Long earned those responsibilities, a decision based on many of the same reasons that made the job Campbell’s.
Long has a similar frame to Campbell, who Larranaga often called the face of the George Mason program. Both are 6-foot-4 and Long has begun molding his body to resemble Campbell’s 205 pounds (resulting in a mix of power and finesse), adding 10 pounds in the offseason to begin the 2008-09 campaign at 187.
But the Patriots’ coaching staff is probably more impressed with Long’s development on the floor than his work in the weight room.
“He’s playing great defense so that’s the most important thing right now,” said Michael Huger, an assistant coach. “He gets us in transition. He knows what we want to run — he’s been under Coach L for a year now, he’s been the back up so he’s been out there in crucial moments where he’s not just raw coming in here.”
In addition to playing significant stretches in his first year — Long played in all 34 games and finished the year averaging nearly 18 minutes a night — Long played for Ahmad Dorsett at Freedom. Dorsett played for Larranaga at Mason before becoming the coach and running a similar system at Freedom (he left the Eagles after last season).
“Everything we do is basically a call from the bench,” Huger said. “John (Vaughan) is still the leader in the huddle, but I think when he’s gone, Cam will have to take a bigger part of that. We really can’t ask more of him right now.”
As the point guard, Long will, for the most part, have control of the team during games. Though he’s just a sophomore, Larranaga and Huger are confident Long has the skills and instincts to know when to find his teammates or score himself.
“He makes great decisions with the ball, is really good under pressure, he’s shooting well,” Huger said. “He’s been very consistent in the preseason. So that’s what we’re banking on, Cam being consistent and that steady floor general that we need out there on the court.”
Though he only started four times, Long showed flashes of being ready for that role last season, particularly in spelling Campbell at the end of the regular season and in the Colonial Athletic Association Tournament. Averaging just 4.1 points, 2.4 rebounds and 1.6 assists all of last year, Long scored seven points, recorded four rebounds, three assists and two steals in 29 minutes of the CAA title game against William & Mary.
Even early in his collegiate career Long demonstrated the versatility Campbell possessed. Long had a career-high 13 points against South Carolina in 2007 and posted two six-rebound games (both in the conference tournament).
“If Cam progresses the way we know he can,” Larranaga said, “then he’s going to be a significant factor.”
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