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© St. Petersburg Times, published December 18, 2001
They are the best team in Pinellas County, the second-ranked team in Class 4A and the fifth-best team in the state regardless of classification according to the floridakids.net adidas boys basketball rankings.
Nationally, though, the Lakewood Spartans barely register as a blip on the radar. Tonight at 9:55, they get a chance to change that.
At the City of Palms Classic in Fort Myers, the Spartans will take on Los Angeles Westchester, the No. 1-ranked team in the country according to USA Today and several other publications.
Led by shooting guard and Arizona-signee Hassan Adams, Westchester is the defending City of Palms champion and unbeaten at 6-0.
"It's an awful lot of national exposure," said Lakewood coach Dan Wright. "It's a challenge we're looking forward to. We're thinking of winning. That would put us where we think our program deserves to be."
The Spartans, led by Marcus Morrison, Kory Crumbley and Kevin Dorsey, are 7-0 and have not been tested this season. The first one will be a tough one.
And a long overdue one for Wright. Back in 1991, he was left standing at the basketball altar.
Expecting a scouting visit from City of Palms Classic coordinator Donnie Wilkie, as well as an invitation to play in the illustrious tournament, Wright was surprised to learn that Wilkie had come and gone -- come and discovered that Spartans stars Pat Lawrence and Dwight Brown had transferred to Gibbs, and gone to catch the second half of their game that night after learning the information.
Instead of getting invited to the City of Palms Classic, Wright seethed as Gibbs got the invite and went on to win the tournament.
He was so angry that when Wilkie approached him in the press room three years later at the 1994 state championships, Wright refused an offer to play in the City of Palms in '95 and told him, "We will never play in your tournament."
"I was totally disappointed," Wright said. "At that it just befuddled me."
Wilkie tried again after last season's regional semifinal win over Lake Wales, and this time, Wright wasted no time in accepting the offer.
"He was mad and rightfully so," Wilkie said. "I may have made the right decision as far as picking the team, but I think in the ensuing 10-11 years, I realized I want to keep good relationships.
"When the opportunity came this spring to get them involved, I did."
Better late than never.