One big risk: Kendrick Perkins is the best high school big man in the county. In his world, the 2003 NBA draft looms large. Should college coaches recruit him? (College Basketball).

Kendrick Perkins climbs out of bed so early each morning he occasionally beats the humidity to the Ozen High track. He steps onto its surface by 6 a.m. to begin his daily workout routine, which includes two hours of running, two of weightlifting, two more spent developing his skills and, later on, another mile jog just to show he's serious about all this.

He runs to gain stamina, lifts to gain muscle and practices to gain confidence and precision with his scoring moves. Those are the nominal reasons Perkins, a resident of Beaumont, Texas, and the best high school center in America, spends so much of each summer day in training. The practical reason for his ...