One look at Tyler Zeller’s Facebook profile and you can get a good sense of what drives him. \nFavorite Quotes: “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me,” \nPhilippians 4:13.\nActivities: “I love to play basketball. I play it all of the time.”\nOh, and there’s his profile picture of him throwing down a two-handed dunk, posterizing a poor kid from the opposing team. \nThe 17-year-old high school senior will arrive in Bloomington in the afternoon today for a weekend visit of IU’s campus. He is the No. 1 prospect on men’s basketball coach Kelvin Sampson’s wishlist for the 2008 class. But IU is just one university on a four-school list that hopes to sign Zeller, rated as the No. 22 player in his class by recruiting Web site Rivals.com. \nWhen he enters Memorial Stadium on Saturday to watch the IU-Illinois football game, he will likely be greeted by sporadic fan-led chants of “TY-LER ZEL-LER,” to try and encourage Zeller to become a Hoosier, but it will hardly impact the seven-foot kid from Washington, Ind. Sure, he wants to be the best basketball player every time he steps onto the court. But he also wants to stay humble, something he has learned from his faith.\n“The Bible teaches to stay humble,” Zeller told the Indiana Daily Student on Wednesday, “and you will be blessed.”
Hoop dreams\nTyler Zeller has NBA dreams. He is the favorite to be named Indiana Mr. Basketball – recognized as the top high school basketball player in the state. \nHe said it is possible he would leave college early to enter the NBA. With players earning $3 million in signing bonuses, he admits it would be hard to pass that up. \nMoney is important to Zeller – but for a reason different than most. Zeller wants to build a Christian camp with his brothers and his dad, an idea they’ve been thinking about for the past couple years.\nHe said he has been given a gift, and that he must use that gift for good. \n“I’m seven foot for a reason,” he said. “I didn’t do that by myself.” \nTo make the most of his gift, Zeller is focused on being the best basketball player possible. \n“I’m the kind of person that when I go out and play,” he said. “I want to be better than the guy who’s standing across from me. I know that won’t always be the case, but it motivates me to be better.” \nAnd so on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, his mornings start at 5:30 a.m.. He’s in his high school gymnasium by 6 a.m. to work out and practice. After school he works out everyday. If he doesn’t take time to run and condition, he will grab a basketball and shoot around. And if on a Friday night he doesn’t have plans with his friends, he’ll probably be back at the gym, working to make his game that much better. \nThe recruit\nWere Zeller to bring his work ethic and his skills to Bloomington, it would be another off-the-court victory for Sampson. He’s already gained verbal commitments from four players to the 2008 class, including five-star recruit Devin Ebanks from Connecticut, rated the No. 13 player nationally by Rivals.com. \nMore importantly to many Hoosier fans, though, it would be the second consecutive year Sampson signed, arguably, the best prep player in the state. Indiana Mr. Basketball 2007, Eric Gordon, will start at shooting guard for IU in November. \nNCAA rules prohibit coaches from talking about specific recruits until they sign national letters of intent. The national signing day this year is Nov. 14. \nSampson did speak generally about his recruiting philosophy during a press conference with reporters on Tuesday. His recruiting method is very methodical, he doesn’t try to sign as many players as possible. \n“I’ll sign as many scholarships as we need,” he said. “I believe you sign the ones you need. I don’t want 13 kids on scholarship.”\nSo far, Zeller is impressed with the athletes committed to IU for the Class of 2008, including his AAU teammate and friend Matt Roth.\nZeller said he looks at two qualities above all for his school choice: players he can get along with and coaches that can coach well. He said IU fits both categories. \n“The kids (Sampson has) got coming in are great,” he said. “(Sampson has) shown he can come in and win.”\nSince being recruited by IU, Zeller said most of his conversations have been with Sampson. Half the time the two will talk about basketball and half the time they will talk about anything and everything else. \n“It’s just like a regular conversation you’d have with your best friend,” Zeller said.
In control\nTyler Zeller admits that, despite his arduous basketball routine, he’s a laid back guy. Though he excels in the classroom, he will take time during the school day to check his Facebook account and approve a friend or two. \nHis college recruitment has gotten pretty serious – he’s narrowed his list of pursuers to IU, Purdue, North Carolina and Notre Dame – but he likes to have some laughs with it. \nHe’s joined a handful of basketball-related Facebook groups, from “Indiana Basketball Fans” to “Purdue Basketball 07-08 is going to Kick Butt.”\nHe tries his best to avoid the internet fan message boards, which have rumors about him nearly every day. But occasionally he will log on, read and laugh. He sometimes has his friends post a fake rumor or two to see if it spreads, just for laughs. \nUltimately, though, he is in control. After he visits IU this weekend, he will make trips to Notre Dame and Purdue. After a two-week break, he will evaluate those three schools and North Carolina, where he visited last week, and will make his decision as the national signing day nears. \nHe’s made sure he will make his college choice on his own terms – not those of coaches or fans.\nAfter all, he’s just a high school senior. He has other big things to worry about. Like prom. And midterms. And Facebook.
