the DUNBAR POETS......the best ever Public HIGH SCHOOL BOYS BASKETBALL Program in MARYLAND....The HISTORIC run of POET BASKETBALL

Baltimore has a rich tradition of High School Basketball but no school has WON more GAmes in BMORE and produced more Professional BASKETBALL Players in the Baltimore Public LEAGUE than the Baltimore DUNBAR POETS. In the CATHOLIC League of Course you have the Great Morgan WOOTEN of FAME DeMatha CATHOLIC High School.

They are and have been a HIGH SCHOOL STAPLE in the STATE of MAryland and the city of BALTIMORE for years. i won't go back past the early 1980's but you read on the POETS and it is absolutely mind bottling what they have done in a high school arena.

Let's start first with the BEST High School team in the 80's in the COUNTRY. The 1980-1982 POETS Teams were stacked with 4 future NBA PLAYERS:

PG Mugsy BOGUES College: Wake FOREST NBA: Charlotte HORNETS a masterful guard at only 5'3" and he controlled the game and the TEMPO when he was out there. MUGSY was just so fast from end to end you had to try to put bodies on him to slow him down.

A heck of a career at CHARLOTTE when he ran the point he was the BRAIN behind the HORNETS 1st resurgence to the TOP of the EAST with players like Dell CURRY (Sons Steph GS WARRIORS and SETH DUKE Univerity), Alonzo MOURNING, Larry JOHNSON, Kendall GILL, Johnny NEWMAN, and Kenny GATTISON. Those HORNETS lead the league in sell outs for about 6-7 years.

SG David WINGATE College: GEORGETOWN NBA: SuperSONICS, SPURS to name a few.......one of two HOYAS to join John THOMPSON at G'TOWN. A smooth shooting G with the INNER CITY LOCKDOWN Defense....you know......at the playground and everyone has NEXT and you don't want to lose because you might not see the court for a few hours.....THAT D.

He had a way better HS and COLLEGE Career than Professional but was a Hecka of PLAYER at DUNBAR in his own right.

SG/SF Reggie LEWIS COLLEGE: Northeastern NBA Captain of the BOSTON CELTICS after Larry BIRD...NEED I say more....the most underrated player coming out of DUNBAR on those TEAMS but made a name for himself in BOSTON playing for NORTHEASTERN. The LATE GREAT Lewis caught the attention of one Red AUERBACH and REGGIE Did not disappoint the C's.

He was a Do-it-All type at DUNBAR...what ever the team needed REGGIE made that Play...and that carried over to his developement as a Great COLLEGE PLAYER and a Big-Time talent for the GREEN TEAM. He tragically passed away on a HEART AILMENT halfway through his CELTIC Career.

SF Reggie WILLIAMS College: Georgetown NBA NUGGETS/CLIPPERS......The most heralded of any of the players from DUNBAR. The 1982-83 USA Today National Player of the YEAR in High School......just a SILKY-SMOOTH Shooting forward and player. REGGIE was BUCKETS and with a very skinny build reminds the BLUEDUDE of one Kevin DURANT of OKC THUNDER who grew up in the BALTIMORE/DC Area. DURANT played at OAK HILL Academy in Virginia and Montrose CHRISTIAN in ROCKVILLE Maryland.

Reggie was a Superstar at GEORGETOWN for HOYA PARANOIA as well. He led the HOYAS in SCORING his SOPHOMORE through SENIOR YEARS and was a All-American in D.C.. He was easily the PRIZE CATCH at DUNBAR during those years.

The POETS were not done when those gentleman left check out the other team that did damage at DUNBAR: The 1990's Team

SF Donta BRIGHT McDonald's ALL-AMERICAN College UMASS: The Athletic Wing Forward who was the GET THE CROWD JUMPIN Player. Played above the rim and was as GOOD as any forward at DUNBAR except Reggie WILLIAMS.

Bright went onto play at a HIGH LEVEL with Marcus CAMBY at UMASS. CAMBY was a MONSTER in High School as he attended Hartford PUBLIC HS. But Bright never really took off in the pros with a couple of STINTS in EUROPE.

PG Micheal LLOYD McDONALD'S All-American as well and he was the glue for that team. Just a POWERFULLY Built, Athletic Guard who did major damage in traffic and in transition. Reminds me of Cambridge Ridge LATIN HS Product and UM ANN ARBOR WOLVERINE Rumeal ROBINSON but smoother.

LLOYD went to SYRACUSE after signing late and it was a BATTLE for his services as all the Big East Powers and ACC powers were vying for his services. Professionally he didn't pan out much like Teammate Bright didn't. Just Euro Stints as a PROFESSIONAL.

SF Keith BOOTH McDONALD'S All-American College MARYLAND NBA BULLS: The 3rd best on that team and a 2 years behind LLOYD and BRIGHT, and the only the 1st Round NBA PIck was Keith BOOTH who is now a MARYLAND Assistant. A blue-Collar type and really effecient around the RIM. He never plays outside of himself and a consumate team player.

Booth played on the 1992-93 World Championship BULLS team he was the 1st pick in 1997 Pick was the last BULLS Championship.

One other PLAYER of note...PG Sam "I AM" CASSELL who starred at DUNBAR then went to Junior College at FAME SAN JACINTO TEXAS and then was recruited there by Pat KENNEDY at Florida STATE. her at FSU he joined Heisman Trophy Winner Charlie WARD, Bobby SURA, Douglas EDWARDS, and Randy DOBARD to make the 'NOLES a DEEP TOURNEY TEAM the 2 years SAM was there.

CASSELL has a VERY GOOD NBA Career and arguably the best of any of the POETS. He is now an assistant under Flip SAUNDERS at the WASHINGTON WIZARDS.

Legendary Coach Bob WADE coached most of these teams and he was a heck of an athlete in his own right. WADE played for a few NFL TEAMS and notably the Pittsburgh STEELERS. He then went onto to coach at DUNBAR and the UNIVERSITY of MARYLAND before they found Gary WILLIAMS and right after Lefty DRIESELL was fired under the tragic LEN BIAS Death at UM COLLEGE PARK.

They were simply the best in PUBLIC SCHOOLS in MARYLAND and they were a juggernaut for sometime. Since 1993 the POETS have won 11 STATE Championships and just as recently as 2011........the SHOW must go on at Paul Laurence DUNBAR High School.......as well as it should.