 Simpson is a 6-9, 220-pound forward-center from Chicago. He attends
Simeon High School, where he plays under the direction of head coach
Robert Smith. Simpson transferred to Simeon this past summer after
playing at Leo High School for head coach Noah Cannon. Simpson is
also a member of the Illinois Warriors AAU team, coached by Larry
Butler.Simpson averaged 18 points, 11 rebounds and five blocks
last season during his junior year at Leo. He earned all-Catholic
League honors, leading Leo to the 2007 sectional finals, where the
Lions were beaten by his current school, two-time defending state
champion Simeon. Simpson was named special mention all-state by the
Chicago Tribune and honorable mention all-state by the
Champaign-Urbana News-Gazette and the Illinois Basketball Coaches
Association. He is rated a three-star recruit by both Rivals.com and
Scout.com and is widely considered one of the top two big men in the
state of Illinois.
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"We are excited to sign Stan and feel he will be a versatile big
man for us with his ability to play both the power forward and
center positions," Weber said. "His strength as a junior was more
rebounding, shot blocking and scoring down low. He can score with
his back to the basket and has worked hard on his skill development
and post moves. In addition to his inside game, he is now starting
to face up and can shoot it well out to 15 feet. He helped Leo have
some success, and now he is playing for a perennial power with Coach
Smith at Simeon. Stan will benefit from the competition he'll face
in practice each day and from playing in one of the top conferences
in the nation in the Chicago Public League."
Simpson continues the proud tradition of standout Simeon
basketball players selecting the University of Illinois. He will
join a list of Simeon alums to attend Illinois that includes Nick
Anderson, Deon Thomas, Bryant Notree, Ervin Small, Kevin Turner and
current junior Calvin Brock.
[Text from file received from Kent
Brown, assistant athletics director, sports information director,
University of Illinois]
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