The Southwest Invitational Camp, hosted by John Lucas Sr., kicked off Thursday at the University of Houston Rec Center. The camp consisted of 60 campers who are considered to be some of the region's top recruits.  The campers will undergo nearly 24 hours of intense skills training, drills, lectures, and NCAA eligibility workshops in two days.

Although the camp has no underwriters, Lucas was able to defy the odds and still have a turnout of top players that have grabbed the attention of NCAA scouts. Starting July 6th, college scouts are eligible to attend certain events that have been approved by the NCAA. However, schools are only allowed three coaches on the road at any given time, forcing coaches to make tough decisions on where to scout. This weekend alone, there are over 50 events that have been approved by the NCAA for scouts to attend.

As several other high profile sneaker camps have been occurring over the past two weeks and continue through the weekend, Lucas was still able to pull in some top talent. In other camps around the nation, appearances by Kobe Bryant, Amare Stoudamire, Steve Nash, and Vince Carter were in order.

Lucas’ camp was not without it’s share of named talent including Dexter Pittman (University of Texas), Joseph Jones (Texas A&M), and Dwight Lewis (University of Southern California).

The camp will continue on Friday, as players are divided into teams and take to the court for intense scrimmaging. Admission is free and spectators are encouraged to come out and watch.

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