HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL / CITY SECTION PREVIEW : NORTHWEST VALLEY CONFERENCE : WEST VALLEY LEAGUE (4-A)

Cleveland

COACH: Kevin Crider, 3rd season

LAST SEASON: 8-15; 3rd in league, 5-5

PLAYERS TO WATCH: More player candidates roamed the hallways than roamed the hardwood last year. Crider, consequently, has dedicated more time this season to rounding up players--and it should pay off. Cleveland will field the biggest team in the conference, led by returning Times’ All-Valley swingman Shawn Bankhead (6-foot-6) and junior center Roderick Jones (6-8). Bankhead averaged 25.9 points and Jones, a starter as a sophomore, grew four inches in the offseason. Junior Edtwaun Adams, a 6-0 part-time player in 1991-92, will start at off-guard. Juniors Jimmy Harris (6-5) and Jermaine Hall (6-4) chose not to play last season, Crider said. “There were always kids around,” Crider said. “It just didn’t work out.” Tooki Akinoyle, a transfer from Taft who was ineligible last season, will start at point guard. Forward Louis Fernandez, a 6-5 junior who also did not play last season, could prove to be the second-best player on the team to Bankhead, Crider predicted.

OUTLOOK: Bankhead should receive better support than he did last season, which means his numbers could improve. On paper, the rest of the team is considerably stronger than in 1991-92. Crider is not expecting a return to Cleveland’s glory days just yet, though. “I’m not going to make any wild predictions,” he said. “I still favor Taft.”

Chatsworth

COACH: Sandy Greentree, 2nd season

LAST SEASON: 18-7; tied for 1st in 3-A West Valley, 8-2

PLAYERS TO WATCH: Chatsworth, promoted to the 4-A Division, should be competitive in the conference. Why? Because of 6-8, 225-pound center Brady Mertes, a Times’ All-Valley selection as a junior. Mertes, a force inside, averaged 19.8 points and 14 rebounds. Seniors Kevin Gold, a 6-2 swingman, and Javier Jimenez, a 6-0 guard, also started part-time last season. The rest of the team is filled with new faces. Trenell Floyd (6-4) was ineligible last season and has not played for the varsity but is the best athlete on the team, Greentree said. Marcel Wilson, a 6-5 junior transfer from Granada Hills, will start at forward. Wilson has not played for the varsity, either. Senior forward Jose Hernandez (6-2), a reserve last season, will be one of the first players off the bench. Senior guard Herman Gaines (6-0) played for the junior varsity last season. Forward Roderick Jones (6-4, junior), guard Philbert Hernandez (5-5, junior) and swingman Tariq Hill (6-1, sophomore) also should contribute.

OUTLOOK: Chatsworth again will run man-to-man defense almost exclusively, although Greentree has doubts as to whether the team has picked up the scheme’s nuances. “We’ve got a lot of potential, but we might not be very good until January,” Greentree said. “We’ve got some new faces and they have a lot to learn.” Chatsworth will determine its makeup quickly. The Chancellors are entered in the Saugus, North Hollywood and Las Vegas holiday tournaments.

Taft

COACH: Jim Woodard, 12th season

LAST SEASON: 18-5; 1st in league, 9-1

PLAYERS TO WATCH: One starter returns from last season’s league championship team, junior center Johnny Williams, who averaged 10 points and 9.8 rebounds. Williams (6-7) is expected to wage some intense battles inside with Chatsworth’s Brady Mertes and Cleveland’s Roderick Jones and Shawn Bankhead. Returning lettermen Lamont Magee (6-1, junior) and Chris Ng (6-2, senior.) are likely starters at guard. Magee was a top reserve last season. Beyond that, Taft has holes to fill. Ricky Steele (6-4, junior), the junior varsity league MVP last season, will start at forward. Senior forward Jesse Bell (6-3 1/2) is a “big jumper, a high flier,” Woodard said, and could help out inside. Juniors David Goldman (6-3) and Montoya Washington (5-11) are first off the bench. “We’ve got good size and better-than-average speed,” Woodard said. “And we should rebound well.”

OUTLOOK: Woodard said the team needs to play with more cohesiveness. “I don’t like the intangibles right now,” he said. “We haven’t shown much maturity. We have a long way to go in terms of attitude.” Woodard tabs Chatsworth and Cleveland as the teams to beat.

Kennedy

COACH: Yutaka Shimizu, 10th season

LAST SEASON: 17-9; 2nd in league, 6-4

PLAYERS TO WATCH: Kennedy is fighting an uphill battle in terms of depth, talent and size. Particularly the latter. Every other team in the league has at least one player who stands 6-7 or taller. Kennedy’s tallest is 6-3. “We’re starting the world all over again,” Shimizu said. The Golden Cougars have a talented player in senior guard Joe Wyatt, a returning Times’ All-Valley selection, but not much beyond him. Wyatt, a model of consistency as a junior, averaged 20.2 points. Most of the players are products of Kennedy’s underclass programs. The down-sized Golden Cougars again will use what is essentially a rotating, five-guard offense. Michael Yean, a 5-8 senior guard, started for the B team last season. Jermon Cooks, a 6-1 senior, played for the junior varsity. Adam Moody, a 6-1 senior, played for the B team. The reserves are even greener. Jelani Janisse (6-0) and Keith Brydon (6-3) are sophomores. Ari Tremblay (6-2) and Hamlet Tarbinian (6-3) played for the junior varsity in 1991-92. P.J. Saalabi is a transfer from Chatsworth.

OUTLOOK: Kennedy attempted, and failed, in an offseason attempt to be placed in the 3-A North Valley League. In the more balanced 4-A, Kennedy probably will take some sizable lumps. “We lack size and we lack experience,” Shimizu said. “We have one good player, basically.”