ESPN RISE

CORAL GABLES, Fla. -- The minute the McDonald's All-American Game media day began Tuesday, hordes of reporters descended upon Xavier Henry of Putnam City (Warr Acres, Okla.) and DeMarcus Cousins of LeFlore (Mobile, Ala.).

AP Photo/Steve Helber

Xavier Henry and other top recruits often choose a school because of the coach.

Henry has signed with Memphis, while Cousins has verbally committed to the Tigers, and with coach John Calipari's reported departure to Kentucky, everyone wanted to know what these top-five recruits were thinking.

So why did Henry sign with the Tigers? For the school or Calipari?

"For both," Henry said. "Coach Calipari was a big deal in that he was my coach. He was going to teach me everything. He was going to develop me during the years."

The rest of the players on hand were thrilled not to be in Henry's shoes. Picking a college is among the biggest decisions these kids have ever made, and for it to be thrown into chaos at this point is daunting. The general feeling among the All-Americans is that Henry and Cousins will leave Memphis if Calipari does -- Henry has it written into his letter of intent that he can leave if Calipari does, while Cousins' verbal commitment isn't binding. Most players agree they chose their schools based on the coach and would want to reconsider their options if he left.

Kenny Boynton Jr. of American Heritage (Plantation, Fla.) knows how Henry and Cousins feel. When Kentucky fired Billy Gillispie, the first name mentioned as a replacement was Florida's Billy Donovan. As a Florida signee, Boynton was worried.

"My first thought was, 'What's next?'" Boynton said. "And I couldn't think of any other schools I wanted to go to. But I doubt I would have stayed at Florida if he left."

Luckily for the Gators, Donovan is staying put.

Boynton said Donovan was "70 percent" of the reason he chose Florida and said most others feel the same way.

"It's definitely the coach," the electric scoring guard said. "Because everyone's main goal when they go to school is to get to the NBA."

Alex Oriakhi, a power forward at Tilton (Tilton, N.H.), agrees. He signed with UConn and would want to reopen his recruitment if legendary coach Jim Calhoun retired.

"That's the guy who's gonna get you to the next level," Oriakhi said. "There are not a lot of Jim Calhouns out there."

Others who said they probably would look for a new school if the current coach left included Keith "Tiny" Gallon of Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.), who has signed with Oklahoma and Jeff Capel, and Maalik Wayns of Roman Catholic (Philadelphia), who inked with Jay Wright's Villanova Wildcats.

"Coach Capel is the one that recruited me," Gallon said. "I went there because of him."

"I'm pretty much committed to both," Wayns said. "The school, the style of play, the coach. But if [Wright] left, I'd probably look around."

Abdul Gaddy of Bellarmine Prep (Tacoma, Wash.), meanwhile, already has played this game. He initially committed to Arizona but decommitted when coach Lute Olson stepped down. Once the news of Olson's departure broke, Gaddy's cell phone blew up with calls from reporters seeking comment and other college coaches seeking commitment. In the end, Gaddy signed with Washington and feels the whole situation worked out for the best.

"I took it as a sign for me to stay home," he said.

If Calipari indeed heads to Kentucky, it remains to be seen how Henry and Cousins will take it. But if their peers are any indication, it won't be good news for Memphis.

Ryan Canner-O'Mealy is a senior writer for ESPN RISE Magazine.