STAMFORD - Tevin Baskin has already become the most recruited player in the history of the Trinity Catholic High School boys basketball program.

After a strong summer on the AAU circuit, the race for the 6-foot-7 forward's services has become even hotter.

"It's a fun process, but it is also frustrating at times," Baskin said Wednesday, enjoying some needed rest after playing a 70-game schedule with the New York Gauchos out of the Bronx. "I feel blessed because a lot of other kids are not in this position."

The position Baskin finds himself in is being able to call his own shots. Two weeks away from starting his senior year at Trinity, Baskin has been contacted by over 30 schools.

At this point Baskin said he has trimmed his finalists down to six: Providence, Rutgers, Xavier, Auburn, St. John's and the University of Massachusetts. That list, however, is not set in stone.

"It could change tonight the way the phone calls are coming in," Baskin said with a laugh. "It's hard to choose."

Despite dealing with a series of nagging injuries, Baskin averaged about 15 points and eight rebounds for the Gauchos, which won a pair of tournaments in New York and reached the final of the national AAU 17-and-under championship, where it lost to Team Breakdown out of Florida, 77-60.

Baskin was hindered by a pulled groin muscle, nearly tore his Achilles' tendon while playing in Tennessee, and suffered a bug bite in Arkansas that caused his arm to swell up.

"It was really up and down battling everything," Baskin said. "I missed a tournament in Ohio, which is the first time in the five years I've played with the Gauchos."

Baskin also threw down a thunderous dunk over two players during a tournament in Georgia that became a favorite story of bloggers on the Internet.

Dwayne Mitchell, the Gauchos' coach, said Baskin's stock was helped by his play at the end of the summer.

"Once he got healthy he played at a high level and kept getting better," Mitchell said. "The last couple of games in Florida you could see why the recruiters want him. He's an athletic kid and that is his strength. He'll get a rebound and run the floor."

Baskin's performance this summer followed an outstanding junior season with the Crusaders. He averaged 20.4 points, 8.0 rebounds and 3.1 blocks for Trinity, which went 24-4 and nearly upset Crosby before falling, 82-79, in the state championship game.

That defeat might have been Baskin's greatest individual performance. He finished with 35 points, 12 rebounds and dominated the court.

"That was one of the best performances I have ever seen in my career at the school," Trinity coach Mike Walsh said. "He almost willed us to victory. If he carries that over, I think we'll be OK this year."

Walsh has stayed in constant contact with Baskin throughout the summer, monitoring his progress and offering counseling.

Walsh is not stranger to the process. Trinity alumni have gone on to play at the University of Connecticut (Craig Austrie, Rashamel Jones), Duke (Dave McClure), Holy Cross (Torey Thomas) and Vermont (Mike Trimboli).

"I think he's got a lot of good choices and he'll see where he fits in best," Walsh said. "He has to be comfortable and I know he is concerned about the academics. He's really matured and knows what's ahead of him. I think he wants to get it out of the way so he can help us win another county and state championship."

Baskin said ideally he would like to make a decision in November, during the early signing period.

"That's the goal," he said, "but the way things look that may be hard. My theory after last year is that it is a business, not a game anymore. Every time you work out someone is also going for your spot."

Baskin said he is weighing a variety of factors.

"Distance is not going to be a problem," he said. "I'm concerned about life after basketball. If basketball doesn't work out I want something to fall back on. The graduation rate is important to me. People look at me and just see basketball. I look at it as more."

- Staff Writer Dave Ruden can be reached at dave.ruden@scni.com or at 964-2253.