August 3, 2011
After a month of security lines, check-ins and full days in the gym, the July evaluation period is complete. It is now time to unpack the suitcases and delve through the notebooks to see who made the biggest splash heading into the high school basketball season. NCP analysts Douglas Benton and Steve Hu break down the best of the best in scoring, defending and much more.
Whose coming out party?
Steve Hu: For this question, I chose the players who were not ranked in the NCP rankings and probably will have a very good shot at making it in the next release. Michael Bryson 2012, Foothill, Play Hard Play Smart: That PHPS team has a bunch of wing players who look like clones in their skill set. But Bryson made a big leap as he really had a big performance in the Three Stripes tournament that really solidified his summer interest for several college programs. Bryson is a versatile wing that could fit into the schemes of many college programs.
John Fenton, 2013, Central Catholic, Organized Chaos Elite: His club teammate Grant Verhoeven attracts a lot of recruiting interest. Fenton backs up Verhoeven and has the same build and frame as his elder teammate. Good for him as many college recruiters probably will return next summer to track Fenton's progress.
Douglas Benton: A pair of breakout stars to watch possibly make the updated NCP Top 40 this fall are NorCal Pharaohs teammates Bryce Scott and Bryce Pressley. Scott is a combo guard out of Oak Ridge who has range on his shot and a power dribble to handle contact inside. Questions about him surround his athleticism, but he answered some of those this past month. For Pressley, he played a complementary role for Jesuit last year and performed well with more responsibility in July. He has a sound mid-range game and was able to defend a wide range of perimeter players.
In the 2013 class, which is shaping up to make more national headlines this year and into next summer, De La Salle guard Elliot Pitts stood out. Pitts is a skilled offensive player who can handle the ball and play multiple positions at a high level. If he had the sleeper tag on him, it won't be that way for long. Also, Sheldon two-guard Dakarai Allen used the national stage PHPS Elite played on to become one of the fastest risers on the West coast. Also able to be a lockdown defender, Allen showed scoring variety and the athleticism to be a tough cover going forward.
Best ball handlers?
Steve Hu: Dulani Robinson, 2012, McClymonds, Team 94 and Leo Smith, 2013, Oakland Tech, Oakland Rebels 16. Both these players are a bit undersized in height and that may be a part of the reason why they can dribble so well. But their quickness and ability to go in and out of the paint with ease is rather impressive. They will make turnovers but they are not passive when breaking the press or dribbling throughout the court.
Douglas Benton: Robinson is very good with the ball in his hands in breaking pressure with the dribble and also collapsing the defense on his drives. The Mack point guard may have to wait on his recruitment in part due to his size, but being able to create advantageous match-ups is a quality schools will always look for. Jesuit point man Akachi Okugo brings good length to the floor and it allows him to have good side to side ball control. He is at his best in wide open isolation situations.
For 2013, Smith was probably one of the spring breakout stars playing for Oakland Rebels 16. With very quick moves, he was able to control most of his opponents and keep them off balance with his handles. Another prospect who showed well this summer, especially with his ball handling, is Sacred Heart Cathedral's Khalil James. A small point guard, he is able to weave in and out of traffic with a low turnover rate.
Dearth of good shooters
Steve Hu: Cole McConnell, 2012, Sacred Heart, Oakland Soldiers 17 Blue: Knock down shooter if he is set and in form. Good to see that he is working on his dribble drive game. Opponents in the fall will key on his perimeter shooting and force him to score on the drive or to be a passer.
Dylan Alexander, 2013, Weston Ranch, Bay Area Hoosiers 16U: Very crisp form and technique. Also liked his pump fakes and up & under moves. He can shoot from the perimeter but is also very creative in creating shots for himself from anywhere.
Douglas Benton: Jesuit guard Parker Uu has shown the knack for getting on a role and carrying his team's offense with his shooting. He gets squared up quickly on his shot and gets in good rhythm from off the bounce or on the catch. He can also work some offense off of penetration, but his offensive relies on the outside game. Berkeley guard Langston Morris-Walker is another sharpshooter who is one of the few players in this class who can consistently create clean looks for himself. Morris-Walker gets good lift on his shot to rise up over defenders.
St. Ignatius wing Stephen Domingo is clear cut the best shooter in NorCal for the 2013 class and is near the top in the nation in this category. Possessing one of the smoothest shots around, Domingo gets really good arc on the ball and can take over the game with it as seen at the Pangos All-American Camp.
Pass the rock!
Steve Hu: Kendall Jackson, 2012, Bishop O'Dowd, Lakeshow Black 17: Jackson is a sparkplug. On his Lakeshow team, he had several post and wing options and was apt in delivering the ball to them and avoided looking for his own shot for the most part. Even with Brandon Ashley's departure, Jackson will still have several finishers on his O'Dowd team to distribute.
Markel Leonard, 2013, Salesian, Bay Area Hoosiers 16U: Leonard can run a team and be a true point guard. He is a pass first point guard but can also create his shot if the offense breaks down. With Dominic Artis' departure, Leonard will be a key replacement at the point guard position for his Pride.
Douglas Benton: Jackson is a quality distributor for Lakeshow's top team this summer and also for Bishop O'Dowd during the high school year. He sees the play develop early and isn't afraid to take chances on his passes in order to make the big play. Players have to like playing with a point guard like this because he puts the ball in easy positions to score. Vallejo's Tajai Johnson is also a stellar passer as a combo guard running with Oakland Soldiers 17 Blue. While scoring is more of his foray, he is a willing passer and does a nice job of waiting for the defense to rotate before passing it behind them for easy looks.
James makes another appearance on the list as a rising point guard after a good summer with the Roadrunners. When playing in an up-tempo system, he is able to slow down the game and see the open spots on the floor for the potential assists.
Defense wins championships
Steve Hu: Mario Dunn, 2013, Salesian, Norcal Supreme 16: Dunn is very disruptive on the press and in opposing team's backcourts. He has that Allen Iverson feel as a guard when he plays defense. He has a higher gear in terms of his quickness that allows him to knock balls loose or get to balls in the open court.
David Straughter, 2013, Burbank, Play Hard Play Smart 16: He plays on an undersized club. But he is playing the post and has the strength and determination to hold his own. In addition at 6-foot-3, Straughter can guard any of the perimeter players. His versatility on defense during the summer should prove beneficial down the road.
Douglas Benton: Bishop O'Dowd wing Richard Longrus is at the top of this list because of his size and ability to cover multiple positions. At 6-foot-6, he has a good wingspan and the quickness to stay on the perimeter and match up with shooting guards and small forwards. He is also good in the passing lanes to grade out as an elite defender. De La Salle's Amadi Udenyi is another tough defender in being able to play physical at his 5-foot-10 frame. He rarely gets beat off the dribble and contests shots well.
Allen's trademark heading into his junior year is his defense. He is an athletic 6-foot-4 guard who covers plenty of space on the perimeter and tallies numerous deflections throughout the game. Dunn also is a standout defender in the 2013 class in the mold of Udenyi as a guard who plays bigger than his size. He also projects as a high steals player in the coming years.
Attacking the glass
Steve Hu: Drew Dickey, 2012, St Francis, KWA Pride: Dickey probably averaged double digit rebounds per game in Las Vegas. He has gotten a lot more aggressive in going for the ball since his high school season. Fenton is a repeat answer but he just shows determination and hustle on the court. Those are some of the key attributes in being a good rebounder.
Douglas Benton: Two players out of the Elk Grove area lead the way in Franklin-Elk Grove's Theo Johnson and Pleasant Grove's Arik Armstead. Johnson is a good athlete who crashes the boards hard and is a quick leaper. Armstead has excellent size at 6-foot-8 with strength and can carve out space inside. He also plays the ball well off the rim. Mitty forward Aaron Gordon could fit in a number of these categories, but rebounding is one of the best. He plays with great energy, always is around the basket and is a quick first jumper to go up for the ball before his opponent.
Back to the basket
Steve Hu: Tanner Giddings, 2012 Windsor, Oakland Rebels 17U: Giddings does a little of everything that a post player should do. He can rebound, he has some good post moves, and he runs the floor well for a big man. Several colleges were intrigued about using him as a building block in the post for their recruiting process.
Marcus Lee, 2013, Deer Valley, Bay Area Hoosiers 16U: Lee is already ranked fairly high but most college coaches look at him as a small forward or face up forward. Lee has a wiry frame but does not seem to fear contact and is aggressive in his rebounding. As the main post player on his Deer Valley team next season, he will be called upon to be more of an imposing post player.
Douglas Benton: With the transfer of Brandon Ashley and injuries to Jamaree Strickland, the top of the post player list has its questions. Dickey has shown good strides this summer to work well in space and with added bulk, he is able to hold his offensive position on the block. Giddings has also shown improvement with better agility and touch around the basket compared to last summer. Not a true post prospect, but Arcata's Tom Witzel is nimble inside and is comfortable on the low to mid-block.
With Gordon and Lee projecting their skill set as more of a face-up forward, the best true post looks to be Dublin's Eric Nielsen. At 6-foot-8, he has the frame to seal off defenders and finish inside, but needs to continue to add explosion and agility to his game.
Pure scorers
Steve Hu: Paris Davis, 2012, Skyline, Oakland Rebels 17U: Davis can score from anywhere on the court. But with his size and speed, he should just take the ball to the rim every time and initiate contact. He should be going to the line at least half a dozen times per game to be truly effective. James O'Neal, 2013, Freedom, Lakeshow 16 Black: O'Neal's perimeter shooting sets up his inside game. He should be able to average 20 points plus for the rest of his high school career.
Douglas Benton: Two repeat players sit atop this category in Tajai Johnson and Morris-Walker. Johnson is a strong driver who uses a quick first step and his ability to take contact to finish in the lane or get to the foul line. He can also step out on the floor to make defenses come out on him. Morris-Walker has all of the physical tools to be a good offensive two-guard and showed throughout his junior year to be able to control a team's scoring. He has a clean jumper and the strength to drive the lane and be a post-up option.
Salesian's Jabari Bird capped a strong summer with the Oakland Soldiers in continuing to show himself as an elite scorer. He has a very developed mid-range game off the dribble as well as three point range and can finish with authority at the rim. Expect some big scoring numbers in his junior years.
Athleticism versus skill
Steve Hu: Abu Tratter, 2012, St Francis, KWA Pride: Finally healthy, Tratter should see a big year in 2012. He can guard any of the opposing team's guards or forwards. He rebounds well for a wing player. He can take advantage of the smaller guards in a post play or out maneuver the bigger forwards.
Rae Jackson, 2013, Rodriguez, Bay Area Magic: Jackson can really run and jump on the basketball court and would look to be a pretty good wide receiver as well. He seems to be just a level above everyone else in terms of athleticism.
Douglas Benton: There are a number of quality athletes coming out of the region in the 2012 class. Players who stood out with their athleticism in July were Sheldon's Kyiron Thomas and Redwood's Matt Mareno. Thomas' athleticism takes him to the football field this year as a big time leaper who moves very smoothly on the floor. Mareno showed multiple times the explosion to finish in a crowd as well as going up for rebounds against bigger players.
Gordon headlines this list for all in Northern California regardless of class and is one of the top athletes in the nation. Others who have shown well are Bird, Allen, Lee and Jackson.
Surprise clubs
Steve Hu: Bay Area Hoosiers 16U exited earlier than expected in bracket play at the Fab 48. But at their games, several college coaches were in attendance scouting for their 2013 class. So, the team showed the most in terms of attracting college interest for a variety of players.
Bay Area Ballers going the deepest in the Fab 48 17U in either the Invitational or Platinum divisions. Per Ballers Coach Nelson Washington, "His team does not pass the eye test," which he meant as that his players do not look like basketball players. But several teams in the tournament were caught off guard by their perimeter shooting, team passing, and matchup zone defense.
Douglas Benton: The NorCal Pharaohs came back from a shortened 2010 summer to make a deep run at the adidas Super 64 in Las Vegas at the end of the month. Playing with a mix of Northern California prospects and out of the area players, they have put themselves back in the discussion of better clubs in NorCal.
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