Buckeyes Impress at National Camp

Ohio Players at the Fab Frosh Camp

According to several evaluators sitting court side at Clay Dade's Fab Frosh Camp in Suwanee, GA. this past weekend, the Buckeye state had several representatives that logged in standout performances.  Akron's VJ King was the most heralded player of the Ohio contingent, and was widely mentioned as one of the top prospects in the camp. King, a 6'5 wing headed to ASVSM this year, was lauded for his scoring ability, over all skill set and on-court maturity. In addition, King was selected for the Top 20 All-Star game, and was later presented with the Top Prospect Award.

VJ KING-Won the Top Prospect Award

Garfield Heights bound Willie Jackson's athleticism  created a buzz on day 2 when he threw down a thunderous dunk on an unsuspecting defender. Jackson was also selected for the Top 20 All-Star Game. In addition, Bedford Height's Derek Funderburk's low post game was on full display and was noted in second day write-ups.  Because of his standout performance, Funderburk made the cut for the Top 40 All-Star Game, as did Tervell Beck. According to reports, the 6'7 forward "scored, rebounded and used his length well on the defensive end." Other Buckeyes at the prestigious camp included: Xavier Simpson, Tervell Beck, Deven Stover, Anthony Christian, Rodrick Caldwell, Seth Towns and Ronald Jones Jr., Seth Towns, Andrew Homer, David Bennett, Rico Stafford, and Henry Baddley. Look for most of these players at the Buckeye Prep Elite Showcase on September 22nd and 23rd, when they will face off for state bragging rights in the inaugural "Ohio North vs South" and the "Michigan vs Ohio" Games!

Willie Jackson-Made the Top 20 Game

My man Reggie Stover was in the house at the Fab Frosh Camp and agreed to keep a close eye on the Ohio guys.  Below are his notes about what he saw:

The Buckeye State was well represented at the most recent Fab Frosh Invitational Basketball Camp in Suwanee, GA.  The Fab Frosh Invitational Basketball Camp is an elite showcase of some of the best 8th grade basketball talent of whom will be entering the 9th grade at various high schools across the country. Several of this year's attendees for the class of 2016 are previous attendees of  the Buckeye Prep Elite Showcase and/or have been featured on our Buckeye Prep Report.

Top 20 All-Star Game 

Some of the notables were VJKing  (6'5 SF) who at the Fab Frosh Camp displayed an array of skills in running the floor, finishing strong at the rim along with a smooth touch on the jump shot, and great athleticism.  Willie Jackson (6'4 SF) was  one of the best high flyers at the camp. He displayed an array of alley-oop dunks, dunks off missed shots and was a one man rim wrecker that brought the gym to its feet. 

Xavier Simpson (5'8" PG) was a true floor general, while getting all teammates involved, showing excellent ball-handling skills along, and the ability to score by dropping three pointers and coast-to-coast driving lay-ups.  Deven Stover (6'1 SG) showed the ability to step away from the three point shot and get to the rim to finish, get to the line for numerous three point plays, and was called Mr. Hustle for his high motor and defense by his coach. 

Derek Funderburk-Made the Top 40 Game

Derek Funderburk (6'6 PF) opened a lot of eyes with his strong rebounding and defense as he was cleaning the glass and swatting shots. The big man also showed he was able go put the ball on the floor as he rebounding and went coast-to-coast a few times and made nice off-the-dribble passes.  Tervell Beck (6'6" PF) was all over the place rebounding, passing, scoring and really handled the ball well on the dribble, while getting to the basket and finishing with mixed lay-ups.  Ronald Jones Jr (6'3" SF) was a bruiser while banging his way inside for easy finishes at the rim and clearing out bigger/taller SFs for tough rebounds.  Seth Towns (6'6 SF) was an inside/outside threat, connecting on low post moves,  short jump shots and he

rebounded well. 

Tervell Beck-Got the Top 40 Nod

Henry Baddley (6'3) SF is a high-energy guy with an engine that just goes and goes. Baddley was a relentless attacker who finished strong consistently.  Rodrick Caldwell (5'8" PG) showed great quickness on/off the ball, good composure with excellent ball-handling skills, distributes well and is does a very good job of getting teammates involved.  Rico Stafford (6'4" SF) was a work horse. He does whatever the team needs, bangs hard, crashes the boards and is a strong finisher at the rim; the type of guy you want on your team as he does all the little things that don't show up in the stats.  Anthony Christain (6'2" SG) is a relentless penetrator, with good body control, unassuming quickness and also played well.

By Reggie Stover