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| Loveday, Land, Baker, Jackson & McCorkle |
By most
accounts, the spring session of the Buckeye Prep Elite Showcase was a complete
success, and in addition to the usual household names who were in attendance, a
number of hidden gems were unearthed. Over
300 players from across the state, region and country descended on
Whitehall-Yearling High School to participate in the one-day event. The day tipped off with an inspiring
presentation from Ohio State great, Dennis Hopson, and culminated in a series of
very competitive all-star games.
Although it’s
very difficult for us to adequately scout our own events, as administrative
matters consume our time; we always seem to catch glimpses of a few standout
performers. It goes without saying that
all of the players that made the all-star teams should be considered standout
performers, especially given the significant talent level in the gym (see
all-star game rosters); however, there was several players who caught our eyes
over the course of the day, many of whom we had not previously evaluated.
One such
player was Jeremy Baker
(6’0”/WF/2020/IN), who’s size, strength and athleticism set him apart from his
peers. We first saw him last year at Ty Kish’s
MSHTV Camp in Indianapolis, and his performance on Saturday confirmed what we
saw then; the kid is a beast. We also
really liked Pierre Brooks
(5’11”/SG/WF/2021/MI), who is a multi-dimensional athlete who’s size;
athleticism and skill set allow him to play multiple positions. From what we saw on Saturday, Brooks’ upside
potential is big time. Speaking of Michigan talent, we were also really
impressed with the play of Lorne Bowman (5’10”/PG/2020/MI),
who was highly skilled, athletic and poised under pressure. Equipped with an
elite handle and several go to dribble moves, Bowman was very effective
attacking the cup. We had not seen him in a couple of years, but based on his
play on Saturday, Zeb Jackson (5’8”/PG/Toledo)
should still be considered as one of the elite guards in the state. We don’t
seem to get many Cincinnati area kids to oue events, but when we do, they
usually can play, as is the case of BJ
Bransford, who frequently attends our events, Jared McCorkle and Max Land.
In fact, McCorkle and Land were both received Top 5 Awards and have been
invited to the UA Next Combine Series Midwest May 14th. both Huber
Heights’ Chris Scott (6’2”/SG/WF/2020/)
caught our eye with his length, fluidity and athleticism, as did Jadon Dance (6’1”/WF/2019/IN), Josiah Shamsiddeen (5’8”/SG/2021/MI), Kalen Howell (6’5”/PF/2019/Springfield),
, Cavon Butler, Taylor Kreeger, Caleb
Crawford, sol Hines, Jaheim Thomas and
Willieon Yates.
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| Schmidt, Abuhamdeh, Gadson, Wilson & Sizer |
In order to
be truly elite, a player must display consistency. Seth Wilson, Omar Abudamdeh and Ashton Henderson, all 7th
graders, did just that on Saturday and were rewarded with all-star game
selections. One of the most impressive performances of the day was logged in by
Wil Sizer (6’1”/PFCincinnati). He’s big, can score effectively in the paint
and rebounds at a high rate. However,
his developing perimeter game, including his ability to shoot and score from
the mid-range and beyond the arc suggests his long-term potential is even
better than we originally thought. Simply put, Sizer keeps getting better every
time we see him! We had heard a lot
about big Skyler Schmidt
(6’2”/C/Goshen) and his Buckeye Prep Elite Showcase debut stamped a seal of
approval on his talent. Schmidt is a
beast in the paint and is a high level scorer and rebounder. Good footwork and a soft touch describe his
attributes. Based on what we saw on
Saturday, Schmidt is clearly a top 10 player in a talent-rich Ohio. Speaking of
big time debuts, Huber Height’s Brent
Walker (6’4”/C/2021) attended his first Buckeye Prep Elite Showcase and
proved his name belongs among the best in the state. Big, strong and explosive best describes his
game. Still developing a sold skill set;
physically, Walker is among the best in his class. That All-Ohio Red 2021 squad is going to be a
tough out!
We have to
show some love to Damaryea Gadson,
who just keeps demanding attention. We
saw him in Cleveland a couple of weeks ago and liked his speed and energy, and
he duplicated that success here in Columbus, to the tune of an all-star game
appearance and Top 5 honors. It’s not
about your name, it’s about your game, and Gadson’s game is worthy of mention. Michigan’s Keyon Menifield is a super talented floor general who has all the
tools to be an elite guard in the future.
Menifield is a wizard with the rock, and his speed and quickness are
elite. Super crafty with vision and passing skills make Menifield a problem in
terms of scoring and playmaking. If that
wasn’t enough, Menifield is also a pesky defender, which is a must for smaller
point guards. Needless to say, Michigan has another elite PG!
In terms of
some of the younger players, Najih
Wright (4’9”/PG/2023/Loraine) is a small, but dynamic PG who can shoot it,
get all the way to the cup, or drop it off to a teammate for an easy
bucket. He came all the way from
Jackson, MS. and we’re glad he did, as Khary
Sykes (4’7”/PG/2022/MS) was fun to watch.
Lighting quick, tough and aggressive with an elite motor best describes
Sykes’ game. The kid seemed to be
everywhere. Ezra Manjon
(5’8”/PG/2019/Columbus) was quick and crafty, while Jaheim Thomas (6’2”/PF/C/Cincinnati) has good size, strength and is
very explosive.
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| Smith, Rumple, Little, Duval & Benton |
In the 6th
grade division, Marlon Elliott Jr.
(5’1”/WF/Columbus), Evan Unruh
(5’2”/PG/Elida) Turner Butty
(5’1”/PG/KY) and Tegan Myers all
appeared highly skilled, poised under pressure with elite motors. Also, we can’t say enough about Dayton’s Sellers Little III (5’0”/PG/Dayton)! Every time we seen him he was attacking the
basket and finishing. High energy and
aggressive are his calling cards. Finally, based on what we observed on
Saturday, he may be top 10-15 in the state right now. Adam Duvall (6’1”/PF/Beavercreek) already has impressive length for
his age, which combed with a solid skill set; suggests he could be real good
down the road. In fact, we plan to track
his progress. William Rumple (5’4”/SG/Auburn) just keeps turning heads. Tough and hardnosed, Rumple burst onto the
statewide stage at the NEO event a few weeks ago and then followed that
performance up with an all-star game appearance and Top 5 honors here in
Columbus. It was our first time seeing him, but Jamel Smith II can play,
as evidenced by his Top 5 selection. We
did not see a lot of him, but we will going forward. Another event; another all-star selection for
Danny Young Jr., who is proving to
be a consistent star.
Michigan’s Ashton Henderson has displayed his
talents all over the country and has been consistently elite. Well, he did it again here in Columbus, as
his performance was among the best.
Having been battled tested against the best, Henderson if tough to
rattle and knows how to score the ball.
He’s not just a scorer; his advanced ball skills and court vision make
him an elite playmaker as well. According to his showcase coach, Michigan’s Mason Docks has talent. If he’s anything like his older brother,
Chris Harrison-Docks, a division I standout, Docks’ future is bright. Cecil Benton Jr. did some nice things
on Saturday and is now firmly on our radar, as did Deon Horn and Alex Waters.
The more we
see the talent level in the class of 2023 (5th graders), the more
impressed and excited we are! This class is turning out to be deep. No one
impressed us more than Michael Greenlee
Jr. (5’0”/PG/Toledo); a long and
athletic lead guard who displayed an almost complete game. Not only is he effective at getting into the
paint and finishing, Greenlee can knock down the jumper as well. Greenlee’s
performance was so impressive; he will vault to the top of the class on our top
player lists. We have to mention his AAU
teammate, CJ Hornbeak Jr. (5’6”/C/Toledo)
who came to Columbus with a rep and confirmed many of the positive things we
had heard about him. Hornbeak is a big who rebounds at a high rate and is an
effective scoring close to the bucket.
We also think we saw him step away and flash some perimeter skills as
well. Hornbeak is definitely a player to
watch going forward. Staying with the
Toledo guys, Justyn Toler
(5’0”/SG/WF) also did his thing and made it clear he deserves some attention as
well. Also from Toledo is Deric Jaynes, who is a talented player
as well, resulting in his selection to the all-star game, followed by a Top 5
selection. It’s important to note that
each of the above players run with Coach Brad Morison’s Maumee Bay Turf team. As it’s no wonder we have them ranked #3 in
our recently released Power Rankings!
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| Greenlee, Allen, Frazier, Jaynes & Brandon |
Piqua’s Dre’Sean Roberts (5’0”/PG/Piqua) logged
in another solid performance and did nothing to hurt his sizable
reputation. We’ve seen him twice now and
on both occasions, Marquez Frazier (4’4”/PG/Toledo)
has stood out from his peers. As a reward, Frazier got the all-star game
nod, where he proceeded to score a game-high 8 points. We were also super
impressed with Jyles Brandon, Antaune Allen, Tyron Barnes, Paul Woodard
and Blake Lichentenberg
(5’3”/WF/Toledo). Finally, it should be
mentioned that Dayton has a ton of talent in this class, some of which we’ve not
even seen. We plan to keep a close eye
on this group in the future. We also
plan to monitor the progress of Nino
Nesbit, Willie Alexander and Jayson
Levis, 4th graders who more than held his own against the big
boys. We had our first-ever 1st
grader in the house, and from what we here, Lamont Hamilton is a tough little customer who was not afraid to
mix it up with bigger and stronger guys.
He could be a good one in the future.
We did not
see all of the standout performers, but from what we did see, the event was absolutely
brimming over with talent. We can’t wait to see what happens at the fall elite
showcase, which is currently scheduled for September 17th and 18th
at Otterbein University. Several of the players featured in this recap have
punched their ticket to the prestigious Ohio North vs South All-Star Game and
have partially built a case for “All-State” honors. You can catch many of these
players in action at the Buckeye Prep Invitational Tournament in 2 weeks. Below are links to our Standout Performer
list and All-Star game rosters.
Way to put in work Josiah Shamsiddeen (class of 2020/8th grade All Star)! Was he not a standout performer?
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