6th Grade Freddie Baird | G | 2029 Baird is the type of player that a Coach loves. The guard defends with great energy, makes his teammates better and can score the ball from all over. His nonstop Hustle translated to winning basketball. Kaiden Richards | G | 2029 Richards was one of the quietest players out on the basketball court but his game did all the talking. Mr. MVP of the All-Star weekend was strictly about buckets and wasted no dribbles while doing so. Richards also showed off his unique passing skills when defenders got caught sleeping. Braylen Goode-Wright | G | 2029 Wright showed his ability to be a pest on the basketball court. It seemed like the bigger the moment, the more defensive stops Wright got. He continuously turned defense into offense and was a scoring machine around the basket with his nice floater and acrobatic finishes in traffic. Gavin Clark | G | 2029 Clark is the type of guard that’ll wow you just by what he can do at his size and how he does it. The diminutive guard used a variety of hesitation moves to see what defenders were giving him. He knocked down a ton of threes and blew by a ton of defenders when they left their feet. His floater game was major key when he got into the pain. McCabe Corbin | G | 2029 Corbin had his way with finishing around the basket at the All-Star weekend. He used euro-steps, spin moves and used his body really well to finish around or over defenders. Corbin also used his soft touch jump shot to knock down both the mid-range and three point jump shot. Karson McCoy | G | 2029 McCoy is a speedy guard that used his quick ball handling skills to break defenders down. McCoy wasted no time getting to his sweet spots to knock down open shots and did a good job of delivering passes to his teammates. He made the game look fairly easy with his abilities. Antonio Osahor | F | 2029 Osahor is a lengthy forward that caused major problems on both sides of the ball. Constantly snatching down both offensive/defensive rebounds, finishing lay-ups in traffic, making good outlet passes to guards and altering shots at the rim. His presence on the court always gave his team an advantage. Drayden Davis | G | 2029 Davis showed how capable he was of putting his team on his back when he needed to. Scoring the ball from all three levels, Davis took advantage of everything defenders gave him. He has great size that he used to punish smaller guards around the basket and made taller defenders pay from the outside. Prynce Smith | G | 2029 Smith might’ve been the lengthiest guard in attendance at the All-Star weekend. He used his long arms defensively to disrupt smaller guards, altering their shots and often getting deflections when they tried making passes. Smith also showed his ability to score off the dribble in multiple areas on the court. Elijah Byrd | G | 2029 Byrd is a guard that attacked the basket with a ton of aggression and used good angles to finish at the rim. Byrd didn’t allow anyone’s presence to stop him from finishing inside. With good use of the backboard, Byrd used acrobatic lay-ups to finish on either side. 7th Grade Isaiah Carter | F | 2028 Carter is a wing that showed his ability to do just about everything with the ball in his hands. He can shoot the ball from anywhere, score inside at will and he can also pass the rock. Carter has a pretty fluid jump shot and made it look easy hitting shots over defenders. His stellar play and ability to lead got him MVP honors at the All-Star weekend. Jemell Smith | G | 2028 Smith is a speedy guard that showed why he was one of the best guards in attendance at the All-Star weekend. With his team needing a ton of scoring to get things done he nearly single handedly willed his team to victory over the best team. Smith used his speed to break defenders down to finish at the basket or bury shots from deep. Smith put on a complete show each game he played. Nathaniel Wilson | G | 2028 Wilson is a southpaw guard that was a complete menace from the mid-range area. He didn’t rely on taking and making threes so he find his spots inside the perimeter and at the basket. When defenders collapsed on his, he made good reads to find open teammates for easy buckets. Wilson also showed how capable he was at getting to the free-throw line for easy points. Jerome Ward | G | 2028 Ward is a sharpshooting two guard that wastes no time firing from deep with enough space. He was hands down the best shooter in attendance at the All-Star weekend and didn’t pass up any shots that he was supposed to take. Ward also showed that he was able to put the ball on the floor and make plays just inside the arc or at the rim as well. Tre Phillips | G | 2028 Phillips is the type of two way player that every team would enjoy having. He’s capable of putting the ball in the basket when needed while also getting stops on opposing team’s best players. Phillips has long arms that he used to handle the ball well, finish in traffic or through contact. Defensively, he used his arms, speed and great energy to bother both guards and bigs. Alston Taylor | G | 2028 Taylor is a diminutive guard that’s really shifty. He used his great speed along with combination dribble moves to get into his jump shots or downhill to finish around the rim. Taylor has a smooth pull-up jump shot, floater game and he always made sure to see the entire floor to feed open teammates. Aaron Taylor | F | 2028 Taylor is a wing that ran the floor hard in transition and finished very well with either hand around the basket. In a half-court setting, Taylor showed his ability to knock down both the three ball and the mid-range. He also showed how capable he was at creating his own shot which he did often. Massiah Smalls | G | 2028 Smalls might’ve been the most aggressive on ball and off ball defender. He made things very tough for guys handling the ball with his strength, speed and size. He denied guys from getting the ball often and made things easier for himself. His outstanding hustle helped his team receive extra offensive opportunities and prevented opposing teams from second chances. Chauncey Pearson | F | 2028 Pearson might not have been all about buckets or playmaking but his defensive presence was major key for a lot of his team’s success. Continuously making guys work for buckets and keeping them off the boards. Offensively, he made a lot of hustle plays and was always in the right spots to score. Keegan Keeton | G | 2027 Keeton was on one from the outside at the All-Star weekend. Each and every good look that Keeton had at the basket from deep I felt was going in. He shoots the same shot each and every time down, he holds his follow through and ensures that he’s taking the best shot possible. Keeton didn’t force action from deep but when it wasn’t there, the southpaw guard made some strong drives to the cup and finished over defenders with his smooth floaters or soft touch lay-ups inside. Adding more shooting off the bounce is what will elevate Keeton’s game tremendously. 8th Grade Tylan Jones | G | 2027 Jones had a really impressive two days at the All-Star weekend. From training to the games he gave his all. The guard is really shifty with the basketball and has great end to end speed. Jones did a wonderful job of getting in the paint and making good passes to his bigs or outside shooters. His ability to pass helped him get all the way to the basket at times when defenders thought he was going to pass. Jaylen Tyler | G | 2027 Tyler is such an exceptional talent at the guard position. He has a tremendous knack for putting the ball in the through the hoop and isn’t afraid of big moments. The bigger the moments were, the more he wanted the ball and the more he delivered. Tyler’s floater game is up to par, use of the backboard and his ability to knock down the mid-range jump shot. Phoenix Johnson | G | 2027 Johnson is a very calm guard that plays the game the right way. He can score the ball but often looks to get his teammates involved. Johnson did a good job of utilizing the pick and roll action to create mismatches on the court. Johnson also showed his ability to knock down the three ball where he was proficient on and off the ball. Defensively, Johnson played the passing lanes really well and had a bunch of steals. Noah Farley | F | 2027 Farley continues to add to his game each and every time we’re able to catch him in action. While Farley was still doing his usual scoring, he was able to show more of his playmaking skills at the All-Star weekend with a ton of talent around him. He rebounded the ball at a high level and pushed the ball up the court to make plays for himself and others. Farley always do a good job at being a team player. Kentrale Washington Jr | G | 2027 Washington Jr. in competition for being one of the best outside shooters at the All-Star weekend. He used his outside shooting touch to blow games open and even ended a game with his next shot mentality after missing a few shots. He made sure to be shot ready and also showed his ability to be a slasher when guys began ball watching. Stephen Stockton | F | 2027 Stockton has the length and size that makes smaller players think twice about finishing at the rim. He used his long arms to alter shots at the rim and even showed his lateral quickness when defending smaller ball handlers. On the offensive side of the ball, Stockton was all over the boards giving his team extra opportunities to score and even converted a few himself in traffic. He also showed great hands when receiving tight passes from his guards. James Merchant | G | 2027 Merchant is a small guard that did a good job at distributing the ball to his teammates first but also showing his will to score the ball. He dialed up a few deep threes from the outside and showed he was able to move nonstop without the basket to get on board. Merchant also provided a ton of his energy on the defensive end making hustle plays to come up with steals and loose ball opportunities. Trip Blalock | F | 2027 Blalock was one of the most interesting 8th graders to watch at the All-Star weekend based on the efforts he gave on both ends of the floor. Offensively, he did an outstanding job of read defenses to get himself in the lane for easy finishes, knocking down open jump shots and finding the open man. Defensively, Blalock made life hard for a lot of guys trying to score the ball on him. One thing that really impressed me was he rebounding ability and how he used his body first to gain possession of rebounds before making outlet passes. Ahmari Boxley | G | 2027 Boxley, Mr. Hustle himself is what I would call him. He took home the award due to the nonstop energy and effort he gave on the defensive end. From picking guy’s pockets to get chase down blocks, it showed that he took pride in his defense. Boxley’s defensive instincts helped him to get a lot of deflections that resulted into easy offense for his team. If there was a loose ball, he was the first one to get to it or forced a jump ball if he wasn’t. Verdel Ratliff | F | 2027 Ratliff instantly stood out at the All-Star weekend with his unique understanding of the game. The southpaw forward rebounded the ball really well, made strong outlet passes to his guards, pushed the break when the time was right, and completely stayed within himself. Ratliff moved very well without the ball showing his understand for proper spacing and did an outstanding job at setting both on/off ball screens. 6-8th Grade Girls Justice Brown-Jones | G | 2027 Brown-Jones was on a mission at the All-Star weekend. The guard had the ball on a string and used her dribble moves to get by defenders in the half-court settings and the open floor. Brown-Jones showed her ability to score the ball at all three levels but she was really tough to keep out of the paint where she finished well in traffic or through contact. The more Brown-Jones becomes comfortable taking and making shots off the bounce she’ll be even more of a tough cover. Kylie Kent | F | 2027 Kent has the ability to take over games with her physical toughness that she displays. She loves to bang inside for rebounds on the defensive end and she makes life difficult inside on the offensive end. Kent can create shots for herself off the bounce, she has some solid footwork inside and she’s also a pretty decent passer when finding her teammates. Her takeover ability helped her snag the MVP honors at the All-Star weekend which was a tight race. Sydney Santora | G | 2027 Santora is a scoring guard that handles the ball really well. She wasted no dribbles when try to break down her opponents. Santora gets to her spots, sees the floor well and showed off her shooting touch from the outside. Santora made some really tough passes to her teammates but it was the way she scored the basketball that turned the spotlight to her. Using a variety of ball gathers to finish around the basket with either hand and she was always under control. Sutton Eldredge | G | 2027 Eldredge showed how calm, cool and collective she was on the basketball court from day one. Her ability to continuously get paint touches with the ball in her hands was outstanding. Whether she was looking to shoot the basketball or make an extra pass she almost always made things easier for herself and other. Eldredge doesn’t force any action and even made it known that she didn’t need the ball in her hands to score. She was proficient from three and was a heck of a leader on/off the court. Morgan Herbert | F | 2027 Herbert might’ve been her team’s best kept secret. Pretty quiet on day one of training but when it was game time, she made sure she put on a show. The forward was lights out from three in just two games of action. Burying threes from all over the court and not just hoisting up shots. If it wasn’t a heat check, Herbert had a ton of clean looks from her guards. Herbert was more of a problem when she began stepping in for easy mid-range jump shots and lay-ups at the basket. Keeping her off the boards was a tough task because she tracks them down so effortlessly. Jamie Martin | G | 2027 Martin is a guard that knows how to score the ball in a half-court setting when breaking down her opponents to get into her shots. However, Martin was really at her best in the open floor. She simply understands proper spacing when filling in the lanes and how to get out in transition when the rebound is secured. Playing along side a good big and another guard made things much easier for Martin and she took advantage of it. Not to mention, she has great hands defensively and that also led to her getting those fast break buckets. Saniya Smith | G | 2027 Smith took home the Ms. Hustle award with her outstanding efforts to win loose ball opportunities, getting after it on the ball and just showing she wouldn’t be outworked on the defensive end. While Smith was a defensive problem, it was also her shooting touch that turned heads in the building. She has such a nice form, release and consistency within her jump shot. Smith has a nice arc on her shot and buried a ton of threes from deep all while showing off different types of footwork to get her shots off. As Smith put combo moves together to score off the bounce she’ll be a tougher cover. Kayanna Chief | F | 2027 Chief is a forward that did a good job at punishing smaller defenders. She showed her ability to handle the ball whether it was with full-court pressure or in a half-court setting. Chief understood when she had a mismatch and could beat her opponents based off of size, speed or just strength. No matter who defended her, it was hard trying to keep her out the paint without fouling her. Chief finished well with either hand in traffic or through contact and did a good job of getting rid of the ball when extra help appeared. Savannah Tobias | F | 2027 Tobias posed as her team’s best outside shooting threat and that helped them a lot during gameplay. She was very proficient from three and made teams pay every time they left her open whether it went in or not. Tobias often forced two people to close out leaving opportunities for extra rebounds and easy put-back lay-ups for her team. Tobias showed that she could shoot both off the catch and shoot or off the bounce. When players began overplaying her, she made strong drives to the basket to finish or find open teammates. Hailey Houlder | G | 2028 Houlder is a southpaw guard that showed off her great speed when getting by her opponents. I loved how Houlder could get to the basket just about every time and make tough finishes but she wasn’t shy of taking and making the mid-range jump shot when defenders backed off to slow her down. While she’s very fast with the ball in her hands, it was interesting to watch how she managed to play at different speeds when running the offense. Havana Thompson | G | 2027 Thompson had a great showing during gameplay of the All-Star weekend. Showing her true understanding of the game made it easy for her to put the ball in the basket. She was always in the right place at the right time for slashing lay-ups and when spotting up for jump shots she used her shot fakes to her advantage. That allowed her to get defenders in the air to blow by them for easy lay-ups or extra pass opportunities. Thompson earned the bounce back award and it was clear to see why. Not particularly a bad day 1 but a pretty good day 2 showing. Solest Jones | G | 2028 Jones is the definition of heart over height. Playing with girls a year older than her and most certainly much taller she didn’t allow it to change her game. Jones relied on her speed, tight handle, head fakes and the bodies she was able to use in the pick and roll action to get to where she wanted for what she wanted. Jones can shoot the ball really well, she’s a heck of a passer with great court vision and at times she was too unselfish. Defensively, Jones gave both the guards and bigs headaches with her quick hands that she used to pick a lot of pockets. Jones’s on ball pressure was nonstop and bothered a ton of players. Lily Brown | F | 2027 Brown is a southpaw forward that has a lot of things that most guards should have whether it’s a female or male. The ability to use her body when attacking players instantly stood out to me when watching her play. Especially when she was able to attack her strong side. She left bigs no chance at blocking her shot because she used her body and the ball so well to bump defenders off before finishing. Brown often utilized the euro step move to get around defenders before finishing in traffic or through contact.