Jr. EHS All-American - Hoosier Prep Spotlight Recap
The Event was ran by Horace Neysmith and Mark Reeves with alot of help from up and comer Adam Shoulders. The event had players from all over the nation in the 9th thru 6th grade age groups. I was definetly pleased with the amount of Indiana players that were in attendance. Including the top two players at the camp: K.J. Walton 6'3" SG from Brownsburg, IN and Bronson Kessinger 6'6" SF from Corydon, IN. They both had great performances on both days of the camp and were talked about with almost everyone I spoke with. Walton has a nice outside shot from beyond the arc and is unstoppable as he penetrates through the lane. Very strong player with so much confidence. And Kessinger is a professor around the basket. Great hands and footwork make him a nice true big man down low. These two will be talked about for years to come in the Great Basketball State of Indiana. The top out of state Frosh that I seen at the camp was 6'3" SG Kevaughn Allen from Little Rock, AR. Allen and Walton gave us all a great show in the top 24 All-Star game. They both went back and forth on each other with Walton getting the better of Allen in the end. Allen is a strong guard with nice ball handeling skills and has great speed in the open court with pretty good court vision. This camp was also my first chance to see Josh Speidel. A 6'7" Frosh out of Columbus North H.S. in Columbus, IN. He is not far behind Kessinger in his low post moves and he makes a big presence down low with his size. Not at all small in stature and can run the floor better than most bigs his age. Love how he posts up and demands the ball and once he gets it is smart and able to use great low post moves or his court vision and find the open man. He has been approached by plenty of AAU programs lately per his father and is also getting attention from Xavier University already. A name to watch in Indiana. I was also impressed with another Indiana Freshman, 6'5" F Tajai Teague out of Indianapolis, IN (Pike H.S.). Teague has some interesting family members. He is cousin to David Teague (Pike H.S. and Purdue Univ.) and also 2013 Michigan Univ. commit Zak Irvin from Hamilton Southeastern H.S. in Fishers, IN. I didnt really notice Teague on day 1 but once the Top 24 All-Star game started he showed up to play. Went 4 for 4 from 3pt land and was able to finish well around the basket. He has a great wing span and with time could be another 2015 player for Indiana High School fans to watch. Other Freshmen that performed well at the camp were: Nick Coffey 6'6" F out of Russell Springs, KY - Big body and was able to clean the glass against anyone. Brandon Berry 6'2" 195lbs. SF from Louisville, KY - Football body makes him a strong basketball player on the court. Robby Dosier 6'2" SG out of Carbondale, IL - A crafty SG with a nice touch from beyond the arc. Neshua Wise 6'2" SF from Flint, MI - very quick in transition and has the ability to step out and knock down the "J". Anthony Jones 6'2" SG from Speedway, IN. - probably the most athletic player of the weekend. Deleon Brown 6'1" CG out of Lansing, MI - quick player with the ball and has a smooth jump shot. Tucker Sine 5'11" PG from Bowling Green, KY - Hardest worker on both sides of the ball. Unselfish player. I enjoyed watching this point guard play with composure and able to find the open man for the easy assist. Jordan Andrews 6'1" SG from Reserve, LA - played both sides of the ball well but most known for his ability to shoot the long ball. Dante Scott 6'2" SG from Powder Springs, GA - showed toughness and nice ball handling skills. I was really impressed with how much length the 2016 Class (8th graders) had. Not only tall but long. I'll start off by introducing you to 6'3" WF Jayson Tatum out of St. Louis, MO. Tatum is a long lanky wing with a smooth style to his game. Able to rebound well with his long wing span and also able to hit the jumper from outside. A big time prospect from the 2016 Class. Another top 2016 player was 5'11" SG C.J. Hedgepeth from Evansville, IN. C.J. was probably the quickest player of the weekend. Has to work on his pull up jumper but was able to get to the rim with ease and sometimes too quick to be able to finish. He is emerging as one of the top players from Indiana in the 2016 Class. I also liked 6'6" SF Braxton Blackwell from Nashville, TN. Braxton was a tough player to guard for most of the weekend. Has nice quickness for his size and able to use his length to get off shots at will. Other 8th graders that need to be mentioned: Brian Alvey 5'6" PG from Louisville, KY - If there was a Pistol Pete of the class, this kid was him. A nice crafty guard that found open player after open player. Most fun to watch = Brian Alvey. Kenny Bunton 6'4" WF from Chattanooga, TN. - Was a workhorse around the basket on Day One. Rokar Williams 6'0" PG from Little Rock, AR - nice PG skills with a soft jumper. C.J. Walker5'10" CG from Indianapolis, IN - a tough guard with a nice jumper and the ability to create scoring opportunities for himself and his teammates. Kelshawn Knight 6'3" PF from Louisville, KY - Shot Blocker extrodinaire. Quentin Goodin 6'1" SG from Campbellsville, KY - really quick guard with a high elevation on his jump shot and plays in your face defense. Rodney Herenton 6'0" SG from Chicagon, IL - impressed me with his toughness during the Top 24 All-Star game. Very long player and was not affraid to go inside and draw the contact. Caron Corpening 5'8" SG from Hickory, NC - played well in the Top 24 All-Star game with his ability to penetrate and find the open man and also knock down a jumper or two during the game. The highlight of my weekend was watching the younger players, the (2017 and 2018 Class) 6th and 7th graders. These age groups were heavy in guards, with some bigs sprinkled in, but boy were they skilled. Ill start off by mentioning my Top Player from these two age groups. 5'8" PG Justin Roberts from Indianapolis, IN (7th grader). Justin didnt always play like the best player over the span of the weekend but you could not deny that he was the most talented one there. He is unbelievably quick and can get to the basket with ease. Needs to work on finishing around the hoop but that will get better over time. Ball handling skills are great and so is his court vision. Loves to make a hard play look easy. I also enjoyed watching another Indianapolis, IN native in 5'0" PG Kobe Webster (7th grader). Kobe is small in stature but dont tell him that. He plays with sooooo much SWAG and determination. Loves to find open teammates and does it well through his ability to attack the basket with his nice ball handling skills. Kobe is only going to get better with time and will be a fun player to watch in Indiana in the near future. I would have to say that the second best player in this age group for the weekend was,Chance Melton 6'2" PF from Columbia, KY (7th grader). Chance is great at getting up and down the court. Uses his height well down low with some pretty good offensive moves for his age. Will need to get a little quicker but that will come with time. Other players that performed well in this age group was: Coulter Dotson 6'3" C from White Bluff, TN (7th grader) - he has great length and plays well down low. Able to run the floor well and has a soft touch with his jumper. Nojell Eastern 5'7" SG from Chicago, IL (7th grader) - NoJell played Roberts tough on defense and was able to find his shot through his toughness on his way to the basket. I liked his all around hustle. D.J. Heath 5'10" CG from Anniston, AL (7th grader) - the most athletic of the 7th graders and was ability to hit his jumper with consistency. Caleb Rozar 6'2" PF from Clarksville, TN (7th grader) - Used his size down low and was able to rebound well. Malachi Rice5'3" CG from Carmel, IN (7th grader) - has great fundamentals and knowledge for the game. Was never out of control and was able to hit his jumper when needed. Rafael Jenkins 4'10" PG from Huntersville, NC (6th grader) - he was a joy to watch. Eventually he was able to find his space to get his shot off. He also used his quickness to find open teammates. One of the youngest players at the camp and has a bright future ahead of him. Drew Hensley 5'4" SG from Bedford, IN (7th grader) - Purest Shooter in this age group. From the same area as Indiana Univ. Great, Damon Bailey. Drew is definetly a player that you dont want to leave open. And he works to get every loose ball. Wallace Tucker 5'2" PG from Alpharetta, GA (7th grader) - is able to knock down the jumper from beyond the arc and played great hard nose defense. Was able to fight for the loose balls and find open teammates. SIDE NOTE: Definitely a camp that I will be trying to attend every year if my schedule allows me to. Great job to all involved. |
Views: 800
