The Apple's Best Ballaz
Tournament Player Reports
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Prime Time Shootout 2002- Matt Grasso |
| Ricky Soliver 6'3
SG All Hallows- Great perimeter player. He is very capable of handling the
ball on the perimeter. He has a very smooth shot, but that was not evident
against Westchester (CA) as he had trouble getting it off. He is a
mid-major to high major player. He would be a great steal in the spring
signing period for a high profile school. Ronald Ramon 6'1 PG All Hallows 2004 - He is an good shooter from the outside. He provided his team with big shots down the stretch to keep them in the game. He needs to work on his floor game to become a point guard at the next level. Ronald is only a sophomore so he has a lot of time for improvement. Marvin McCullough 5'11 PG(All Hallows)- Very potent penetrating point guard. He gets into the teeth of a defense pretty handily. Once in the paint, he is able to create shots for himself as well as others. Iona got a solid point guard for next year. Hassan Adams (Westchester(CA))- Very good slasher. His deadly when taking the ball to the basket. Due to his big frame, he is tough to keep out of the paint. Hassan is a very good finisher around the hoop. He is an athletic kid with a lot of talent. Steve Burtt Jr. 6'0 SG (Rice)- This kid is a major sleeper in this year's senior class. He doesn't get as much attention as he should due to the amount of talent on Rice's roster. however, he certainly opened some eyes at this event. He can shoot the three and take it to the basket as well. He is very adept at making tough shots around the basket. Steve will end up at a Mid-major division 1 school. Shagari Alleyne 7'3 C(Rice) 2003 - He has vastly improved this year, and that was especially evident this past weekend. Shagari has a very soft touch around the hoop. He doesn't get the ball as often as he should, but when he does, he easily converts. He needs to work on his mobility and posting up to be a big time division 1 player. Carmello Anthony 6'7 SF (Oak Hill)- Syracuse picked up a big time recruit in this guy. He has great moves around the basket, and can put it on the floor pretty well. He has an ability to hit the mid-range jumper as well. He plays more on the interior than I previously thought he did. He'll be in the NBA Draft next year. Lebron James 6'7 SF (St. Vincent-St. Mary's) 2003 - This kid succeeds in every offensive aspect of the game. He can pass, shoot, put it on the floor, and finish extremely well above the rim. He will almost definitely make the jump from high school to the NBA next year. |
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National Prep Invitational 2002- Keith Mason |
| Rashad McCants 6'4 SG (New Hampton Prep,
NH)- In my mind he was the best player at the event. He is definitely one
of the 10 best players in the nation, he can shoot it with the best of
them, he's very strong and uses that to his advantage when taking players
to the basket or posting them up. When you talk about the most athletic
players in the class he is up there, on top of all that he is a great
passer and has a good handle but does tend to go right a little too much.
McCants and 6'1 PG Raymond Felton will be murder in the ACC next year, UNC
will be back to their winning ways because of that backcourt.
Denham Brown 6'7 SG (West Hill, Canada)- Out of all the players in the event he has the biggest upside, there is no doubt in my mind that we will one day see him in the NBA. He already has the size and strength for the NBA. Besides his physical attributes he can shoot the lights, Clark Francis of HoopScoop called him the best pure shooter in North America. But he isn't one of those players that needs to have his feet set and be open to knock it down, he won't hesitate to pull up in somebody's face or shoot it off the dribble. He is also very athletic and can rise over players much taller then him. Torin Francis 6'10 PF (Tabor Academy, MASS)- I like his game a lot because he isn't one of those 6'10 players who wants to be a guard. He wants the ball on the blocks, and when he gets it down there he will make something happen. He likes to spin to the middle, and is not afraid to dunk the ball on people. Although he would prefer to be on the blocks, he is also able to knock down the mid range jumper, which makes him an NBA prospect, but he'll need at least a couple of years of college. But his one drawback is major one, he doesn't have good hands, in the game I saw he dropped at least 10 passes. Akin Akingbala 6'9 PF (New Brunswick, CT)- He didn't pick a good school to go to for basketball because I'm sure there are a lot of times when he looks bad because his teammates aren't basketball players. In the first half of his game vs. St. Andrew's (RI) he scored 5 points and the team had 7!!! But then in the second half he showed whey he's going to Clemson, his game remdinds me a lot of a former ACC player Antawn Jamison. When Jamison was in college as soon as he got the ball he started his move, everyone remembers the game when he scored 30+ on Duke despite having the ball for just 53 seconds. Akingbala is similar to that he begins making his move as soon as the ball touches his hand, which catches his defender off guard, and his superior athleticism allows him to get the shot over them. He is also a great shot blocker, but needs to be more aggressive on the glass. But he is still a raw talent and has a lot of room to improve, and at Clemson I think he'll be able to do that. Francisco Garcia 6'7 SF (Winchendon, MASS)- The one thing that stood out the most about his game when I saw was his incredible passing ability for a forward. He passes like PG and has the size and athleticism of a 3, which makes him the versatile player that often succeeds. He can also knock down the 3 with consistency, and loves taking it to the basket. He will be a major contributor next year at Louisville. Curtis Stinson 6'1 PG (Winchendon, MASS) 2003- I had heard he improved his jump shot over last year, but he didn't take any in his game so I still don't know if that is true. But he still has the strength, craftiness with his handle, finishes around the basket very well and is still one of the best rebounding guards in the Nation. With one more year to prove himself he may end up at a big time program. |