Quick View: Grassroots Minnesota
Grassroots Minnesota is on the Under Armour circuit this year but who is likely to be on their team? We run through Jalen Suggs and company right now.
Roster
JaVonni Bickham of Minnehaha Academy (6-5 junior power forward, 15.1pg/9.3rb)
Simeon Davis of Hill-Murray/South Kent Prep (6-3 senior shooting guard, 31pg)
Aaron Gill of St. Paul Prep (6-4 junior power forward, 26.4pg)
Damani Hayes of Mankato East (6-4 junior small forward, 19.8pg)
Tayler Johnson of Minneapolis North (6-3 junior guard, 10.1pg)
Uhana Ochan of Mankato East (6-6 junior power forward, 9.8pg)
JaQuan Sanders-Smith of Minneapolis North (6-1 senior point guard, 11.1pg)
Jalen Suggs of Minnehaha Academy (6-3 freshman guard, 21.7pg, 7.2rb)
Odell Wilson IV of Minneapolis North (6-5 junior center, 17pg/10rb)
Others TBD
Five Points
- This is the team that will play on the Under Armour Association tour this year. The group currently has two seniors that are about to graduate (Davis is headed to prep, Sanders-Smith expected to go to Northeast CC), a freshman (Suggs), and the rest are seniors-to-be next fall.
- Suggs is of course the main attraction after leading Minnehaha Academy to a state title and earning several high major offers already as a top 2020 talent nation wide. A five star talent without a doubt. Jalen was a 14U level talent playing on the NY2LA 17U circuit last year with this team and is now a 15U playing up.
- The two seniors are talented players. Davis led Minnesota in scoring this past season while Sanders-Smith was the point guard on the state title Minneapolis North squad. Both are top 50 seniors in Minnesota.
- The guard group has the senior experience, Suggs, and Tayler Johnson who of course played with Sanders-Smith at North. Johnson, Suggs, and Sanders-Smith can all handle, Davis is strong enough to play the two and three, Suggs is big enough and talented enough to play both wing spots as well as point. Hayes scored almost 20 a game at Mankato East (we also listed him with D1 Minnesota Rise this year) and Hayes can play the three as well as some four.
- Up front Bickham, Ochan, and Wilson are all 6-foot-5/6-foot-6 bigs that can play the four and the five. Wilson and Bickham are stronger than most bigs and nearly immovable. Both averaged double-doubles for state champion teams and both have a nice touch after the shoulder turn. Add in the physical size and agility of Ochan (who has great length) and then the ex-factor is Gill who is about as vertically impressive as anyone in state. He’s not the power big the others are, Aaron is more explosive and will have several highlight finishes.