Swish N Dish: 2020 Scouting
PrepHoopsIllinois was at the NY2LA Sports Swish N Dish in Mequon, Wisconsin this past weekend for the premier grassroots kickoff event featuring all of the best Illinois teams. Now it is time for our extensive scouting report on the event. Check out our report on the 2020 Illinois Prospects in attendance.
PG Elliot Sieger (Illinois Wolves 17U)
Sieger is a 5’11” point guard from DePaul Prep that made quite a bit of noise during his first season of high school basketball. Not only did he play varsity, but he was one of the go to players for one of the Chicago areas top 2A squads. I think you have to be impressed with the maturity he has for the game at a young age. Calm and composed with the ball in his hands. Will need to add strength to his slight frame as time goes on to play at the college level. Makes sound decisions with the ball and gets others involved. As a scorer he can hit a three, but it has a bit of a slow funky release. Good ball handler that should continue to improve as a scorer throughout his career as he already puts up solid numbers early in his development. One of the top point guards in the state’s 2020 class. Impressive to see him holding his own playing up two age levels with the Illinois Wolves 17U.
SF Lamontay Daughtery (Brad Beal Elite 16U)
Daughtery stands at 6’5” with long arms and projectable body. He is playing up on the 16U level with Brad Beal Elite. Probably would be best playing 15s as he is still a bit raw, but has significant potential. Daughtery is a plus athlete that can impact the game with that on both ends of the floor. Shot blocking presence on the interior. Defensively he has the physical tools, but will need to get more of a mindset to lock in and get down in a defensive stance. Offensively he flashes with a feathery jumper and slick handles. Not consistent possession to possession. Love his upside as a prospect! Has high-major ability written all over him. Top 5 2020 in state.
SG Ryan Connolly (Kessel Heat 15U)
Connolly opened the spring strong for Kessel Heat. He is coming off a productive freshman high school season for Grayslake North. The 2020 wing has good size on the perimeter and plays with a motor. Thick upper body. He finishes well around the hoop through contact. Got on the offensive glass and had a couple strong drives where he put it on the deck and went at his man. Pure looking stroke from three with clean mechanics. Connolly will be one to continue to monitor in the 2020 group.
PF Patrick Ready (Brad Beal Elite 15U)
Ready made us take notice of him during the high school season playing on Belleville Althoff’s JV team. The 6’6” four man has a well-built upper body along with good length. Strong hands and soft touch around the hoop. Outstanding area rebounder that gobbles them up with his long arms. Not an overly explosive vertical athlete at this stage he can block shots on occasion. Post to track for D1 schools.
PG Nimari Burnett (Mac Irvin Fire 15U)
Burnett is already a well-known name in the state of Illinois. He came into the season as one of the more hyped freshman and backed it up with a strong freshman campaign especially late in the year when he was money from deep. He was a major reason Morgan Park captured the state title. Burnett can really shoot the ball. His ability to create his shot off the bounce with his handles has taken that part of his game up a notch. No longer just a catch and shoot guy. Burnett can create his own shot and rise up quickly to get it off. Burnett hit an array of jumpers on his way to 15 points. Has high-major upside. Top 5 2020 in Illinois.
PG Adam Miller (Mac Irvin Fire 15U)
Miller has the pole position to debut at the top spot in the 2020 rankings at the end of the summer. Can he hold on to it? He started off slow against Wisconsin Playground Warriors missing a lot of transition shots, but got it going as he settled into the game. Jumper wasn’t falling in the first half, but it did as soon as the half flipped. He went on to drill a trio of threes to open up the second half. Good mechanics on his shot. Playmaker with the rock in his hands although he can be a bit wild with it at times. Miller is a high-major prospect in 2020. Finished with 17 points.
PF Shon Robinson (Mac Irvin Fire 15U)
Robinson has outstanding physical measurable at 6’8” with super long arms and quickness to match. Runs the floor well and can stretch the floor with his shot. Overall struggled to score in the game we evaluated. Missed all of the jumpers he took and couldn’t get into an offensive rhythm. Did get to the line a few times showing a sound stroke from there. Potential to be a quality rebounder especially if he adds strength. Shot blocking presence. Top 5 2020 prospect.
PG DJ Steward (Meanstreets 15U)
Steward is coming off a phenomenal freshman season. He has size at 6’3” with incredibly long arms and slender build. The first aspect that stands out about this freshman is the speed he plays with in the open floor. Lightning quick end to end. Uses his speed to push it and find open teammates. Slick ball handler that gets in and out of traffic both in the open floor and in the half court. His best offensive scoring move was a stutter step where he made his man fall and then drilled a pull up jumper. Also passed it well including the game winning dime to Tyler Beard on an alley oop. High-major prospect in 2020 and is in contention for the #1 spot.
PG Tyler Beard (Meanstreets 15U)
Beard stands at 6’0” with a strong frame. He is at his best attacking the hoop. Beard likes to push it in transition and be aggressive getting to the cup. Powerful when he has the ball in his hands going downhill. Also moves well laterally on the defensive end of the floor. Has a chance to be one of the better two way guards in his class.
PF RJ Ogom (Meanstreets 15U)
Ogom plays an undersized four man for Meanstreets 15U. The sophomore stands at 6’5” with a strong and compact body. Not sure how much more he is going to grow. Great rebounder that has that junk yard dog type mentality on the interior. Aggressively goes after every single board or loose ball. Raw offensively other than finishing on put backs or dump off passes.
PG Ahron Ulis (Meanstreets 15U)
The younger brother of Phoenix Suns point guard Tyler Ulis. Ahron is starting to come into his own. Pass first point guard that distributes the rock and gets others involved. Pushes in the open floor.
SG Destin Whitaker (Meanstreets 15U)
Whitaker has outstanding size and length at 6’4”. Thin frame that he will need to add strength on to in the next three years of high school, but should be able to do that. Looked good pulling up shooting off the bounce. One we will continue to track as he has scoring potential.
SF Isaiah Rivera (Quad City Elite 15U)
Rivera is a 6’4” small forward from Geneseo High School. He is a lengthy wing that handles it well on the perimeter. Clean looking shot from three as he hit one from really deep in one of the games we evaluated. Competes on the defensive end and moves well laterally.
C Devon House (Quad City Elite 15U)
House is a new name to add to the radar! The 6’6” center has a wide body that he moves well. Quality mobility for his size. Nimble footwork around the hoop. Showed nice skill with his ability to score on the block with a soft touch and a nice hook shot. Understands at a young age how to create space and get deep post position. Showed a feel for playing the post. Not much of a vertical athlete yet, but knows how to play on the block. Area rebounder that can gobble them up. Positional defender that plays big and makes it tough for opponents to score over him. House is a player we look forward to see how he develops in 2020 class.
PF Solomon Gustafson (Quad City Elite 15U)
Gustafson is the next big man to come out of Rock Island. A school with a rich basketball history this could be their next young prospect to track. At 6’7” he has legit size with long arms and a soft touch around the hoop. Moves well for his height both in the half court and transition. Defensively he swatted a couple of shots.