The Tampa Tarpons are a hard working program
With plenty of talent in the Tampa/St. Petersburg area, the Tampa Tarpons have put together a very competitive roster.
I checked out the 16U and 15U practices on Tuesday night held at Tampa Prep. Run by head coach Chip Orr, the 2019 group ran a face paced two hour session which included game scenarios, various drills and skill work. The 2020 group did more of the same on the second court.
Here is a look at the two rosters starting with the 2019 team.
Chris Yount (Jesuit), Sager Cavalier (Alonso), Kamalii Findlay (Alonso), Dawson Maxwell (Clearwater), Zach Brown (Plant), Jared Walker (Tampa Prep), Alex Orr (Jesuit), Alex Weinstock (Berkeley Prep), Andrew Hanis (Jesuit), Lamard Hickman (Cambridge Christian), Owen Carlson (Tampa Prep), Tim Williams (Tampa Prep), Mitchell Johnson (Jesuit), Andrew Dansoh (Jesuit) and Leonard Parker (Plant).
—Yount, Orr, Hanis, Johnson and Dansoh are part of the Jesuit bunch on the Tarpons. All of them are the future for the Tigers as they bring in a 2019 class that succeeded at the JV level.
—Walker, Carlson and Williams are the trio from Tampa Prep. Walker is currently out with a hip injury while Carlson is a nice outside shooter and Williams is an intriguing post player.
—Brown and Parker are from Plant. Brown can make plays with his smarts while Parker is a pure athlete and someone who will thrive at cornerback for the Panthers football team this season.
—Cavalier, Findlay, Maxwell and Hickman all made things happen for the Tarpons. Findlay is the lengthiest of the bunch at 6’5″ and he battled through a bad cold to practice on Tuesday night. Weinstock is also there from Berkeley Prep, but he’s out with an injury.
2020 group
Isaac Ward (Tampa Prep), Reagan Weiss (Plant), Ryan Porcaro (Jesuit), Gabe Del Valle (Wharton), Bennett Andersen (Jesuit), Connor Leach (Berkeley Prep), Spencer Epps (Plant), Robbie Peek (Plant), Jaden Gray (Tampa Prep), Jeff Odongo (Berkeley Prep) and Morgan Halme (Jesuit).
Note: The 15U team is coached by Rodney Porcaro and Justin Petredis.
Final thoughts
Orr runs a very smart program with the Tarpons. The team uses every single minute of practice time to install plays and defensive schemes. It was a back and forth practice rather than just a simple scrimmage.
The Tarpons head to Hoop Seen Atlanta Jam this weekend before taking part in the May Day Hoopfest here in Tampa the following weekend.
Look for both groups to make noise in the tournaments they take part in all summer.