Prospect Spotlight – Lincoln Ball (2020)
2020 guard, Lincoln Ball, of Williamsport HS may have as much unseen upside as anryone in the 2020 class in Maryland. As a very young 6’4 point guard, the potential for Ball is limitless. As a freshman on Varsity for Williamsport he was a solid contributor and put Western Maryland on notice for the force he could be for the next 3 years.
In his freshman campaign, Lincoln played solid minutes on a very good Wildcats team that made in to the 2A West region final last season including starting multiple games. Ball was a contributor on all facets of the game, including being second on the team in assists as he has tremendous court vision and feeds off getting his teammates involved. When needing to create his own shot, he can also do so very effectively as he impressively shot over 50% from the field on the season. Overall, Lincoln says “I believe I did well for being a freshman on varsity and handled myself very well.”
Lincoln describes himself as “a pure point guard, who is an exceptional ball handler & rebounder and make the game always play through him.” When asked which player he believes he is similar too he stated Jason Kidd as a pass first point guard who can also score when needed.
When speaking with Williamsport coach, Ryan Grabill, he spoke very highly of this young man in regards to on and off the court. Grabill states “I have huge expectations for him, but the best thing is he has even bigger ones for himself.” Coach also emphasized how much his size benefits him as he is much longer than most other guards his age and on the varsity level in general. “Offensively, he hurts smaller guards in the paint and defensively can start his own fast break” says Grabill. Coach raved about Lincoln in all aspects, he stated “all in all Lincoln is just a fantastic kid. He does everything you want in a point guard and everything off the you want as a representative of your program.”
This summer, he is currently playing for CSBA Hoyas out of Frederick, MD where he hopes to gain some college looks and improve his game. While playing AAU ball he still also attends summer league workouts, games and camps for his high school team. Also, attending multiple camps such as Mount St. Mary’s Elite, Hoop Group Top 100 (Both Baltimore & NOVA) which also invited him to the Hoop Group Future All American (Fr./So.) Camp.
With all that Lincoln is playing this summer, he is determined to greatly increase his game. Ball stated that he mainly wants to improve his shooting and scoring. Both Lincoln and Coach Grabill both expressed how he has greatly increased his scoring load compared to the high school season. Grabill also stated “we’re focusing on becoming more consistent with his jumper as that will be the key to reaching his potential.” Both Coach and Ball look to make sure he uses his length to his advantage by creating deflections, rebounding & dunking consistently. Overall, including growing and gaining 10 pounds from the weight room, Lincoln is having a huge summer. He can be seen this summer at the following tournaments and camps:
Maryland invitation Tournament, Ocean City Beach Fest & Hoop Group Summer Jam Fest
As only a freshman, he does not have much recruiting activity yet but hopes to soon begin too receive interest from schools. Lincoln says he hopes to play D1 ball and is looking for “a great education and a united team.” And is currently really working hard to get his name out there.
Personally, I really believe the the sky is the limit for this young player as his long 6’4 body with with his skills, gives him all the tools he needs to achieve his goal of playing D1. As many have said, not only is he a great player but a great young man as a 4.0 student, member of FCA, and a humble & talented multi sport athlete, it is going to be hard for schools not to become interested in him. Along with his fellow 2020 frontcourt mate, Caleb Bowers, at Williamsport, I will for sure be following their progress over the next few years, as college programs should be as well.