Bryce’s EYBL Notebook: High-Majors in the morning
Below is a list of my favorite high-major prospects from morning play of the Nike Elite Youth Basketball session on Saturday, April 27. Those mentioned on list are restricted to players I was able to watch in person, exclusively: Isaiah Todd…
Access all of Prep Hoops
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingBelow is a list of my favorite high-major prospects from morning play of the Nike Elite Youth Basketball session on Saturday, April 27. Those mentioned on list are restricted to players I was able to watch in person, exclusively:
Isaiah Todd 2020 Nightrydas (FL) combo
- Stretch
- Walking mixtape
- Explosive, lengthy athlete
- Run-and-gun
Isaiah Todd gave me the show I was looking for with an explosive performance against UPLAY Canada. Todd was best as a scorer when stationed about the high post to the short corner, where he was able to get a gather on the catch and go up. Attempts to stop the junior standout in these situations were essentially futile as he was unstoppable in these situations. He also did a great job of stretching the floor as a spot-up shooter. Todd consistently hit shots from the short corner, finding his spot there and forcing the defense to close-out on him.
RJ Hampton 2020 Drive Nation (TX) point guard (pictured above)
- Ball-handler
- Separation king
- Playmaker
The highest individual scoring accolade I saw today, RJ Hampton, 39 point-performance against Phenom University was nothing short of electrifying. As a premier on-ball guard, Hampton is a regular with the ball; I estimate that the ball spends north of 40 percent of its time in Drive Nation’s possession in his hands. However, when you can score like Hampton, that isn’t much of a problem. Hampton’s handles, combined with his footwork, makes him so deadly. He can go north or south out of the dribble, and his quick reaction-time makes it difficult to know where he’s going. He finishes well at the rim and is exceptional when it comes to drawing the foul. Despite coming out with a loss to Phenom University, nobody could stop Hampton even if he only had a few inches of room.
Jamari Sibley 2020 Phenom University (WI) forward
- Rebounder
- Scorer
- Spot-up shooter
- Efficient
Six-foot-8-inch prospect Jamari Sibley has the luxury of being one-of-four players from his team sharing the same metric, but Sibley stood out this morning all-the-same. He gravitates towards holes in the defense as a catch-and-score small forward. Most of his 19-point performance came in the under appreciated forms of scoring, especially the mid-range shot and the put-back out of the rebound. Sibley’s strength and size were a powerful combo, but his drive and relentlessness were even greater a feat to best. Once he had established a scrappy presence, he took advantage of the defense with the 3-ball and knocked down a game-sealing shot to put Phenom University up 80-71 with 54 seconds to go.
Did we miss something? DM @McKinnisBryce via Twitter to let us know.