Darkhorses: 5A
The 5A world is tough. While there might not be the same pieces at the top of 5A as there are in 6A, Pinnacle and Perry, or 4A, Shadow Mountain, Salpointe, and Buckeye; there is talent everywhere in 5A. There will be a lot of controversy in who makes the final 24 team cut for the state tournament and play-in. These darkhorses are capable of making that 24 and making some noise. However, their path will be challenging and all of these teams have something to prove.
Casteel
This pick comes with a lot of intrigue. Casteel was 18-10 in 3A. While that is impressive, they make a huge leap in moving to 5A, which arguably has the most talent top to bottom out of any classification in the state.
Casteel gets the luxury of bringing back every piece who was on the team last year. Further, this team has shooters. Cooper Christensen led the team in assists last year as he did a great job of facilitating to the shooters. However, the primary playmaker for this group will be Chris York.
York let the group in scoring last year while shooting the lights out of the gym. He will be responsible for doing the same and more next year. In addition to York, Casteel will have Austin Ponsness, who was second in scoring and led the team in rebounds.
The bottom line is that this team has pieces, and they have proven that they can win. The biggest question mark is going to be how that success translates to the 5A level.
Paradise Valley
Paradise Valley surprisingly falls into this category after winning 22 games last season. However, they fall into arguably the toughest region in the state while also losing four of their five leading scorers from last year. This group will have a lot to prove after graduating such a skilled and successful senior group.
However, they have the parts needed in order to do so. Nathan Perry will be looked to as a playmaker and a leader for the group. He brings an edge to him that gets the rest of his teammates to play at a high level. Further, he is capable of scoring the ball in bunches when he gets a rhythm.
In addition to Perry, Kendyl Watson is one of the most intriguing prospects in the state. He has all of the pieces needed to be a high level prospect. If he is able to put them all together this season, Paradise Valley will be poised to be stout.
Moreover, Anthony Giliberto had some solid moments this past July with the Rebels. Between these three, Paradise Valley has the potential to make some noise this upcoming season.
Cienega
If Paradise Valley is missing a lot of talent from their 22 win season last year, Cienega is missing far more. After winning 18 games last season, Cienega lost their 8 leading scorers from last years group.
What is the cause for optimism? JT Elder. Elder might be a year away from being able to take this team to the state tournament or from doing damage at the tournament. However, he can play and will be a match-up nightmare for opposing teams.
This group is going to surprise a lot of teams who thought that Cienega would take a step back due to the amount of graduations. While they might take some steps back, Elder is capable of being better than any prospect who was on last year’s team.