Battle at the Lakes: Impressive Point Guards
The floor generals were out in full force last weekend at Battle of the Lakes. A number of players found ways to stand out. Some were great passers, others scored the ball effectively and some were defensive menaces. Here is…
Access all of Prep Hoops
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingThe floor generals were out in full force last weekend at Battle of the Lakes. A number of players found ways to stand out. Some were great passers, others scored the ball effectively and some were defensive menaces. Here is a list of some of the most impressive point guards that laced them up this weekend.
Impressive Point Guards:
Amarion Fields-
One of the most impressive players of the tournament was Amarion Fields. While there were a number of great passers at Battle at the Lakes, no one was able to use their eyes to move defenders more effectively than Fields. On a multitude of possessions, Fields was able to create open passing lanes by drawing defenders out of position by looking off his man like a quarterback looks off a safety. Paired with his ability to find players in stride with no-look passes, Fields afforded his team a number of open shots at the rim with his unique talent. He was also able to use the skill in transition for drop passes to trailing big men, instead of wings leading the play.
Kyle Neibch-
Neibch showing great court vision to find the open man! #PrepHoopsBatL pic.twitter.com/lzDBQprFKj
— Jordan Kneen (@JordanKneen) May 11, 2019
A number of teams employed press defenses throughout last weekend’s tournament. However this wasn’t a problem for Kyle Neibch. Whenever opposing defenses tried to press M14 Hoops, he was able to break it by throwing pin-point passes to players up the floor. This nullified the press, and provided his team with open looks or one-on-one matchups that his team could exploit. The featured video highlights Neibch breaking the press with a nice pass to Jeremiah Johnson who was able to get to the basket and draw a foul to get to the line.
Elijah Grant-
Throughout the weekend, Elijah Grant proved to be one of the best scoring point guards on the floor. Grant was an effective 3-point shooter with the ability to knock down shots with a hand in his face. He also showed an ability to drive to the basket with good footwork and a tight spin move. Grant also did a nice job of recognizing defenders positioning and sought contact out to get to the line. When he wasn’t scoring, Grant also was a good rebounder on the offensive end and provided his team with second-chance opportunities.
Avyn Hayes-
The pass of the weekend in St. Louis Park was thrown by Avyn Hayes. Off the jump ball to start the game, Hayes controlled the ball and pushed forward into the open floor before the defense had the opportunity to set itself. As he drove, a wing player cut in behind the two opposing bigs and Hayes threw a beautiful bounce pass with right-to-left spin through a 3 foot window. The ball found the driving wing, and he was able to lay the ball in for an easy opening basket. The controlled bounce pass was something that Avyn Hayes always had in his bag and was able to go to when the opportunity presented itself. He also possesses a nice jump shot which keeps defenders honest and helps him create passing lanes to take advantage of.
Josiah Nolan-
Check out this beautiful scoop shot in the lane by Jasiah Nolan #PrepHoopsBatL pic.twitter.com/2KH328ghcW
— Jordan Kneen (@JordanKneen) May 11, 2019
It didn’t matter where Josiah Nolan found himself on the floor, he was going to score the basketball. He has a number of shots that he can go to on a given possession. Time-after-time, Nolan showed the ability to recognize angles, defensive positioning and his position on the floor to score. He was able to drive for layups, shoot the ball in the mid/long-range, he could bank the ball off the glass and adjust in the air to defenders. It didn’t matter how defenses played him, Nolan was going to score. The two featured videos highlight this ability. In the first video, Nolan was able to get into the lane and scoop the ball off the glass with beautiful touch to get it to go in. The second shows Nolan using a crossover dribble to get the defender on his heals so he could drive in for a clean layup.
Yet another beautiful drive and score by Jasiah Nolan! #PrepHoopsBatL pic.twitter.com/fAQ9gLPUw1
— Jordan Kneen (@JordanKneen) May 11, 2019
Sean Sullivan-
Not all point guards are flashy, but that didn’t matter for Sean Sullivan. Minnesota Fury-Syverson possessed one of the better passing big-men in the 16U tournament (Zach Wenthe), and Sullivan was charged with running the offense and making sure the ball found Wenthe in the post. Sullivan showed a nice ability to run the offense and get the team into their sets so they could generate good shots. His post entires were clinical and allowed Minnesota Fury to exploit cutting wings through their center. On possessions when the ball did not find its way to the post, Sullivan was able lead cutters to the rim and provide teammates with open shots.
Hayden Holland-
Being a great point guard isn’t always about what you do on the offensive end. For Hayden Holland, it was about what he brought to the defense that made him valuable. Holland showed a nice ability to set the half-court defense and help his team bear down on that side of the ball. His knack for recognizing passing lanes and jumping them provided his team with additional possessions. Holland also provided nice on-ball defense and disrupted a number of set plays that opponents tried to run.