Player Profile: John Lovelace Jr.
This spring was the coming out party for John Lovelace Jr., perhaps the states most underrated prospect. The 6-foot-6 ABC Young Lions guard, who is currently unranked in Prep Hoops’ top-75 sophomores, has appeared at Hard Work Live and last…
Access all of Prep Hoops
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingThis spring was the coming out party for John Lovelace Jr., perhaps the states most underrated prospect.
The 6-foot-6 ABC Young Lions guard, who is currently unranked in Prep Hoops’ top-75 sophomores, has appeared at Hard Work Live and last weekend’s Prep Hoops Show Me Showdown.
In both weekends Lovelace emerged as a premier talent, playing poised basketball amidst a sophomore bracket.
Averaging roughly 20 points, 6 assists, and 4 rebounds this spring, Lovelace is largely a score-first player. He’s become a versatile shooter capable of doing damage when spotting up on the wing or off the bounce. At Hard Work Live, I watched as he rattled off three straight treys, then hit a few pull up jumpers to kick start a 21 point outing. At Show Me Showdown, his savvy maneuvers around the hoop were his niche. His bigger frame allowed him to power through defenders and finish in different fashions.
It was quickly apparent that he was perfecting the craft and skills of a guard, just doing it a forwards body.
Lovelace put it best, telling me, “I’m all around athletic, 6’6 guard who can shoot the ball very well.” But when talking with the Milwaukee prospect, he addressed some areas for improvement.
“I think I need to work on getting low on the defense so I can keep faster players in front of me,” said the guard. “But I think there’s always room to improve I would like to improve every way possible so I can be the best player that I can be.”
Now, is defensive stance a far-reaching deficiency? No, not quite. But Lovelace is in the right frame of mind from an improvement standpoint, and the pathway to success hits hard in the small things.
Speaking of that pathway, Lovelace has already made strides down it, improving in other aspects of his game despite getting a lack of recognition in return. Lovelace told me, “I have been working on being a leader and working on my ball handling so I can shoot and get to the basket off the dribble. I have also been working on being a playmaker on both sides of the floor.”
While his talents remains mostly unchecked by recruiters, he has been contacted by a few schools via email. That said, there’s plenty of time for the sophomore to boost his stock even more, especially during this summer.
The likelihood of him going offerless into his senior season is doubtful.