King Of Spring – Standouts

<p>After a ton of time off, a lot of uncertainty, and quite frankly, at lot of boredom being stuck in the house, Ball Out Events delivered us a GEM. King Of Spring is an event held for Summer Programs in the greater Houston area and the timing of this event could not have been any better. Though it was a difficult decision, Marcus Sloan and his staff took a huge step forward by hosting the first big event of the season (at Legacy School of Sports Sciences) and everyone was excited to be back in the gym. There were just enough teams in the event to make it a success and as of this date, there has been no reported cases of COVID-19 or any illnesses period resulting from this event. "No mask, no entry" was in full effect and the event coordinators did a good job of keeping things sanitize, supplying masks when needed and making sure that everyone had their temperature taken prior to entering the venue. And now let’s get to what we saw and learned.</p> <p>This time off has been good for some players, yet a detriment to others. The players that used this time to work on their craft rather than taking a break, had a noticeable edge over everyone else. I am not one to judge because this time has been really difficult for all of us and I will never blame someone for taking their health seriously enough to stay in the house, but it will take some time for some players to get back into game shape. Nevertheless, there was a lot to see and a lot of players making a name for themselves.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Texas Takeover Elite - Kemp 17U (Prep Hoops Circuit team)</strong></span></p> <p>[embed]https://youtu.be/kpyBS74HbbU[/embed]</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="887061" first="Jake" last="Arnold"], 6’2 Combo Guard (Katy Taylor HS 2021), </strong>picked up from where he left off from this past school season. Draining 3’s!!! He has an incredible knack for making shots, particularly for deep, and also creates for everyone on his team. <strong>J</strong><strong>aDyn Chaney, 6’1 Point Guard - (Westfield HS 2021)</strong>, is an absolute floor general! JaDyn excelled at dictating the pace of the game and keeping everyone involved. He has the ability to get into the paint, seemingly at will, and create high percentage shots for his team. <strong>Ashton Lindsey, 6’4 Guard (Willowridge HS 2021)</strong>, moved well all weekend and was able to display his athleticism on both side of the ball. He got to the basket at ease, was efficient from 3, defended multiple positions on defense effectively, and did not have to force anything. </p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Texas Takeover Elite - Thompson 17U (Prep Hoops Circuit team)</span></strong></p> <p><strong>Jullian Camper, 6’0 Point Guard ( George Ranch HS 2021), </strong>was an absolute blur this weekend. He used his speed and shiftiness to keep pressure on the defense. He made plays at the rim, passed the ball well and was the perfect example of how every team wants their point guard to lead their team. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>J</strong></span><strong>efferson Morris, 6’7 Guard/Forward (2021)</strong> will make some college coach extremely happy in the near future. At this point, he is still flying under the radar but there is nothing on the court that he cannot do. He has great size, can shoot from deep, finishes at the rim and defends multiple positions.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Texas Takeover Elite - Major 17U (Prep Hoops Circuit team)</strong></span></p> <p>Any colleges looking for tough guard play needs to find a way to see this team. <strong>TreShon Clay &amp; Trevon Clay (the twins)</strong> <strong>Guards (Westbury HS 2021)</strong> applied pressure 100% of the time on both sides of the court. Both players scored effectively and created a ton of turnovers defensively. <strong>Khi Watkins, 6’2 Guard (College Park HS 2021)</strong>, played with the same type of intensity. He scored in a myriad of ways and his length made him beast in the passing lanes. <strong>Dylan Mackey, 6’0 Guard (Aldine Davis HS),</strong> made plays that I just could not believe I was watching. At first, I thought it was luck, but after about 4 or 5 of them, I have come to the conclusion that this young man can just flat out make difficult shots.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Team Evolution - 17U</strong></span></p> <p><strong>Tyler Thomas, 5’10 Point Guard (St Thomas Episcopal HS 2021),</strong> took the lead role and displayed his entire bag. He made deep shots, played defense with his hair on fire and constantly got into the teeth of the defense. When he got inside the paint, he did a great job of absorbing the contact and still finishing. He also made sure that his teammates were involved.<br /> <br /> </p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Beast Elite - 17U (Prep Hoops Circuit team)</strong></span></p> <p><strong>Ronald Holmes, 6’4 Guard (Northside HS 2021)</strong>, was nothing short of amazing. Inside, outside, defense, it was all on display. He looks to be in incredible shape and his passion for the game was undeniable and infectious. He made plays defensively that translated to easy looks on the offensive end, and was efficient scoring from the floor.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>DriveNation - Cutter 17U (Prep Hoops Circuit team)</strong></span></p> <p><strong>J5!!! Jaleen Goodman, Point Guard (Summer Creek HS 2022)</strong>, (as these kids say) got that work!!!! He was incredible, scoring on all three levels. He was able to recognize when his team’s offensive output was stagnant, and inserted his offensive prowess every single time. <strong>Trey Miller, 6’0 Point Guard (Concordia Lutheran HS 2022)</strong>, played like a ten year vet. Always kept his composure, minimized his mistakes and got his teammates in favorable positions to be successful. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="887068" first="Thirhrey" last="Smiley"], 6’6 Foward (Klein HS 2021)</strong>, was extremely bouncy. I am not sure if he fully knows how athletic he actually is, but he unknowingly used it to the advantage of his team this weekend. Defensively, he blocked shots and rebounded well, and offensively he made plays at the rim and stretched the floor with his outside shooting.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>DriveNation - Martin 17U (Prep Hoops Circuit team)</strong></span></p> <p>[embed]https://youtu.be/BDHkdoNVO1k[/embed]</p> <p><strong>Jacob Harvey, 6’0 Point Guard (Hargrave HS 2021), </strong>ran his team with a sense of professionalism. He dictated the tempo of the game and held everyone on his team accountable for their play. Offensively, he shot the ball with extreme efficiency and passed the ball well all weekend. <strong>Tyson Anderson, 6’6 Forward (Westfield HS 2020</strong>, was a force to be reckoned with, particularly on the defensive end. He is usually known for his aggressive dunks but this weekend he displayed great timing on the defensive end and aggressively blocked shots. Also, he was able to show that he has been working on his 3 point shot as well.</p>