Jammin In July: Top Shooters

<p>With many of Minnesota’s top AAU programs on display last weekend in Ames, we take a look at seven of the top shooters from Jammin In July!</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="796947" first="Caleb" last="Siwek"] (6’2 2022 G, Howard Pulley 16u)- </strong>By now it’s highly likely you’ve been hearing or seeing a lot of [player_tooltip player_id="796947" first="Caleb" last="Siwek"] on social media. The rising junior shot the lights out for Howard Pulley and had defenders chasing him off screens all weekend long. With deep range, a pretty quick release, and the ability to shoot off the catch or dribble, Siwek made his presence felt with his outside jumper. Not only was he knocking down shots in bulk, but he did so at a high percentage that made him an extremely efficient scorer.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="774901" first="Jackson" last="Purcell"] (6’4 2021 G, MN Select Ohnstad 17u)- </strong>Jackson wasn’t quite shooting in bulk like [player_tooltip player_id="796947" first="Caleb" last="Siwek"], but he was an efficient shooter throughout the weekend. Jackson can impress with his ability to blow by defenders and explode to the rim, which forced defenders to give him a little extra space beyond the arc. Once given room to shoot, Jackson proved to have a smooth and consistent stroke allowing him to put up a quick three points for his team.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="774748" first="Broden" last="Lien"] (6’8 2021 F, D1 Minnesota 17u)- </strong>When you see [player_tooltip player_id="774748" first="Broden" last="Lien"] warming up, you don’t expect him to be such a good shooter. He’s 6’8, strong, and athletic, forcing defenders to respect his ability to get to the rim and finish. However, [player_tooltip player_id="774748" first="Broden" last="Lien"] ended up being one of the most efficient three point shooters at the event, catching and shooting in one fluid motion from beyond the arc, rarely even hitting the rim as his shot went in. Expect to see more and more low-mid major D1 offers start rolling in for the versatile forward.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="850713" first="Carter" last="Bjerke"] (6’8 2022 F, D1 Minnesota 16u)- </strong>Another 6’8 forward who shot the lights out was [player_tooltip player_id="850713" first="Carter" last="Bjerke"]. At this point we’ve come to know Carter as one of the top shooters in the state, and he backed up that reputation again at Jammin In July. In a tough match against All Iowa Attack, it was Bjerke who provided a spark on offense with his outside shot, finishing with 17 points and 6 rebounds while knocking down 5 threes.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="962214" first="Nolan" last="Winter"] (6’5 2023 W, Howard Pulley 15u)- </strong>[player_tooltip player_id="962214" first="Nolan" last="Winter"] was one of the players I was most impressed with over the weekend. He was listed at 6’3 during the high school season, but is now up to 6’5 and is deadly from long range. Despite being one of the tallest players on the floor at all times, Nolan was running off screens and floating on the wing to get in space to shoot. Surrounded by a plethora of athletes, it was [player_tooltip player_id="962214" first="Nolan" last="Winter"] who was putting points on the board and opening up space for his teammates to slash to the rim. </p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="774734" first="Reid" last="Patterson"] (6’2 2021 G, MN Select Ohnstad 17u)- </strong>Whether it be from deep or from mid-range, [player_tooltip player_id="774734" first="Reid" last="Patterson"] has such a pretty shooting stroke. He did a great job at running off screens tight to get into space to shoot, and he elevates well to get his shot off over and extended hand. One thing that stands out about Reid, is that he does a good job of disguising when he’s going to pull up to shoot. He keeps his head up allowing him to decide between shooting, passing, or blowing by his man in a split-second decision.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="962198" first="Taison" last="Chatman"] (6’3 2023 G, D1 Minnesota 15u)- </strong>Taison has one of the smoothest strokes I’ve seen in the past few years. The ball just looks so natural leaving his hands, and it looks effortless as he elevates to release. Whether it was from beyond the arc or a mid-range pull-up after a space creating crossover, Taison was knocking down shots left and right. His ability to create space by changing his pace makes him so hard to guard, and when he created that space he was hitting at a high percentage no matter where he was on the floor. </p>