New 17U Names Who Emerged in the Freedom Classic

<p>Basketball is back in Colorado! Well, kind of. The Freedom Classic brought in some in-state teams for their first piece of the action this summer. I watched some games this past weekend, and there were a couple of standouts that caught my eyes. Here are new names to take a look at that emerged in the 17U games.</p> <h5><strong>Jermaine Vincent II – Colorado Miners</strong></h5> <p>Vincent was the floor general for the Miners in the Freedom Classic and is an aggressive rim-attacking guard. He is a down-hill runner that gets a full head of steam and finishes well around the basket. He scores in bunches, shoots it if he is open, and is also an in your face defender that denies allowing you to get to the rim. He is not a player that I had seen too much about but is an intriguing prospect to take a more in-depth look at with a fun Miners unit.</p> <h5><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="965744" first="Blakely" last="Stoughton"] – Pro Skills</strong></h5> <p>Stoughton is not necessarily a new name but a player that is starting to reach his potential. He is one of the most intriguing players that I have seen this summer. He is one of the more athletic players in the class, and he has the full package. He can shoot the 3-ball, gets to the rim, and had a couple of shocking dunks through traffic. As if that were not enough, he also shows off a mid-range game where he gets to his spots and scores. He also is a great defender that got a few chase-down blocks and stayed in front of his man. It was fun to see him in the Freedom Classic as one of the top players, and once Stoughton understands how good he truly is, the sky is the limit for him.</p> <h5><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="916989" first="Ryan" last="Moe"] – Pro Skills </strong></h5> <p>Moe is also a player that we are familiar with, but what he does on the court needs to be discussed a bit more. He showcased strengths to fall in love with as a coach as he was one of the most unselfish players on the weekend, but he also makes a ton happen on the floor that just goes under the radar. Like the left hand, no look bounce-pass as he tip-toed the baseline or the full court outlet that hit his man in stride for an easy basket. Moe doesn’t wow you with his stats, but when you think about impactful plays that happened for Pro Skills this weekend, he was in them. He is bouncy, always moving, and is a high IQ guard that makes it happen. I enjoyed watching him.</p> <h5><strong>Charlie Dortch – Rocky Mountain Fever </strong></h5> <p>Dortch was the big guy for the team playing up two divisions, so you can say that he had his work cut out for him. He still managed to play well, and he was pivotal in Fever picking up an early win as he affected the game down on the block. Dortch had some big rebounds as he limited possessions, he scored down low as he finished with about 20 points in the game, and he also ran the floor a bit and finished. Dortch did not back down to the big guys, and although he still has a long way to go, it was great to see him compete. In the next game against some of the top bigs in the state, although he did not have the game that he wanted, there were flashes. He is a glass cleaner, alters shots, and protects the paint. I would love to see him play with his age group.</p>