Who Want The Smoke: 17U Standout Prospects

Who Want the Smoke presented by TheTB5Reports gave us one of the best tournaments of the summer consisting of the most skilled players and most dominant teams from all over Texas and even the country. There were several stock risers and breakout prospects in attendance that put everyone on notice. Here we take a look at some of the top standout recruits that played in the Who Want The Smoke, 17U division of the tournament. [player_tooltip player_id="765904" first="Keon" last="Coleman"] | 6’4 | Shooting Guard | Texas Takeover (Ned) | C/o 2021<img class="size-medium wp-image-1036414 aligncenter" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2020/08/image2-1-1-163x300.jpeg" alt="" width="163" height="300" />This Kansas University commit is one of Louisiana’s top 10 prospects and he came to Texas to show us all why. [player_tooltip player_id="765904" first="Keon" last="Coleman"] is an incredibly freakish athletic slasher that can leap and throw it down with the best of them. Coleman is aggressive with and without the ball on both ends of the court, he plays with no fear, great energy, and passion for the game. With the ball in hand, he got to the basket at will due to his speed, strength, along with his quick first step. Once he got inside, anyone standing under the rim was in trouble, he went up high and hard and almost made a poster out of a few defenders on a number of occasions. Keon gives you a little bit of everything, he even showed the potential to be a defensive stopper that can guard multiple positions on the floor, which should translate well at the college level. During the final game of the weekend, Takeover was down at half and [player_tooltip player_id="765904" first="Keon" last="Coleman"] came out the gate running in the second half. On the first play he attacked the basket and created a 3-point play, then instantly jumped on his man, got a steal, and went back to the line for another 3-point play after being fouled on a three-point shot attempt all in the first minute of second-half. Despite the score on the board, [player_tooltip player_id="765904" first="Keon" last="Coleman"] played hard and with a determination to win from beginning to end. <iframe src="//www.youtube.com/embed/x3BoDTFBf4w" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> Rocco Paul | 6’3 | Shooting Guard | Court of Dream | C/o 2022<img class="size-medium wp-image-1036417 aligncenter" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2020/08/IMG_3200-173x300.jpg" alt="" width="173" height="300" />This shooting specialist can score it like no other. Rocco Paul can and will shoot the lights out, and it doesn’t take him much space to do so. He has an outstanding touch and textbook form on his jumpshot, he keeps his feet and shoulders squared with the basket at all times, and has a very quick and high release; Paul even has the rare ability to keep that same form but also get the shot up quicker against closeouts. Rocco is a highly efficient scorer, if he’s taking a shot then he knows it’s going to fall. A great all-around offensive talent, good team player, he’s unselfish and willing to make the extra pass, he also showed a good ability to pass the ball into the post and over top of the defense. Rocco Paul finished this tournament averaging 12 points per game, nothing new for him, Paul has been playing up with the 17U boys all summer and he hasn’t disappointed, his play has only elevated. [player_tooltip player_id="959252" first="Carmelo" last="Adkins"] | 6’4 | Shooting Guard | TBC | C/o 2023<img class="size-medium wp-image-1029551 aligncenter" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2020/08/Carmelo-Adkins-200x300.jpg" alt="" width="200" height="300" />[player_tooltip player_id="959252" first="Carmelo" last="Adkins"] came in and put his full skill set on display, spotting up, coming off screens, and pulling up. He showed and proved that he’s not just a 3-point specialist, but that he can also beat his man off the dribble. Adkins found a weakness early in the defense that was being played against him, he took full advantage and destroyed them by continuously scoring from taking the baseline repeatedly. On the defensive end, Melo has the length to be disruptive, he had a game where he picked up 3 blocks, and a few on-ball steals; good help-side defender, all of his blocks came from being aware and rotating over to contest. [player_tooltip player_id="959252" first="Carmelo" last="Adkins"] is a 2023 kid that has been playing up with the 2021 boys the entire summer and balling at a high level, his stock has shot up and he has become one of the top-performing incoming sophomores in the state. [player_tooltip player_id="959054" first="Elijah" last="Taylor"] | 5’9 | Point Guard | Basketball Means More (BMM) | C/o 2021<img class="size-medium wp-image-1036420 aligncenter" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2020/08/IMG_3194-141x300.jpg" alt="" width="141" height="300" />Taylor was a flat out floor general the final day, showing off his court vision, passing accuracy, and the ability to control the offense. Elijah slashed defenses up with the way he attacked the lane, he got into teeth of the defense over and over again seemingly easy. His knack for driving and kicking kept his team afloat, finding teammates cutting and wide-open men in the corner, he did an exceptional job of controlling the offense early, setting a tempo, and creating easy buckets for BMM. [player_tooltip player_id="959054" first="Elijah" last="Taylor"] showed the quickness, speed, handles, and IQ of an elite point guard, looking more than ready to ball at a top-notch level his senior season. [player_tooltip player_id="959063" first="Erin" last="Wright"] | 6’4 | Combo Guard | Texas Takeover (Ned) | C/o 2021<img class="size-medium wp-image-1036421 aligncenter" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2020/08/IMG_3185-118x300.jpg" alt="" width="118" height="300" />This past weekend, [player_tooltip player_id="959063" first="Erin" last="Wright"] was a major sparkplug off the bench, bringing the scoring and defense Takeover needed to put them over the top. He has been showing a wide range of skills all summer long and this tournament was no different. Offensively, he’s as calm and collected of a scorer as they come, a threat in many ways but at his best when creating his own shot off the bounce. Wright’s pull-up jumper may be incredibly deadly, but Erin also showed and proved that he can play off the ball as well by being just as lethal coming off-screens or spotting-up for a quick catch and shoot opportunity. On the defensive end, Erin played some of the best defense I’ve seen him play. He gave a tremendous amount of effort when hustling back on defense, chasing down shots to the rim, closing out, and contesting jumpshots, just an all-around good job of not giving up on plays altogether. He showed a highly competitive nature by fighting till the final buzzer, Wright was one of the biggest contributors and difference-makers on defense for his squad. Also, his length is noteworthy, long arms, wide wingspan at his position, altered shots and passes defensively when he got his hands up and out. [player_tooltip player_id="959063" first="Erin" last="Wright"] didn’t just look like a bucket getter this weekend, he showed off his versatility with his defensive presence, movement without the ball, and competitive spirit. <iframe src="//www.youtube.com/embed/x3BoDTFBf4w" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> [player_tooltip player_id="781876" first="Keyonte" last="George"] | 6’5 | Shooting Guard | Basketball Means More (BMM) | C/o 2022<img class="size-medium wp-image-1036422 aligncenter" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2020/08/image1-1-161x300.jpeg" alt="" width="161" height="300" />The #1 ranked player in Texas pulled up to the tournament ready to face-off against the best competition the state had to offer and show us all why he’s the top dog. Keyonte came out the gate on fire, scoring 10 points in the first three minutes, knocking down his first three 3-point attempts from deep, with a hand in his face. Extremely aggressive on the offensive end, George showed a knack for drawing the foul as he was constantly looked to get a bucket. He even put his handles on full display and wowed us all with the way he was able to break his defenders down before taking a shot. I really loved how anytime he made a mistake on the offense, he went down the court and tried to make it up on the defense. Late in their first game, his team was down but Keyonte refused to lose, he stepped his defense up in a major way the last couple minutes and started jumping passing lanes and causing turnovers. [player_tooltip player_id="781876" first="Keyonte" last="George"] has always been a good shooter, but his shot seems to have gotten more consistent and purer. The kid can really put the ball in the hole, a true master of his offensive talents.