2020-21 Preview: Fox Valley Association

<p>Looking ahead to the 2020-21 season, Prep Hoops Wisconsin breaks down the race in the Fox Valley Association...</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH</strong></p> <p>1.  Kimberly</p> <p>2. Neenah</p> <p>3. Appleton North</p> <p>4. Kaukauna</p> <p>5. Appleton East</p> <p>6. Hortonville</p> <p>7. Oshkosh North</p> <p>8.  Fond Du Lac</p> <p>9. Oshkosh West</p> <p>10. Appleton West</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>THE FAVORITE - KIMBERLY</strong></p> <p>Despite the loss of [player_tooltip player_id="544519" first="Jake" last="Buchanan"] and others, Kimberly is still the team to beat in the FVA. [player_tooltip player_id="801149" first="Jackson" last="Paveletzke"] (13.1 ppg) is poised for a big junior season. [player_tooltip player_id="701973" first="Grant" last="Asman"] is going to take big steps as well.  The Papermakers once again have plenty of under the radar talent that’s going to give them a  squad deep enough to last in a loaded league.</p> <p><strong>TOP CHALLENGER - NEENAH</strong></p> <p>The Rockets might need some time to come together, but come March, this is probably going to be a team that nobody wants to face. [player_tooltip player_id="994504" first="Jacob" last="Dietz"], [player_tooltip player_id="865837" first="Chevalier" last="Emery"], and [player_tooltip player_id="950099" first="Carter" last="Thomas"] are all worthy of All-Conference recognition.  Guards [player_tooltip player_id="963148" first="Cal" last="Klesmit"] and Charlie Wolfgram round out a very strong projected starting five.</p> <p><strong>DARK HORSE</strong></p> <p>The Lightning have a chance to make a big move within the league this season. We know what [player_tooltip player_id="801136" first="Maximus" last="Nelson"] is going to bring.  The roster was young last season and will start to catch up. Despite their youth, North had wins over Hortonville and Neenah.  They also had two competitive games with Kaukauna. Players like [player_tooltip player_id="981152" first="Trent" last="Mullen"] and [player_tooltip player_id="1029760" first="Brock" last="Donaldson"] had good off-seasons and should make a nice jump forward. </p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>PRESEASON FIRST-TEAM ALL-CONFERENCE</strong></p> <p>G [player_tooltip player_id="938201" first="Parker" last="Lawrence"] - Sr. - Hortonville</p> <p>G [player_tooltip player_id="801139" first="Christopher" last="Morgan"] - Jr. - Kaukauna</p> <p>G [player_tooltip player_id="801149" first="Jackson" last="Paveletzke"] - Jr. - Kimberly</p> <p>G [player_tooltip player_id="963148" first="Cal" last="Klesmit"] - So. - Neenah</p> <p>F [player_tooltip player_id="935490" first="Jalen" last="Keago"] -  Sr. - Oshkosh North</p> <p>F [player_tooltip player_id="801136" first="Maximus" last="Nelson"] - Jr. - Appleton North</p> <p>F [player_tooltip player_id="701973" first="Grant" last="Asman"] - Sr. - Kimberly</p> <p><strong>SECOND TEAM</strong></p> <p>G [player_tooltip player_id="801152" first="Tyler" last="Borowski"] - Jr. - Appleton East</p> <p><strong>G Zach  Steigenberger - Jr. - Appleton East</strong></p> <p>G [player_tooltip player_id="865837" first="Chevalier" last="Emery"] - Jr. - Neenah</p> <p>G [player_tooltip player_id="804944" first="Jacquez" last="Overstreet"] - Sr. - Oshkosh West</p> <p>G [player_tooltip player_id="994504" first="Jacob" last="Dietz"] - Sr. - Neenah</p> <p>G  [player_tooltip player_id="1017073" first="Owen" last="Pawlikowski"] - Jr. - Kimberly</p> <p>F [player_tooltip player_id="950099" first="Carter" last="Thomas"] - Jr. - Neenah</p> <p>F [player_tooltip player_id="804954" first="Mack" last="Sebert"] - Sr. - Fond Du Lac</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>PLAYER OF THE YEAR -  MAXIMUS NELSON</strong></p> <p>Not sure there’s an easy pick here. The Fox Valley Association isn’t deep with seniors this season.   Max Nelson is the top returning scorer (16.4 ppg) and it’s hard to find a player that means more to his team. North will have to improve on their 6-12 league record from last year, which they will, before Nelson is a serious contender, but  the 6-foot-8 forward could be in store for a monster year. </p> <p><strong>BREAKOUT PLAYER -  CAL KLESMIT</strong></p> <p>There are a lot of players you could put here -- Pawlikowski, Borowski, Emery, Asman, Keago, Morgan, [player_tooltip player_id="865837" first="Chevalier" last="Emery"],  etc.  However, there’s probably not a prospect who will increase his stock the most within the league than Klesmit. Primarily a JV performer last season, the sophomore guard should step into the starting lineup for the Rockets and help replace his brother, Max, who’s now at Wofford. </p> <p><strong>SLEEPER TO WATCH -  OWEN PAWLIKOWSKI</strong></p> <p>Pawlikowski went from unknown to the top 35 in the class of 2022 rankings over the course of the summer. Another JV performer last season, Pawlikowski  could very well start for a strong Kimberly squad. At the very least, the 6-foot-3 guard will be a valuable reserve and catch a lot of opposing coaches in the FVA by surprise. </p>