Georgia Elite Fall League: Week 1 Superlatives

LakePoint Sports once again acts as host for a multi-week event, bringing in many of what are expected to among the state’s best HS teams this winter. Here’s are some players who caught my eye on opening weekend: [player_tooltip player_id="820272" first="Kanaan" last="Carlyle"], Sophomore, 6-2, SG, Milton Not to be outdone by marquee backcourt mate [player_tooltip player_id="870146" first="Bruce" last="Thornton"], Carlyle took it at Pace Academy in the day’s opener, he was his typical self off the bounce at times unguardable, Milton was without [player_tooltip player_id="870155" first="Devin" last="Farrell"] and [player_tooltip player_id="957114" first="LT" last="Overton"] (Pace without [player_tooltip player_id="806717" first="Cole" last="Middleton"] and [player_tooltip player_id="754260" first="Madison" last="Durr"]), but the smooth guard seemed unaffected, love his willingness to get into the mid-range and drop jumpers and floaters with regularity, but can still get to the rim and beat you from way out past the 3-line, and that’s why he occupies the top spot in our 2023 rankings. LJ Moore, Freshman, 6-4, SF, Pace Academy As mentioned, Pace was without Durr in the backcourt so Moore stepped into a hybrid role that the versatile Durr often fills as both a guard and wing, love his activity for a young player, a great mover who was able to create his own offense opposite the as-expected spectacular [player_tooltip player_id="754231" first="Matthew" last="Cleveland"], he took advantage of openings and was able to knock down some nice mid-range J’s and drive it at the basket, a 2024 to watch for sure. [player_tooltip player_id="1043311" first="DaQuan" last="Riggins"], Senior, 6-3, SG, South Cobb Riggins is part of yet another deep and talented guard stable for the Eagles, playing on the wing against Norcross with the likes of [player_tooltip player_id="869601" first="Jens" last="Rueckert"], [player_tooltip player_id="598771" first="Zocko" last="Littleton"], [player_tooltip player_id="870183" first="Robert" last="Dix"] and the Lecky twins (Baqui and Basit), Riggins still stood out on the day for his ability to play off of others and find his own scoring chances, he’s a sneaky good athlete who can spot up and beat you from range or be an uber-dangerous part of South cobb’s up-tempo game spearheaded by PG [player_tooltip player_id="869590" first="Travis" last="Burrus"], with so many talented options for the Eagles next-level coaches will have to look deep into the game to see the many postives Riggins brings. [player_tooltip player_id="1049113" first="Jerry" last="Deng"], Junior, 6-7, PF, Norcross Big-bodied yet quick and agile, my first look at Deng confirms most of what I heard - a refined game in close to the basket and a soft touch out past the arc, he can bull his way to 20 a game if he wants but is too dangerous a shooter to plop down on the block all game, he’s a stretch 4 in the classic sense (at least at the high school level) and got better as the game with South Cobb went on, certainly among GA’s elite junior forwards and as the Blue Devils mesh a bunch of talented guards together he’ll pick up some of the slack. [player_tooltip player_id="754278" first="Jamall" last="Clyce"], Senior, 6-5, SF, Pebblebrook So versatile Clyce makes things look easy on the court, he just has a poise about his game that is both sneaky and lethal, against Pace he showed there isn’t much he can’t do as a scorer, being it spotting up off a kick-out, power dribbling past defenders to the goal, or killing it off the offensive glass, he’ll benefit I think from [player_tooltip player_id="869579" first="Kaleb" last="Washington"]’s departure to Wheeler in that his wide facet of skills will be unleashed, he’ll also benefit from a deep cadre of guards who can find him in favorable spots in [player_tooltip player_id="806718" first="Danny" last="Stubbs"], [player_tooltip player_id="870158" first="Kami" last="Young"] (transferring in from North Cobb Christian) and [player_tooltip player_id="758373" first="Andre" last="Young"]. [player_tooltip player_id="806728" first="Deshon" last="Proctor"], Senior, 6-5, PF, Sandy Creek Most of the attention when the Patriots hit the floor rightfully goes toward [player_tooltip player_id="754230" first="Jabari" last="Smith"], but I loved the work Proctor put in alongside the 5-star stud, he showed a nice variety of moves in close and was a terror on the glass, his physical frame was troublesome even for the giant Greenforest frontline and he more than held his own, I look to see his recruitment heat yup as eyeballs hone in on Sandy Creek and for looks at Smith at good-looking PG transfer [player_tooltip player_id="869589" first="Myles" last="Rice"]. [player_tooltip player_id="820314" first="Aaron" last="Smith"], Sophomore, 6-4, PF, Kell Thrust into a primary post spot with the departure of [player_tooltip player_id="870147" first="Joyful" last="Hawkins"], Smith nonetheless looked the part of a 2023 on the rise with his play against a big and highly-touted frontline for Grayson, despite being undersized his fight was notable and he has an offensive game that shows signs of really becoming interesting, Kell’s lack of overall size may be offset some by their stellar guard quartet of [player_tooltip player_id="598763" first="Scoot" last="Henderson"], [player_tooltip player_id="869606" first="Najhae" last="Colon"], [player_tooltip player_id="598767" first="Parrish" last="Johnson"] and [player_tooltip player_id="869648" first="Jaylen" last="Harris"], but Smith will see a lot of good looks as teams edge out toward those perimeter gems.