Top 250 Expo: Outstanding 2022 Guards

In a stacked class of 2022’s, these guards really brought it at our Top 250 Expo this past Sunday at LakePoint, and it wasn’t easy getting the list even down to this group: [player_tooltip player_id="598778" first="Jameel" last="Rideout"], 6-2, PG, Discovery Getting a chance to play with Double Trouble teammate [player_tooltip player_id="1011351" first="Thomas" last="Allard"] was a nice bonus, but what makes Rideout’s emergence so impressive is his ability to take his multi-faceted skillset to any lineup, he has speed with the ball, explosiveness off the deck, tremendous vision, a deadly 3-point eye, and is unquestionably at the top end of defenders in the backcourt class, he was a man among boys for most of the day but didn’t rest on those laurels in putting together another eye-catching and stellar all-around afternoon. [player_tooltip player_id="1011351" first="Thomas" last="Allard"], 6-6, SG, North Gwinnett Much like his DT teammate above, Allard has exploded out of a terrific summer and continued showing off his place among the ATL-metro’s best shooters, few get the release off as quickly or with as much confidence as the soon-to-be big-time contributor with the Bulldogs, he’s been putting it on the floor more of late to create space and his knockdown from 12-18 feet is just as lethal, at a wiry 6-6 with good foot speed he can also guard multiple spots and will be a lot of fun to watch running alongside the likes of studs [player_tooltip player_id="806753" first="Brendan" last="Rigsbee"] and [player_tooltip player_id="758360" first="RJ" last="Godfrey"] for coach Matt Garner. [player_tooltip player_id="1045095" first="Autrey" last="Barnes"], 6-4, SG, Grady Barnes kept his strong play going this past weekend after a summer for HYPE that was equally eye-catching, superb energy and a great understanding of the nuances of the game are what stand out, he slyly finds way into good positions to affect the game scoring, rebounding or defending, showing off his highlight-reel lift off the deck a few times he can do a lot of athletically impressive things others can’t and with good size and fun enthusiasm there’s a lot in his game to like. Destin Logan, 6-3, SG, Parkview (pictured above) With Miles Kelly off the prep school, transferring over to Parkview from North Calyton could be fascinating for Logan as he slides into the backcourt next to outstanding 2021 PG [player_tooltip player_id="869607" first="Jason" last="Edwards"], at Expo he was as good athletically as anyone there, bouncy and super quick from end to end he was a handful to guard any time he had the ball in space, he can high fly off the break and rebounded from the guard spot as well as anyone I saw all day, the stroke is efficient and he isn’t afraid to pull it from multiple levels, a potentially monster-riser who won’t spend long outside our rankings list. [player_tooltip player_id="1050046" first="Ahmed" last="Soumahoro"], 6-1, SG, Berkmar One of my favorite under-the-radar risers who earned a spot in our updated rankings based entirely off a highly productive and entertaining summer of work, he kept it up Sunday with his tremendous athletic gifts and high-rising ability, you simply cannot rest against him or he will hurt you knocking down jumpers in the mid-range or blowing by and over you off the break, his recovery skills are so good a drive-by layup can become a swat by him in a heartbeat, with Berkmar potentially headed for a big season with a loaded roster this fun wing will no doubt be a huge part of any success they have. [player_tooltip player_id="1011348" first="Mitchell" last="Taylor"], 6-2, CG, Carver (ATL) Another breakout backcourt wiz from the summer was hard to miss yet again as Taylor did it all on his way to unofficial first-team All-Weekend honors in my humble book, with D-Favors Celtics he stood out nightly and he just doesn’t have any let up in his game, he pushes the pace and glides through pressure either all the way on a one-man break or catching as the 2 and blowing up defenses on a baseline drive, very little not to like about this inner-city ATL riser who has all the tools to rocket up our rankings board even more than he has. [player_tooltip player_id="952583" first="Sebastian" last="Tidor"], 6-3, SG, East Paulding More a hybrid SG/SF, nonetheless Tidor can get it done from either spot with a nice mid-range shooting touch but also a ton of lift and bouncy athleticism that produced a few wow moments and will be a nice counterpoint to teammate 2021 SG [player_tooltip player_id="869629" first="Kristian" last="Ford"] this winter, Tidor’s work rate and fluid movement makes for a hard slog guarding him for 32 minutes, physical enough to slide down and guard the post if called on his real gifts will come out with explosions on the break and cranking it up from 15 feet and in off the bounce. Lidon Pate, 5-11, PG, Banneker Transferring over from a loaded group at Tri-Cities may have been a wise move for Pate who looked comfortable and polished in the lead guard role, it helped having Cumberland Christian stud [player_tooltip player_id="1059027" first="Jermaine" last="Smoak"] running alongside, but Pate still managed to impress on multiple levels showing a controlled handle, good shooting touch and a real nose for getting up in the other PG’s face, he’ll be a force together with 2021 riser SG [player_tooltip player_id="1047103" first="Shazmere" last="Thomas"] down on the south side for the Trojans.