Best of the West Shootout: 17u/16u Standouts (Pt. 6)

<p>The Pangos Best of the West Shootout was one of very few club basketball events to take place in Southern California due to COVID-19 pandemic restrictions.</p> <p>The event featured some solid SoCal-based programs and individual talents at Ladera Sports Center in South Orange County. Below is my second set of standouts from the 17u/16u level games I was able to get my eyes on. Below is part five of the standout players from this event.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="748743" first="Jaayden" last="Bush"]</strong>, 2022, Houdini’s All-Stars: Bush is the consummate floor general who takes care of the basketball, is a reliable ball handler and understands when to take advantage of transition opportunities or when to pull the ball out and run offense. The 5-foot-8 lefty also applies great on-ball defensive pressure and uses his quick hands to disrupt passing lanes and force turnovers.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="971191" first="Toby" last="Harris"]</strong>, 2022, Coastal Elite Slayers: Harris had his elite three-point shooting ability on display in this event. The 5-foot-9 off-guard understands how to set up and come off of screens, has quick and repeatable shooting mechanics and doesn’t need much time or space to get his shot off. </p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="954255" first="Elijah" last="Price"]</strong>, 2022, Houdini’s All-Stars: Price established himself last high school season as one of the more intriguing big men in SoCal regardless of class. The long and lanky 6-foot-8 forward has elite defensive timing and shot blocking ability to go along wiht his mobility when changing ends of the floor. Offensively, Price has good hands and touch around the basket and has shown he can knock down the 15-foot face up shot while also hitting free throws consistently.</p> <p><strong>Joshua Ragsdale</strong>, 2022, Ocean City: Ragsdale is another South Orange County-based player who has put his name on the radar during the pandemic-altered off-season. The smooth 6-foot-3 combo guard has multi-level scoring ability with his off-the-bounce floater and pull-up jumper. Ragsdale should see some solid varsity minutes for the Lions this season which will allow his stock to rise even more.</p> <p><strong>Parker Strauss</strong>, 2023, Ocean City: Strauss impressed us early on with his poise, basketball IQ and passing ability at the point guard position, but he showed some of his scoring acumen in this event. The 6-foot-2 sophomore is a very crafty finisher around the basket with great touch on his floater and the ability to use the glass at multiple angles.</p>