Austin Area Preview: District 25-5A

The 2020-21 high school basketball season is upon us as pre-season matchups begin this weekend all across Texas. It was an unorthodox summer for the majority of high school hoopers, but the quickly approaching season will bring a bit of normalcy to the high school basketball landscape. We continue our Austin Area Season Preview with District 25-5A, which features a crop of highly touted seniors, a talented group of underclassmen, and a list of underrated gems on our watch list.   District 25-5A Teams Cedar Park Timberwolves East View Patriots Georgetown Eagles Glenn Grizzlies Leander Lions Liberty Hill Panthers Marble Falls Mustangs Rouse Raiders   In this article, we preview standout players from District 25-5A who fans, coaches, and college programs should keep an eye on for the 2020-21 high school basketball season.   [player_tooltip player_id="887044" first="Noah" last="Robledo"] | SF | Leander (2021) Texas Ranking: 26 Robledo comes in ranked as the top small forward in the Austin-Metroplex for the 2021 class and is a top 30 player in Texas. During his junior season for the Lions Robledo averaged 19.9 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 3.2 blocks per game, earning him an All-Region selection. A tall and long forward, Robledo plays an aggressive brand of basketball and has great intensity on the court. He can get to the basket with ease due to terrific burst and has a smooth shot from three-point range. Robledo has Division-1 offers from UC-Irvine and Idaho.   [player_tooltip player_id="1039047" first="Jaylen" last="Thompson"] | SG | Glenn (2021) Texas Ranking: 160 A tall and strong combo-guard, Thompson was one of the top scorers in the Austin-Metroplex during his junior year at Glenn. Thompson looks to continue his scoring ways in his senior season with the Grizzlies and will be a hard player to guard as he can put the ball in the hoop in a variety of ways. He is explosive going towards the basket and does a great job of using his body control to get through contact. Not only can he get to the rim, but he also shows a good deep-range shot that will keep defenders honest.   Aaron Bizzell | SG | Georgetown (2021) Texas Ranking: unranked/watchlist A dual-sport athlete for Georgetown, Bizzell brings physicality to the hardwood and is a top tier defender in the district. A cerebral player with good instincts, Bizzell understands the game and knows where to be. On offense, he uses his strength to back-down opponents in the paint and uses good technique and effort to finish at the basket. Bizzell earned All-District honors as a junior and will look to continue his great play in his senior season.   [player_tooltip player_id="1027633" first="Jacob" last="Swoboda"] | PG | Cedar Park (2022) Texas Ranking: 116 Swoboda enters his junior season as the lead point guard for Cedar Park and will see a huge jump in minutes from his sophomore campaign. Swoboda is a savvy and smart floor general who always seems to be in control of the offense and his decision making. Shows excellent floor instincts and court vision, setting up his teammates for easy shots. He doesn't shoot often, but it isn't a lack of his shooting ability, as he can nail his jumper from anywhere on the court. Be on the lookout for Swoboda's dimes as he should be dishing out a ton of them this season.   [player_tooltip player_id="1050445" first="Joseph" last="Waring"] | SF | Georgetown (2022) Texas Ranking: 134 A physical and strong forward prospect, Waring looks to continue his great play during his junior year with Georgetown after a summer of putting up double-double performances on the summer circuit. Waring can do a variety of things on the court at a high level from powering his way to the rim to hitting open three-point shots. He crashes the board extremely hard and is a playmaker on defense where he uses his length to his advantage by disrupting the opponent's shots and causing havoc with tipped passes and steals.   [player_tooltip player_id="892165" first="Levi" last="Rutledge"] SG | Cedar Park (2023) Texas Ranking: 56 A sophomore with a ton of potential and we will get our first glimpse of his varsity action with Cedar Park this season. Rutledge is a combo-guard who plays at a good pace and has deceptive speed when attacking the basket, where he is a smooth finisher around the rim. He can score at all three levels and has a really nice mid-range pull-up jumper where he showed the ability to hit the shot with hands in his face. Rutledge is simply a playmaker with great length and will be a force for Cedar Park for the next three years.   [player_tooltip player_id="787325" first="Nazar" last="Mahmoud"] | SG | Rouse (2023) Texas Ranking: 75 Mahmoud made his ranking debut at 75 in Texas for PrepHoops this past month, and we are excited to see his development in his sophomore campaign with Leander Rouse. Mahmoud has great size and movement ability for the shooting guard position with the potential to grow into the small forward spot. On offense, he can hit shots from both the mid-range and from deep, including a nice pull-up jumper with NBA range. Has great awareness on defense as a help defender, and is a playmaker who creates turnovers and capitalizes on transition opportunities.   Watch List PG Sean Colbert - Glenn (2021) PG Mekai Coleman - Rouse (2022) PG Trae Leak - Glenn (2022) PG Cole Andrew-Weitz - Rouse (2023) PG Cayden Branch - Liberty Hill (2023) SG Parker Forbes - Cedar Park (2021) SG Kason O'Riley - Marble Falls (2021) SG Kade Locklin - Georgetown (2021) SG Kadin Knight - Liberty Hill (2021) SF Cole Blair - East View (2021) SF Ben Armstrong - Rouse (2022) SF Gunter Daniels - Liberty Hill (2023) PF Thomas Oates - Rouse (2021) PF Jace Knight - Georgetown (2021) C Matthew Turner - Glenn (2022)