Five forwards/bigs to watch in the Northern League

<p>There have been changes to the world as we know it, and the Colorado high school basketball scene has taken its fair share of changes as well. Typically, we will have already started with some tournaments at this time of the year to get things kicked off, but there has to be a compromise on both ends. Not only will the season start late, but it will be a condensed season, so teams and players must get off to hot starts. Here we will focus on the new leagues across the state. One conference that had a shake-up this offseason and will be a new-look is the 5A/4A Northern League. It will be an interesting league and, hopefully, more competitive.</p> <h2><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="918899" first="James" last="Shiers"] – Mead</strong></h2> <p>The unicorn is what we call him, and we will keep saying it. To be that big and move so elegantly, separates Shiers from the pack. In his sophomore season for Mead, he helped off of the bench and provided a bit of a change of pace. Shiers alters shots with his length, is mobile, and has soft touch around the rim. His depth is another reason why the Mavericks were so good. Shiers is 7-foot and possesses the ability to step out and space the floor with his outside shot. Shiers is a player that plays his own way, and he does not have to go down and back opposing players down to be effective. He is starting to come into his own with this size, and he is still young, so he has time to continue growing and get stronger. Shiers is a gym rat that wants to continue getting better, and we saw plenty of that this summer in scrimmages, tourneys, and private runs.</p> <h2><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="965739" first="Eddie" last="Kurjak"] – Longmont </strong></h2> <p>Kurjak will come into the new conference as the most athletic player, and at 6’8, this Colorado Mesa commit will be able to have his way with the smaller defenders. Kurjak is a player whose athletic abilities separate him from the pack and make the game easier for him. He has a right-hand hook, backs defenders down, and is not afraid to go dunk it on a defender. Kurjak is a high-octane aerial attack that Longmont can get creative with, and he is committed on both ends of the floor. Not many players will get open looks while he is around as he alters shots; he is a rim runner with soft touch around the rim and competes at a high level. Last season he put up 14.2 points, 6.6 rebounds, and a team-high three blocks a game.  He took that play into the summer, where he fared well in various tournaments for the Colorado Titans and private runs. This season I think he picks up exactly where he left off at. Kujak is a must-watch player.</p> <h2><strong>Ben Kingsford – Greeley Central</strong></h2> <p>Kingsford was thrust into a forward/big man role for a team that did not have much size last season, and that was a tough task. He was stepping out and guarding on the wing, important in help side and also doing all that he could on the boards. Kingsford did not score a ton of points but was able to make his mark in games. Kingsford was the second-best rebounder on the team at five boards a game who boxed out and tracked balls down, and protected the paint. He plays with his heart, has a great motor, and the rest of his game is starting to come along. In a new conference, while it will be more competitive, he will be able to hold his own a bit more with the bigs. Hopefully, it leads to wins.</p> <h2><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1047506" first="Will" last="Tenore"] – Mead</strong></h2> <p>Tenore is one of the players you just love to watch. He does not have to score a basket to know the type of impact he is having. Tenore sets hard screens and rolls to the basket; he skips and rotates the ball quickly and has an overall understanding of where to be on the floor. He will defend whatever position that is asked of him, outworks the opposition every game. Although it was only seen for small moments last season, he tremendously helped the team throughout the entire season. Tenore had a great summer and will be asked to do plenty in his junior season. Hopefully, he continues to work on his game because Mead will certainly need him contributing. </p>