Season Preview: Dynamic Duos

Basketball units are generally broken down into front and back courts. I have already covered those groups in previous weeks. Sometimes a grouping of players defies these classifications. Below are five of the best duos in the state. 1. Grand Rapids Christian The main attraction is [player_tooltip player_id="611404" first="Kobe" last="Bufkin"] (pictured above). Bufkin is the rare elite recruit who doesn’t pass the initial eye test with flying colors. I actually mistook the slender and lean prospect for another player in warm ups this summer. However once the ball tips the Michigan commit leaves no doubt with his big time game. Extremely smooth as he gets whenever he wants with his dribble without looking in a hurry. Has a lethal step back and plenty of range on the perimeter. Finishes at the rim to make him a complete three level scorer. [player_tooltip player_id="1051075" first="Donovan" last="Brown-Boyd"] is the Robin of this duo but is an excellent prospect in his own right. A slasher who plays well off of Bufkin. Brown-Boyd has plenty of big game experience as he was the MVP in the Eagles big win over Farmington in the Red Hawk Showcase. Brown-Boyd also had a good summer playing with MBA National. 2. River Rogue Like Christian this duo has defined pecking order but is more of traditional inside out pairing. [player_tooltip player_id="811093" first="Legend" last="Geeter"] provides the inside portion and top billing. The Providence commit has been the rare four year player for the vaunted Rogue program. At the high school level he is virtually unstoppable on the blocks. He has been expanding his game over the past four years and will probably be able to play the three in the Big East. [player_tooltip player_id="811130" first="Keyshawn" last="Devlin"] is quick and shifty point guard. Devlin enters his second year in the program after transferring from Wyandotte Roosevelt. Devlin adjusted very quickly as he had a huge game in a early season victory against Detroit King (see below) and did not look back. Devlin could use a little more height but has plenty of speed and plays a fearless game. A big senior season could see Devlin following Geeter to play somewhere at the next level 3. Detroit Martin Luther King While the first two duos had more defined hierarchy this duo is a little more symbiotic. [player_tooltip player_id="611423" first="Omar" last="Ziegler"] has the ability and size to play all five positions at the high school level. He will probably toggle between two and three in college. Comes from a basketball family and clearly just knows how to play the game. Doesn’t have one stand out skill, just does everything well. He doesn’t have to play the point due to the presence of [player_tooltip player_id="863923" first="Chansey" last="Willis"]. Willis is a classic Detroit point guard. Not going to overwhelm you athletically, but like Zeigler simply knows how to play the game. Unlike Zeigler, he does not have positionally versatility. He is a point guard all the way. However as a 2022 (the only one on this list) he could grow and develop into a two. He already possesses the scoring gene. Willis had a good summer particularly with CTM Elite at the Grassroots Showcase in Indianapolis. <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2020/10/127_Aidan-RubioPrepHoops-2.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1061903" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2020/10/127_Aidan-RubioPrepHoops-2-300x300.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="300" /></a> 4. Goodrich If this ranking included gridiron performance this duo would be number one by a mile. But number four isn’t too bad. For three years any article about this unit would start with the point guard. However after [player_tooltip player_id="814573" first="Aidan" last="Rubio"](pictured above) put on an absolute show in a shortened fall showcase circuit we will give him top billing. Two simply electric performances at the Prep Hoops 250 Expo and Let’s Get Ready IV have positioned Rubio for a big senior season. His size, game, and football exploits remind me of former Western Michigan standout Brian Snider. Has a guard game on a legitimate 6-6 frame and is not afraid to mix it up down low. Was putting up some absurd numbers as the Martians (what a great mascot) quarterback but has announced that he will pursue basketball at the next level. The recipient of a lot of these passes was Central Michigan football commit [player_tooltip player_id="811101" first="Tyson" last="Davis"]. While he has decided to play football this was not due to a lack of hardwood options. Has good bloodlines as his sister is a former Miss Basketball. Super quick with a heady game, Davis does an excellent job of setting Rubio up. If he sticks around for the season Goodrich should be one of the teams to beat in Division 2. <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2020/08/oakland-elite-23-thumbnail.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1037408" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2020/08/oakland-elite-23-thumbnail-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" /></a> 5. Croswell Lexington I am dubbing this duo the “Slash Brothers” because that is exactly what they are. Two 6-5 wings who are efficient and exciting going to the basket. Of all the units this duo is the closet to a 1A and 1B grouping. So we’ll flip a coin and start with [player_tooltip player_id="1051073" first="Hunter" last="Soper"]. Soper is the better shooter of but has plenty of athleticism. [player_tooltip player_id="1051074" first="Tyler" last="Johnson"] (pictured above) is the high flyer and is extremely explosive finishing at the rim. Johnson put on aerial show at the Bank Hoops All State Camp in the fall. Both will need to improve their ball handling to reach their full potential at the next level. They have won a lot games together both in the regular season and in grassroots with Oakland Elite. Proved through the difficult conditions posed by this summer that they are gym rats. If a gym was open they were playing. Sometimes in different events in the same weekend in different states. That desire would count for something if I were a college coach.