Big South Shootout – Can’t Miss Ballers

<p>Shot down to Sandy Creek HS for Day 1 of the revamped Big South Shootout on New Year's Day, and saw some strong performances in the opening 2 games.</p> <p><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><em><strong>Eddie Hendricks |2023 |Forward |Meadowcreek</strong></em></span></p> [caption id="attachment_1112878" align="alignleft" width="225"]<a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/01/20210101_145220-rotated.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1112878 size-medium" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/01/20210101_145220-225x300.jpg" alt="" width="225" height="300" /></a> Eddie Hendricks (5)[/caption] <p>Hendricks appears to be rounding into form after joining the team a touch late coming out of football, his inside-out prowess was on full display in an exciting OT win over Trinity Christian, he has the body of a fully mature senior already and uses that with great effectiveness to create space inside for a nice soft-touch intermediate game, he’s also an exceptional rebounder combining great instincts with the aforementioned strength, he doesn’t mind playing in the painted area with his back to the basket at 6-7 but what makes his game so tantalizing is his ability to step out beyond the arc, he knocked down four 3s in the game and has a really nice touch and stroke from that distance, has a clutch gene that isn’t something you can teach (two key buckets in the OT on his way to 20 pts) much like teammate [player_tooltip player_id="820290" first="Keishawn" last="Hampton"] (who had 3 big FT’s of his own in the OT), and is developing into a serious frontcourt prospect who bears watching with ballhandling and versatile-guarding capabilities as well.</p> <p><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><em><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="806756" first="Isaac" last="Brito"] |2021 |G/F |Trinity Christian</strong></em></span></p> <p>Battling with Hendricks all game as the Lions only notable size the 6-3 Brito put on a good-looking show with his own display of athletic talent getting points (21) in a variety of ways, has shown the ability to play ballhandler, attack off the wing, and plop himself down low, multi-faceted traits that will serve him well as he moves on to the next level, but his true calling appears to be as a slasher both in the halfcourt and off the break where he can use his own solid frame to power to the rim and draw contact, has good range but is much more effective putting pressure on the defense using the bounce, as with many got lost a bit playing with a nice group of talent for the ATL All-Stars this past summer so it’s been fun seeing him as one of two primary go-to guys along with smooth senior SG Sami Pissis.</p> <p><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><em><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="869612" first="Zach" last="Bell"] |2021 |Guard |Grovetown</strong></em></span></p> [caption id="attachment_1112879" align="alignright" width="225"]<a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/01/20210101_164814-rotated.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1112879 size-medium" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/01/20210101_164814-225x300.jpg" alt="" width="225" height="300" /></a> [player_tooltip player_id="869612" first="Zach" last="Bell"][/caption] <p>Another week, another impressive performance from Bell (29 pts), who muscles his way onto scouting reports with an electric combination of A+ athletic ability and polished basketball acumen, despite dropping a close one to Creekside Christian the size at 6-2 and body shout D1 prospect (and interest is building at that level) and over the holiday period he backed up the measurables with the game to attract big-time attention as well, explosive leaping ability, confident and high percentage shooting from 3-land, a lengthy frame allows him to guard multiple spots, is comfortable finding offense from any level but doesn’t force and is as explosive off the break as any 2-guard I’ve seen this season so far fellow senior Julius Brown (23 pts, including a dynamic13-point 4th qtr) to comprise one of the steadier and most-productive backcourt in the ATL-metro.</p> <p><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><em><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1059030" first="Jaylen" last="Priester"] |2023 |Guard |Creekside Christian</strong></em></span></p> <p>It was a fascinating matchup on paper with the GISA power Cougars facing the athletic and seasoned 6A bunch from Grovetown, it didn’t disappoint as it was among the best games I’ve seen so far with [player_tooltip player_id="747107" first="Shaqir" last="O’Neal"] getting the winning lay-up with 3 secs left, and it was Priester who created the turnover and fed the big 6-7 son of Shaq and it’s plays like that which jump off the page even more so than his natural scoring ability or smooth handle as a point man, no list of up and comers in GA can omit the 5-9 sophomore and my two viewings of him affirm that in my mind, a true modern-day PG with the full game and attitude to back it up, you love the moxie and skill combination as a scorer, defender and distributor, he got a ton of help in the win from senior Naz Brown (21 pts), who was equally impressive from the backcourt at both ends and clutch in key moments. </p>