SoCal’s 2023 Breakout Candidates (Pt. 3)

With many states, including California, still struggling to figure out how to play the high school basketball season amid increasing COVID-19 case numbers, we wanted to take a closer look at each class in our region.

In this piece, we break down the players in the class of 2023 who would have broken out at this point in the season for their high school teams if it had gone as normally scheduled.

Zack Davidson Zack Davidson 6'8" | PF Mater Dei | 2023 State CA-S , Mater Dei – Davidson saw good action with the Monarchs last season as a complimentary piece to an open division caliber squad, but this season he likely would have seen his role increase on the offensive end. With Devin Askew Devin Askew 6'3" | PG Mater Dei | 2020 State #18 Nation CA-S graduating early and heading to Kentucky, and fellow starters Aidan Prukop Aidan Prukop 6'4" | SF Mater Dei | 2020 State #459 Nation CA-S and Ryan Evans Ryan Evans 6'2" | SG Mater Dei | 2020 State #479 Nation CA-S graduating, the 6-foot-7 forward would have had an increase in touches and offensive opportunities. Davidson is a skilled hybrid forward with face-up touch to the three-point line and the ability to take defenders off the bounce and finish around the basket.

Tyler Small Tyler Small 6'1" | PG St. Anthony | 2023 State CA-S , Servite – The Friars definitely took a hit with All-League point guard Tajavis Miller transferring out of state to Texas, but that opened the door for another young Servite guard to step in and take over. Small has catch-and-shoot ability from three-point range, but is also a quick and heady driver who gets two feet in the paint and uses his court vision to find open teammates.

Amire Jones Amire Jones 6'2" | PG Leuzinger | 2023 State CA-S , Leuzinger – Jones, son of Olympians coach Arturo Jones, had a strong freshman campaign in which he averaged better than nine points per game. But with the graduation of leading scorer Amound Anderson Amound Anderson 6'3" | SG Leuzinger | 2020 State #198 Nation CA-S , the 6-foot guard likely would have taken over the majority of those shots left behind by the now-freshman at Cal State Northridge. Jones has dynamic playmaking ability in the open floor, plays tough and physical defense and operates with confidence and savvy on the offensive end.

Isaiah Tolmaire Isaiah Tolmaire 5'10" | PG Mission Viejo | 2023 State CA-S , Mission Viejo – Tolmaire might be unknown to a lot of people who don’t follow Orange County high school basketball, but the lightning quick point guard brings a lot of positive attributes to the table. Tolmaire has great feel for the point guard position and his speed allows him to push the pace in transition when he needs to, but he also possesses the IQ to know when to pull the ball back out and run half-court offense. Tolmaire is a pesky on-ball defender who has quick hands and knows how to speed up a ball-handler into making poor decisions.