Chi-Town Tip Off: Night One Prospect Standouts

Grant Matheny

April 16, 2021 @ 11:18 PM

The Chi-Town Tip Off got underway on Friday. Here are seven prospect standouts from the first night of action: [player_tooltip player_id="1157221" first="James" last="Bullock"] — 2024 — Next Level 24 Even though Bullock was playing up on a 16U team, he certainly looked the part physically. The Next Level 24 forward stands at 6-foot-4 and has a sturdy build. In his squad’s win over All In Athletics, Bullock used his size to snatch rebounds and score in the post. Opposing defenders are going to have a lot of trouble slowing down Bullock when he catches the ball in the paint. Quentin Jones — 2023 — Next Level 24 I was extremely impressed by what Jones was able to do on offense when he had the ball in his hands. Standing at 6-foot-4 with long arms, Jones can get to his spots and score over defenders with ease. In Friday’s win, he showed all of his tricks. Jones made tough jumpers and finished through contact at the rim. In addition to being a deadly scorer, the Next Level prospect also showed flashes of his greatness on the defensive end. Amarias Stephens — 2023 — All In Athletics Overall, it was a really tough game for All In Athletics, as they were beat by a comfortable margin. But if there was a bright spot for AIA it was Stephens. After a lifeless performance in the first half, the point guard came out with something to prove in the second period. He played with intensity and a lot of effort. He even led a brief run, which gave his bench a lot of momentum. Stephens really impressed me with his court vision and ball handling skills. Micah Gatewood — 2023 — M14 Hoops In what was a very low scoring game, M14 Hoops looked to Gatewood when it needed a bucket. And more times than not, the guard delivered. Gatewood showed that he could nail outside jumpers when he made a corner three in the first half. Then, in the second period he drove into the paint often and caused a lot of problems for the opposing team’s defense. M14 Hoops was not able to come away with the win, but I still thought that Gatewood played a great game. Matt Pohlman — 2023 — M14 Hoops Pohlman was the ultimate floor general for his team on Friday night. The 5-foot-10 point guard played with poise and was always composed. He is a really good ball handler and passer that looked to get his teammates involved in the action. Right before the first half came to a close, Pohlman drained two difficult three-point shots to give his team a huge boost going into the break. Kelvin Hines Jr. — 2023 — Indiana Game In the last game of the day, Hines got off to a quick start and then closed the win out for his team in crunch time. In the opening minutes, the guard was driving to the rim and drawing foul calls. He was also very active on defense, as he deflected multiple passes that led to turnovers. In the middle of the game, Hines went a little cold. However, he made up for his cold streak in a big way by taking over late. When the game was on the line, Hines had the ball. Doing what he does best, the guard slashed to the rim and drew contact. This would eventually secure that win for Indiana Game. Connor Melchi — 2023 — Indiana Game Melchi is a scrappy player that is willing to do anything in order to help his team get the win. On Friday night, his defense was needed. The guard stepped up and was all over the place. He was tipping passes, getting steals, and using his quickness to stay in front of the player he was guarding. Melchi even had a couple of easy transition layups that came directly from his defense. His impact won’t show up on the stat sheet, but I promise you it was there.