RYZE Live Showcase II: Saturday Impression-Makers

<p><em><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="873081" first="Brent" last="Bowman"], 6-3, SG, AC Georgia 16U, 2023 (Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe)</strong></em></p> <p>TRAITS: A+ athlete who takes superior agility and innate gifts and combines it with a diehard basketball players acumen, can play with flair and take over or use sound fundamentals to do the same, moves at a 1/2 step faster and smarter than most others, knockdown shooter and fearless driver makes him one of the toughest to guard I’ve seen all spring, quickly knocking on the door of becoming a mid to high major D1 prospect.  </p> <p><em><strong>Kourtland Tolbert, 6-3, SG, AC Georgia Select 17U, 2022 (Denmark)</strong></em></p> <p>TRAITS: Seeing him unshackled from playing second-fiddle to Denmark’s veterans the last 2 years has given rise to his awesome athletic gifts, he attacks the glass and defends as well as any guard out there and plays much bigger with his tremendous lift, provides great excitement in the open floor and the jump-shooting has come a massively long way vaulting him to another level in scout’s eyes.</p> <p><em><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="870202" first="Dylan" last="Wolle"], 6-3, SG, Georgia Legacy 17U, 2022 (Sequoyah)</strong></em></p> <p>TRAITS: Tangible emergence as one of the state’s best shooting guards, continues to strengthen his frame and has clearly added foot speed which expands his arsenal, one of the top deadeye 3-point shooters of the grassroots season and his work off the dribble in the mid-range has entered elite territory as well, getting sniffs from D1’s already and that will continue.</p> <p><em><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="870203" first="Braden" last="Pierce"], 6-11, C, Georgia Legacy 17U, 2022 (River Ridge)</strong></em></p> <p>TRAITS: It’s the stuff of documentaries in having observed Pierce’s incredible development under the tutelage of one of the state’s best big man coaches in HC Josh Fitzwater, the footwork, the variety off the catch, the jump-shooting all the way out to the arc, and of course his already elite rim defense has taken this former-project and baseball pitcher to the radars of several Power 5 programs, a great story and a player with more still to do and show.</p> <p><em><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="870151" first="Chase" last="Cormier"], 6-2, PG, Game Elite Big 5, 2022 (Greenforest)</strong></em></p> <p>TRAITS: Playing his first tournament without long-time teammate [player_tooltip player_id="598763" first="Scoot" last="Henderson"] and he looked even better than before, such speed with the ball but he never seems out of control, gifted ballhandler who can stop and pop a 3 or delay you and then blow-by you off the bounce, excellent on-ball defender with quick hands, always looked the part of a soon-to-be D1 prospect to me and I believe he’s squarely entered that realm now.</p> <p><em><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1043319" first="AJ" last="Barnes"], 6-5, SF, Game Elite Big 5, 2022, (Eagle’s Landing)</strong></em></p> <p>TRAITS: Again it bears noting that the team’s dynamic naturally changes without Scott Henderson and Barnes was another who looked awfully solid filling the vacuum, strong and skilled he is an absolute problem from 8 feet and in going either way or with either hand, on the offensive glass he’s as good as any I’ve seen at that size and he can defend the whole floor with his kind of quickness and athletic ability, didn’t see a ton from the perimeter but the J is there to at least 15-17 feet, the 2022 ELHS guys have been so incredibly impressive all over town with the likes of [player_tooltip player_id="598781" first="David" last="Thomas"] (2023), Jordan Fordyce, Fabian Desilva and Barnes leading that charge.</p> <p><em><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1130590" first="Jack" last="Hewitt"], 6-3, CG, SEBA FCI Warriors (North Cobb Christian)</strong></em></p> <p>TRAITS: Quickly has taken his place among the spring’s most impressive all-around breakout talents, saw glimpses during the high school season of his fascinating versatility in the backcourt but with the ball in his hands more now we’re seeing the full package, deceptive speed, great creativity whether looking for offense or finding teammates with sly feeds, good size and quickness allows him to guard up to 3 spots, among the higher IQ ballplayers you’ll find he’s been a joy to watch play and is a skyrocketing talent with a higher ceiling yet still.</p> <p><em><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1199595" first="Cayden" last="Charles"], 6-3, SG, SEBA FCI Warriors (Allatoona)</strong></em></p> <p>TRAITS: Like Hewitt has taken a few of these key spring weekends to vault himself into the must-mix of anyone who evaluates talent, as much as his offensive game has evolved it’s been his defense and versatility at that end that has caught the eye of so many, he rebounds like a power forward and slashes from the wing like a small forward making him one heck of a tough package to figure out, out from under the now-graduated veteran crew at Allatoona next winter we could see something special from this player. </p>