Summer Risers – Kansas City-area 2023 Wings/Bigs

<p>Summer offers young players without a lot of varsity experience to start getting ready for greater opportunities.</p> <p>Here are a few guards from the area around the KC area who might be in line for bigger roles next fall (in alphabetical order):</p> <p><strong>Ryan Cummings</strong>, 6-foot-4 forward, 2023, GABL Future, Mill Valley:</p> <p>Cummings is a really smooth forward who plays in the paint for his club team. As the lone big on GABL Future, he plays a more traditional post role and has to really crash the glass. But Cummings is a good ball handler and can really run the floor. He will bring versatility and hard work to the floor for Mill Valley.</p> <p><strong>Maurice Davis</strong>, 6-foot-1, forward, 2023, Shawnee Mission Northwest:</p> <p>Playing alongside Cummings, Davis isn’t really a ‘big.’ But he has to play like one for the guard-oriented, super-quick GABL team. Davis has to work in the lane some, and he pulls it off. He can really leap and battles bigger players with intensity. He has nice moves in the lane and rips down a lot of rebounds. Davis possesses the skills to play on the perimeter and to handle the ball under pressure all over the court.</p> <p><strong>Spencer Owens</strong>, 6-foot-3 forward, 2023, KC Spurs, Blue Valley:</p> <p>Owens is a big-bodies battler who has deceptive athleticism and ball skills. He makes a lot of plays in the lane that one might not expect. He goes strong to the hole and after rebounds. He has soft touch in the lane with both hands and a nice face-up jumpshot. He quietly dominates for the KC Spurs. He keeps up with a bunch of jackrabbits pushing the pace, and he works effectively around the lane at both ends.</p> <p>[player_tooltip player_id="1080169" first="Aiden" last="Wing"], 6-foot-4 forward, 2023, Miege:</p> <p>It’s so tough to get playing time at Miege, one of the highest rated sophomores in the state was a reserve player last year. But there’s no question about Wing’s ability. He is highly regarded as a passer and has perimeter skills. He’s ready for a bigger role at Miege, but may still have to wait his turn because of the talent at the 4A powerhouse. So summer action is huge for the rising-junior.</p> <p>One 2022 to mention:</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1196545" first="Aidan" last="Werth"],</strong> 6-foot-6 forward, 2022, United Basketball, Aquinas:</p> <p>Werth is a 2022 who is showing a lot of versatility and ability this summer. He’s got great length and spring for a forward. He can push the ball up the court, handling it at full speed and under on-ball pressure. He can face the goal, put the ball on the floor and find openings. And he’s a tenacious attacker of the goal. Werth played a key role for Aquinas last year, but it didn’t all show up in the stat sheet. Watch for Werth’s role to expand next year when he can demonstrate all he can do.</p>