Summer’s Most Exciting 16u Players

<p>With the summer AAU basketball season just about wrapped up, I’ll be taking a look back at some of the most exciting 16u players I saw compete over the past few months. These prospects were constantly making highlight plays with their high flying finishes, flashy passes and handles, intense defense, and other plays that most other prospects simply can’t make!</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1221176" first="Owen" last="Carlson"] (6’3 2023 CG, Minnesota Chill)- </strong>A big stock riser in the 16u class was [player_tooltip player_id="1221176" first="Owen" last="Carlson"], as the 2023 guard was electrifying in the open floor for MN Chill. At 6’3 he has nice size as a guard, and showed he can handle the ball for his team or play off the ball. Owen proved to be dangerous jumping passing lanes to create steals in get out in transition, and those turnovers often resulted in high flying finishes as Owen is an impressive athlete when he has space to elevate. Shut down his transition game? Owen proved to be a threat in the half-court as well as he knocked down 6 or 7 threes in one game I watched in Birmingham.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1220415" first="Kaden" last="Cook"] (6’4 2023 SG, Minnesota Select James)- </strong>I had the chance to watch Kaden compete live at the NHR State tournament as well as on film, and he’s a tough competitor on both ends of the floor. Defensively he has the explosiveness to elevate and protect the rim, and the effort to move his feet and get into the right spot gives him the opportunities to make those plays. Offensively he’s fearless attacking the basket even against size, and he’s shown he has the body control to absorb contact and still keep his chin at the rim to finish. Kaden is dangerous off the ball because he can knock down the three if you give him too much space, but also has the awareness to make hard cuts to the basket leading to strong finishes.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="962227" first="Samuel" last="Musungu"] (6’1 2023 PG, D1 Minnesota)- </strong>The Sam Musungu full-court press is just as impressive, if not more impressive than just about any offensive play you’ll see. He has the ability to alter a game just with that on-ball pressure as he picks up and moves his feet to guard the length of the floor. We saw him create five or six turnovers against the Wisconsin Crusaders, with four of those coming late in the game as he helped his team mount a double-digit comeback. His quick hands allow him to pick point guards’ pockets with ease, and then he has the quickness to blow by and go the other way to finish at the rim. </p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="962283" first="Ishmael" last="Powell"] (6’2 2023 W, Minnesota Heat Pratt)- </strong>Powell’s length combined with explosive athleticism on the wing made him a highlight play waiting to happen this summer. That was evident at the NHR State Tournament when he slashed to the basket and threw down a dunk over the top of the defender that I think caught just about everybody in the gym off guard. His ability to quickly get off the floor even with a defender nearby was impressive, and that allows him to make plays protecting the rim and rebounding over size as well. Add in the ability to hit open shots on the perimeter and he’s an intriguing prospect moving forward.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="962199" first="CJ" last="O’Hara"] (6’4 2023 W, Grassroots Sizzle UAA)- </strong>Not only is CJ one of the most consistent producers in the 2023 class, he’s also a high flyer who seems to threaten the rims on every court he plays at. He has a nose for the rim and seems to constantly find ways to get high percentage looks in the paint whether it’s off the dribble, cutting hard without the ball, or flying up the floor in transition. If he gets an edge on the baseline he can get all the way to the rim and elevate with just one dribble, but he can also get into the paint and play with patience off of two feet to go up balanced to finish. CJ’s jumper has also shown constant improvements as he’s now keeping defenders honest with his ability to create space and pull-up from three or mid-range. </p> <p><strong>Jacob Rothman (5’8 2023 PG, Minnesota Select Emge)- </strong>Though he’s almost always the smallest player on the floor, Jacob can make a big impact with his scoring ability. He’s a fearless attacker who shows no sign of hesitation when attacking the basket, and can either stop on a dime to pull-up from mid-range or take it all the way to the basket and finish over size with touch. He uses his size to his advantage as he knows he’s quicker than just about everyone guarding him, and he uses a shifty handle to get to his spots on the floor. What makes Jacob so fun to watch is his ability to take over a game when his team needs some buckets, as we saw with a 33 point scoring outburst at the NHR State Tournament.</p> <p><strong>Donavhan Cain (6’4 2023 G, Howard Pulley EYBL)- </strong>Not sure there’s a more explosive player in the class, as Cretin-Derham Hall’s new transfer is an electric athlete with an impressive vertical. I had the chance to see Donavhan play at the Wisconsin Advanced Camp, as well as streaming some of Howard Pulley’s EYBL games, and he impressed at both events. Not only can he elevate and finish above the rim with ease, but he’s a dangerous isolation scorer. His shiftiness allows him to create space off the dribble to get off a jumper, and he elevates on his shot making it hard for opposing guards to get up a contesting hand. I also like how he can not only provide a perimeter threat defensively, but he can also double as a shot blocking threat on the help-side, using his explosiveness to protect the rim.</p>