The 2022 17U Season – First Look

Every year we mix a 17u review with a look forward. We take the top ten ranked programs from our 17u rankings and pier into the future. Let’s Go!

***We are not about to start guessing which 2023s and 2024s are going to switch teams. We are simply looking within the programs and projecting based on the talent they currently have. We use the order our 17s were ranked in.

Number 1… Grassroots Sizzle

What will they look to add? The Sizzle could use the good young PGs at 17U (Newbern and Isaac Asuma Isaac Asuma 6'3" | PG Cherry | 2024 State #102 Nation MN ) or they could add a veteran ball handler and keep the 2024 kids at their age. They have a nice group of wings with O’Hara, Humphries, JJ Ware JJ Ware 6'6" | SF Park Center | 2023 State MN , and Alex Mattes Alex Mattes 6'3" | SG East Ridge | 2023 State MN . They may need another big with Leach, Reader, and Austin Josepheson.

2021 Status – In terms of where they finished in the state rankings the Sizzle finished where we thought they would. In UAA play they went 10-12 which was under what they were hoping this group could get to.

Number 2… Howard Pulley

What will they look to add? I would guess the Panthers could add a true five although the 6’6, 6’9, 6’6 group of Kraft, Winter, and Obiazor are pretty long. I would also expect that they would like to add an attacking player with size.

2021 Status – The Panthers had a good year at 32-13. They went undefeated a couple events, won a tournament or two, and overall had a strong season with Tre Holloman Tre Holloman 6'2" | PG Cretin-Derham Hall | 2022 State #57 Nation MN leading the way. It was about where they were expected to be, and they had a couple trademark wins.

Number 3… D1 Minnesota

What will they look to add? I would expect them to look at some athletic forwards to pair with the fives, ball handlers, and shooters that they have on their roster.

2021 Status – D1 Minnesota went 5-5 in two weeks of Adidas play, they went 6-6 against Prep Hoops Circuit teams, and 6-3 against shoe teams the rest of their schedule (outside of the Adidas events) they played in PH Circuit events. It was a 17-14 record that we thought would be in the 20 win area.

Number 4… Minnesota Fury

What will they look to add? Size. This was a small team that played great team basketball but at the next level they will need more than one guy over 6-foot-3. So this team surely needs to add bigs.

2021 Status – The Fury Wilde squad went 35-11 and finished the year winning the Hard Work Region finals. The Fury once again faced shoe teams and pulled away a couple wins which has become their trademark.

Number 4… Minnesota Select

What will they look to add? Talent. This team needs to add talent. I combined the talent from a couple 16u teams to get the players above and while the players are good, Select needs to add about five quality bodies if they are to defend their SPTS 17u title next year.

2021 Status – Select had a fantastic season that included wins over shoe teams, the SPTS title, the NHR State Tournament title, the Comets Shootout title, and a 3-2 season series win over Fury Wilde. A lack of summer depth led to a few rough games but it was a huge year.

Number 6… D1 Minnesota Prospects (I will add one more at the bottom since we already talked about D1 Minnesota for next year)

2021 Status – The D1 Minnesota Prospects squad had a few rough patches in the spring but had a nice finish to the year against a daily schedule against difficult teams all July.

Number 7… Minnesota Lightning

What will they look to add? The Lightning has a strong amount of talent coming back with depth. They have a lot of pieces but will need to add a five for the 17u level. Pal Wal Pal Wal 6'5" | PF Albert Lea | 2023 State MN is really good and can play some five, but they will need center size too.

2021 Status – The Lightning 17s pushed their way to 7th with a nice group of local wins that included beating WOTN, Heat Grow, MSP Elite, Fury Narum, and Comets Belka. Another strong year for a program that gets better every year. They were better than I expected them to be.

Number 8… WOTN

What will they look to add? WOTN plays great team basketball and their 16u guards and wings were excellent. They will need another forward or two with size to continue to maintain the great team basketball they have played at 17s and 16s.

2021 Status – WOTN Johnson won 30 of the 42 games they played this season. The headliners were a pair of wins over the top Comets and Heat teams (each) and the Comets Belka victory. Solid year and better than I expected.

Number 9… Gain Elite

What will they look to add? They have ball handlers for sure. A shooter or two along with a low post scorer would really help take this strong group of guards to the next level.

2021 Status – Gain Elite challenged themselves with their schedule mixing in several NY2LA and Prep Hoops Circuit events with a few other things. Gain Elite likely would of wanted a couple more wins of course but it was a solid year for them.

Number 10… Minnesota Comets

What will they look to add? The Comets have a nice base of players but will likely look to upgrade their talent on the wing and add some frontcourt depth. They have a solid core as the team earned second in NHR state but will look to find playmakers to take this team to the next step.

2021 Status – I really liked the way this team played this year when Kris Hopkins was their point guard and the ball was really moving. The team changed some when Hopkins concentrated more on football but they certainly had solid moments.

Number 11… Minnesota Heat

What will they look to add? Love Akeem Nelson Akeem Nelson 6'1" | PG Minnesota prep academy | 2022 MN running the point and there are heady players on the wing that can score led by Isaiah Hanson Isaiah Hanson 6'4" | SG Rochester Mayo | 2023 State MN . They could really use a slashing athlete as well as a low post player to go with the top guys they will look to bring back.

2021 Status – The Heat Grow squad was better than expected and saw some players develop well. Heat MacDonald had its moments led by Wheeler and Riek but it was tough to be consistent as injuries and a shortage of players at times hurt them.