2021-22 Preview: Top Returning Passers (6A)

<p>There are some good players coming back for the 2021-22 season at the 6A level as many of them were huge contributors already this past season. Many of last year’s top assist men are back - including three of the top four. Here’s a look at the top returnees.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="964546" first="Trevon" last="Hamilton"] (2022 Beaverton) - 6.0 apg - #1</strong></p> <p>Hamilton is a dying breed in basketball in that he’s a pure point guard that would rather pass than score. The 6-foot-2 point guard is always looking for teammates in both the half and full court settings and it could even be argued that he may pass too much at times. He may end up scoring a bit more this year as it will be needed but look for him to once again challenge for the assist lead.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="857358" first="Leo" last="Sewell"] (2022 Wells) - 5.6 apg - #2</strong></p> <p>Sewell led 6A in assists as a sophomore and just barely missed out on repeating the feat as a junior. This probably comes as the 5-foot-9 point guard was asked to score more for Wells and was also sharing ball-handling duties with freshman [player_tooltip player_id="1232311" first="Jacey" last="Canalin"]. Look for his averages to remain about the same as the Guardians bring back the majority of the same team as last year.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="964537" first="Kyle" last="Hamnes"] (2022 Century) - 5.0 apg - #4</strong></p> <p>Hamnes is in a good spot at the point at Century as he’s surrounded by three-point shooters to get the ball to. That fits with the 5-foot-10 senior’s game as he looks to attack the basket which gives him plenty of opportunities to drive and kick. The Jaguars offense should remain the same this year so Hammes has a chance to pile up more dimes.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="861091" first="Jackson" last="Shelstad"] (2023 West Linn) - 4.4 apg - #9</strong></p> <p>6A’s leading scorer is also one of the state’s leading assists guys and it should come as no surprise since the ball is in Shelstad’s hands a lot. That story will remain the same in 2020-21 and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see both numbers grow. The 6-foot guard may even have an outside chance of pulling a Trae Young and leading the state in both scoring and assists.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="964539" first="Julian" last="Mora"] (2022 Summit) - 4.2 apg - #10</strong></p> <p>One of the fastest players in the state, Mora is always on the go and that helps lead to some assist numbers as he pushes the ball up the court and finds teammates getting to the hoop in transition. Summit also has plenty of great outside shooters so drive-and-kick opportunities abound. Mora does a great job of balancing scoring and distributing.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="861087" first="Esyah" last="Pippa-White"] (2023 Gresham) - N/A - N/A</strong></p> <p>Pippa-White isn’t officially listed among last year’s leaders as unfortunately there was a hiccup with Gresham’s stats last season. But based on the games we watched, the 6-foot point guard would have been among the leaders and should be there this season. Pippa-White does a good job balancing scoring and passing and should do that once again this year.</p>