NPS Florida Standouts

The annual National Prep Showcase took place at Albertus Magnus College in New Haven, Connecticut, and as always it was one of the most talented events in the country before most high school basketball even gets started. The three day event featured the best post graduate teams from all over the country, ranging from the New England perennial powerhouses to teams in VA, FL, OH, PA, NJ, MD, KS and more. With so many teams and so much high level talent, I have broken down the standouts into different regions and parts within the regions to make following easier. We take a look at standouts from the two Florida teams in IMG Post Grad and Montverde CBD. If you’d like to watch the entire event, you can stream the playback on the CBG Live Network <a href="https://cbglivenetwork.com/">here</a>. Justyn Fernandez | 6’5” WG | IMG Academy 2022 <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/05/Fernandez-Justyn-DCP.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1185268" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/05/Fernandez-Justyn-DCP-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" /></a> IMG had a rough weekend going 0-2 as they’re still gelling with an entirely new group playing against New England teams that have been together for years, but Fernandez was the bright spot as the George Mason commit solidified his top 100 ranking with a couple of big performances. In particular, he was fantastic against Springfield Commonwealth Sunday, where he went for 31 points on 10-for-20 shooting from the field, 8-for-9 from the line and pitched in 8 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals. He showed his elite level athleticism around the rim, competed at a high level and was their most consistent performer over the weekend. [player_tooltip player_id="1032938" first="AJ" last="Storr"] | 6’6” WF | IMG Academy 2022 <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/04/AJ-Storr-Hoopstars.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1173397" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/04/AJ-Storr-Hoopstars-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" /></a> Storr was the other IMG player that impressed, as the St. John’s commit showed a lot of toughness and versatility to his game on both ends of the floor. He played multiple positions throughout the weekend, showed he can score it off the catch from deep and slash in straight lines to score at the rim and through traffic and was active on the defensive end too. He finished the event averaging 16.5 points per game. DJ Jackson | 6’3” CG | Montverde CBD 2022 <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/11/Jackson-DJ.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1333439" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/11/Jackson-DJ-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" /></a> Jackson was part of a trio of guards for Montverde CBD that were the main reason that the group went 2-0 on the weekend with wins over Brewster and St. Thomas Moore, and he went crazy in both games. In their blowout win over Brewster, Jackson had a double-double of 19 points and 10 rebounds going 9-for-15 from the field with 4 steals, and he went for 25 in their win over St. Thomas Moore going 9-for-12 from the field. He’s an athletic and shifty guard who can create in isolation situations, he can score it in a number of different ways and from different levels and is an exceptional tough shot maker. DJ Richards | 6’5” WG | Montverde CBD 2022 <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/11/Richards-DJ.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1333442" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/11/Richards-DJ-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" /></a> Richards was another very impressive prospect for the Montverde team, with good size as a wing guard and he thrives in transition and can get hot quickly and fill it up in bunches. He had a solid first game going for 13 points but took a backseat to the other two guards, but in their second win over St. Thomas Moore he was out of this world going for 31 points, scoring 21 of them in the first half in a number of different ways and making a lot of shots in a row when he got hot and pitched in 3 steals as well. He has a lot of upside moving forward and showed a lot of tools that translate to the next level. TJ Wainwright | 6’2” CG | Montverde CBD 2022 <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/11/Wainwright-TJ.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1333444" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/11/Wainwright-TJ-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" /></a> While Jackson was the most consistent and Richards had the breakout second game, Wainwright had a legendary performance in their blowout win of Brewster which sports a very impressive roster including a number of high major prospects. Wainwright went for 25 points on 9-for-12 shooting and 3-for-4 from deep, and he took over the game at one point where he simply couldn’t miss and was doing whatever he wanted on the court. He’s a lefty that is a knock down shooter off the catch from deep, but he can also put it on the deck and create space and create for others, and he was no slouch in the second game going for 18 on 5-for-9 from the field and 3-for-4 from deep. Jermaine Ballisager | 6’11” C | Montverde CBD 2022 If a team is looking for an available big man, there aren’t many that have the sheer size and skill set as Ballisager who imposed his will on defenders throughout the event. At 6’11” he is also a very big kid who can overpower other bigs and play through contact, but he’s also surprisingly quick with his spins and off of his feet and he has good hands and touch in the paint. He dominated in the paint against a Brewster team that has two top 30 prospects at the power forward position in the 2023 class, going for 16 points and 8 rebounds on 6-for-10 shooting, and he still has room to get better too.