Preseason Prospect Evaluation

With the highly anticipated 2021-22 Texas high school basketball season is officially underway, we discuss some of the top prospects to look out for this year after stellar preseason performances. <hr /> [player_tooltip player_id="961962" first="TJ" last="Burch"] | Point Guard | Trinity Christian School (Cedar Hill) | C/o ’23 Reigning TCAL Player of the Year, [player_tooltip player_id="961962" first="TJ" last="Burch"], picked up right where he left off last season and was in great sync with his teammates, displaying terrific unselfishness and chemistry as he consistently made the smart play after breaking down the defense. A natural playmaker from top to bottom that showed a knack for turning his defense into offense. Burch was always effective with the ball in his hand, his dime-dropping skills were apparent and on full display, throwing guys open, hitting shooters across the court, and even tossing around a few alley-oops. Burch’s ability to handle the ball as if it’s on a string made him extremely threatening in the open floor, easily squeezing through and splitting traps with one quick bounce behind the back or between the legs. After penetrating the defense, [player_tooltip player_id="961962" first="TJ" last="Burch"] proved to be a crafty finisher with great body control as he absorbed contact in mid-air while converting the layup. Burch played as if the game has completely slowed down for him, allowing him to do as he pleased. <hr /> [player_tooltip player_id="1125969" first="Tre" last="Johnson"] | Combo Guard | Lake Highlands HS | C/o ’24 Top-ranked national talent, [player_tooltip player_id="1125969" first="Tre" last="Johnson"], continues to showcase his prowess as a pure three-level scorer with a remarkable variety of change of speed and direction moves in his bag to create a shot or separation. Johnson was an offensive wizard that made getting buckets look way too easy, especially in the mid-range where he was an absolute assassin. His nice lengthy frame and perfect elevation allowed him to rise up and effortlessly get a shot off as he took turnaround and pull-up jumpers over contesting defenders. As usual, he displayed an excellent handle that put fear into the defense when sizing players up one-on-one before getting to his spots within the perimeter. Anytime [player_tooltip player_id="1125969" first="Tre" last="Johnson"] was in attack mode he was a dangerous match up for all defenders. <hr /> [player_tooltip player_id="1051194" first="Rocco" last="Paul"] | Shooting Guard | Frisco HS | C/o ’22 6-foot-4-inch, [player_tooltip player_id="1051194" first="Rocco" last="Paul"] continues to raise his game to the next level, as he seems to be moving, reacting, and anticipating things on the floor faster than he ever has. The senior guard has become much more deadly of a jump shooter and is more than capable of catching fire from beyond the arc. When left unaccounted for on multiple occasions he made sure to make the defense regret it. Paul is one of those guys that can instantly get hot after seeing the ball go through the net a couple of times. Rocco Paul swiftly caught passes thrown to him and went right into his shooting motion before defenders ever knew what hit them, consistently showing strong mechanics and a quick trigger along with the perfect amount of elevation whether a hand was in his face or not. Rocco didn’t just light it up from deep either, he also affected the game in a multitude of other ways, and contributed in every way possible, always making the right play, snagging rebounds to start the fast break, playing his usual hard-nosed defense, making timely cuts to the basket, and setting effective screens. <hr /> [player_tooltip player_id="1125967" first="Micah" last="Robinson"] | Small Forward | Greenhill School | C/o ’24 This silent killer has an incredible motor, is highly productive, and also cool, calm, and collected at all times, in all aspects of the game. Robinson has made the most out of his opportunities with the ball. I love how [player_tooltip player_id="1125967" first="Micah" last="Robinson"] let the game come to him and always played to his strengths, taking whatever the defense gave him. Standing at 6-foot-7, the sophomore forward consistently maximized limited space, showing terrific control of the rock, with a very tight handle, and the skills to put a defender on skates. Robinson showed the ability to be a punisher with the ball inside, his strength and power easily went unmatched. He has a tremendous knack for using his body to protect the ball and bounce off of defenders on the dribble drive where Robinson also displayed a phenomenal touch on his heavily contested runners, floaters, and layups. Micah also excelled at times when spotting up and catching and shooting from beyond the arc, his jump shooting has improved, and will become a threatening part of his game this season. <hr /> [player_tooltip player_id="958560" first="Justin" last="Whitmore"] | Forward | Naaman Forest | C/o ’22 [player_tooltip player_id="958560" first="Justin" last="Whitmore"]’s stretch-forward capabilities have been on full display. Whitmore is pulling up, stepping back, and spotting up from long range showing off a fluid release, a fearless conscious, and the touch to let it fly from multiple areas on the floor. Whitmore has also impressed with his elite athleticism showing good agility and the propensity to run the floor like a mad man, constantly putting pressure on the rim on the fast break. He also did damage with his high flying leaping ability, throwing dunks down in transition one-handed, two-handed, and off of alley-oops. [player_tooltip player_id="958560" first="Justin" last="Whitmore"]’s game continues to expand and he will likely be a huge stock riser as the season goes on. <hr />