December Report: Top Point Guards

Now that the end of the month (and year for that matter) has arrived, it’s time to reflect on the action that was taken in and break down the top prospects evaluated at various positions. I’ll start with the point guards who stood out among the rest. <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/11/Bryson-Tucker.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1337242" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/11/Bryson-Tucker-300x168.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="168" /></a> [player_tooltip player_id="1127305" first="Bryson" last="Tucker"] | 6’6 | Mount St. Joseph ’24 Since the beginning of the season, Tucker has asserted himself as the primary ball handler for the Gaels and has thrived. Because of his make up and skill set, it’s easy to draw a comparison to Cade Cunningham, but I think there’s an argument that at this point and age of Tucker’s career, he is more polished than Cunningham was at 15 years old. The command he brings of the offense in the half court and the decisions he makes as a creator are impressive. He processes the game at such a rapid rate, it makes everything look easy. He picks and chooses when he wants to score and have proven this season that he can do so from all three levels. He comes equipped with all of the intangibles as well. Tucker is vocal on the defensive end in coverages, he’s a positive presence when communicating to his teammates and his body language is always buttoned up. It’s safe to say as he stays on his current trajectory, Tucker could be the next big-time prospect out of Baltimore. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V8clF5_J5yY <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/05/McDaniel-Dug.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1201614" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/05/McDaniel-Dug-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" /></a> Dug McDaniel | 5’10 | Paul IV McDaniel has been on a tear all month for Paul IV and has them positioned to make a real run at the WCAC title as 2022 begins. The future Michigan floor general is one of the quicker guards you’ll come across in his class and it’s evident in the open floor. He takes advantage of any driving lane or angle he can gain on his defender to work his way into the paint where he quickly breaks down the defense and locates open shooters, bigs along the baseline or finished with high floaters. McDaniel’s outside shot is still a work in progress, but with time he’s proven to be a more capable threat than before. There were reasons to believe that Paul IV may have it’s bumps considering the youthful roster, but McDaniel has helped engineer a 8-1 start with blowout victories along the way. Their only loss came to Sierra Canyon in the Iolani Classic. Despite coming up short, he still claimed MVP honors. https://twitter.com/SUVtv/status/1474570723431747584?s=20 [player_tooltip player_id="1089572" first="Daquan" last="Davis"] | 5’11 | St. Frances ’24 Davis has put together a stellar sophomore season for the Panthers and has been one of the more consistent scoring threats in their 14-2 start. The 5-foot-11 guard built a reputation as a freshman for being a fearless presence on both ends despite his lack of size. He’s one of the most tenacious defenders regardless of class or position in the MD/DC area. He attacks the rim relentlessly and embraces any sort of contact thrown his way. I would say coming into this season, the part of Davis’ game that needed to improve most was consistency with his outside jumper and he’s shown great improvement through this portion of the season. Davis recently led the Panthers with 20 points, which included hitting 5-of-9 from beyond the arc in their win over Legacy Early College in the Chick-Fil-A Classic. There’s no doubt that Davis will be recruited at the next level as a point guard, so continuing to polish on his pace and decision making will be watched closely. <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/12/Reico-Hellams.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1338690" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/12/Reico-Hellams-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" /></a> [player_tooltip player_id="957045" first="Rieco" last="Hellams"] | 5’9 | Good Counsel ’23 Since seeing Hellams in their season opening win over John Carroll, I’ve been raving as to what he brought in that particular matchup. The 5-foot-9 lefty is yet another tough-nosed guard in MD/DC who takes great pride in his production on both sides of the ball and his team feeds off his energy. He’s a ruthless on-ball defender is active in passing lanes off the ball to cause deflections. He makes good reads on ball-screen scenarios and can get into the paint with minimal dribbles thanks to his quick twitch ability off the bounce. He shot the ball extremely well in the game that I saw him in, but progressing in this area will be key for Hellams to emerge as a Division I prospect. [player_tooltip player_id="904680" first="TJ" last="Vaughn"] | 5’11 | John Carroll ’22 Vaughn came into this season with responsibility of filling a major void left behind by Jalen Bryant (Kutztown) at the point guard position and has exceeded my expectations. He’s been efficient with his catch-and-shoots from three, is finishing around the basket at a greater clip and is grasping how to control the pace of a game better. Along the way there has still been some spurts where Vaughn can make unforced errors, but the freedom and confidence that his coaches have in help make it easier to bounce back and get his team on track shortly after. <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/12/Lawson-Rob.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1342663" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/12/Lawson-Rob-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" /></a> [player_tooltip player_id="904663" first="Rob" last="Lawson"] | 5’10 | National Christian ’22 Lawson remains one of the better available prospect of the MD/DC senior class. He’s a well-rounded floor general who can contribute to a handful of box score categories at a steady rate. People seem to write him off quickly due to his size, but he comes with intangibles such as toughness and underrated athleticism that allows him to get above the rim for finishes occasionally in the open floor. I wouldn’t say that Lawson is better at one particular thing over another, but what you’ll get with him is a shot-maker, heady distributor and dependable ball handler who also provides a presence defensively. Lawson is a scholarship-level prospect. <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/12/Vakaris-Grauslys.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1344741" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/12/Vakaris-Grauslys-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" /></a> Vakaris Grauslys | 6’1 | West Nottingham ’22 Grauslys was my most impressive find of the month as I made the trip up to West Nottingham Academy one evening as they earned a big win over John Carroll. Led by Vakaris’ 32 points (including seven three’s), the Rams seemed to be rolling on all cylinders and it was the Lithuanian’s leadership that shined brightest. He had complete control of the game and was taking whatever the defense gave him. If he wasn’t cashing in on three’s off the catch, Vakaris was finding small driving lanes and finishing around the rim creatively to avoid opposing shot blockers. He made sound reads on ball screen actions, was extremely vocal on defense and made the small plays that teams need in their point guards to squeak out close games. Vakaris is a guy I’d want to go to war with. <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/12/Sincere-Barfield-2.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1348156" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/12/Sincere-Barfield-2-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" /></a> [player_tooltip player_id="1127304" first="Sincere" last="Barfield"] | 5’10 | Parkville ’24 Barfield is one of the best prospects in the public school scene. He has a strong frame at 5-foot-10 and athleticism that helps him with finishes over the rim. His explosive first step makes him a nightmare to stay in front of and his ability to score the ball in a variety of ways is what makes him even more dynamic. He’s still getting a handle on the small technicalities of being a point guard, but he processes the game quickly and when he’s in a mindset of being a distributor, makes all of the reads that coaches would want their floor general to make.