Top Players & 'And-1' - OPS

The high school hoop season has started and teams, along with players, are still figuring out who they are. Most have had at least a couple players start to emerge as the top options on their teams. We will offer insight into who has emerged for each OPS team as their "And 1" bonus player to their bucket (top player)!   Benson The Bucket: [player_tooltip player_id="890610" first="Antone" last="McNair"] | SG/SF | 6’0" 150lbs | Sr | 21.3 Pts | 4 Reb |1.5 Steals | 35% FG And 1: Cortez Gonzalaus | SF/PF | 6’4" 185lbs | Sr | 13.8 Pts | 4 Reb | 1.5 Assists | 44% FG Cortez has good dribble, drive game. He has a series of shot fakes that gets his opponents off their feet and can use either hand to penetrate. He has a decent midrange jumper and can slip under bigs to grab rebounds. He provides a nice lift to Benson to help take some pressure off Antone. <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/12822629/Cortez-Gonzalaus">https://www.hudl.com/profile/12822629/Cortez-Gonzalaus</a>   Bryan The Bucket: Lam Kuang | SF/PF | 6’7" 215lbs | Sr | 17.8 Pts | 6.3 Reb | 1 Block | 42% FG And 1: [player_tooltip player_id="1267137" first="Mat" last="Tut"] | SF | 6’5" 185lbs | Jr | 7.8 Pts | 3.5 Reb | 1.5 Steals | 46% FG Mat has shown to be a good compliment on the inside to Lam. He is long and athletic. He has a decent post game and can make shots from mid range. Mat will look to take the reigns from Lam and keep building momentum in this season and for next. <a href="https://www.maxpreps.com/athlete/mat-tut/Prw9YAM_l0CcKSQB5fGXyg/default.htm">https://www.maxpreps.com/athlete/mat-tut/Prw9YAM_l0CcKSQB5fGXyg/default.htm</a>   Burke The Bucket: Dakari Davis | PG/SG | 5’8" 160lbs | Jr | 17.5 Pts | 6.5 Reb | 2.5 Assists | 1.5 Steals | 46% FG And 1: Bryton Nelson | G | 6’2" 170LBS | Jr | 13.8 Pts | 2 Reb | 1.5 Assists | 4.8 Steals | 43% FG Bryton brings quick hands and a lot of energy. His on ball defense has been spectacular and he is a shifty guard who can pull up from anywhere on the court. With Bryton and Dakari both being Juniors, Burke could look to challenge a lot of good teams these next couple seasons. <a href="https://www.maxpreps.com/athlete/bryton-nelson/DrtL2v_7yESm7O_ytNuX1w/videos.htm">https://www.maxpreps.com/athlete/bryton-nelson/DrtL2v_7yESm7O_ytNuX1w/videos.htm</a>   Central The Bucket: [player_tooltip player_id="890589" first="Jayden" last="Dawson"] | PG/SG | 6’4" 180lbs | Sr | 22.3 Pts | 7.3 Reb | 1.7 Assists | 2.0 Steals | 59% FG And 1: [player_tooltip player_id="890569" first="PJ" last="Davis"] | SG/SF | 6’3" 185lbs | Sr | 12.3 Pts | 3.3 Reb | 1.7 Steals | 35% FG Jay and PJ make up one of the most dangerous backcourts in the state. PJ is an excellent three point shooter and above average defender. PJ is the type of player who can heat up and make teams pay. Look for PJ to improve the stats above as his season continues. <a href="https://www.maxpreps.com/athlete/pj-davis/I7er2_PwEeiAxKkkK9HIDg/default.htm">https://www.maxpreps.com/athlete/pj-davis/I7er2_PwEeiAxKkkK9HIDg/default.htm</a>   North The Bucket: [player_tooltip player_id="1031437" first="Mason" last="Strong"] | G | 5’10" 155lbs | Sr | 20.4 Pts | 3.6 Reb | 2.8 Assists | 2.2 Steals | 50% FG And 1: [player_tooltip player_id="1131120" first="Daleron" last="Thomas"] | G | 6’0" 155LBS | So | 9.6 Pts | 4.6 Reb | 2.2 Assists | 1.6 Steals | 48% FG Daleron has a terrific offensive package. He can penetrate, score from angles under the basket and shoot the 3 ball. He has gotten more confident and as that confidence grows, this North backcourt could cause problems for the other teams in the state. Daleron will be one to watch as he is only a sophomore, whos offensive game could really burst onto the scene in the coming years! <a href="https://www.maxpreps.com/athlete/daleron-thomas/dtd1xzMdEeuAzqREozo6lw/default.htm">https://www.maxpreps.com/athlete/daleron-thomas/dtd1xzMdEeuAzqREozo6lw/default.htm</a>   Northwest The Bucket: [player_tooltip player_id="1267145" first="Mekhi" last="Marks"] | PG/SG/SF | 6’2" 170lbs | Jr | 12.5 Pts | 3.8 Reb | 1.8 Steals | 38% FG And 1: [player_tooltip player_id="1235582" first="Maison" last="Johnson"] | SG/SF | 6’2" 172lbs | Sr | 8.8 Pts | 7.5 Reb | 1.5 Steals | 1.3 Blocks | 35% FG Maison has great length and has proven to be a great defender. He does a great job making himself big on the blocks to grab rebounds and get easy buckets. Northwest has not had much success in the win category but Maison plays his tail off on the court and leads by example. Hopefully that can translate to some wins for Northwest in the future. <a href="https://www.maxpreps.com/athlete/maison-johnson/pJNU0Q1aEeqAzqREozo6lw/default.htm">https://www.maxpreps.com/athlete/maison-johnson/pJNU0Q1aEeqAzqREozo6lw/default.htm</a>   South The Bucket: [player_tooltip player_id="1131119" first="Rickey" last="Loftin"] | PG/SG | 6’0" 160lbs | So | 12.8 Pts | 3.5 Reb | 4.5 Assists | 2.3 Steals | 59% FG And 1: [player_tooltip player_id="1152113" first="Jacob" last="Martin"] | PG/SG | 6’2" 168lbs | Jr | 13.3 Pts | 1.5 Assists | 2.5 Steals | 53% FG You could easily say Jacob is the bucket since he is averaging more points but Rickey got off to a slow start but is averaging 21 Pts per game his last two starts. Jacob has a solid offensive skillset. He can take you off the dribble to get to the rim, pull up at mid range or shoot from long range. His long arms do not make him easy to defend and keep others in check on the defensive end. Jacob and Rickey will be a fun duo to watch the next couple years. <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/15455613/Jacob-Martin">https://www.hudl.com/profile/15455613/Jacob-Martin</a>