January’s Top Power Scoring Guards

<p>Guards that score with power are hard to stop because they just keep coming. Their strength, stamina, and force often wear down defenses, and these guys seem to feed off of tiring out opposing teams. They are some of the most relentless scorers in the state and will push defenders to their limit. These are some of the best from the month of January.</p> <p><strong>Jackson Esary</strong> <strong>6’3 (2022) Kalama</strong></p> <p>When Esary gets going it can look like a runaway bulldozer. It might feel like you've been hit by one too after a night of guarding the Kalama scorer. He's listed at a solid 205 pounds and has great top-end speed to go with his thick build. Esary is in constant motion, running through pick after pick, working hard every trip down to get open. He's going to get a lot of shots up, but he's got great endurance, and rarely comes out of games. Esary goes with whatever is working, taking smaller players to the post where he can back them down or spin around them, or spraying pull-up jumpers from around the outside. He's a versatile player who leads his team in scoring, rebounding, assists, steals, and blocks.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="674424" first="Braeden" last="Smith"] 6'0 (2022) Seattle Prep</strong></p> <p>I hate making cross-sport references but here we go anyway - you can see why Smith ran for nearly 1,000 yards...as a quarterback. Smith is as strong as he is quick and absorbs contact at the rim, even initiating it a good amount of the time. He's able to drive into defenders, attacking their bodies and creating that space he needs to finish inside. He's also an excellent three-point shooter and isn't worried about hard closeouts. He is aware of space and time on the floor, and uses every split second he needs to get a shot off. His point guard skills show in his leadership. Always calm, Smith can easily take over when the offense breaks down and create a quality look for himself. Like most of the guys on this list, Smith rarely takes a break and is the heart and soul of Prep's squad.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="923108" first="Carson" last="DeBruhl"] 6’0 (2023) Seattle Academy</strong></p> <p>DeBruhl is a player who can get going from 0 to 100 real quick. At first glance, he might look a little wild going to the hoop with such speed, but the acrobatic guard is an exceptional finisher around the cup. He consistently finishes in a variety of ways with scooping layups, out-stretched reverses, or simply powering up to finish up over the defender. He's got a great initial burst that helps him get to the rack, but once he's there DeBruhl has great touch that allows him to perform these slick finishes with either hand. Add in a nice shot from long distance, and DeBruhl can be serious trouble for opposing defenses.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="931313" first="Asjon" last="Anderson"] 6’2 (2022) Mt. Tahoma</strong></p> <p>Anderson is a pure scorer. It was tough whether to list him as more power or more finesse, but the attitude he plays with, and his constant attack mode is what finds him among the top power scorers of the month. He's averaging 31.9 points per game and is a blur on the court. As soon as he gets a board, or a steal, he is off to the races with one thing on his mind, getting to the rim. His attacking mindset gets him to the line a lot. He sunk 20 of 22 from the stripe in his last game against Auburn. While he loves to attack the cup, he can also stroke from way back, and he's just as apt to drive and dish as he is to finish it himself, averaging a team-high 5.2 apg. Anderson is a true two-way player who only knows one speed on the court. He's full effort, full-time, a big reason he's on this list.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="923117" first="Gabarri" last="Johnson"] 6'0 (2023) Lincoln</strong></p> <p>Johnson is a quick guard who primarily uses that quickness to create separation and fire up the jimmy. His superior agility and speed makes defenders wary of the drive, but Johnson is such a skilled shooter, he will kill you either way. When he gets hot from long range, he's got all his moves going. He has great feet and strong legs that keep him under control during these quick bursts of moves, and he is excellent at gathering his feet under him to get lift on his jumper. He makes fast decisions and uses a number of moves to set up teammates inside. He can euro step, step back, and use his great change of pace to create driving lanes and passing lanes in crowds. He knows he is always a threat to shoot, and is smart enough to use that threat against defenses to attack in other ways.</p>