2022 Rankings Update: Rising Guards

Developmental curves are never linear, and no two players develop at the same rate and at the same times as one another. As is the case every year, several seniors were able to combine the knowledge and skills accumulated over the years to take a big leap forward on the court in their veteran roles. Most of the risers received their improved ranking due to a big step forward in their play. A few others received their bump, in part, as a correction to past rankings, acknowledging mistakes in my previous evaluations of those players. Either way, the 16 players that experienced the biggest bump since our last update all proved themselves to be valuable players during the high school season. Let’s talk about the biggest risers at the guard position: [player_tooltip player_id="1018812" first="David" last="Harmon"] Current: 8 Previous: 22 Given how much harder it is to climb once you are already in the Top 25, Harmon’s rise is the most impressive of this bunch. A portion of his leap can be attributed to more opportunities on the court for the Mustangs this season, but there were true improvements as well. Harmon was a more consistent shooter from his junior season, and even from this past summer. It was a rocky start to the year, as Harmon was given a lot of the initiation responsibilities for Millard North. Coach Cannon took him off the ball after a trial period at point guard, and his performance skyrocketed from that point on. His ability as a second-side creator against a tilted defense is exceptional. His finishing around the rim this season was very impressive. And he did a much better job seeing the whole floor and making decisions when the defense collapsed. [player_tooltip player_id="1235577" first="Jordan" last="Foard"] Current: 19 Previous: 29 It was a disappointing season for the Omaha South Packers. The team never came together, they had issues solidifying their rotations, and that led to meltdowns in the final few minutes of games. Those factors, along with Foard’s inability to stay on the court, played a big part in making him possibly the most underrated guard in the entire state. Nobody, and I mean absolutely nobody, can guard him individually. Even in a blowout loss against Westside who have two of the better perimeter defenders in Nebraska, Foard scored 19 points on 8/11 shooting. He is an effective passer and has no issues kicking the ball after getting into the lane. Every great scorer can get to the free throw line consistently for easy points. Foard was tied for 2nd in free throw attempts for the Packers, despite only playing in 12 of their 23 games. [player_tooltip player_id="1023540" first="James" last="Gninefou"] Current: 26 Previous: 53 He had teammates that will end up being better collegiate players, but nobody produced on a more consistent basis on both ends for Skutt than James. I’ve been a fan of his for quite a while, but his improved efficiency as a senior was significant enough to give him this boost. Gninefou brings value as a ball-mover, a cutter, and an excellent team defender. He has great feel on the court, and is always around the ball making valuable plays. [player_tooltip player_id="1018810" first="Brandon" last="Orgilbold"] Current: 31 Previous: 61 It was certainly not the season that Elkhorn North expected to have, finishing 8–15. His rise is partly due to the fact I had him ranked too low on our last update, but I did see growth as a finisher and ball mover from the summer. The ball stuck a little less in his hands, he made quicker decisions when getting downhill, and even when the team was not gelling, Orgilbold provided consistency at the point guard position. [player_tooltip player_id="1235619" first="Jack" last="Heiss"] Current: 39 Previous: 140 I got my first real look at Heiss this season, and realized he was massively undervalued at 140. I am impressed with the pace at which he plays. He uses hesitation moves and head fakes to control multiple levels of defense. He anticipates potential passing windows, and he has the touch to make them before the defense has any chance to react. He grabbed over 5 rebounds per game this season, and at 6’1", that requires high a level of toughness, anticipation, and will to pull off. [player_tooltip player_id="1018811" first="Brody" last="Travis"] Current: 45 Previous: 67 Travis had much more responsibility for DC West this season. His field goal attempts increased by 44% from a season ago, all while having a slight increase in efficiency. He is still mainly a scorer, not a creator. His rebounding and assist numbers are essentially identical to a year ago, but he is a better athlete now than he was in the summer. His movements are cleaner, he is a quicker decision-maker, and maintaining his efficiency from a season ago while experiencing the leap in usage that he did is impressive. [player_tooltip player_id="1235612" first="Evan" last="Hill"] Current: 54 Previous: 141 Hill tied for third in three-point percentage among all Class A players, at 45%. He was the three-point specialist for Elkhorn South, and he took that role and ran with it. If you gave him an inch, he could knock it down over a great contest. He showed improvements as a passer as well. He wasn’t out there creating many opportunities for teammates, but he could make a play against a closeout as a shooter or by swinging the ball and relocating. [player_tooltip player_id="1235615" first="Gatran" last="Gatnoor"] Current: 55 Previous: 139 This is partly a correction to his previous ranking, but Gatnoor was a signifcantly better player than he was a season ago. He had a slightly different role this season which called for less shooting opportunties, yet he scored more this year than he did last. Gatnoor shot 45% from three, a big jump from his 30% mark as a junior. His biggest development came as a slasher. He was much more confident when taking his man off the ball dribble, and he did not need an inherited advantage, like a closeout opportunity, to get into the lane.