Chi-Town Tip Off: Saturday AM Prospect Standouts

<p>Six prospect standouts from Saturday morning at the Chi-Town Tip Off:</p> <p><strong>Justin Bowen -- PG -- Team Rose 3SSB 15U</strong></p> <p>Bowen is a prospect that has some real potential. In an early game on Saturday morning, the Team Rose point guard got off to a fast start. Early in the first half, he drilled a pretty step back three and then slashed to the rim for a bucket. Bowen is a confident shooter and fearless driver. He is still very raw, as he still has a long way to go to and some skills to refine, but for now, he is an impressive 15U prospect. Bowen scored 20 points in a loss. </p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1385307" first="Cameron" last="Thomas"] -- G -- M14 Hoops 15U</strong></p> <p>M14 Hoops was in a deep hole at the conclusion of the first half. Team Rose had thoroughly out played them and it appeared as if M14 was on its way to losing. But Thomas just wasn’t going to let that happen. The guard tallied 22 total points, 16 of which came in the second half. Thomas was very impressive as a slasher. He has a strong upper body, which allows him to finish through contact in the paint. Keep an eye out for Thomas in Illinois’ 2025 class. </p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1295579" first="Jax" last="Abalos"] -- SG -- M14 Hoops 15U</strong></p> <p>Shooter’s shoot. And even though Abalos missed some shots on Saturday morning, he did what shooters are supposed to do: He kept shooting. With seconds quickly ticking off the clock and his team down three, the ball found Abalos in the corner. He threw up a three that didn’t fall. But this didn’t discourage Abalos -- there was still time left. Abalos corralled his own miss and took a dribble back to the same spot. It was a similar shot but a different result. This time, Abalos’ three found the bottom of the net as time in regulation expired. Abalos scored 12 points in the winning effort, including the game-tying shot. </p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1385293" first="Bryce" last="Heard"] -- SG -- Mac Irvin Fire 15U</strong></p> <p>The rankings have not been released, but when they do, there is a very good chance that you will see Heard’s name in the coveted number one spot. The 6-foot-5 Mac Irvin Fire guard has a handful of high-major scholarship offers and he has played just one season of high school basketball. But after seeing him play on Saturday, I now believe the hype. Heard didn’t necessarily have a great shooting game, but he was still able to lead his team in scoring with 14.  I thought that the SG did a great job of competing hard on both ends in Mac Irvin’s win. </p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1252217" first="Kaden" last="Magwood"] -- PG -- Mac Irvin Fire 15U</strong></p> <p>Magwood looks to be one of the better prospects that Kentucky has to offer in the 2025 class. The point guard is a strong ball handler who possess terrific court vision. On Saturday, he proved that he is capable of running his squad’s offense, as I thought that he did a wonderful job of getting his teammates opportunities to score. He isn’t just a passer, though. Magwood can get his own buckets. He scored ten points in the win.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1210394" first="KJ" last="Vasser"] -- PG -- All In Athletics 17U </strong></p> <p>Vasser is an uncommitted 2022 point guard that turned heads on Saturday. He tallied 19 points in the winning effort for All In Athletics over M14 Hoops. Vasser is a really talented slasher that does a great job of making plays at the rim. He is also very good as a passer. The point guard was clutch down the stretch, as he got to the foul stripe and converted on four key free throws. </p>