Chi-Town Tip-Off: Sunday’s Best
On Sunday, I watched games at Romeoville Athletic Center. It is a great facility with with pristine hardwood courts! I saw 15U and 17U games on Easter. In this article we are taking a look at the best players I…
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Continue ReadingOn Sunday, I watched games at Romeoville Athletic Center. It is a great facility with with pristine hardwood courts! I saw 15U and 17U games on Easter. In this article we are taking a look at the best players I saw on Sunday.
Sunday’s Best
Damar Jenkins |6’2 SF| Chicago Impact 2023
He scored 18 of his 23 points in the first half. On defense, Jenkins was creating turnovers and contesting shots. Demar always seemed to be in the right place at the right time. He is an opportunistic scorer and a physical player. Jenkins bodied up inside and displaced the defender with his strong moves. Jenkins also grabbed many offensive rebounds. He is powerful player with nice handles. Demar also nailed a 3-ball on a BLOB.
Josh Nelson |6’2 SG| M14 Hoops 2023-3 National
He drilled 6 three-pointers and scored 25 points. Every time I looked, it seemed like Nelson was nailing a triple. He is a lethal shooter with deep range. Josh looks like a spot-up shooter with good mechanics. He finds the open spot, catches with good feet/hands, and sticks the J. Late in the game, Josh hit a big dagger 3-ball from the coffin corner. This helped his team secure the lead. Nelson also knocked down FT’s to help put the game on ice. Check out this shooter!
Jaylen Calloway |6’0 G| Team Tru 2023 Select
He was an impressive playmaker. Calloway has a nice pull-up game, he showed great touch when banking in a 15-footer with a kiss off the glass. Jaylen is a gifted athlete and an acrobatic finisher at the cup. I like how he penetrated, drew contact, and got to the FT-line. Calloway is a slasher that is dangerous when he gets going downhill.
Dominic Sheena |6’0 G| Michigan Goonies
He is an intense and active player, Sheena looked very good on Sunday morning. He had multiple crazy-tough acrobatic finishes. He was also very active on the glass. Sheena scored on an O-board tip in. He was impressive when grabbing defensive boards and leading the break going the other way. He is very fast when going down the court. Sheena was aggressive when attacking the rim. He also drew contact and scored from the charity stripe. Sheena had an impressive full-court finish. He slashed all the way across the lane and finished across the rim. Dominic is a nice player that shined on Sunday.
Zach Alindogan |5’10 G| Michigan Goonies
I watched him cash in multiple 3-pointers. Zach is a smooth in-rhythm shooter. He was a hot-shot in the second half on Sunday. Zach has a beautiful follow-through and a soft shot. Alindogan moves well without the ball and he reacts to the defense. I liked how Zach was always ready too shoot and he get his shot off quickly.
Eyera Nogues |6’2 SG| Illinois Drive Elite 2023
He was one of the top offensive players that I saw on Sunday. Eyera had a huge first half scoring the rock. He also had a productive second half with timely buckets. I liked his effort on the O-glass. Nogues is a big time shooting threat. He also scored off the bounce. Eyera had a sweet baseline drive to beat the zone for an easy bucket. He is a knockdown shooter with a tight, compact, and flawless form. His jumper looks effortless. On defense he picked off passes and he did a nice job of moving the ball on offense. Eyera scored big points but he also had multiple assists. College scouts will want to check him out, his offensive game is very tough.
Byron Pullen |6’0 PG| Illinois Drive Elite 2023
This kid is a DUDE! He is an impressive and special athlete. Byron was great at breaking down the defense off the bounce. His squad ran iso’s for him because he is so great at beating his man. Pullen showed a sweet turnaround jumper in the lane where he elevated over the D for an 8′ shot. He has top-notch handles and Pullen is a gamer. On the other end of the court, Byron is an excellent on-ball defender that moves his feet well. He is a very nice guard that college coaches should check out.
Nas Z Jackson |5-11 PG| Next Generation 2025
He may have had the best crossover that saw on Sunday. Jackson had a cross that resembled Allen Iverson’s. He is not just a ball handler, Jackson did his fair share of scoring. He knocked down multiple catch-n-shoot three-pointers. Jackson is a standout athlete that pushes hard in transition. He is a cool customer. Jackson weaved through traffic as if defenders were standing still and he dropped multiple dimes for assists. He showed off a great floater late, to help close out the game on Sunday morning. Jackson is an intriguing up-and-coming PG.
Davion McClendon |6’4 PF Next Generation 2025
This BIG was playing up a grade level, Davion is still in 8th grade. He certainly does not look like your average eighth grader! McClendon is strong and he moves extremely well. McClendon was a shot-blocker and a physical player. I liked how hard he worked on the boards. The young McClendon scored points on O-board putbacks. He also passed well out of the post.