GASO Memorial Day Weekend 2023 "Small Ball" Forwards

Check out my scouting reports and analysis on some of the top prospects in attendance at the GASO (Great American Shoot Out) Dallas Fort Worth Memorial Day Weekend tournament! These guys really popped during their time on the court, expect them to begin to garner some real attention over the next few circuit months! DeCannon Wickware 2023 6’6 Justin Kimball High School (Urban DFW 17U Elite) DeCannon is an aggressive forward who is great at using his size and strength to get to his spots down low. He has good body control to spin around his opponents and then quickly rise up for a bunny hook after shifting his opponent. He moves well without the basketball and is great at cutting backdoor to find easy looks by getting past his defender and slamming down an emphatic dunk after keeping the defense on his hip. He is very smart out of the pick and roll, who knows when to set hard screens to create separation for his lead guard, but also slipping them when they are expecting the contact and then quickly finishing. His frame allows him to finish over the top of seemingly anyone, and he is great at finishing through contact. I was very impressed with his foot speed and the ease in which he runs the floor for easy opportunities down low. He is built like a linebacker so it is not surprising to see him use his strength and size to be truly dominant down low! I would like to see him work on attacking with a live dribble, and continuing to develop his shot from the perimeter to become a better three level threat. [player_tooltip player_id="892145" first="Chase" last="Cain"] 2023 6’6 Shadow Creek High School (JL3 Elite Moochie) Chase is continuing to develop at a fantastic rate, getting smarter and more aware with every game. He is adjusting to becoming the focal point of an offense and having the ball run through him at both the high post and on the block. He is garnering a double team almost every time he touches the ball, and is accurately passing out to his teammates on the back side. He is continuing to make the right reads and create looks for his teammates. He is an incredibly lanky and a long athlete whose size seemed to fill up the paint and affect opponents on both sides of the floor. He moves very well for his size and showed a real ability to stay in front of quicker guards on the perimeter and hold his own against larger forwards looking to bang down low. Where he really makes his mark on the game is his non stop energy in transition, on both ends of the floor. He is great at grabbing rebounds and making the right outlet pass and then sprinting down the court to be a threat to the rim as he dives in the open court. Where I have seen the most growth from him this morning was his natural leadership abilities, taking control of the huddle and inspiring his teammates. I would like to see continued development with his handle and working more out of the triple threat and facing up to pair with his ability to score with his back to the basket. https://twitter.com/gasoclips/status/1530993238022176769?s=21&t=ZxwSqfOa3tPfCF9p6yMRXA Trevor Martz 2023 6’5 Jordan High School (Katy Warriors 17U) Trevor is a dominant forward through his positioning and aggressiveness in the paint, and he gets results on both ends of the floor. He was very impressive down low, who uses his strength and size to finish through or above his opponent. He is a good finisher in the paint, who can use soft runners and floaters to create space to get his shot off over his opponents. He has great body control for his size, especially as he is getting downhill with a live dribble. At the recent GASO tournament he was very consistent with both his scoring down low, but also his rebounding on both ends. He is a very willing rebounder, who makes good decisions with his outlet passes to jump start the fast break. I would like to see him work on tightening up his handle and continuing to develop more moves out of the triple threat. He is a good big who can leap multiple times to either contest shots or attack rebounds. Jace Crawford 2023 6’6 Coram Deo Academy (Lee Green Basketball) Jace is a highly skilled three and D wing who showed an ability to not only lock up anyone down low or on the perimeter, but also showed off his elite foot speed and the ease in which he finishes on the break. He is an incredibly mobile player for his size which allows him to dominate in the full court. His energy makes him a tremendous rim runner on the break and he displayed a handle to get past his opponents. He fights for positioning down low, allowing him to grab rebounds and make the right outlet pass. He knows what kind of force he is as a trailer option as well, routinely blowing past his opponents with his end to end speed and punishing the defense for not being set after a missed shot. Where I was most impressed with his game was his ability to defend on the perimeter for his size, not only defending on the ball but also contesting shooters from deep positioning in the paint. He had a block on a jump shot in the corner that had the entire crowd suck in air after seeing him sky through the gym to take away that opportunity. I would like to see him work on his decision making with a live dribble, and also the consistency in which he screens and rolls to get open looks for himself. [player_tooltip player_id="1273400" first="Braylan" last="McNeal"] 2023 6’5 Ruston High School, LA (Lousianna Select Team Millsap 2023) Braylan is an impressive forward with the ease in which he scores and defends down low, but also can space the floor and knock down shots from the outside. He even showed an ability to use his handle to create separation to get into the teeth of the defense. I was blown away with the guards skills that he displayed, but more impressed with his consistency down low on the defensive end of the floor. He rejected shots in the paint and rebounded the ball at a very high level. What makes him an elite weapon on the defensive end of the floor is his ability to move his feet and defend guards on the perimeter. In the half court, he showed an ability to have an offense run through him at the high post, and made great passes out to his shooters with his back to the basket on the block. He even had a few very impressive plays where you can tell he changed his mind after he left his feet, and still made an accurate pass to his teammate.