Defensive Ability Earns these 10 Prospects D1 Offers
At Prephoops we rank high school players. We organize the players by class and position and give everybody a number ranking. That however does not mean that the number 1 prospect is 10 spots better than the number ten ranked…
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Continue ReadingAt Prephoops we rank high school players. We organize the players by class and position and give everybody a number ranking.
That however does not mean that the number 1 prospect is 10 spots better than the number ten ranked player. If we were to use a star or chip system to label players, our top five to 15 players may all be considered five stars or blue chips. It really just depends on the depth of the class each year.
Coaches often love a prospect’s ability to score, and once they believe that player can also defend a college level point guard, wing, or post, that player becomes a serious prospect.
The most coveted prospects are scorers that can also shut down either the quickest player, the best shooter, or the biggest post on every team.
A player’s “true” position in college is based on who they can defend.
College Coaches will say I need a scorer who …
“Has enough quickness to keep a point guard in front them”
“Is long enough to help and recover to three point shooters on the wing”
“Tough enough to guard the five in the low post with no help”
Since everybody can score, it is really the prospect’s defensive abilities that make the difference.
Therefore when we evaluate we look to for evidence that a prospect has one of these three attributes:
- the quickness to apply full court pressure to college point guards and turn them over
- the foot speed, length and strength to prevent a wing shooter from getting clean looks
- the size to guard the biggest player on the floor without needing help and the speed to hedge or switch on balls without being in an immediate mismatch
Let’s take this information and evaluate ten players with Division 1 offers in the class of 2023:
Jaylin Stewart Our number one ranked player is 6-6 and has a combination of length, strength and foot speed that allows him to defend 1-4 without it being an immediate mismatch.
D1 Offers: 4 including UW and Connecticut
Parker Gerrits Our number two ranked player has a college ready body and at 6-2 he has the quickness to contain point guards and strength to body wing scorers.
D1 Offers: 5 including Vermont and Montana
Brooklyn Hicks Our number three ranked player has the quickness and speed and a long 6-3 frame that allows him to defend positions 1-3
D1 Offers: 12 including UW, WSU, Oregon State
Tyce Paulson Our number four ranked player is 6-5 and is a great help defender whose length allows him to gap quickness but recover to stop the three point shot. He is not an immediate mismatch when guarding positions 1-4
D1 Offers: 7 including Montana and Pepperdine
Miles Heide Our number five ranked player at 6-9 has the size and foot speed to guard 3,4,5. His motor and versatility on defense makes him highly sought after.
D1 Offers: 14 Including WSU,SDSU,Iowa,BYU
Gavin Marrs Our number six ranked player at 6-11 is extremely long and can adequately defend the 4. With added strength he will be able to guard the 5 and a bit more discipline he will be be able to contain wings
D1 Offers: 2 U. Portland, Cal-Poly
Tennessee Rainwater Our number eight ranked player is an explosive 6-5 and like Stewart,his big athletic body is capable of guarding 1-4. Teams that like to switch and play uptempo love the defensive energy he brings.
D1 Offer: Utah Tech of the WAC
Sherrell McCullum Jr. Our number10 ranked player is just 6-5 but has great hands and anticipation that he uses as an on-ball defender and the type of build that gives him the ability to defend low post players. At the college level this should continue as his body matures.
D1 Offer: Portland State
Christian King Our number 16 ranked player is a matchup problem because he is a pure shooting 6-8 wing and defensively his length allows him to help and recover, gap and contest on the perimeter. He is also an excellent high post defender right now. Depending on the system he ends up in, he may be expected to bulk up to guard college level low posts more effectively or get quicker to put pressure on the wings.
D1 Offers: 3 Lehigh, Seattle U, UCSB
Seth Horn Our number 23 ranked player is a physical 6-9 and the old adage about not being able to coach size applies in this case and he may be still growing. He is rather bouncy and has great timing as a shot blocker who tries to swat everything.
D1 Offer Loyola Marymount