George McClellan Invitational Top Prospects (Part 1/2)
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The annual George McClellan Invitational did not disappoint this year, with high level EYBL teams matching up and other prospects who had a real ability to turn some college coaches attention. There were multiple division one coaches in the gym…
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Continue ReadingThe annual George McClellan Invitational did not disappoint this year, with high level EYBL teams matching up and other prospects who had a real ability to turn some college coaches attention. There were multiple division one coaches in the gym looking at the enormous array of talent. Check out my analysis on some of the top Texas prospects from the event!
Robert Miller Robert Miller 6'11" | C Pasadena Memorial | 2024 State #64 Nation TX 2024 6’9 Pasadena Memorial High School (LOFDL EYBL E16)
Robert was at it again dominating across both sides of the ball, showing off his handle and ability to go coast to coast as well as dominating on the interior. He is truly an elite rim protector who knows when to slide over as a help defender and reject shots in the paint, chase down his opponents on the fast break and even contest jumpers on the perimeter. He showed a great motor to clear the glass on both ends of the court, even when matched up against other high level forwards. Miller is a truly high level prospect with the ease in which he dominates his opponents in the paint, but also the agility he displays and the natural touch he has from range. He is an effortless scorer off the bounce, who uses his size and athleticism to get wherever he wants to on the court, and simply rise above his opponent. He showed an ability to truly score off the bounce from all three levels, and is dominant in the post; both fading away and also backing his defender underneath the basket.
He is an athletic freak with the agility, natural bounce and the way he moves laterally. I was blown away with how easy he made everything look on both ends of the court. He has all the tools to be an incredibly effective prospect who looks like he can be molded into any kind of basketball player imaginable with his size. Miller has been getting a plethora of offers recently, including Alabama, California, TCU, Texas and Texas A&M.
Luke Coughran Luke Coughran 6'2" | SG Dream City Chrisitan | 2024 State AZ 2024 6’2 Katy Tompkins High School (LOFDL EYBL E16)
Luke is one of the best true shooting guards to come out of Houston in some time. He has dramatically improved every time I have seen him step on the court, and this weekend was no different. He had two games where he had five straight three pointers made. However, they were not the heat check threes that are becoming so normal these days, these were perfectly in rhythm in the flow of the offense, taking high percentage looks and making the defense pay for relaxed coverage. He is a calm shooter, even with a defender in his grill. The aspect of his shot that really impressed me was how every shot looked exactly the same, off the catch or even as he is attacking in the full court with a live dribble. Simply put, he is an incredibly tough shot maker across all three levels of the floor.
Coughran possesses great arm length which allows him to finish at the rim with ease. His consistency in the paint was very impressive, even against strong defenders. He has great off ball awareness and is great at flashing to the high post or cutting to the basket to give his team a passing option and put pressure on the middle of the defense. You can tell he sees the floor at a very high level, allowing him to affect the game on and off the ball. This aspect of his game might be the thing that I have seen him grow this year; he is calmly making the right reads, attacking the defense when necessary and even creating out of the pick and roll. If you are in the Houston area, be sure you check this kid out before its too late!
Ashton Simmons Ashton Simmons 6'3" | PG West Brook | 2024 State #228 Nation TX 2024 6’3 West Brook High School (JL3 EYBL E16)
Ashton is an explosive athlete, so it is not surprising to see he is dominant on the football field as well. His ability to leap and hang in the air allows him to adjust his shot angle on his way to the rim was incredibly impressive, contorting his body around defends to avoid contact for a plethora of crafty finishes. However he is not just a slasher who can attack the basket, this young man can calmly score across all three levels, and loves getting his floater off over taller defenders.He has a great touch on his shot, and calmly knocks down big time pressure free throws when necessary. He has true point guard ability in the way he pushes the tempo on the fast break, and calmly makes the right decision with the basketball or manipulating his opponent with his eyes. I was very impressed with how many slick dump off passes or kick-outs he made after seemingly having all of his attention set on the rim.
Defensively, he is extremely active on ball and loves getting under his opponents skin with his intense pressure over all 92 feet of the court. He is great at using his strength and athleticism to bump his opponents off their angles when they attack the basket. His ability to calmly and subtly make his opponents change their direction just makes them that much more uncomfortable and ineffective against him. He also used his bounce to come over from the weak side and block some high level forwards in the paint as well.
Clarence Payia Clarence Payia 6'6" | SG Beaumont United | 2024 State TX 2024 6’5 Beaumont United High School (JL3 EYBL E16)
Clarence is a strong guard who has all of the physical tools to do it all on either end of the floor. His leaping ability is off the charts, and he is noticeably bigger since I saw him at the Texas State Championships. He has really showed massive developments with his ability to score off the bounce from all three levels of the floor. His ability to calmly break down defenders and rise up beyond the arc was very impressive. He is not afraid of any help defenders coming his way to close out and affect him at the rim. His ability to get to the rim and absorb contact allowed him to convert a few and-1 opportunities on his way to the rim. He has a great frame already allowing him to finish through the chest of his opponents and slam it on the fast break.
Payia is an active player in the paint on both ends of the floor, he rebounds the ball at a high level, finishes through contact at the rim and is patient down low. On the defensive end of the floor, he has great instincts already as a help defender. He is good at recognizing which order in which he should be rotating to help over and protects the rim with ferocity. His defensive instincts allow him to pick off passes in the passing lanes, play lock-down on ball defense, or defend you in the paint. Payia will soon be handed the keys to an incredibly well coached and dominant high school program this year, and his work with John Lucas and his play on the EYBL Circuit has been really turning heads his way this summer.