2023 Prospects Under Recruited This Summer
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Now that the summer is over, many players blew up on the AAU scene and have received a lot of love from college coaches, but there’s always some that have slipped through the cracks. Here, we take a look at…
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Continue ReadingNow that the summer is over, many players blew up on the AAU scene and have received a lot of love from college coaches, but there’s always some that have slipped through the cracks. Here, we take a look at some of the players in the 2023 class that have division one offers, but I think should be more heavily recruited by division one schools than they are right now.
Yuri Manns Yuri Manns 6'3" | CG LC Bird | 2023 State VA | 6’3” WG | LC Bird
Offers: Radford
Manns was stuck in a tough situation in AAU as he played most of the season with a Team Loaded team that finished as one of the top 5 programs in the country and he was overshadowed at times, but there’s no questioning him after his breakout junior season where he was an All-State selection and one of the top scorers in the state. The 6’3” wing is wired to score the ball as he can drill it from deep off the catch and off the bounce with good range, he’s strong when he gets downhill and finishes well through traffic and he’s become more and more explosive as a finisher over the past few years.
John St. Germain John St. Germain 6'2" | PG St. Anne's Belfield | 2023 State VA | 6’2” PG | STAB
Offers: Radford, Coastal Carolina, Bryant
St. Germain is one of those guys I’ve spoke with coaches who believe the transfer portal really hurts as he would likely have double digit offers if this was five years ago and is the type of guard that coaches claim they want but can probably get in the portal easily. He’s one of the best floor generals you’ll come across as he has tremendous feel and makes difficult passes with both hands look extremely easy, he runs the pick-and-roll as well as anyone you will find and finds his scorers in stride for easy buckets and he’s a strong downhill attacker who gets to the line and can finish through traffic.
Luke Smith Luke Smith 6'9" | C Collegiate | 2023 State VA | 6’8” C | Collegiate
Offers: Navy, Army, UMass Lowell, Radford
Smith has been well known in the Richmond area for a few years but the fact is he doesn’t get enough credit for the growth of his game and the way he’s rounded it out over the past few years. He’s always been a perimeter oriented big who can knock down shots and is a good passer whether it’s finding cutters or shooters off of screens and off the bounce, but he’s really embraced more post work recently as he can catch it in the paint and score over the shoulder, he rebounds and is a good outlet passer and he is patient and makes the right play consistently.
Judah Egbo Judah Egbo 6'7" | C Life Christian Academy | 2023 State VA | 6’8” C | Life Christian Academy
Offers: Radford, Hampton, Norfolk State, Robert Morris
Egbo is another player who was a little overshadowed on a talented Team Loaded VA team, but it’s hard for me to believe that coaches don’t see the long term potential in this big man who has great physical and athletic tools and has continuously improved over the past few years. Egbo is 6’8” with long arms that moves well and can run the floor in an uptempo system, he’s a big time leaper who will challenge players at the rim defensively and isn’t afraid to go up and put it on the head of guys trying to challenge him at the rim and he has improved greatly but still has tons of room to polish and get better.
Leland Coleman Leland Coleman 6'6" | SF Trinity Episcopal | 2023 State VA | 6’6” F | Trinity Episcopal
Offers: Robert Morris, Radford, Austin Peay
Coleman is a player we’ve been waiting to turn that corner over the past few years and this summer with Team Richmond he played his best basketball to date and stepped up in a big way against some very good teams. He’s a long and rangy forward who can play both forward positions and play on the wing, he has huge potential defensively with his length and athleticism that he uses to guard multiple positions and get downhill and finish above the rim consistently and he has improved on his shot making ability as well. He’s also a high academic kid who isn’t getting enough looks from those type of schools.
Patrick O’Brien Patrick O’Brien 6'8" | C Bishop O'Connell | 2023 State VA | 6’8” PF | Bishop O’Connell
Offers: Radford, USC Upstate
O’Brien is someone we’ve been tracking for years now and it’s honestly amazing the way he’s changed from a stiff post up player as a young prospect to a guy who moves well on the perimeter and can be an inside-out threat in a number of different ways. He’s very comfortable on the perimeter coming off screens to knock down shots and using his size to shoot over players, he’s improved in his ability to attack in straight lines and use his athleticism to finish at and above the rim and he he still can bang in the paint for rebounds and defend the rim as well as switch defensively.
Jayden Harris Jayden Harris 6'8" | SG Potomac Va | 2023 State VA | 6’4” WG | Potomac
Offers: Bryant
Harris was on a very talented Team Durant team that lost in the Peach Jam Semifinals and while he wasn’t a starter for the group there’s no doubt that he turned some heads coming off of the bench and I’m genuinely surprised he didn’t pick up more offers over the summer that we know about. The 6’4” two guard has a lot of tools that translate to the next level including a good frame with good length, athletic finishing ability when he gets downhill, the ability to knock down shots from deep and create in the midrange and he’s a solid defender as well.