The Minnesota Top 250 Expo: 2024 Standouts

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>More Junior Standouts. Players in 2024 that caught my eye on Saturday at the Prep Hoops Expo!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1244764' first='Owen' last='Bernatz'] of Hastings (6'1). Owen is a strong guard. Loved how he used that strength to leverage around a guy and get to that dribble into what I thought was a really comfortable and good looking pull-up jumper. A kid that played hard and shot the ball well at the arc. Scored 14 a game as a sophomore. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1411676' first='Ty' last='Burgoon'] of Centennial (5'11). Another kid that caught my eye with his aggressive approach when I saw him play. In these events if you work to a defensive spot in help, or slide to take away an attack, you get noticed and Ty did that. Worked to get teammates involved and when he was off the ball and it was rotated to him, Ty shot the ball very well. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1284156' first='Jency' last='Davis'] of Columbia Heights (5'9). When it comes to quickness and pace, Davis was often in a space of his own (two meanings with that comment!). Davis gets great lift on his jumper and his first step is ultra quick so what he may give up in height, he was able to make for that with quickness and agility. Davis is the top returning player from Columbia Heights last year (scored nine a game) and he scored nine points a game. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1617809' first='Zavier' last='Hayes'] of Richfield (6'3). Hayes has a chance to be a special talent because he has good size at 6'3, he's got length, Zavier shoots the ball really well from the perimeter, he's confident, and can make smooth plays off the dribble in comfort. When you are a player with all of those gifts you are headed in the right direction as both a player in the now, and a prospect in the future. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Kai Penny of Buffalo (6'4). Penny is another player that is going to catch the eyes of a college coach and it's about 6'4 wing size and versatility. Kai is an athletic player too meaning he runs the floor well (both ways meaning he can score or get back to his spot on defense), gets off the floor well around the paint to finish or board, and that agility helps him as a defender. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1293964' first='Brody' last='Radtke'] of Tartan (6'8). There are things to catch about Brody's development that I really liked this weekend. When he was facing other quality bigs Brody was the first to the block to fit for position. I thought he used his length really well to defend or to extend to get a target in the post. Brody rebounded better than I have seen him in the past and he used his agile lateral steps to move well defending on ball screens or to get length in front of shots. Finished well around the basket too. Another year of coaching from Tartan could really take him another step forward too. Excited to see what he becomes. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1284142' first='Issac' last='Snell'] of Shakopee (6'0). Issac scored either 15 or 17 points in the game I watched (I have either a scratched out number or a really bad two in my book, not sure which) as he continues to be that player that doesn't need a lot shots to match the points of guys that shoot too much (higher percentage, smarter shot taker). The scoring is always a plus when it comes to Snell because there is so much value to his defense and his steady decision making off a dribble or with the pass. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->