2023 TRUE Point Guards Primed for a Big Senior Year

Check out my analysis on some point guards who are ready to make a name for themselves this year, and dominate their competition in all facets of the game. These kids can all see the floor, get their own shot off and create for their teammates, making them vital to their team’s success.

TJ Ford Jr 2023 5’10 Ridge Point High School

TJ is a lightning quick guard with elite athleticism, allowing him to run up and down the court and show off his bounce and the natural ability he has to finish in the lane. His ability to avoid contact is at an elite level, especially in the air! It does not matter what kind of defense is being thrown at him, he always gets by his first defender and forces the defense to react once he gets into the second level of the court. He is a creative scorer across all three levels of the floor, and is a knock down shooter if you want him to play off the ball. His release is very quick, allowing him to get his shot up before the defense has a chance to react. He knows when the defense is closing out on him too hard, and relentlessly attacks the defense off the bounce and gets defenders to jump at his pump fakes. The most fun aspect to his game has to be the way he sees the floor with the ball in his hands, he makes creative passes that set up his teammates for easy looks nearly every time he touches the ball. Time after time he found streaking teammates on the break and put pin point passes over the top of his opponents. Each pass he makes has the right amount of juice or touch depending on the situation.

Matthew Gonzalez Matthew Gonzalez 5'11" | PG San Antonio Marshall | 2023 TX 2023 6’0 Marshall High School

Matthew is a high level scorer who can simply get whatever shot he wants off across all three levels of the floor. What separates Gonzalez from other scorers is his natural point guard instincts and incredibly tight handle. He is great at using his elite handle to routinely get around his opponents and force a second defender to come up and react. I was very impressed with his ability to make good decisions while still going top speed hurling into the paint. When he gets downhill, defense do not know what to do with him as he scores so easily from the mid-range and as he attacks the rim. His scoring prowess is going to make him a household name in the San Antonio area with how easily he gets it done beyond the arc. He is a complete four level scorer with the ability to threaten the defense from WAY beyond the three point line. His aggressiveness lets him hunt for his shot, yet his consistency is such a difference maker.

JaCovey Campbell JaCovey Campbell 5'8" | PG Accelerated Prep | 2024 TX 2023 5’9 ISchool Lewisville

JaCovey is a high level and intelligent point guard who thrives in the half court, as he creates a plethora of shot opportunities for his teammates. The way he sees the court is at an elite level, running the show for his team and showing he can play alongside elite talent and create opportunities for them. His unselfishness bleeds through into his teammates and it allows their offense to be that much more deadly. He always seems to be reading the game just one step ahead of the defense every time down the court. I was very impressed with how well he uses his eyes to manipulate the defense, literally moving his opponents out of his way with a simple head fake. He routinely set up his bigs in the half court, and calmly operated the pick and roll. He made good decisions every time he had the ball in his hands.

Tate Branson 5’11 2023 Lipan High School

Tate is the energy and the spark that allows Lipan to keep churning forward, his ability to affect the game by doing all of the little things on both ends of the floor was incredibly impressive. He is a calm and confident point guard who thrives in setting up his teammates and creating looks for them. His ability to calmly dictate the tempo and where the ball needs to go was very impressive. He displayed some real wizardry level passes with his ability to pass in mid-air. He can change his mind after he is leaping in the air and accurately make the best read possible as he is falling back down to the court. I was incredibly impressed with his calmness with the basketball, and his ability to play at his own speed, no matter the defensive pressure. His vision is not just when he has the basketball, he had two instances where he volleyball tapped a rebound to an uncontested big underneath the rim for an easy layup.

Jaden Miller 2023 6’0 Dawson High School

Jaden is a skilled point guard who only seems to get better every time I see him in action. He thrives on getting his teammates involved and getting to his spots beyond the arc. He displayed some very consistent shooting off the dribble, and even showed off some impressive off ball movement to give himself some space. His ability to space the floor and play off the ball will be critical in the half court this year, as teams will be forced to send doubles at the wing players he has around him. Where he has really made a leap is in his aggressiveness with the ball in his hands, and how much he wants to push the tempo himself. He is able to dictate the pace of the game, especially in Dawson’s system that likes to play fast and get easy looks at the rim on the break. His ability to consistently make the right reads in the full court sets his teammates up for great opportunities.

Sterling Butler Sterling Butler 5'8" | PG Mansfield | 2023 State TX 2023 5’9 Mansfield High School

Sterling is the ideal undersized point guard that is ready to play at the next level by the way he is able to lead the team, and create offense with his aggressiveness. He is quick and thrives at beating defenders off the dribble and getting into the lane. He has great court vision, and used that to set up his teammates in the full court with ease. He is unselfish and loves seeing his teammates succeed and knows how to change the momentum in the game with his ability to throw pinpoint passes and shoot off the bounce. His legs are very strong, and he seems to explode to the rim. This athleticism allows him to naturally finish amongst bigger defenders. He is agile and seems to zip all around the court and wreak havoc. He has a nonstop motor that allows him to compete at the highest level on both ends of the court. He moves his feet well to cut off angles of his opponent and really got under their skin when he was on the court.  His game really stood out to me as an old school point guard, a true joy to watch compete.