AZCP Classic: 2023 AZ Standouts

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>November 4-6 I attended the annual AZ Compass Prep Classic in Chandler, AZ. There were 17 teams competing with Canada, AZ, NV, CA and NM. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>There were 8 local teams I watched and here were some of the senior standouts:</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='867936' first='Rayvon' last='Griffith'] AZ Compass Prep&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A bigger wing three level scorer. He can make shots from deep, get to the rim and float it up or dunk it. He rebounds well in traffic with his size and bounce. He is also a good passer as he made a couple up the court passes on a dime showing his versatile game.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='814036' first='Tru' last='Washington'] AZ Compass Prep&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A tough no-nonsense defensive guard. He will defend the length of the court and make his opponent very uncomfortable. He shoots it from mid to to the three and is a stud in transition. He surprisingly got fouled on three pull-up jumpers as defenders were tightly guarding him and he actually hit one. Not many play with his motor in AZ.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='831119' first='Jason' last='Fontenet Jr'] Bella Vista Prep (Pictured)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Arguably the top performer of the day. He is a bigger combo guard who can hit the catch three plus he can hit tough shots off the dribble from mid-range with a defender draped all over him. He is a plus rebounder for a guard and he poured in 26 points with 8 rebs and 5 assists showing his full game.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='814039' first='Mark' last='Brown Jr'] Bella Vista Prep</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As he is aging, he is evolving his game as more of a true facilitator. He can still score while using his go-to move with his pull-up from mid-range off the dribble. He is a physical on ball defender, but his decision making and precise passing is noticeable. 12 pts and 8 assists.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1580112' first='Bradley' last='Swillie'] Bella Vista Prep</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The sniper of the team is a top of the food chain catch three point shooter. He has an ultra quick shooting release. He plays good fundamental defense and he finds open spots in the defense and he is always shot ready. 15 points. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1127089' first='Michael' last='DeHorney'] AZ Compass Prep Black</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A long and lean power forward who plays with great energy and a real motor to rebound. His activity to rebound and score inside propels his teammates to want to give him the ball more. He can dunk, score in traffic and occasionally step out and shoot it to the perimeter.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1514117' first='Isaiah' last='Baptista'] Taylor Made Prep</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A known catch three point shooter is improving other parts of his game. He is a good passer and his pace to his game and passing seem to be progressing. He changes speeds well and he is sneaky quick to get passed his defenders. He will get on the floor for a loose ball and makes the correct decisions with the ball.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='827032' first='Tyreek' last='Dean'] Taylor Made Prep</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A physical two-way forward who scores inside and will defend multiple positions. He made a couple impressive dunks on the break with his bounce and long reach. He attacked the basket about as aggressively as you can. He made the game almost into a layup line with his drives to the rim.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1030455' first='Cameron' last='Stokes'] Taylor Made Prep</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A long face-up four-man has extended his shooting range since last year. He loves the elbow jumper but he can now hit the catch three. He has nice bounce to flush it down in transition and he played with high level activity in their win.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='937196' first='Malcolm' last='Smith'] Bella Vista Prep</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A glue guy for the CAA squad. He moves the ball, scores it and plays hard on defense. He can hit the catch three plus rip through on the baseline and score in traffic. He does many little things to help his team.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='994004' first='Mathiang' last='Maker'] Dream City Christian International&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>An athletic forward has incredible aggression on defense. He grabs out of area rebounds and will defend nearly every position on the court. He hit a couple catch threes and is a star in transition with multiple dunks and even had one with 3 secs left to play in OT to seal the victory.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1301337' first='Marquese' last='Josephs'] Dream City Christian International&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A tough and physical combo guard. He showed good passing vision, tough on-ball defense and he got downhill to score. He made an incredible game saving pass to [player_tooltip player_id='994004' first='Mathiang' last='Maker'] for the dunk with 3 secs to play to win it. His energy on both sides of the court with rebounds, blocks and hustle plays made their team click in the second half.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->