Pre-Season Junior Forwards to Know (1/2)
Trenton Burns 2024 7’0 PSAT Academy Trenton is a dominant forward with a jaw dropping frame, paired well with impressive athleticism and a handle that will turn heads! His tremendous size and athleticism is a real weapon on the defensive end…
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Continue ReadingTrenton Burns 2024 7’0 PSAT Academy
Trenton is a dominant forward with a jaw dropping frame, paired well with impressive athleticism and a handle that will turn heads! His tremendous size and athleticism is a real weapon on the defensive end of the court, allowing him to wreak havoc by blocking shots from all three levels of the floor. He has good foot speed to keep up with quicker guards and wings on the perimeter, and his size allows him to protect the paint with ease. Burns has unlimited potential on both ends of the court with his perfect blend of size, athleticism and skill. On the offensive end of the court, he loves showing off his smooth stroke from the outside, routinely spotting up in the corners and is deadly as the trailer option. Defenders were terrified of letting him get past them to finish in the paint, and no one could rise up high enough to even get a hand in his face to contest his jumper. Burns is a division one lock in my eyes with his incredible fluidity and ability to affect the game on both ends of the court, easily one of the most impressive 2024 prospects in the entire country!
Doryan Onwucheka 2024 6’10 Oak Cliff Faith Family Academy
Doryan’s name has been trending upwards all summer, dominating his opponents every time he stepped on the court. He moves well for his size, and has the ability to rim run and protect the rim, all of which are incredibly valuable at the next level. He has a great touch on his jumper, and all of the size to shoot over anyone at the high school level. He can become a high level player out of the pick and roll or pop, a true dual threat weapon on the offensive side of the floor. His 6’10 frame is paired perfectly with his broad shoulders, he has all of the physical tools to become a true dominant big at the next level. He is a high level rim protector, who can slide over and protect the paint as a help defender. He is great at staying vertical when someone is attempting to put his shoulder in his chest. He was willing to put his body on the line, whether he was drawing charges or getting on the floor after loose balls. His ability to sky for rebounds and use his long arms to keep the ball high allowed his team to seemingly collect every rebound. He was dominant on the glass on both ends of the floor, but where it really came out was his ability to keep the ball high and make the right outlet pass to jump start his team on the fast break.
Chris McDermott Chris McDermott 6'7" | SF Booker T. Washington | 2024 State #159 Nation TX 2024 6’8 Booker T Washington High School
Chris has drastically improved this summer, and it is turning a lot of collegiate attention his way. His versatility on the offensive end of the court allows him to be paired with another forward, or clean up the interior by himself. He can play out of the mid-post, out of the triple threat or with his back to the basket. He smartly and quickly attacks his defender before the help defender can come over. He has a confident post turn around, and can hit it at the elbow or stretching the floor on the wings and the corners. When he is backing smaller opponents down, he is strong and knows how to effectively use a drop step into dunk on his opponent. He has dramatically improved his handle over the last year, and is a real weapon for him now, knifing through the defense and exploding to the rim.
David Punch 2024 6’7 Harker Heights High School
David had a very productive summer, showcasing his talent all across the state of Texas. There were countless instances where he was able to get off some nasty standing dunks after collecting offensive rebounds, and his ability to consistency go up strong and finish through contact was an elite weapon for himself. His opponents often times resorted to simply hacking him to prevent him from getting to the rim and allowing him to flush a dunk on their head. He is a consistent free throw shooter, allowing him to punish defenders for lazy defense every time down. The most head turning aspect to his game is the ease in which he can get his shot up over defenders. He has a smooth jumper, paired with a high release point allowing him to confidently shoot over anyone on any spot on the floor. He is a natural shooter who you can tell has had very good coaching to fine tune his mechanics. I loved watching Punch fight on the glass as well, on both ends of the court willingly boxing out his opponent and keeping them on his hip until he exploded vertically to collect the rebound. His overall dominance down low allowed the rest of his teammates to defend the perimeter with even more intensity, knowing that Punch was back their to clean it up. He is a natural rim protector and routinely ends possessions with strong defensive rebounds.
Jalon Thompson 2024 6’8 Desoto High School
Jalon is a dominant forward with unlimited potential through the way he is able to move, make good decisions and effect the game on the interior. He has a great frame and explosive athleticism for his size already and he is a hard worker on the court, allowing him to affect the game through his constant energy and how well he boxes out his opponent and seals them from having a chance at contesting him. I loved his consistency that he displayed in the paint, constantly finishing through contact and cleaned up easy second chance points for his team. I was very impressed with his ability to high point rebounds to come away with second chance opportunities and finishing up defensive possessions. He is a very smart outlet passer after collecting a defensive rebound, he always has his head up scanning the court for the home run pass, but makes good decisions in making a smart pass to a teammate who is leading the break on the wings at mid court. Thompson’s name will be garnering some attention this year, you heard it here first!