National Hoopfest VA Standouts (Part 3)
In this article:
The annual National Hoopfest took place at DeMatha again this year, and as always it featured some of the top teams from all over the country and was absolutely loaded with prospects for all levels. It has become a must…
Access all of Prep Hoops
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingThe annual National Hoopfest took place at DeMatha again this year, and as always it featured some of the top teams from all over the country and was absolutely loaded with prospects for all levels. It has become a must for college coaches to stop by, and with all the talent it makes sense.
We will take a long look at the many standouts from the event, and here we look at part three of some of the standouts from the Virginia schools.
If you’d like to see watch the replay of all the games, you can find them on the CBG Live Network.
DeShawn Harris-Smith DeShawn Harris-Smith 6'5" | SF Paul VI | 2023 State #53 Nation VA | 6’5” CG | Paul VI ’23
PVI came in with a lot of hype as one of the top teams in the country, and they lived up to the hype with a convincing win over Mt. St. Joe’s and a win over The Patrick School, and Harris-Smith was a huge reason why. The Maryland commit is not only their most dominant player as he can handle the ball and make plays for himself and others, he also sets the tone on both ends with his toughness. He can get downhill and finish around the rim, he’s an elite defender and good rebounder and he’s starting to show improvement in his ability to shoot the ball from deep.He finished with 19 points and 6 assists in their win over Mt. St. Joe’s.
Darren Harris Darren Harris 6'6" | SF Paul VI | 2024 State #59 Nation VA | 6’6” WG | Paul VI ’24
Harris had perhaps the best showing of anyone in the event, as the Duke commit was lights out in their win over Mt. St. Joe’s and showed why he’s considered one of the top shooters in the country. He moved well off the ball to get open and showed his lightning quick release, he showed deep range and consistency from deep and he showed he can hit tough shots over smaller defenders in the midrange. He finished with 22 points going a perfect 9-for-9 from the field and 4-for-4 from deep in their win over Mt. St. Joe’s.
Ben Hammond Ben Hammond 5'11" | PG Paul VI | 2024 State #143 Nation VA | 5’10” PG | Paul VI ’24
Hammond was fantastic for PVI in both games, but really stepped up in their win over The Patrick School when they weren’t dominating the way they did in their first game. While he isn’t the biggest guy on the court, Hammond puts a ton of pressure on the defense and has elite playmaking ability with his quickness and speed and ability to break down the defense while also setting the tone defensively. He finished with 15 points and 6 assists in their win over The Patrick School.
Isaiah Abraham Isaiah Abraham 6'7" | SG Paul VI | 2024 State #62 Nation VA | 6’6” WF | Paul VI ’24
If you need any idea of how good this PVI team, Abraham is a consensus top 50 player in the country and comes off the bench and he doesn’t sulk, he comes in with energy and makes plays. The 6’6” wing is chock full of potential that he showed with his ability to play above the rim, his improved consistency on his jump shot and he’s a good rebounder and defender at his position too. He averaged 8.5 points and 3.5 rebounds coming off the bench for them.
Jordan Smith | 6’3” WG | Paul VI ’26
Something that’s scary about this PVI team is that they really only play one senior, and they have a couple of freshmen that would likely start at any other school in the DMV, including Smith. At 6’3” Smith is already a big time athlete who can play above the rim and is a menace on the defensive end, he plays with a high motor and natural toughness and he can make shots off the catch or handle the ball and make plays. He brought great energy and made plays on both ends and was efficient in his minutes he got.
Ant Brown | 6’0” PG | Paul VI ’26
Brown is another intriguing freshman for the Panthers who came off the bench in their win over Mt. St. Joe’s and showed a lot of tools that are going to be intriguing moving forward. He has a strong build with broad shoulders and played well through contact, he made great reads and decisions and he showed the ability to make shots in different ways too. He finished with 7 points on 3-for-3 shooting, 3 assists and 2 rebounds in 8 minutes against Mt. St. Joe’s.