Flashback Friday: Lincoln MLK Dream Showcase standouts

<p>Lincoln's MLK Dream Showcase has become the premier MLK event in San Diego. The past few installations have brought out a number of San Diego's top teams for two days worth of competitive games. </p>   <p>Here we some of my standouts from the event. </p>   <h2>Best prospect</h2>   <h2>Jayden Gray, 6-0 2026 G, Victory Christian</h2>   <p>Gray put together a scintillating performance in an impressive win over UC. The smooth combo guard impressed me most with his ability to finish at the basket through contact and consistently get paint touches. He's improved a lot as a shooter off the catch, which allows him to attack a team from two of three levels at this stage of his career. A steady ball handler with solid feel, Gray is also very unselfish and a willing passer. His future is very bright. </p>   <h2>Most underrated</h2>   <h2>Manny Barnett, 5-10 2023 G, Lincoln</h2>   <p>Barnett, as he did a couple of weeks ago when I watched him, caught fire in the second half, drilling shots from three and from midrange off the catch to help Lincoln hold off Scripps Ranch in the marquee matchup. Barnett has long arms, gets after it defensively, especially in the trap playing the passing lanes. But his value is when he's hitting shots from deep: once he hits one, he's going to string them together. </p>   <h2>Mr. Do It All </h2>   <h2>Kyelin King, 6-4 2024 W, Lincoln</h2>   <p>King impacts every facet of the game with his length, lateral agility, and ever-improving skillset. The lefty can attack off the bounce and has excellent footwork on his finishes. He is a deft midrange scorer who can step out and hit threes off the catch. Defensively, he gambles at times, but his length and athleticism allow him to take chances and recover back into play, and he can sky for weakside blocked shots as a off-ball defender. </p>   <h2>Best shooters</h2>   <h2>Jaeden Robley, 6-5 2024 W, University City</h2>   <p>Robley had an impressive display of efficiency in the loss to the Centurions: he scored 33 points on only five dribbles. An automatic baseline three-point shooter, Robley wastes little effort on the offensive end, gets to his spots and if he can't score it in less than a dribble, he willingly reverses the ball. While he's not an elite athlete, he's long enough and crafty enough to score on straight line drives in the half court and transition. </p>   <h2>[player_tooltip player_id='1502828' first='Derek' last='Edmond'], 6-4 2024 G, Victory Christian</h2>   <p>Edmond looks like a prototypical old school 2 guard. He's got good size, length, has a quick release off the catch and is a dynamic slasher with his dominant (right) hand. He is a streaky finisher around the basket, but had a couple of nice finishes through contact. He's got to improve his off hand, both handling and finishing with it. </p>   <h2>Most intriguing</h2>   <h2>Dylan Griffin, 6-3 2025 G/W, University City</h2>   <p>I have seen the Centurions a couple of times this year, and each time Griffin gets better. He's the one guy outside of Robley on the team that looks the part of a solid college prospect. He's got great length, big hands, is a bouncy athlete and has budding offensive tools. He hit two threes off the catch, had a driving dunk in a press break, and scored several buckets on the offensive glass. The next step? Developing his ball handling skills, which are raw at best. </p>   <h2>Sammy Carmona, 6-3 2024 G, Fallbrook</h2>   <p>Carmona is one of the bigger sleepers in the class and all it takes is one of his slashing dunks to see why. He plays above the rim, has a crazy wingspan and has some physical gifts you can't teach. His game is still a work in progress, but he shows flashes of being a dynamic slasher and midrange scorer, and a streaky shooter from deep. </p>   <h2>Most reliable </h2>   <h2>Kai Brown, 6-0 2024 G, Scripps Ranch</h2>   <p>Brown has been a security blanket since becoming eligible for the Falcons. A quick-trigger shooter and an underrated athlete, Brown can score it from three levels and score points in flurries. He fits well in the Falcons defensive scheme as well, while giving them a closer offensively. </p>   <h2>[player_tooltip player_id='1437035' first='Dalton' last='Norvell'], 6-1 2023 G, Ramona</h2>   <p>Norvell opened the blowout win over Mira Mesa hitting five threes in the first quarter. When his feet are set, he doesn't miss many shots, and he's great at attacking closeouts to get to his midrange spots and score from three, through contact. </p>   <h2>Biggest surprise </h2>   <h2>Diego Ortiz, 5-10 2026 G, Mira Mesa</h2>   <p>While the Marauders are in full rebuild mode, Ortiz gives them hope. A smallish scorer with a potent shot from deep, Ortiz hit four threes, including three in rapid succession in the fourth quarter. He's really small and has a slight frame, but he's young so it's expected. </p>

Lincoln's MLK Dream Showcase has become the premier MLK event in San Diego. The past few installations have brought out a number of San Diego's top teams for two days worth of competitive games.