What We Know Now: D9-4A

<h2>Division 1 Class 4A Region 5 District 9</h2>   Rapidly approaching the District Tournament, there is much clarity east of Nashville in the competitive D9-4A quintet. What do we know now?   Lebanon started the season like a team prepared for a 4A State Tournament return. All five teams (Cookeville, Lebanon, Green Hill, Mount Juliet, Wilson Central) won around five games, some four, some six as Christmas neared.   Which team is our favorite to capture the crown?    Cookeville #0 [player_tooltip player_id='1063050' first='Dontae' last='Potts-Heard']* #1 [player_tooltip player_id='1317052' first='Colin' last='Ayers'] #3 Jackson Clark (2024) #4 Lukas Smith #5 [player_tooltip player_id='1236443' first='Joshua' last='Heard']* #10 [player_tooltip player_id='1335783' first='Jack' last='Oakley']* #11 [player_tooltip player_id='1335782' first='Bennett' last='Reeves'] #12 [player_tooltip player_id='2362465' first='Jaren' last='Davis'] #14 Alex Clark* (2023) #24 [player_tooltip player_id='1477574' first='Jalen' last='Heard'] (2025) #33 Gavin Lintz #34 [player_tooltip player_id='2417967' first='Brody' last='Parsons'] #55 Ty Harrison   [player_tooltip player_id='1477574' first='Jalen' last='Heard'] is going to be a fantastic high school guard as early as next season. With elder teammates [player_tooltip player_id='1317052' first='Colin' last='Ayers'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1236443' first='Joshua' last='Heard'] more productive right now, Jalen is not required to get many touches on the basketball. This is a blessing and curse though. Often, Jalen can move without the basketball and attack stealthily. Heard is both an adept catch-and-shoot threat and also a creative ball-handler. Teammates know he can snap off a probing pass at any time too.   Mount Juliet #1 Braxton Corey* #4 Jon Mikael Crudup (2025) #5 Osize Daniyan* #10 Eric Williams* (2023) #12 [player_tooltip player_id='2139271' first='Ashton' last='Kirkendoll']* (2025) #21 Isaiah Campas (2023) 6'4" 205 #23 John Lloyd* (2024)   John Lloyd is a 6-foot-5, face-up forward. Not a guard. He needs a guard to help him. He is capable of hitting out to 15'.   Green Hill   Lebanon   Wilson Central #1 Jayden Wilson* (2023) #2 [player_tooltip player_id='1769962' first='Towan' last='Siler']* (2025) #4 [player_tooltip player_id='1763718' first='Austin' last='Alexander']* (2023) #11 [player_tooltip player_id='2139248' first='Ike' last='Boone Jr.'] (2026) #12 Ethan Thomas* #21 David Carvel* (2023) #22 Ja'Michael Mitchell (2023) #23 Josh Moore   David Carvel used to play for Mt. Juliet. Great strength. Carvel spent freshman year with Wilson Central, competed his sophomore and junior years for the Bears and then returned to the Wildcats of Wilson Central in 2022-2023. [player_tooltip player_id='1763718' first='Austin' last='Alexander'] is a respected defender. [player_tooltip player_id='1769962' first='Towan' last='Siler'] is full of confidence. Siler will hit the occasional three-pointer.   <h3>Frontlines.</h3>   Green Hill is a fantastic rebounding team, a good rebounding unit for sure. [player_tooltip player_id='1263012' first='Jason' last='Burch'] is the key on the glass. The rugged senior hunts misses underneath both the offensive and defensive rims.   Projected Order of Finish 1. Lebanon 2. Green Hill 3. Cookeville 4. Mt. Juliet 5. Wilson Central   Analysis: Few games remain in the 2022-2023 regular season. If you look below, then you can see Lebanon and Green Hill are the class of the district. Mt. Juliet appears alone in the middle of the quintet, while Cookeville and Wilson Central are a combined 1-9 on the season. Predicting the finishing order so late in the year takes little innovation. To make it at least interesting, I picked Cookeville to overtake Mt. Juliet for third place. Otherwise, the current standings will hold, in my view.   Standings (1/29/23)   5-0 Lebanon 4-1 Green Hill 2-2 Mt. Juliet 1-4 Cookeville 0-5 Wilson Central   Player of the Year   2023 [player_tooltip player_id='1039192' first='Jarred' last='Hall'], Lebanon: Jarred should end his career as the #1 or perhaps #2 prospect in the senior class. Hall's rebounding, particularly at the defensive end, is elite. His handle continues to improve to the point where he can swiftly turn a defensive rebound into a fastbreak layup on the far end. Hall does not block many shots, though he alters quite a few throughout the course of a game. Green Hill's starting forward [player_tooltip player_id='1263012' first='Jason' last='Burch'] deserves mention as a runner-up. Same with [player_tooltip player_id='1236443' first='Joshua' last='Heard'].       Follow <a href="https://twitter.com/AndrewForce8">@AndrewForce8</a>.   Ravenwood Vs. Cookeville   #0 [player_tooltip player_id='1063050' first='Dontae' last='Potts-Heard'] #1 [player_tooltip player_id='1317052' first='Colin' last='Ayers'] #3 Jackson Clark #4 Lukas Smith #5 [player_tooltip player_id='1236443' first='Joshua' last='Heard'] #10 [player_tooltip player_id='1335783' first='Jack' last='Oakley'] #11 [player_tooltip player_id='1335782' first='Bennett' last='Reeves'] #12 [player_tooltip player_id='2362465' first='Jaren' last='Davis'] #14 Alex Clark (2023) #33 Gavin Lintz #34 [player_tooltip player_id='2417967' first='Brody' last='Parsons'] #55 Ty Harrison   [player_tooltip player_id='1477574' first='Jalen' last='Heard'] made a splash in this neutral game just after Christmas, held in Florida. Jalen hit a nice three-pointer from the top of the arc. [player_tooltip player_id='1236443' first='Joshua' last='Heard']'s versatility and athleticism ranks among the top of the 2024 class statewide. In this game, Heard scored in so many different ways: posting up into baby hook, dribbling to the rim, hitting a free throw, shooting.   Wilson Central vs. Mt. Juliet   Wilson Central started their customary five: Jayden Wilson, [player_tooltip player_id='1763718' first='Austin' last='Alexander'], [player_tooltip player_id='1769962' first='Towan' last='Siler'], David Carvel, Ethan Thomas.