HoopSource Elite Opening Showcase – Quick Look

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Club basketball kicks off in full force this weekend in the Portland Metro Area. Hoopsource's Elite Opening Showcase will fire up at various locations both north and south of the Columbia River, with most of the top action at the 17U level taking place at Clackamas Community College. Here's a quick look at the teams playing in that division.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The newly formed NW Rotary Rebels program - a combination of Rotary and the Rose City Rebels - will prep for their EYBL schedule with an appearance at the Elite Opening Showcase. In the 17U division both the 17U and 16U squads will be entered. On both teams, many of the top prospects are from the state of Washington but in terms of players from Oregon, 17U will feature [player_tooltip player_id='1174265' first='Jaden' last='Steppe'] (2024 Tualatin), [player_tooltip player_id='1110736' first='Utrillo' last='Morris'] (2024 Roosevelt), and Terrence Hill (2024 Roosevelt/AZ Compass) while 16U will feature [player_tooltip player_id='1276627' first='Winters' last='Grady'] (2025 Lake Oswego) and [player_tooltip player_id='1276626' first='Isaac' last='Carr'] (2025 Central Catholic).</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Oregon Prospects will have a number of the state's top rising seniors in its top two teams in the tournament. The Black squad will be headed by the backcourt combo of [player_tooltip player_id='1113084' first='Quincy' last='Townsend'] (2024 Mountain View) and [player_tooltip player_id='1269430' first='Jackson' last='Weiland'] (2024 South Medford), both of whom can score and distribute. [player_tooltip player_id='1342141' first='Ethan' last='Eckard'] (2024 Sherwood) and [player_tooltip player_id='1346388' first='Dylan' last='Westermeyer'] (2024 Oregon City) offer shooting while [player_tooltip player_id='1457596' first='Ian' last='Prictor'] (2024 Mountain View) and [player_tooltip player_id='1458101' first='Cole' last='Holum'] (2024 Lakeridge) will be the bigs inside. A sleeper to watch out for is Grant Olson (2024 Hermiston) whose high scoring exploits have been in the WIAA.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Gold squad for the Prospects features a number of guys that can score the ball in [player_tooltip player_id='1661357' first='Mykah' last='Mendoza'] (2024 Roseburg), [player_tooltip player_id='1110573' first='Jackson' last='Owens'] (2024 Cleveland), [player_tooltip player_id='1110578' first='Max' last='Juhala'] (2024 West Linn) and Washingtonian Tait Spencer (2024 Battle Ground). [player_tooltip player_id='1112940' first='Tyler' last='Curvy'] (2024 Jesuit) will man the point while Charlie Kapranos (2024 Grant) and unsigned seniors [player_tooltip player_id='865366' first='Gray' last='Thompson'] (2023 Central Catholic) and Evan Manville (2023 Union) will battle down low.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Protech (Prep) - formerly known as 3C - reunites a number of guys that grew playing together at the Beaverton Hoop YMCA and should be a formidable squad. Versatile swingmen [player_tooltip player_id='1565732' first='Nico' last='Rafalovich'] (2024 Jesuit) and [player_tooltip player_id='1110590' first='Kayin' last='Turner'] (2024 Sunset) will be tough matchups for opponents and guards such as [player_tooltip player_id='1110592' first='Donovan' last='Crowder'] (2024 Liberty), [player_tooltip player_id='1110584' first='Dominic' last='Papworth'] (2024 Franklin), and [player_tooltip player_id='1268437' first='Kwaje' last='Laila'] (2024 Franklin) will help push the pace. When completely healthy, [player_tooltip player_id='1110571' first='Quinn' last='Haveman'] (2024 Mountainside) will be a factor.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>ONE Basketball features a squad that has some under-the-radar talent ready to be discovered. [player_tooltip player_id='1587916' first='Colt' last='Ness'] (2025 Tigard) will have a huge role with the Tigers next high school basketball season and his club experience will help him prepare. [player_tooltip player_id='1565738' first='Dax' last='Hanzlik'] (2024 Westside Christian) and [player_tooltip player_id='1268433' first='Peyton' last='Maurer'] (2024 Cascade Christian) faced off in the 3A championship game but will now team up with ONE. [player_tooltip player_id='1908824' first='Patrick' last='Napierala'] (2024 Lakeridge) and [player_tooltip player_id='1662767' first='Kevin' last='Benson'] (2024 West Linn) are ones to keep an eye on.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>DENY Basketball will be there on the first day of pool play but their games won't count in the standings. While a couple of these guys will be out due to injury, the top players for head coach Jonny Canalin this season will include [player_tooltip player_id='1110843' first='Kyle' last='Counts'] (2024 Wilsonville), [player_tooltip player_id='1232311' first='Jacey' last='Canalin'] (2024 Wells), [player_tooltip player_id='1110842' first='Kallen' last='Gutridge'] (2024 Wilsonville), and [player_tooltip player_id='1266106' first='AJ' last='Noland'] (2024 Tualatin).</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Other Oregon-based squads at the event include OBC and Portland Select. Action starts 9:05 AM on Saturday morning.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->