2026 Watch List: Top 10 Consideration (Pt. 2)

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p> </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The first class of 2026 watch list features 60 prospects in the freshman – soon to be sophomore – class in Southern California. But a watch list is just a group of names for you to keep on your radar and not quite a true ranking yet. We like to give these young prospects a full year of high school and spring and summer club basketball to show their talents before we put them in rank order.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After picking choosing <a href="https://prephoops.com/2023/05/2026-watch-list-battle-for-no-1/">six players who could see their name in the No. 1 overall spot</a> we wanted to expand that list some more to include prospects we see breaking into the 2026 top 10.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='1956543' first='Caleb' last='Newton'], Birmingham</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Newton was one of the Los Angeles City Section's best freshmen and, with plenty of opportunity to make another big jump in his game next season, it wouldn't surprise us if that "best freshman" tag turned into a "regardless of class" one. The 6-foot-2 combo guard showed flashes of his explosive scoring ability throughout the season and next year the Patriots will need him to do even more with the departure of a couple of key seniors.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='1956466' first='Julian' last='Lebel'], Foothills Christian</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>When the topic of best freshmen in San Diego - and Southern California at-large - comes up, Lebel must be in that conversation. The 6-foot-4 guard averaged an impressive 24.8 points and 10 rebounds per game in his freshman campaign while shooting 50 percent from the field. Lebel was the do-it-all guy for Foothills last season, and, with the return of coach Brad Leaf to the sidelines, we could see Lebel put on an encore performance.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='1956462' first='Julius' last='Price'], St. Joseph</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As we explained in our <a href="https://prephoops.com/2023/05/2026-watch-list-cg-positional-breakdown/">combo guard positional breakdown</a> piece, Price is kind of in limbo between SoCal and NorCal based upon which section CIF declares them for postseason play. Since the 6-foot-2 rising sophomore wasn't placed in our NorCal rankings we decided to include him among the SoCal prospects. Price was the second part of the formidable duo of him and [player_tooltip player_id='1630616' first='Tounde' last='Yessoufou'] which catapulted the Knights into the CIF State Open Division championship game where they fell to Harvard-Westlake. Price averaged 13 points and five assists while shooting 42 percent from three-point range.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='1956523' first='Justice' last='Griffith'], Corona Centennial</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Griffith the one of Centennial's many talented 2026 players who saw a good amount of playing time at the varsity level. The 6-foot combo guard is an elite athlete with a strong frame and plays the game with a high motor, toughness and great energy on both ends of the floor. Griffith emerged as a player who coach Josh Giles could rely on to bring in off the bench and give great defensive minutes due to his ball pressure and fearlessness. Expect to see Griffith become a major piece to the Huskies' success next season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='1956526' first='SJ' last='Madison'], Redondo Union</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>There are few 2026 prospects who had a bigger impact to their team's success than Madison did for the Sea Hawks. The 6-foot-3 wing put his imprint on multiple aspects of the game from scoring to rebounding to passing and, most importantly, defensively. Madison has an already impressive frame to go along with smooth athleticism that he uses to score efficiently in transition.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='1956478' first='Ty' last='Ingram'], San Ysidro</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Ingram's impressive season was a bit overshadowed by the presences of [player_tooltip player_id='1069091' first='Mikey' last='Williams'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1814760' first='JJ' last='Taylor'] but with those two now on their way to impact a college program look for Ingram to make it known that he could be up next in San Diego. Ingram averaged 11.2 points per game while playing a strong regional schedule with some national games mixed in as well. The three-level scorer should see his touches and per game averages rise quite a bit in his sophomore campaign.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='1956483' first='Zachary' last='White'], Sherman Oaks Notre Dame</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>White is another soon-to-be sophomore whose game might not have been appreciated enough due to him sharing the spotlight with some high major-bound teammates. The 6-foot-4 wing played in 36 games and averaged 5.5 points while playing alongside talented guys the likes of [player_tooltip player_id='1115502' first='Caleb' last='Foster'] (Duke), [player_tooltip player_id='992483' first='Dusty' last='Stromer'] (Gonzaga) and [player_tooltip player_id='1502768' first='Mercy' last='Miller'] (Houston). In our opinion, White's biggest impact came in the form of a "glue guy." His willingness to rebound, defend, work for 50/50 balls and knock down open looks when they came his way made him the perfect accompaniment for the Knights.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->