Big Shots Virginia Beach May Madness: 16u standouts (Part 2)
Big Shots Virginia Beach May Madness took place at Virginia Beach Sports Center in Virginia Beach on May 8-9. The level of competition was through the roof as they filled the gym with elite star-studded teams and head-turning talented athletes.…
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Continue ReadingBig Shots Virginia Beach May Madness took place at Virginia Beach Sports Center in Virginia Beach on May 8-9. The level of competition was through the roof as they filled the gym with elite star-studded teams and head-turning talented athletes. With college coaches tuned in online as well as in-person watching the games courtside, these 16u athletes made sure to leave a good impression.
Cashean Perry
Cashean Perry
Perry made himself extremely effective on the defensive end of the ball, rather it being on-ball or off-ball. He did a good job of fighting and squeezing through on ball screens to deter any shots off of the screen. He’s equipped with a quick first step defensively and can slide his feet laterally with opposing guards. His hounding on ball defense earned him some athletic blocks on jump shot attempts. Offensively, he did a good job of getting out in transition and finishing fast breaks. He was able to initiate contact and draw fouls at the rim.
Devin Carter
Devin Carter
Carter brought a physical and calculated play style to the court over this past weekend. He was adept at diving into open space and cutting backdoor, sneaking behind the defense for easy shots at the rim. Carter was able to move with the point guard and time his dives and cuts perfectly. The physicality was present everywhere on the court, but it shined the brightest on the boards. Carter was determined when attacking the glass as he pulled down a handful of strong rebounds in traffic, defensively or offensively, drawing fouls on put back attempts.
Tione Lee
Tione Lee
Lee thrived on the glass throughout the weekend. He might have had the best rebounding performance of the 16u division. Lee rebounded the ball with physicality, timing, and a motor. At 6-foot-5, Lee operated as more of an athletic rebounder than one that stands under the basket, waiting for the miss to come off the rim. We saw Lee crashing the paint from the free throw line, the baseline, the mid-range area. When shot goes up, Tione Lee should be a key priority for opposing teams. He was able to generate multiple offensive rebounds and convert on the second chance points with a put back at the rim at a consistent rate throughout the event.
Kaemon Smith
Kaemon Smith
Smith demonstrated the ability generate consistent paint touches in the halfcourt. Smith’s use of pace and change of speeds allowed him to freeze defenders in their shoes opening up driving angles and lanes for deep paint touches. Smith showed his ambidexterity on his drives as he was able to deliver dump-off and kick out passes with either hand. In addition to Smith’s ability to get into the paint and make a play, he also showed his three-point shooting capabilities by knocking down catch and shoot three-points as well as off the dribble jumpers inside the three-point line.
Antwan Merritt
Antwan Merritt
Merritt thrived on the defensive end of the ball throughout the Big Shots Event. He was able to be extremely effective when defending off-ball. He seemed to be able to read the opposing offense and anticipate drives as he rotated over and forced missed shots in the lane as well as the paint. Even when defending bigger post players, Merritt was able to anticipate shots and beat players to the spot leading to forcing even more missed shots. Merritt was also active on the offensive glass as he was able to generate second chance points.