EYBL: 2023-25 AZ Standouts

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>April 28th-30th I attended the&nbsp;<strong>Elite Youth Basketball League&nbsp;</strong>at Bell Bank Park in Mesa/AZ. The&nbsp;<strong>EYBL</strong>&nbsp;has some of the top teams in the country. I checked out as many AZ based players as I could.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Here were the older AZ Standouts</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1168771' first='Nait' last='George'] Dream City Christian Intl (AZ Unity 17)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A good sized point guard can rattle in threes. He has a quick burst to get to the basket and can dunk it plus score in the lane versus traffic. When he is on, his three point shooting separates him from some others and is hearing from a couple D1 schools and others. One of the better unsigned PG's in state. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1054790' first='Aiden' last='Sherrell'] Hillcrest Prep (Vegas Elite)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A face-up defensive 4/5-man is highly skilled to the three point line. He blocks shots with his length and times it well to block it without fouling. He does have a hook shot in the paint and can shoot it from mid-range. He tracks the ball well in the interior and the mid-range jumper seems to be his weapon of choice.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1055745' first='Marcus' last='Allen'] AZ Compass Prep (FL Rebels)</strong> <strong>(Pictured)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One of the top two-way wings viewed. He has a true sweet spot on offense with his mid-range jumper. Once he can get there, he is money with good elevation. He is a big time defender and athlete using his long arms and is a high level rebounder. He may not be that 20 ppg scorer but does many little things to affect wins.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1129386' first='Pharaoh' last='Compton'] AZ Compass Prep (Vegas Elite)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One of the better motors in the West who rebounds like a mad man. He uses his long arms, effort and power to wiggle his way into the paint to grab a board. He will give his college team extra possessions and power up in the post to score on put backs and be in the dunkers spot. He is very hard to move inside.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1052572' first='Terrence' last='Hill Jr'] AZ Compass Prep (NW Rotary EYBL)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A pure point guard with a high skill level. He can be a 50/40/90 type with deep 3's, floaters, speed with the ball, a tight handle and an elite feel for the game. He makes pocket passes, lob passes and slipped some nice ones in and up the court stuff. He controls the whole game with his mind, feel and skill.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1284853' first='Travis' last='Torain'] Dream City Christian (AZ Unity)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A bigger wing forward is a shot maker from mid to the three point line. He has long arms to play the passing lanes and rebounds well in his area. He can take it to the rim with long strides and he can become a 3 and D type down the road. &nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1237854' first='Jaion' last='Pitt'] Dream City Christian International (AZ Unity 16)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A power forward with an incredible motor. He makes highly contested shots in traffic on the norm. He moves really well in space to defend the perimeter and inside. He scores on reverse layups, drop steps, counter moves, fall-aways, hook shots, quick rip thrus and even hit a pull-up three off the dribble, which is a new wrinkle to his game. He gobbles up all rebounds and will chase down blocks. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1223824' first='Alejandro' last='Aviles'] Dream City Christian (Livon EYBL 16)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A highly skilled post player with skill. He is an elite passer for position and he has high feel for the game with great hands. He goes up quickly to grab rebounds and will score on put backs. He can shoot it from elbow and in and his mind and skill work.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1297427' first='AJ' last='Thomas'] Eduprize (AZ Unity 17)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A scoring point guard gets to his spots on the floor and can pull-up from mid-range and from the three point line. His drive and kick stuff is on point and makes smart reads off of screens and can throw the dime or drive it with his thicker build. He was one of the more efficient 17U players for the 1st weekend. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1449361' first='Caspian' last='Jones'] St. Mary's (Vegas Elite 16)&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A thicker frame forward is a very good passer. He can hit the catch three and had a dunk in traffic. He can dribble drive or straight line drive to the basket. He has a good stroke and he can play physically inside or stay on the perimeter and stroke it. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='996172' first='D'Andre' last='Harrison'] Perry (Vegas Elite 16)&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A wing forward is an incredible passer and skilled. He makes elbow jumpers in his sleep and can take the ball off the glass and push it and make or play or score it. He has a very cerebral game and is highly efficient. His IQ, skill and energy has him always in the correct spot he needs to be. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1150845' first='Quinn' last='Athanassoulis'] Dream City Christian (AZ Unity 16)&nbsp;&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A wing forward who is a true marksman from the perimeter. He can rattle in triples off the catch one by one and has a very quick release. He stays balanced and lets it fly. He hit seven of 11 attempts showing it is no fluke. He gives his team space to work with inside. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->