Top Performers 16U-Day 1-#PHMidwestGrindSession 

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This was the first boy's event I have ever covered, yes I've been to boy's games over the years but in boy's and girl's events and to be honest, I didn't pay that much attention. I mainly cover girls, my daughter plays in the WNBA and that's why I started on that side yet I truly enjoyed seeing the young men in action, and here are some of the standouts I caught on opening day covering remotely. I saw some, yet are clueless on who they are without rosters and I also saw a few I'm saving for the All-Tournament team so here ya go</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Evan Goodwin (Wolfpack 2025) 2026</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Goodwin was impressive in both games I caught him because he understands how to get his in the flow and dove on the floor for loose balls. He handled the ball well under pressure, solid court vision but he did a good job creating his shot to either attack and score or drop the mid to long-range jumper</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Brayden Smith-5'10 G (Derby) Kansas Select [2025]</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Smith did a good of handling the ball in the set and the open court after rebounding and he not only saw the floor in both, he hit teammates with solid passes in traffic. His deceptive first step coupled with a slight HEZ was nice, and so was body control on his finishes, after contact included</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1905391' first='Connor' last='lampkin'] 6'0 G (Pacific) Mavericks Elite 2025 [2025]</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Lampkin saw the floor through a microscope at times and his heady play was a big plus for me as he does a good job of “controlling the tempo” and directing teammates to the right position on the court. He also showed he could score and did a good job of not only knocking it down from outside, mid to long-range, but also scoring off the dribble</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1881825' first='Carter' last='Keeling']-6'3 F (Purdy) Missouri 66ers 2025 [2025]</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Keeling dropped the long ball almost effortlessly and his pull-up jumper was smooth, especially when he knocked it down while being defended but he also showed he could score off the dribble and attacked the basket from multiple angles. His defense was also solid and he did a good job playing the passing lane</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Biruk Dietz-5'6 G (Heritage Christian) LTD Select Blue 2025 [2025]</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Dietz was another guard that impressed me with controlling the tempo and my watching him push the ball after rebounding and seeing the floor in transition was nice yet making the right pass in the set was just as good. His pull-up jumper was nice and he kept the defender honest because he also attacked the basket strongly, he had nice body control on his finishes</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1588350' first='Parker' last='Hardgrave']-6'7 C (Wichita South) Wichita Padres Kelley [2025]</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Hardgrave is hard to handle in the paint and his imposing presence on both ends created match-up problems. He rebounded and ran the floor on both ends, he also showed he could defend, with nice lateral movement and good timing to block, deflect and (or) alter shots yet on the flip, he also scored around the basket after contact</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->