Curtis Summer League Standouts 6/12
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I popped in to watch some summer league action at Curtis High School Monday afternoon, catching up with familiar faces and getting to know some knew names that should be guys to know for the coming years. Here’s a brief…
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Continue ReadingI popped in to watch some summer league action at Curtis High School Monday afternoon, catching up with familiar faces and getting to know some knew names that should be guys to know for the coming years. Here’s a brief look at some of the standouts from the day over the course of the three and a half games I watched.
Tichenor is a quick little guard who stays ready from behind the arc and showed off a quick trigger with some nice consistency from deep. He’s got some potential to penetrate defenses and push the pace in transition but seemed to mainly look to distribute off the dribble and spot up off the ball to stretch the floor.
His consistent high-level play continued on Monday. He’s got an unbelievable engine and continually attacks the glass and makes plays inside. His touch around the paint was impeccable and his ability to get the defensive board and push the ball was a key factor in Timberline running for advantage buckets.
Highlights
Ward played off guard with the starting unit and showed some promise from 3-point, though his percentage wasn’t very high, he has a stroke that could develop into something. Once the starting PG hit the bench, Ward slid over and took the reins. He’ll need to tighten up the handle a bit if he’s going to run some point in the winter, but his attacking mindset and athleticism showed some real promise as a guy that could be a key player for Timberline this coming season.
Gopaul was forced to work hard not just for buckets but getting the ball up the floor through Timberline’s pressure too. He’s got a pretty good handle on the ball, though there were opportunities for pokes as he often had to dribble through multiple defenders in the backcourt. All that being said, it was a good test for him against some stiffer competition and he handled it well, exhibiting a will to fight through constant pressure and still make things happen for his Cascade Christian team that kept the game close until later in the second half.
Adams continues his meteoric development and was a monster inside against a tough Tahoma squad. His length and fight at the rim allowed him to pull down board after board. He tipped and stole a couple of passes and was able to block and contest a bunch more. Offensively, he showed vast improvements starting with the jumper. He sunk the only three I saw him take but looked to incorporate a mid-range shot with some decent effectiveness as well. Around the paint, he used long steps and a solid pivot to remain strong and work around defenders to get shots off. His handle looks to be coming around too, though that’s still an area that needs some work when he’s attempting to split defenders on drives from the perimeter.
Highlights
I was really impressed with Sheeran’s speed and burst with the ball. He blew by his man time after time and was a constant presence knifing in to get to the rim. His finishing was so-so around bigger players inside, but he put a lot of pressure on help side defenders with his ability to blow by. He also hit a few threes and added another dimension to North Thurston’s offense with his speed on the ball.
Gentry is a smaller but strong guard who has shown some shot creating ability in the past, and yesterday he came on later in the game to start a little spurt for North Thurston that got them back in it against Tahoma. He’s another guy that can beat guys off the dribble, though he does it more with a quick first step, the threat of a quick pullup, and strength to keep guys on his hip. He showed some tough finishing at the rim, hitting from angles, with reverses, and using either hand to convert.
Highlights
I think I’ve said it enough already, but Davis is a guy that makes so many plays in every form – passing, scoring, defensively, rebounding – that when he makes a bad play, you wonder what happened. He was big for the Bears in transition, beating guys down the floor with regularity, and was equally impressive in the half court, balancing his attack between perimeter jumpers and drives to the hoop. He also showed off some A1 passing and cemented the fact that his court vision is high-level.
Brown didn’t take a ton of jumpers on the day, but when he did, he was finding bottom. It’s a key part of his development and taking his game to the next level. He did his thing around the hoop, racking up boards and continually finding space to make cuts into open areas, as well as using his strength to drop in contested buckets. If he can continue to improve the outside shot, he will really rise up the ranks and round out his game.
Ajasin is a solid player off the bench who can do some things on both ends of the floor. He seems to understand he doesn’t need to do too much, just play hard and make the smart play. He made the most of his minutes and stood out for his vision up the court, making a couple of long passes after a board to find teammates for easy layups on the other end.
Tre Wohlhuter
Tre Wohlhuter
I saw Wohlhuter at Auburn Summer League last week, and he caught my eye again yesterday at Curtis. He’s a quick little guard who made some really nice dishes out of pressure, not just finding an open outlet but making a key pass that either resulted in an assist or led to one more pass and a bucket. He has some good floor-stretching ability too, acting quickly and showing good instincts on both ends.
McGriff is going to get a lot of opportunities next season as Emerald Ridge graduates almost half of their varsity roster from a season ago. He’s a big kid with good athleticism who has the body to jump in and be a main guy next season. I expected to see him around the rim a lot more, but he showed some nice touch on the jumper, stepping out to 3-point and doing a lot of his attacking from the perimeter. He did show some skill operating from the blocks and mid-range, and made one play that really stood out, taking one dribble out of a back down to step back, get on balance and drill the mid-range baseline jumper. He shows a lot of promise and could be in for some big growth this summer and next season.
Bennett manned the point spot for the Jags and did a great job looking to attack early on in the half court, finding open guys near the hoop on numerous occasions almost as soon as he crossed the half court line. He has some great vision at times and is a guy that can push the pace under control and create action to the hoop. He also excelled in transition, making the right play to score or pass.
Blake Muehlenbruch
Blake Muehlenbruch
This kid showed some prowess from deep. He’s got some decent length for not being all that tall and showed a little wiggle with and without the ball to create space off of screens and get shots off from behind the arc. His quickness helped him get inside at times and he looks like a guy that can provide a little pressure on ball as well. He’ll be a guy to keep an eye on as a more under the radar prospect.
Cooper Tripp
Cooper Tripp
Tripp is a decently big freshman forward who got his hands on the ball quite a bit in and around the paint. He showed some potential with the jump hook and turnaround jumper around the key and worked pretty hard to secure rebounds and contest shots on the other end. He even stepped out to hit a few shots near the perimeter and looks like a versatile prospect to watch over the next couple of years.
Keaundre Morris Keaundre Morris 6'2" | SG Curtis | 2027 State WA
Keaundre Morris Keaundre Morris 6'2" | SG Curtis | 2027 State WA
Last but not least, Morris was one of the most impressive players of the day as he led the Curtis attack against Tahoma. He’s a quick, long reaching guard who used those long strides to burst through defenders and get to the paint with relative ease. He’s a unique player who has that great burst and quickness, but remains on balance and strong at all times, keeping that stop-and-go ability throughout his drives. He was getting a little saucy finishing around multiple guys and also showed off a good stroke from the mid-range.