Oregon Top 250 Expo – Top Bigs

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The 2023 edition of the PrepHoops Oregon Top 250 Showcase took place on Sunday afternoon/evening at Hillsboro High School and it was a full house as for the second year in a row the event sold out, some walk-ups were admitted, and spectators - including several college coaches - were treated to some great competition. We got a chance to see every team compete at least one time and quite a few guys caught our attention. Here's a look at some of the top bigs - or at least the ones that played "big" - in the event.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2205001' first='Luke' last='Jarussi'] (2025 Valley Catholic) </strong>- Jarussi was one of the top inside scorers we saw on the day. Whether it was getting the ball down on the block or off the offensive board, the 6-foot-6 junior played big in the paint and was extremely efficient in his finishes.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2123370' first='Kellen' last='Kinder'] (2024 Valley Catholic) </strong>- As mentioned in our top defenders article, Kinder made his impact as a shot-blocker but was also tough rebounding the ball as well. Offensively he had a number of finishes through contact around the hoop.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1368243' first='Jason' last='Grady'] (2025 Westview) </strong>- Put Grady in the category of one of those that's not a "big" but in the context of the Expo, he played like one. This was particularly the case on the boards as the Westview junior did a great job hitting the glass on both ends of the floor to secure possessions for his team.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Damir Johnson (2024 Roosevelt)</strong> - A late sub to the event, Johnson made an instant impact with his raw athleticism and energy level. The Roosevelt junior known best as "DJ" hit the boards hard and was extremely active on the defensive end against other bigger players.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1624505' first='Grant' last='Clemo'] (2025 Wells)</strong> - Another guy who isn't necessarily a true big but played like one at 6-foot-5 was Clemo, who really got after it from the jump in the first game. He would not get outworked on the boards and never gave up on a rebound, even if it meant battling a guy for a 50/50 chance. He had some tough buckets at the rim as well.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2204979' first='Asher' last='Smith'] (2025 Corvallis) </strong>- A little undersized at 6-foot-3, that didn't hamper Smith one bit as his physicality and aggressiveness more than made up for any lack of height. The lefty showed good footwork and had a number of good moves in the paint for a handful of scores but also showed he could hit the mid-range jumper.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1624397' first='Justin' last='Cheng'] (2026 Westview)</strong> - His future likely won't be as a big guy, but with his solid size and willingness to mix it up at 6-foot-2, Cheng did a good job as an undersized post player. He showed good footwork and scored through contact on a number of plays.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->