CBG Prep Showdown Standouts (Part 1)

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The CBG JUCO/Prep Showdown took place in Richmond, VA this past weekend, with over 30 teams ranging from Junior Colleges to post grad and prep programs from across the east coast in attendance. It was one of the few events where division one programs could attend and evaluate in person, and boy were there tons of prospects for them to watch.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here's a look at part one of some of the high school and post grad standouts from the MD teams in attendance.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1579092' first='Malachi' last='Palmer'] | 6'5” CG | Mt. Zion Prep 2024</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1618012,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2022/10/Plamer-Malachi-scaled.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2022/10/Plamer-Malachi-scaled.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-1618012" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Palmer looked his usual self in their win over Bull City Prep and in their loss to OTE's essentially professional team, as he showed his all-around and unique skillset for a guard his size. He used his change of pace and handle to get to spots and shot the pull-up very well in the midrange, he showed his ability to touch the paint and make plays for others and he was efficient as a scorer from multiple levels. He went toe-to-toe with some of the best pro prospects in high school and showed that he is one moving forward too.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Brave Rustindura | 6'11” C | Mt. Zion Prep 2024</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Rustindura is starting to come into his own, as he matched up against multiple athletic and talented bigs on pro radars and made tough plays throughout their game against OTE. He banged in the paint as he rebounded well on both ends and challenged shots in the paint, he finished well through contact and won his team a lot of extra possessions with his hustle on both ends of the floor. He's part of a talented MZP front court that has a number of available big men that division one coaches should be recruiting.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Godslove Nwabude | 6'9” PF | Mt. Zion Prep 2024</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It was Nwabude big time debut for Mt. Zion as his coaches spoke very highly of him but there wasn't much known about him otherwise, and he showed big time upside as he's a super athlete and was very productive against top notch competition. He's very mobile for his size running the floor and moving well laterally defensively, he showed big time explosion as he finished above the rim consistently and he showed good touch out to 18 feet as well. He played with great energy and made plays across the board, and he has a ton of upside moving forward.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Chris Jeffrey | 6'3” PG | Mt. Zion Prep 2025</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Jeffrey was a big new addition to MZP this season, and he showed why as he was absolutely cooking in their matchup with OTE showing he was one of the top guards in a game full of high major talent. He was nothing short of excellent in the pick-and-roll, as he used his change of speed and burst to touch the paint and showed the ability to make great reads out of it while also showing a great middle game with floaters and good finishes around the rim. He was pretty unguardable off the bounce and he set the tone with good on ball defense too.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Tong Machauk Tong | 6'11” C | Mt. Zion Prep 2025</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Another big in the MZP front court that shows major upside moving forward, Tong has a new age big man frame with long arms and good mobility and he's able to make an impact without needing to score to do so. He runs the floor hard and is able to catch and finish above the rim, he is an excellent rim protector and rebounder using his length to challenge shots and he plays with good energy as well. He showed good touch and is still learning the game, and once he gets more reps he'll have a chance to be really good moving forward.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->