Chi-Town Showcase: Steve's Sleepers

As we recap this past weekend's Chi-Town Showcase. In many showcase events you always notice some of the well-known names off hand but the real essence of the Chi-Town Showcase is finding some new blood to boast about. Here are the eye-openers from this weekend's event. [player_tooltip player_id='1437017' first='Ehi' last='Ogbomo'] - Plainfield East 2024 Easily the best unknown player I watched on Saturday.  Ehi 6'2 guard plays with an endless motor and competes hard on both ends of the court. Where do I start first maybe it was the uber athletic dunks that caught my attention or his handles that he seemed to have on a string. Maybe it was his shooting ability from all three levels. Ogbomo was dangerous on offense and I thought ok that's good but he also defends like crazy. He has the length to get his hands on a few steals that led to fastbreaks. After this weekend I have made it a must to catch him during the season. [player_tooltip player_id='1183048' first='Kaleb' last='Jackson'] - Carmel Catholic 2024 Kaleb was hands down the best shooter at the event. He hit numerous threes throughout the day. Making the corner three his best spot but also showing he can knock down shots off the bounce in some of the tournament games. An underrated part of his game is his passing as Jackson seemed very unselfish and never took extra dribbles if he had space to advance the rock. At 6'1 he's a lights-out shooter with a good feel of the game colleges should be inquiring about him for scholarship opportunities. Kris Hill - Walter Christian 2024 Hill is a player with a unique story. He missed his junior campaign because of a transfer rule. So he found his way back on the scene with a solid showing at Chi-Town Showcase. Kris is a dependable guard who never seems to be out of control. He pushes the ball to the pace of the game looking to make the right play for success. He didn't score a ton of points but he was good and keeping a flow to the game without over-dribbling and trying to prove a point. Hill was also good defensively as he didn't get lost on switches and he stayed in front of guys pretty well. Kris will be a winner on any level if he plays with this mindset and is consistent.  [player_tooltip player_id='2104984' first='Samar' last='Bures']  - Rich Township 2024 To say I didn't see Bures is one thing but to also know this kid gave my team buckets in the spring and I didn't know his name is the sad part. Samar is a guard who just the definition of the word "Relentless ". At a generous 6'0 Bures is a pure dog on both ends of the court. He has springs in his legs if you haven't seen some of his dunks online already but he plays with a motor of the energizer bunny. Samar did a good job at putting his head down and driving to the rim using speed and quick handles. He is very athletic and makes so he makes difficult plays look routine when he's locked in. As a shooter, he has a strong mid-range jumper that he gets good elevation on. Mostly everything he did looked exciting because of how hard he plays. Bures will have a good senior season in the south suburbs.  [player_tooltip player_id='2415816' first='Jahkil' last='Jackson'] - Curie 2025 I first saw Jahkil at an event over the summer and thought he had some solid tools to his game. He has a good frame at 6'3 and is capable of making shots from mid-range.  He scores well around the rim and has good length to be a dependable defender. He will see an increasing role on a loaded Curie squad. Drake Washington - Proviso West 2024 Washington is known as a scoring threat but didn't get as many touches because the event was loaded with lead guards. Drake played solid off the ball getting a few looks at the rim off some transition plays. He's a player that has three-level scoring ability at his size of 6'3”.  He handles the ball like a PG and is also a terrific passer. I expect some big scoring nights from him this season.

As we recap this past weekend's Chi-Town Showcase. In many showcase events you always notice some of the well-known names off hand but the real essence of the Chi-Town Showcase is finding some new blood to boast about. Here are the eye-openers from this weekend's event.

Ehi Ogbomo Ehi Ogbomo 6'0" | PG Plainfield East | 2024 State IL - Plainfield East 2024
Easily the best unknown player I watched on Saturday. Ehi 6'2 guard plays with an endless motor and competes hard on both ends of the court. Where do I start first maybe it was the uber athletic dunks that caught my attention or his handles that he seemed to have on a string. Maybe it was his shooting ability from all three levels. Ogbomo was dangerous on offense and I thought ok that's good but he also defends like crazy. He has the length to get his hands on a few steals that led to fastbreaks. After this weekend I have made it a must to catch him during the season.

Kaleb Jackson Kaleb Jackson 6'2" | PG Carmel Catholic | 2024 State IL - Carmel Catholic 2024
Kaleb was hands down the best shooter at the event. He hit numerous threes throughout the day. Making the corner three his best spot but also showing he can knock down shots off the bounce in some of the tournament games. An underrated part of his game is his passing as Jackson seemed very unselfish and never took extra dribbles if he had space to advance the rock. At 6'1 he's a lights-out shooter with a good feel of the game colleges should be inquiring about him for scholarship opportunities.

Kris Hill - Walter Christian 2024
Hill is a player with a unique story. He missed his junior campaign because of a transfer rule. So he found his way back on the scene with a solid showing at Chi-Town Showcase. Kris is a dependable guard who never seems to be out of control. He pushes the ball to the pace of the game looking to make the right play for success. He didn't score a ton of points but he was good and keeping a flow to the game without over-dribbling and trying to prove a point. Hill was also good defensively as he didn't get lost on switches and he stayed in front of guys pretty well. Kris will be a winner on any level if he plays with this mindset and is consistent.

Samar Bures Samar Bures 5'9" | PG Rich Township | 2024 State IL - Rich Township 2024
To say I didn't see Bures is one thing but to also know this kid gave my team buckets in the spring and I didn't know his name is the sad part. Samar is a guard who just the definition of the word "Relentless ". At a generous 6'0 Bures is a pure dog on both ends of the court. He has springs in his legs if you haven't seen some of his dunks online already but he plays with a motor of the energizer bunny. Samar did a good job at putting his head down and driving to the rim using speed and quick handles. He is very athletic and makes so he makes difficult plays look routine when he's locked in. As a shooter, he has a strong mid-range jumper that he gets good elevation on. Mostly everything he did looked exciting because of how hard he plays. Bures will have a good senior season in the south suburbs.

Jahkil Jackson Jahkil Jackson 6'3" | SG Curie | 2025 State IL - Curie 2025
I first saw Jahkil at an event over the summer and thought he had some solid tools to his game. He has a good frame at 6'3 and is capable of making shots from mid-range. He scores well around the rim and has good length to be a dependable defender. He will see an increasing role on a loaded Curie squad.

Drake Washington - Proviso West 2024
Washington is known as a scoring threat but didn't get as many touches because the event was loaded with lead guards. Drake played solid off the ball getting a few looks at the rim off some transition plays. He's a player that has three-level scoring ability at his size of 6'3”. He handles the ball like a PG and is also a terrific passer. I expect some big scoring nights from him this season.