Teams to Watch in 6A
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Football season is winding down. Basketball will get rocking very soon. So let’s take a peak ahead to teams that might bear watching this season, starting in the biggest class. Returners: Shawnee Mission Northwest No team returns its talent like…
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Continue ReadingFootball season is winding down. Basketball will get rocking very soon. So let’s take a peak ahead to teams that might bear watching this season, starting in the biggest class.
Returners:
Shawnee Mission Northwest
No team returns its talent like the Cougars. They don’t lose a lot from last year’s state team. But the important thing to watch will be the development of big man Ethan Taylor Ethan Taylor 7'0" | C Shawnee Mission Northwest | 2026 State KS . If Taylor takes a big step, look out. There’s a ton of offensive talent and versatility around him, led by Keaton Wagler Keaton Wagler 6'5" | CG Shawnee Mission Northwest | 2025 State KS , Van Collins Van Collins 6'4" | SG Shawnee Mission Northwest | 2025 State KS and Aiven Riley Aiven Riley 6'3" | SF Shawnee Mission Northwest | 2025 State KS . There’s some height and depth among the senior class.
Derby
Derby loses some good veteran guards, but the key nucleus is back, plus some guards who came off the bench to be hugely significant last year. So we are going to include them among the “Returners” category. Back is impactful big man Kaden Franklin Kaden Franklin 6'6" | PF Derby | 2024 State KS (pictured), a guy who has flown under the radar to a degree but should be one of the best big forward/centers in the state this year. He will benefit from some guys opening things up by sniping from the perimeter. Derby might have the best collection of three-point shooters in the state in Dallas Metzger Dallas Metzger 6'3" | SF Derby | 2024 State KS , Jack Ulwelling Jack Ulwelling 5'10" | CG Derby | 2025 State KS and Mason Anderson.
Contenders:
Wichita Heights
Why is Wichita Heights, who might have the top one-two returners in the state, listed as a “Contender” rather than a “Returner?” Well, despite having the best player in TJ Williams TJ Williams 6'5" | SG Wichita Heights | 2024 State #176 Nation KS and arguably the best athlete in Amalachi Wilkins Amalachi Wilkins 6'8" | C Wichita Heights | 2025 State KS , they lost quite a bit – seven members of last year’s team, to be exact. So while we fully expect the Falcons to be in the mix for a title, they will have to do it with quite a few new contributors.
Blue Valley Northwest
Same situation as Wichita Heights. There are a lot of really good players back, but they lose last year’s best player – Grant Stubblefield – and five other seniors to boot. But they have got a top big man in Joey Matteoni Joey Matteoni 6'8" | PF Blue Valley Northwest | 2024 State KS and a guard who should take a huge step in Jacob Fritz Jacob Fritz 6'3" | CG Blue Valley Northwest | 2024 State KS . There’s always a lot of talent to develop in this program.
Mill Valley:
We’re waiting for the official roster to be known before we pump up the Jaguars too much. But they will be led by arguably the state’s best junior, Carter Kaifes Carter Kaifes 6'6" | PF Mill Valley | 2025 State #317 Nation KS . That’s a great place to start. Beyond that, transfers and football opt-outs may greatly impact the lineup for this team.
Unknowns
Blue Valley North
Who will be on the court for this state semifinalist? They lose eight seniors from a year ago. The one guy we expect to be big is senior Jeron Lashley Jeron Lashley 6'4" | PF Blue Valley North | 2024 State KS . Can they replace nearly everyone else and make another run?
Maize
Maize moves up to 6A. How’s the timing for such a move going to affect the program? Maize did its best last year to build around young players, and the results weren’t great. They went 10-11, but they did give playing time to a lot of guys with high upside. Eight freshmen and sophomores got playing time, headed by stud guard Brayden Myovela Brayden Myovela 6'3" | CG Maize | 2026 State KS . Watch for high-flying Alan Hanna Alan Hanna 6'3" | SF Maize | 2025 State KS to have a breakout junior year, and Alec Grill should also make a big step forward as a junior.
Garden City
The season came to a very disappointing end for the talented Buffaloes last spring. They were loaded and ready to make a state tournament run before getting upset by Junction City. Now they have to figure out how to adjust to the loss of a quartet of talented veterans. Emilio Zundt Emilio Zundt 5'8" | PG Garden City | 2024 State KS is just about the only returner who was a big part of the success. How good can this new version of the team be? We’ll see.