Long Island’s Next UP
In this article:
When we starting writing and evaluating prospects we were mostly responsible for the players on Long Island. We are comfortable in this location, have coached in this environment for 7 seasons and know the landscape pretty well. The 2024 class…
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Continue ReadingWhen we starting writing and evaluating prospects we were mostly responsible for the players on Long Island. We are comfortable in this location, have coached in this environment for 7 seasons and know the landscape pretty well. The 2024 class on Long Island was a good one but the question we always get is. Who is next up on the Island? In this latest article we will provide you with six names we believe could be potential superstars and All Long Island selections for next year.
The first prospect we want to highlight had a breakut season for Section VIII and could even be bigger next season. That would be 6″ combo guard Chase Timberlake Chase Timberlake 6’1″ | CG Baldwin | 2025 State NY who went from the Bruins 6th man to their key scorer. Timberlake finished off a monster Junior campaign that definitely cemented himself as one of the top prospects on Long Island. He is easily our preseason pick for Section VIII player of the year next season.
Highlights
Nelson burst on to the scene this season and put together a terrific season at Deer Park. The 2027 point guard showed his ability to make threes, create around the free throw line, find teammates and was sensational at finishing around the basket. He is a natural scorer, has a high basketball IQ, understands defenses at a young age, has a greta motor and isn’t afraid to get phsyical. We saw flashes early on in the season but when we circled back later on he was checking off all the boxes and looks like the next supserstar decision maker for the Falcons.
Smith was easily one of the top prospects in the Long Island CHSAA before making his decision to return home to William Floyd this summer. The 2025 forward has an elite mid range game, can step out for threes, has nice touch around the rim and has excellent footwork. His defense improved tremendously, he is much more active, he rebounds very well on both ends and was their leader when they needed him. He was a serious impact player as a Junior but could potentially win Suffolk player of the year if he can up his production a little bit. We want to see him go all in the summer and get the ball in his hands more because besides that there aren’t too many weaknesses in his game.
The 2026 recruiting class in Long Island, upstate and New York City look extremly promising in our humble opinion. While the focus is on all the High Major guards and playmakers Long Island has a serious big man prospect. Lawrence Woodmere Academy sent their 4 star big man to Louisville just a few years ago and Ourigou seems to be on the same trajectory. Ourigou is an elite rim protector, shot blocker, rebounder and finisher around the basket. We know his offense isn’t up to the defense but he is making serious strides in that part of his game and with the defensive concepts down pat he brings serious value. In the basketball world everyone wants to predict and be right about prospects but we see serious pro potential with this young emerging big we just can’t wait to see how high he can go.
In our opinion the most dangerous returning public school prospect returning is Southampton’s point guard Naevon Williams Naevon Williams 6’3″ | SF Southhampton | 2025 State NY . He was phenemonel this season handling the entire offensive load until his partner Dom White returned from injury. Williams was one of the top scorers in Suffolk, is virtually impossible to guard one on one and easily had the best fourth quarters of anyone on Long Island. This tough floor general will returns for one more year, he should be up their for Section XI’s MVP, he should break a bunch of Mariners record and we know he wants another shot at a state title.
Jordan Cador
Jordan Cador
The biggest unknown in this article easily goes to 6’7′ forward Jordan Cador of Hills East. Cador was a key member of the Thunderbird’s rotation that just kept getting better each week of the season. He has great touch for a big, nice mid range game, makes threes and stepped up big time during the playoffs. While the breakout Junior was definitely under the radar he can’t hide anymore especially after how good he was over the last month. Cador will have a big opporunity to help lead HillsEast back to LIC and should be one of the primary scorers all season long