NEXT Chi-Town Tip Off: Crafty Play Makers

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Over the past few days, there has been a several crafty play makers, leaving their mark on their perspective contests. In this article we highlight five of those individuals, while describing how they went out and performed at the NEXT Chi Town Tip Off.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Thanks for tuning in and enjoy!</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2405233"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"An individual that pulls out some extremely crafty and sneaky skill moves at times is [player_tooltip player_id='2405233' first='Marquis' last='Howard'] of [program_tooltip program_id='2075314' first='Big' last='3 Basketball']. Howard is a Guard with good size, above average athleticism, and impressive speed once he gets down hill. He is very good in tight spaces and is someone that can get out of a jam in a number of different ways solely because he uses his Witts to get the best of most other opponents. He is also an individual that is very good at communicating with the others around him, while understanding what is going on each possession down the floor. Howard was one of the first prospects I sat down to watch this weekend and his game has stuck in my mind ever since. He has a high potential and I'm sure that is only going to grow over time.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["2381426"],"_player_evaluations_1_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"The [program_tooltip program_id='2075383' first='Chicago' last='Demons'] are a well known program out of the city and someone for them on their 2028 team that stood out in every game he competed in these past few days is Combo Guard, [player_tooltip player_id='2381426' first='Trent' last='Williams']. Williams is someone that can really do it all right now at his age level. He can bring up the ball and run offense, he can step out and screen the perimeter into a roll to the hoop, or he can post up on the block and score over other athletes. This weekend I saw Williams do his thing and play his game at a high rate. Most of the time, his team's offense was running through him in one way or another. As long as he tightens up everything and becomes great at doing somethings on the hardwood, he is going to be a tough player to guard as he gets older. He knows what a mismatch is and is very quick to exploit them, every chance he gets. His progression will be a major key but up until this point, he is someone to keep an eye on out of this area.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_2_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_2_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_2_player_details_player_name":"Max McMullen","_player_evaluations_2_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_2_player_details_graduating_class":"2029","_player_evaluations_2_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_2_player_details_height":"null","_player_evaluations_2_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_2_player_details_position":"77246","_player_evaluations_2_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_2_player_details_school":"","_player_evaluations_2_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_2_player_details_club_team":"Team Herro ","_player_evaluations_2_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_2_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_2_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"If I had to pick one prospect to lead my team this weekend, I think I'm taking Max McMullen of Team Herro Basketball. McMullen is someone that will kill anyone who steps to him in a 1v1 matchup. There was not one player this weekend that could stay in front of him in these situations. Instead, he would blow by his initial defender, getting into the teeth of the defense and either finish with a nice lay or he would dish it off to his big man on the opposite block. Either way, he was COOKING this weekend. His first step is explosive and his body movement is next level the way he moves from side-to-side while hitting a dribble move. Out of all the players I had a chance to evaluate over the past three days, McMullen was hands down one of the most impressive in almost every facet of the game, especially off the dribble.","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_3_player":["2369881"],"_player_evaluations_3_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"Over the past two weeks I have had the chance to sit down and watch All In Athletics compete on both the men's and women's side. Within that play, I've been really impressed. This seems like a program that teaches things the right way from a young age and that is something you love to see from an outside perspective. On the boys side this past weekend, a Guard prospect that had a solid showing was [player_tooltip player_id='2369881' first='Max' last='Blagojevich']. Blagojevich was someone that was tasked with bringing up the basketball a majority of the time, running his team's offense on almost every possession. In that time, he demonstrated that he knows how to control a game. He has a crafty play-style within the half court but other than that, he is someone that controls the tempo in which the contest is being ran. If his team has a fast advantage, he pushes the ball. If not, he sticks back and lets his team run their motion, usually leading to some easy buckets. At this age, so many people think scoring is everything and they couldn't be more wrong. If you can lead a team with your presence alone, that speaks volumes and that is what we have here.","_player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_4_player":["2398448"],"_player_evaluations_4_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"You've already heard me mention the Ray Allen 2028 Select team a few times and I would not expect that to change over the next few days. The type of prospects and athletes that they have on roster, can all hoop and that's not a question. One of their tallest and more swift individuals comes to us in the form of Guard, Joseph Kohnen. What I love about Kohnen's game is that he has size and athleticism. So much so that on defense he can guard the opposing teams best Post presence or he can jump around and stand at the three point line to get a stop. Offensively, he does a little bit of everything. He can bring the ball up, he can create off the wing, or he can screen and go to work on the inside with his combination of balance and touch. He plays more of a Combo Guard spot right now but overtime I could see him just becoming a full-fledged Wing, depending on how much he grows over these next few seasons.","_player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":5,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-661d3e108aae2"} /-->