WCE AZ Spring Preview: ’25 Standouts

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>On April 13th I attended the&nbsp;<strong>WCE AZ Spring Preview</strong>&nbsp;located at the Phhacility in Phoenix. I watched 15-17U and found some incoming talented freshmen plus some good unsigned seniors looking for college homes.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Here were the top juniors I viewed:</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2357936' first='Xavier' last='Russell'] Needles/NV (Desert Elite 17) (Pictured)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One of the big sleepers of the event was a small school Nevada standout. He plays multiple sports and he moves fluidly in space. The forward will play way above the rim on the break, he can hit the three, he is an out of area rebounder and seems to bounce off of defenders in the paint. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2412257' first='Shawn' last='Johnson'] Skyline Prep (AZ Legacy 17)&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A senior who will be doing a post grad year at Skyline Prep. He was a star at South Pointe CAA and the lefty can get hot from the three off the catch. He moves well from end to end and is an out of area rebounder with good hands. He will work inside to score plus shoot the three off the catch. He led the CAA with most double-double and triple-doubles.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1818723' first='Fernando' last='Vazquez Lima'] Yuma Catholic (Desert Elite 17)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A physical power forward with toughness and skill. He is a little undersized but has advanced post footwork and counter moves to score. He will seal his defender and go to work in the paint. He handles it well to create his own offense and rebounds at a good clip.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1911511' first='Gus' last='Cardon'] Gilbert (AZ Gremlins 17) </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A highly skilled combo guard will put up points in a hurry. He can pull-up from mid-range, shoot the three off the catch or pull and has a quick release. His range on his threes helps him get his shot off and look for him to be one of the scoring leaders for the Tigers this year.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1366578' first='Davion' last='Harris'] Hamilton (AZ Gremlins 17)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A long guard who has been really catching my eye this past month. He is shooting the ball at high level with catch threes in bunches. He makes runners and floaters with euro steps and can pull-up from mid-range.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1430450' first='Elijah' last='Brush'] Hamilton (AZ Gremlins 17)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A wing who plays the role of a facilitating point forward. He moves the ball and is an unselfish play-maker. He gets on the glass to score on offensive rebound put backs and has a pretty touch from the three off the catch.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1366582' first='Cullen' last='Schreiner'] Basha (AZ Gremlins 17)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A bigger sized wing forward who is one of the best shooters in the class per position. He has a pure strap as a catch three point shooter. He squares up quickly and lets it fly. He rebounds well with his size.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2107106' first='Andre' last='Thomas'] Eduprize (Team RHJ 17)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A big time rebounder and top of the food chain athlete. He is a way above the rim dunker and will gobble up rebounds and block shots off the glass in impressive fashion. He scores on rim runs dunks and catch threes with a nice touch.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->