Hoop Group Finale: 15U Standouts

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The final week of the live period just ended, and one of the best events took place in Virginia Beach with the Hoop Group/Hoop Seen Summer Finale. The 12 court facility was packed with teams ranging from Florida to New York, with a large portion of those teams coming locally from VA.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here's a look at of some of the 15U standouts from the event.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Nathan Lessley | 6'5” F | Team Loaded 757 15U</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":2502945,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/tempImage1jr8wS.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/tempImage1jr8wS.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-2502945" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Team Loaded 757 won the Summer Finale championship and are a talented young group including all the players listed, but Lessley has the most upside moving forward with his blend of size, athleticism and skillset at this point. At 6'5” he has long arms and is likely still growing, he showed good ball skills with the ability to make shots from deep and put it on the deck, he showed good athleticism with his finishing ability and he was a good rebounder. With all of that at a young age, if he grows the way we expect him to he's going to be a very intriguing prospect moving forward.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2470583' first='Trey' last='Barnhart'] | 6'2” PG | Team Loaded 757 15U</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":2502944,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/tempImagekcnpFl.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/tempImagekcnpFl.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-2502944" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Barnhart is the leader of this group as their primary ball handler and creator, as well as their vocal leader, and his mature and calm manor to his game already has him as one of the top guards in the Beach District at Kellam. He handled pressure well as a one man press break, he got to the paint off the bounce where he showed his ability to make tough shots and make plays for others, he never really got sped up and he consistently made the right plays on both ends of the floor.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Tabren Hawkins | 6'1” WG | Team Loaded 757 15U</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Hawkins is another impressive guard for this group and will be an integral part of a talented Maury team this year, and he showed flashes of brilliance as a shot maker and defender as well. He shot the ball very well from deep off the catch and showed the ability to get hot quickly, he showed he can create space off the bounce and he was particularly good guarding the ball defensively too.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2470595' first='Jonathan' last='Lee'] | 6'2” WG | Team Loaded 757 15U</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Lee is another intriguing long term prospect for this Loaded 757 group, as the Catholic guard has a great build already and a skillset that should get better with time moving forward. He's an aggressive downhill attacking guard who thrives when he can get in straight lines going right, he plays well through contact with good footwork and knows how to use his body to create space and he can hit open shots as well.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Anthony Abreu | 6'2” F | NOVA Cavs Byrnes 15U</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Abreu is a player to keep an eye on in Northern VA, as he's still a bit raw but he was super productive as he was relentless and played with a great motor on both ends of the floor. He was nonstop attacking the rim and finishing through traffic or getting to the line, he was a monster on the glass on both ends of the floor, he played with great energy defensively and he has a great body and just needs more polishing to become a true perimeter player.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->