Las Vegas Classic: More Top Performers

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Another wave of top players from the Las Vegas Classic last week in Vegas.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1760312' first='Riley' last='Johnson'] of [program_tooltip program_id='2075685' first='Minnesota' last='Select'] Ohnstad (6'4, Sg, Chan). [player_tooltip player_id='1760312' first='Riley' last='Johnson']'s shooting touch is a weapon that changed the way defenses had to play Select. Teams had to have a good defender at the guard spot on [player_tooltip player_id='1437303' first='Brogan' last='Madson'], and they had to put their best forward defender on [player_tooltip player_id='1579885' first='Nolan' last='Groves'], so there you have [player_tooltip player_id='1760312' first='Riley' last='Johnson'] draining shots from the perimeter in space! The second teams started to step out to Johnson there was more space for Groves, Madson and [player_tooltip player_id='1574221' first='Max' last='Lorenson'], and it was very tough to stop Select from scoring. That is why they became the second best team in 17u in Minnesota, and Johnson's shooting was a huge part of it. The same thing happened in Vegas when Riley scored 23 on Club V out of Utah, when he scored 15 in the title game, and when he hit for double figures in the other games. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1617724' first='John' last='Schmidt'] of [program_tooltip program_id='2075672' first='Minnesota' last='Fury'] Shepherd (6'5, Sf, Chan). The last few weekends I have been watching Johnson hit threes and score, and [player_tooltip player_id='1617724' first='John' last='Schmidt'] hitting threes and scoring all over, and I can't help but get cheesy and say..... hey West Metro, a Storm is coming!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Lol, sorry. But it's true! [player_tooltip player_id='1617724' first='John' last='Schmidt'] has been one of the best players of July. I said tough, assertive, and confident on Twitter and I meant that. Schmidt has good size which has allowed him to score consistently around the basket in skilled and/or tough ways, but Schmidt has shot the ball well all summer as well. And if he can shoot it well for a top 5-6 team in 17u that won a ton of games, he should be able to do some of that this winter as well. The last two games I have seen him play he scored 17 points against Ocean City, and he had 22 points against [program_tooltip program_id='2075431' first='D1' last='Minnesota'] last week scoring the first seven points of the game and hitting four threes and scoring those 22 on 8 of 12 shot attempts. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1874871' first='Jaden' last='Fernandez'] of Lace Up (5'9, Pg, Rochester Mayo). This was my first real look at Jaden and I liked how he ran the team in what I saw. Smart, patient, and when he got to the attack good things happened. I thought he did a very nice job of consistently getting his team the right shot and I think his role could grow this winter if he does similar things. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2422069' first='Angok' last='Kucha'] of Lace Up (6'7, Forward, Rochester JM). When we talked about Angok having potential last winter we weren't joking around, this kid has potential. And when Lace Up beat Montana Premier, that potential was on display. Kucha has the length, he has the agility, and he has the bounce, what he needs is experience to build consistency. We saw some of that this weekend when he was getting lanes to the rim and finishing aggressively, when he used his length to contest and block, and when he scored with foul shots and a dunk in overtime to get the win. He shot the ball well too in the pair of games we saw last winter. There is real potential here. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1560801' first='Brady' last='Lam'] of [program_tooltip program_id='2075685' first='Minnesota' last='Select'] (6'5/6'6, Pf, Wayzata). I feel like Brady is that player a coach gets to last when he talks about their role in a group. Like..... Bob you play PG, Jalen you be the shooter, Nick you have to lock up, Jose we need you to be tough in post D, and Brady..... go do everything else. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>When I see Brady play it's just a basketball buffet. For example, there was the lateral movement on defense followed by a block, followed by a board, followed by a push for a score sequence. Or the back to back to possession we saw with Brady attacking and kicking for a three, and then following that up with a three of his own. Or the many, many times he turned a d-board into a quick outlet chance, or an o-board into second chance points. An all around player FROM.... Wayzata. Another Wayzata kid. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->