NCAA Academy: Best Bigs

The NCAA and Team USA put together a joint camp at the end of the grassroots season to provide exposure for hundreds of prospects in the last live period for coaches of the summer season. The NCAA Academy had two tracks: An Individual Pathway track for individual HS athletes assigned to teams to play out a 6-game schedule in front of coaches. They also introduced a Junior College Pathway full of juco athletes assigned to teams to compete for the week in front of coaches. Team US held a US Open camp for some of the top 9th and 10th grade AAU teams to compete one last time with their group in cross-brand matchups that featured teams from across the country. There were a ton of big men that stood out, displaying varying skillsets and body compositions. Today we'll break down what we liked most from these prospects manning the paint.    -Sylla's activity on the glass throughout both games that we watched stood out, as did the physicality he played with at both ends of the floor. Every dunk was with two-hands, every drive he started was making a bee line at the basket, every box out on the offensive glass was intense, and he blocked shots like he really had something to prove this week. Finished with 12p 13r 2s 1b     -The ball always seems to find his hands, whether he was in position to grab the offensive rebound when the shot went up or not-- he usually came up with it in traffic. His footwork and hands allow him to create the necessary space to finish around bigs that are more athletic than he is, and his feel for where the ball is coming off and what move the defense is anticipating allows him to make quick decisions on the fly. Guimaraes is becoming a much more assertive shot-taker from the midrange and usually collects his miss to score around the basket when that does happen, extending that range will be key to his projection.     -What this southpaw lacks in explosiveness off the floor he makes up for with finishing craft around the basket with hooks, step throughs, drop steps, and spin moves. Reads the defense well whether he is facing up or backing his man down, utilizing his pivot and a series of moves to create enough to score at an efficient clip. Knocked down the only elbow jumper that I saw him take and served as a high-level passer out of the high post. Summers understands the timing for his screens and movement on and off the ball, allowing his point guard to process the floor with enough space to operate before getting the two man game going.     -Might have the most upside of any of the international prospects because the big man skillset of finishing plays around the rim, rebounding, and blocking shots is already at a solid level. The base for the C+S perimeter skillset is solid with his touch from the FT line and on midrange jumpers, will be an interesting international prospect for college coaches and NBA scouts to keep tabs on.     -Sacko really showed his versatility on the offensive end of the floor as a high-level rebounder, passer, and play-finisher that can also knock down C+S perimeter jumpers if left open. His versatility as a playmaker from the high post and wing allowed NH to take advantage of the off-ball movers and shooters on their roster without having to run sets. He's improved his conditioning and the motor is humming at a higher level at both ends of the floor. Finished with 16p 10r 2a 1b 1s in a big win over SA Future     -Really popped as a play-making big that plays unselfishly on the offensive end of the floor, passing well from the high post, through double teams on the block, and in DHOs on the perimeter. The perimeter jumper is falling more consistently because he is taking and making the right looks while his efficiency as a scorer around the rim sustained his team these past two weeks in EYBL and NCAA Academy     -Turned in one of the more impressive individual performances of the week with 30p 17r 7b in a win over SOH Elite. While SOH didn't have a big tall enough to keep him off the glass, his processing of double teams and the subtleties of keeping the ball high to avoid turnovers and offensive fouls really stood out when you compared it to where his game was as recently as this spring at Made Hoops Baltimore. The touch has really improved around the rim and he's being much more efficient with his dribbles on straight line drives to the rim. Defensively, he's cleaned up his balance and timing on shot blocks, protecting the rim at a higher level without getting himself in foul trouble. With a more consistent shooting stroke from outside the paint and improved vertical pop-he could end up being one of the top power forwards in the country.

The NCAA and Team USA put together a joint camp at the end of the grassroots season to provide exposure for hundreds of prospects in the last live period for coaches of the summer season. The NCAA Academy had two tracks: An Individual Pathway track for individual HS athletes assigned to teams to play out a 6-game schedule in front of coaches. They also introduced a Junior College Pathway full of juco athletes assigned to teams to compete for the week in front of coaches. Team US held a US Open camp for some of the top 9th and 10th grade AAU teams to compete one last time with their group in cross-brand matchups that featured teams from across the country. There were a ton of big men that stood out, displaying varying skillsets and body compositions. Today we'll break down what we liked most from these prospects manning the paint.