RYZE Battle for Georgia Saturday Buzz-Generators

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>RYZE Hoops Battle for GA is one of the most entertaining circuit events on the spring and summer calendar, giving independents a chance to advance through bracket play and knock off the cream of Georgia's deep shoe team representatives.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Along the way, it's a chance for players to generate some buzz right before the July Live Periods. Here were some guys I caught at LakePoint during Saturday's prelim action.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2385368' first='Jake' last='Mihalick'] | Forward | [program_tooltip program_id='2078359' first='HoopAtlanta' last=''] Orange 16U (pictured at top)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Director Jordan Wyton and [program_tooltip program_id='2078359' first='HoopAtlanta' last=''] has done a phenomenal job the past few years putting together a consistently strong product on both the girls and boys side. A roster of stellar coaches doesn't hurt either, enabling them to draw in young talents like Mihalick, the 6-8 2026 wing/post who's joining Habersham Central and their stacked returning roster this fall. Has the modern-day critical combo of outside-in ability, soft shooting touch on the pick and pop with the baby hook and back-to-the-basket game in closer. Big-time stock riser.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2879772' first='Christian' last='Pak'] | Guard | [program_tooltip program_id='2078359' first='HoopAtlanta' last=''] Orange 16U</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":2487760,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/20240706_095203-rotated-crop-2740x1799-1720661012.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/20240706_095203-rotated-crop-2740x1799-1720661012.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-2487760" /></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">[player_tooltip player_id='2879772' first='Christian' last='Pak']</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Slick lefty with a really good-looking stroke from 3-land, he and Mihalick had 45 combined in a win over [program_tooltip program_id='2076568' first='Elite' last='Playmakers'] when I arrived Saturday morning. I like him on the ball and off, either way he has to be marked closely on the perimeter and has good burst to get by people. Seckinger High School enters year 3 of its existence and has already piled up 41 wins in two years and pumped out guys like Carter Watkins, IV Redmond, and Braxton Miller. Pak will lead the next wave. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2471138' first='Kyler' last='Fox'] | Forward | ATL Pivot 17U</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":2487762,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/20240706_103917-rotated-crop-2740x1799-1720661117.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/20240706_103917-rotated-crop-2740x1799-1720661117.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-2487762" /></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">[player_tooltip player_id='2471138' first='Kyler' last='Fox']</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Had a good June with Chattahoochee as they again look like a team not to be taken lightly, and with Pivot he's got <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1200222' first='Zayden' last='Edwards']</strong>, <strong>Kam Stone</strong> and new arrival <strong>Rhett Broussard</strong> to get him the ball for dunks and easy finishes. Definitely affects the game defensively at 6-8 with good timing and and a knack for altering shots. A big July combined with a notable senior season with the Cougs could lead to him generating even more buzz in a crowded recruiting field for still-developing high school bigs. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong> [player_tooltip player_id='2218436' first='Jacob' last='Zhu'] | Guard | Team Person 17U</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":2487769,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/20240706_104814-rotated-crop-2740x1799-1720661293.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/20240706_104814-rotated-crop-2740x1799-1720661293.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-2487769" /></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">[player_tooltip player_id='2218436' first='Jacob' last='Zhu']</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Big Chuck Person, the Rifleman himself, stalks the sidelines like a hungry coyote looking for prey the way he pushes his guys, and that intensity helps produce unsung players like Zhu, the 2026 playing up has exploded on the scene over the last 365 days and with that lists Auburn, UCF, and Georgia Tech among his suitors. Two 30ppg or more games and another with 29 on the weekend shows the kind of dynamic scoring at his disposal, a full-throated deep-range and downhill attack that continues to befuddle defenders and team defenses alike.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Zuri Mesquitte | Forward | [program_tooltip program_id='2078359' first='HoopAtlanta' last=''] White 17U</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":2487772,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/20240706_121209-rotated-crop-2740x1799-1720661582.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/20240706_121209-rotated-crop-2740x1799-1720661582.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-2487772" /></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Zuri Mesquitte</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Even before the shoe teams arrived Sunday there were some tremendous athletes in the building at LakePoint, but no one had my eyebrows raising more prominently than Mesquitte. Seen a bit of his high-flying antics with Midtown High School before, but there wasn't a ton of offensive ingenuity attached to it. He's added to that repertoire, looking so much better from distance while continuing to do the almost unthinkable at times near the basket. When SEBA's spunky point guard <strong>Matt McAuley</strong> ripped him at halfcourt and he got back on D and rose up above the square at 6-6 to throw it 20 feet from the basket, I had seen enough to say with certainty someone needs to get in on this guy, and fast.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2757605' first='Haiden' last='Evans'] | Forward | [program_tooltip program_id='2078359' first='HoopAtlanta' last=''] White 17U</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":2487775,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/20240706_115754-rotated-crop-2740x1799-1720661714.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/20240706_115754-rotated-crop-2740x1799-1720661714.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-2487775" /></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">[player_tooltip player_id='2757605' first='Haiden' last='Evans']</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A converted baseball guy now putting his focus on hoops at Midtown, Evans impressed with what is a naturally pure stroke from beyond the arc. This time last year he was introduced as exactly what he was, a young project just finding his footing in the hardwood game. A year later he is picking and popping, curling off screens with efficiency, rebounding, and showing off his IQ as a passer. At 6-6 he fits the profile of a guy who could shoot his way onto recruiting radars in July and beyond.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2385367' first='Brandon' last='Nelson'] | Guard | [program_tooltip program_id='2076416' first='AC' last='Georgia'] 16U</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":2487778,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/20240706_125316-rotated-crop-2740x1799-1720661819.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/20240706_125316-rotated-crop-2740x1799-1720661819.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-2487778" /></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">[player_tooltip player_id='2385367' first='Brandon' last='Nelson']</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Really like <strong>DJ Hubbard</strong> and <strong>Zayd Mohammed</strong> as well for [program_tooltip program_id='2076416' first='AC' last='Georgia'], who is always on my list of teams to follow wherever they're playing. Gainesville-product Nelson checks a lot of boxes for an incoming junior with a strong frame, an ability to play either guard spot, and glidingly exceptional athletic movement which is game-changing. The Red Elephants have a chance to be one of the real sleeper teams as outstanding Coach Charlemagne Gibbons enters Year 2 there with Nelson and a host of other talented guys to choose from.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2879783' first='Tobiaz' last='Tolbert'] | Forward | Team Scoot 16U</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":2487780,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/20240706_130651-rotated-crop-2740x1799-1720661929.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/20240706_130651-rotated-crop-2740x1799-1720661929.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-2487780" /></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">[player_tooltip player_id='2879783' first='Tobiaz' last='Tolbert']</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Right up there with <strong>Zuri Mesquitte</strong> from [program_tooltip program_id='2078359' first='HoopAtlanta' last=''] in the "wow" athletic ability department. Serious high-riser both as a finisher and shot-affector. Comes from the Carver-Columbus program in south GA that is a regular playoff contender and produces guys year and year out who come up to Atlanta and impress. Playing with Scoot will up his exposure for sure, and the upcoming attention would be warranted.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->