2024 IYBL Back to School League- Class of 2029-2030 Guards

The back to school tournament was the gathering place of top caliber guards. These young men show why they are some of the best at their positions. Let's Go!!    This is my second write up for Roman. The young point guard did not disappoint as I watched him guide his team to easy victories over the weekend. He still shows signs of being a great floor leader along with having the ability to knock down shots. A very flashy ball handler who can blow by defenders and make plays off the dribble; whether its the flashy pass or getting to the basket. Roman also has the skill of making threes from long distances on the basketball court. He's a very pesky defender who forced opposing guards into turnovers with great ball pressure. There were a couple of times I saw him diving on the floor to grab the ball after he poked it away from his opposition. This young guy plays with passion and strives to improve on every facet of his game. I believe, he will take his game to the next level as long as he continues to grind and work on his craft. Roman finished the game with 6 points, 5 assists, 3 steals and 1 block     Ashton is the prototypical point guard who makes everything go for his squad. He ran the Showtime Gray offense to the point of being near flawless. Excellent passer who has a pass first mentality and winning attitude. This young man was like a coach on the floor, often making sure all his teammates are where they needed to be for the offense to run smoothly. Shows the ability to create off the dribble and get to the basket with layups and floaters. Ashton was able to step out behind the arc and convert on a couple of threes. The leading assists man for his team who often found open teammates with pin-point passes leading to easy scores. A decent defensive guard who always kept his man in front of him and didn't make it easy on the opposition. Ashton will be even better as a floor leader as he continues to progress through the middle and high school ranks.     This young man is an excellent scorer who puts the ball in the basket all kinds of ways. He's a really good ball handler who had no problem getting by defenders and making plays. Either by attacking the basket or dishing off to open teammates, this guy is a natural finisher. Melo has an good mid-range game that he used to draw out defenders and blow by them for easy layups. If left alone he also proved to be very dangerous from behind the three point line. Melo is a really good rebounding guard who had close to double digit boards in the game I watched over the weekend. On defense, he was a terror for opposing guards with tough man to man ball pressure that lead to numerous mistakes by the opposition. I loved watching this young man play because he basically left it all out on the court. Melo is the type of player who doesn't cheat the game. He'll always give his all, in order to help his squad win games.     Collin has a great ability of distributing the ball to his teammates. He showed great leadership and a prowess to attack the basket. This young man is a strong guard with a low to the ground makeup. He's a good floor general who ran precise plays and showed leadership qualities that can make a team successful. Showed the ability of being a defensive stopper because of his tenacity and suprisingly quick footwork. Collin is a steady point guard who just plays the game. He did not display any type of emotion. It seems like he has a business approach towards the game of basketball. After watching him play, he reminds me of former UCONN star Khalid El-Amin who happened to be one of the best guards in the country during his college years. I can visualize the same kind of success for Collin as he continues to enhance his basketball skills.     Damone is a very viable three point threat whenever he steps on the floor! I watched this guy knock down multiple threes regardless of defenders contesting his shot. Excellent shooting form and touch to go along with the ability of getting to the basket and converting on layups. A really good ball handler who used a variety of dribble drives to get around defenders and make plays for himself or teammates. I saw him score through contact and convert numerous three point plays by knocking down free throws. Damone was very aggressive on the defensive side of the court. He limited his opposition to a minimal amount of scoring and effectiveness. He was really good at playing passing lanes and generating turnovers. He will be very successful during the middle school season because he has all the skills needed to succeed.     Kevin has excellent passing skills and likes getting everyone involved on offense. He is a high energy player who has the ability to create for himself or teammates. This little guy is a really good shooter from the floor, often making floaters, mid-range jumpers and three point shots if given the opportunity. Kevin was in constant attack mode when he was on the floor, which made it tough for opposing guards. He had no problem running the team as a lead guard. On defense he plays with a high level of feistiness and pressure on his competition. Kevin is a tough minded guard who forced many turnovers and caused a lot of mistakes for his opponents. Kevin was clearly the leader on the court both emotionally and verbally. He plays with a controlled amount of emotion and seems like the type of kid who hates to lose. I love it!!     EJ can literally score from all over the floor. He is a very dependable free throw shooter with a good mid and long range shot from behind the arc. A very athletic player who runs the floor well and finishes in transitional situations. Very knowledgeable of how to use screens and get where he needs to be on the floor to be effective within the offense. EJ was really good at creating his own shot with great ball handling skills. On numerous occasions I watched him easily drive around defenders for easy looks at the basket. He completely understands the concept of how to function within an offense. Good defensive guard who constantly applied pressure to opposing guards, forcing numerous turnovers. EJ is a really good player who I expect to be even better in the coming years. He has a great scorers mentality to go along with being a really good teammate who does whatever it takes to help his squad win.     Ben is very athletic guard with strong slash to the basket capabilities. He's a dependable free throw shooter with a good mid range shot I saw on multiple occasions during the game over the weekend. This young man is very creative with the basketball in his hands. He had no issues breaking down defenders and making plays for himself and his teammates. Excellent finisher in transition, who ran the floor very well during these occasions. He uses his athleticism to get to spots on the floor where he can be successful in the offense. Ben is very knowledgeable of what has to be done on the defensive end of the court. Playing good man on man defense and knowing his role within the defense that makes him a threat to opposing guards. Overall, Ben is a really good player who has the potential to get better with age. He's already a good two way player now!!

The back to school tournament was the gathering place of top caliber guards. These young men show why they are some of the best at their positions. Let's Go!!