College of Dupage JUCO Jamboree Standouts

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It's October and like always the first weekend is dedicated to JUCO basketball. This year I made the trip back to the College of DuPage to check in on some of our former IHSA prospects who are making a name for themselves in junior college. Here are the standouts from Saturday's games.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Amarion Johnson - Moraine Valley (Tinley Park)&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Johnson has morphed into a legit prospect. At 6'9 he is a bouncy rim protector. He blocked a handful of shots some of which he sent flying over onto the next court. Added some strength and is shooting with more confidence from the perimeter. He's always been a rebounding threat on both sides of the ball but now he's starting to finish more around the rim off offensive boards. He should have a big season with several colleges after him.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Samar Bures - South Suburban (Rich Township)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Bures is a very fast guard who showed his handle and body control getting in the lane at will. Samar was brilliant early on with his passing, attacking the heart of the defense, and passing the ball out to shooters like it was a drill. In a later game he became more of a scoring threat and hit difficult floaters and pull up shots to give his team lift when they were down big. Buress remained one of the toughest on-ball defenders in the gym. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Tolu Samuels - Triton (Hilcrest)&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Samuels is a JUCO Swiss Army knife. He gets a lot done with his size and length on the court. Tolu rebounds on both sides of the ball. At 6'7 he passes with precision to guys slashing or spotting up in the corner. As a scorer, he's smooth off the dribble and can lure guys into thinking they will either get a steal or block his shot, but he uses his length to score through reaching hands. Certified Division 1 player next season.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Christian Meeks - Waubonsee (Curie)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Meeks looked like a man amongst boys or a guy playing the wrong sport. He added visible strength to his stature while still being able to be mobile as a forward. Christian was a low post force who at times made shots on the perimeter. He's maintained those attributes and has improved his handle off the wing. At 6'5 he will get some attention from universities this season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Lavell Nash Jr. - Daley College (Corliss)&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Nash kept showing glimpses of production whenever he touched the ball. At 6'4 he has good length on the court. I watched him grab offensive boards several times dribble the length of the court and score on guys. He plays with a motor and is a threat from all three levels.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Jakeem Cole - Kellogg (Perspectives)&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Cole continues to be a dynamic combo guard. He is a strategic setup man, but is also dangerous when getting downhill to the rim. Jakeem is still a composed guard who can take a bump and score in the lane. Most of the points he earned were by him playing fast and initiating contact before scoring a bucket. Cole should have a handful of colleges after him this season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Tyler Wooten - South Suburban (Brother Rice)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Wooten continues to show he's a lights-out shooter from the three-point line. In the first 2 games for South Suburban standout he was the leading scorer. Hitting shots from all three levels of play. Tyler is a crafty guard off the dribble. As he makes shots teams figure out ways to get to him off the line. Wooten is wired to make shots. Should be a good counterpart to the other tough guards the Bulldogs will have this season.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->