Opening Week Standouts

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>There were several jamborees and games taking place this week, kicking off the 2024-25 hoop season. I've pinpointed five early standouts from the action who jumped out as some of the top players from Tuesday and Wednesday's action.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1850300"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-674a0393e3727"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Rivers and Stadium were in full control in their season-opener against Bethel. It all started on defense and as one of the quickest players in his class, Rivers did a great job stifling ballhandlers and even made things tough on guys who managed to work in closer to the hoop. The Tigers also got out in transition and Rivers was able to beat defenders with his pace and passing, getting the ball up the court for quick buckets. That quickness translated to drives in the half-court as well, allowing him to draw extra defenders or beat guys all the way to the rim.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2361085"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-674a0393e3780"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Bieber is probably one of the most underrated players in his class. He's got a smooth shot from deep, scores pretty efficiently from all three levels, and is his squad's main playmaker. He has enough size to play with some strength on drives and split defenders, but he really thrives with his finesse at the rim and shooting touch outside. He's a balanced scorer who was really impressive at the Monroe Jamboree on Wednesday.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1631542"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-674a0393e37c5"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Sammamish won a close game against Pacific Academy (Canada) on Wednesday, and Morrissette was one of the key standouts with his performance. He was a factor rim-to-rim, rebounding with strength, moving without the ball to space around the paint, and doing an excellent job rim-running in transition. He plays his role so well and can flash with other plays at times, like a nice backdoor assist he made from the top and a block he had on a 3-point attempt.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2464768"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-674a0393e3806"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">The Ballard combo forward was a big factor in their win over Seattle Academy earlier this week. His length was too much for the Cardinals on the glass, he racked up boards on both ends, and he did a great job sealing his man on reversals to get easy buckets inside. Klassen-Matuska also showed off some touch further out hitting some jumpers, but the lenghty wing really impacted the game around the paint to give his Beavers the edge.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2140806"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-674a0393e3845"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Walls was one of the top standouts from their Central Valley Jamboree. He played under control but brought pace and some high-IQ decision-making to the court. He got great penetration, rejecting screens, mixing up speeds, and using quick bursts out of crossovers. He knocked down several jumpers after easily creating space off the bounce and was a patient playmaker on the late break.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->