Houston-Area Hidden Gems

Don't sleep on Houston. There's plenty of talent to go around in Space City and the surrounding areas. Below are some standouts that are gaining steam quickly.    Mason is a quick, sharpshooting point guard that will make you pay from beyond the arc if you don't guard him close. He has a nice ability to penetrate and find his cutters on the fast break for easy assists and nearly guaranteed buckets. He's talented at finishing through contact and never shies from it if he sees an opening he can take advantage of. He's got a dangerous crossover and can leave his defender skating at times. His jumper has an impressive arc to it that's nearly impossible to block. He's got great court vision, often finding teammates in the corner for wide open opportunities. He's a natural fit at the point with his style of play - he can hurt you just as bad with his passing as he can with his scoring. I have a feeling we'll be hearing a lot about Mason heading into his senior season.     Jeremiah is a talented, shifty point guard that can punish his opponents in multiple ways. He's got beautiful form on his jumper and he'll sink it more times than not if he's given any sort of space. He's a fantastic passer - often recognizing plays and opportunities within them as they develop. He's fearless with his body, regularly catapulting himself into the lane on the drive and finishing through contact. If you know how to get open and move well without the ball, he will absolutely reward you with perfect dishes and easy opportunities. He's got an unbelievably quick first step which gives him the ability to blow by the majority of his defenders with ease. Okpamen is just getting started and he's going to gain more and more recognition as his high school career progresses.     Jaisel is a smooth operating combo guard that never folds under pressure. He's incredibly patient while still making quick decisions, seeing things before they develop and capitalizing on his elite anticipation. He's a good communicator on the floor and makes a great commander for his squad with how vocal he is and how he leads by example with his play. He doesn't shy away from physicality and has a nice ability to finish through fouls. He's not phased by double teams and seems to be able to sink his jumpers in traffic just as well as wide open opportunities (which he doesn't get many of for good reason). He's a fantastic passer and gets his teammates plenty of easy opportunities with his elite vision. He can also go on a heater beyond the arc in a hurry if you're not careful. Burgos is on the rise and is going to turn plenty of heads in the process.     Chase is a physical, shot-creating point guard that likes to consistently fill up the stat sheet. He's a nice scorer that can create if the situation calls for it, but he's never focused solely on that. He's smart - the type of player that's going to capitalize on whatever the defense gives him, which makes him an unbelievably frustrating cover for his opponents. He's great on the fast break and has the ability to make quick decisions calmly and effectively, often resulting in buckets. He's skilled at finishing through contact and at contorting his body however need be in mid-flight to give himself the best look at the rim. He's a pest in the best way on defense and will snatch the ball from his opponent if they take even a second off. Gray is going to get better and better and I can't wait to see it.     Dedrick is a silky, sharpshooter of a point guard with impeccable form and a nice rotation on his jumper. He's smartly patient, often knowing exactly when to pump fake or catch his defender off guard with a burst to the rim. He's fantastic at passing up good shots for great ones and he's incredibly active on the offensive glass, consistently getting second opportunities for his squad. He moves nicely without the ball and knows how and where to cut to get a wide open opportunity at the rim. He regularly gets to his spots in the corners where he repeatedly sinks jump shots on his opponents. Bradford can fly as well - often wowing the crowd with his impressive vertical ability.     PJ is a solid, tenacious combo guard that can hurt his opponents at the rim and beyond the arc. He has an impressive elevation on his jumper, making him hard to defend for the majority of defenders he comes across. His burst is serious and if you decide to play him close, he can often breeze right by you for wide open opportunities in the paint. He has incredibly quick hands on defense and can pick his opponent's pocket with no contact easily. He's talented at reading passing lanes and picking off his opponents for easy buckets the other way. He's skilled at finishing at the rim and cleans the glass effectively on both ends of the floor. He uses the glass incredibly well with his shot selection and rarely doesn't get points out of his opportunities. Harris is going to gain more and more attention with the amount of hustle and hard work you can tell he puts in.

Don't sleep on Houston. There's plenty of talent to go around in Space City and the surrounding areas. Below are some standouts that are gaining steam quickly.