Prep Hoops Next Aurora IL: 2030 Alert Defenders

PHI was in Aurora over the weekend for a 1 day showcase exposure event. There were a lot of offensively skilled players that were able to exemplify their skills sets throughout the day. Whether it was in the 3 on 3 portion or the 5 on full 5 court game. From 2029's to 2031's and from smalls to bigs, everyone had their pick of the pie. What is often really great to see however is the defensive minds a lot of these young guys still have. They know they not only have to be able to do what they need to with the rock but they also need to get stops to be competitive and have a great overall game. That may be in the half court set grinding it out or if guys get really foot happy, it can be in the full court on the ball defending. All in all, it was good to see guys communicating on the floor to each other on the defensive end where most had never shared a court together before. Let's go ahead and take a look at a few players that seemed to stick out more on the defensive end of the court. [player_tooltip player_id='2396651' first='Declan' last='Ehlen'] (2030): Ehlen is a lengthy wing that used his natural abilities well and to his advantage today. He challenged defenders on the ball competitively and wasn't afraid to play hard nosed. Off the ball he made smart decisions to not over step his boundaries while digging and helping. If the ball drove in the middle, he'd step over so the offense had to kick out. Used his quickness to recover. After the shot attempt, he continued to aggressively crash on the glass to rebound. Overall was fundamentally sound. [player_tooltip player_id='2406873' first='Benjamin' last='Skrajny'] (2030): Really enjoyed checking out Skrajny's efforts today on both ends of the floor. He ran well but was most importantly fundamentally sound on the defensive end of the court. On quicker guards, he moved his feet laterally to stay in front for the most part or atleast have an angle on the handler. He was able to use his length effectively to keep drives out of the paint as much as possible. On shot attempts he was still pretty active around the rim and if it wasn't a board he was in the area most of the time. Overall he used his solid foot speed to his advantage. [player_tooltip player_id='2801238' first='Ben' last='Wood'] (2030): Ben looked to have an excitement to play the game. As a smaller frame on bigger guards, he still challenged and contested to the best of his abilities. Was not afraid to get up and guard on the ball or crash on the glass. Outside of defense he spaced the floor well to find openings around the arc to catch and shoot. His hands and feet were ready to trigger and release it which is always a positive thing moving forward in a player's career.

PHI was in Aurora over the weekend for a 1 day showcase exposure event. There were a lot of offensively skilled players that were able to exemplify their skills sets throughout the day. Whether it was in the 3 on 3 portion or the 5 on full 5 court game. From 2029's to 2031's and from smalls to bigs, everyone had their pick of the pie. What is often really great to see however is the defensive minds a lot of these young guys still have. They know they not only have to be able to do what they need to with the rock but they also need to get stops to be competitive and have a great overall game. That may be in the half court set grinding it out or if guys get really foot happy, it can be in the full court on the ball defending. All in all, it was good to see guys communicating on the floor to each other on the defensive end where most had never shared a court together before. Let's go ahead and take a look at a few players that seemed to stick out more on the defensive end of the court.

Declan Ehlen Declan Ehlen 5'8" | PG IL (2030): Ehlen is a lengthy wing that used his natural abilities well and to his advantage today. He challenged defenders on the ball competitively and wasn't afraid to play hard nosed. Off the ball he made smart decisions to not over step his boundaries while digging and helping. If the ball drove in the middle, he'd step over so the offense had to kick out. Used his quickness to recover. After the shot attempt, he continued to aggressively crash on the glass to rebound. Overall was fundamentally sound.

Benjamin Skrajny Benjamin Skrajny 5'10" | SF IL (2030): Really enjoyed checking out Skrajny's efforts today on both ends of the floor. He ran well but was most importantly fundamentally sound on the defensive end of the court. On quicker guards, he moved his feet laterally to stay in front for the most part or atleast have an angle on the handler. He was able to use his length effectively to keep drives out of the paint as much as possible. On shot attempts he was still pretty active around the rim and if it wasn't a board he was in the area most of the time. Overall he used his solid foot speed to his advantage.

Ben Wood Ben Wood 5'4" | SG IL (2030): Ben looked to have an excitement to play the game. As a smaller frame on bigger guards, he still challenged and contested to the best of his abilities. Was not afraid to get up and guard on the ball or crash on the glass. Outside of defense he spaced the floor well to find openings around the arc to catch and shoot. His hands and feet were ready to trigger and release it which is always a positive thing moving forward in a player's career.