King of the City: 2026 Forward Standouts

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I attended the annual&nbsp;<em>Hoopers Only</em>&nbsp;<strong>King of the City&nbsp;</strong>AAU Tournament at the Phhacility in Phx. I watched two days of action on Friday and Saturday, March 29-30. I watched around 30 teams play one or two times in the 2 days of action.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Here are some of the 2026 Forward Standouts I viewed</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1323295' first='Brayden' last='Barrett'] Verrado (AZ Select 17 UAA)&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A highly skilled wing forward who scores it from all levels. He will score with post ups and can fall away from his defender or take some contact or a bump to score. He was feeling in it on Saturday morning from the arc hitting a few threes in a row and getting on the glass to score.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2697397' first='Isaiah' last='Carter'] La Joya (Legacy 17)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A long and lean wing forward. He gets on the glass with offensive rebound put backs and has quick hands on defense. He has next level body control to score tough shots in traffic using his big wingspan and a nice layup package.&nbsp; <strong>&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1893708' first='Prince' last='Cash'] Carl Hayden (BVP White 17)&nbsp;(Pictured)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A long wing forward can rise up from mid-range off the dribble. He rebounds well in his area and will push the rock up the court. He will go baseline and lay it in or hit the three with some range off the catch.&nbsp; <strong>&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2784892' first='Kaeden' last='Everett'] North (Legacy 17)&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A long and athletic forward can score with downhill takes with longer strides. He is very athletic and fluid in space. He will use either hand getting to the rim with good speed and he is a high level dunker on the break. He will also hit the occasional three.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2492665' first='Anthony' last='Granger'] Phhoenix Prep (AZ Select 17 UAA)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A hyper athletic power forward who dunks it easily way above the rim. He will score with plus footwork, quick rip thrus, he can play some bully ball and catch lob dunks. He will rebound, run the floor and block or alter shots.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2297971' first='Hale' last='Hansen'] Brophy Prep (AZ Select 17 UAA)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>An athletic wing forward is a versatile defender. He is one of the rare players who can essentially defend the 1-4 with his size, quick twitch and springs. He will score with give and go takes to the rim and tough buckets thru contact with either hand.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1633050' first='Sebastian' last='Hatsakorzian'] St. Mary's (AZ Gremlins Black 17)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A facilitating point forward type is a two-way player. He sees the court and makes smart reads and he will defend and score. He will hit the three with more confidence then a year ago plus pull-up from mid-range or use the runner. He can defend multiple positions as well.&nbsp; <strong>&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2764046' first='Malachi' last='Hicks'] Gilbert (AZ Gremlins Black 17)&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A physical framed power forward who was on junior varsity all year with a double transfer. He will be a breakout player next season with his top rebounding and his athleticism combined with his broad shoulders and strength. He will score it primarily closest to the basket. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1490238' first='JD' last='Jones'] Phoenix Country Day (BVP White 17)&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A versatile wing forward who can score and defend. He will score getting to the basket with straight line drives and hit the three. He will defend multiple positions and rebounds the ball well. He can then push it and make a play.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1834712' first='Santiago' last='Leyva-Fonseca'] Dysart (Legacy 17)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A highly skilled power forward with a good motor and very soft hands. He will score with hook shots with his left or right hand, threes off the catch and he rebounds well in and out of his area. He uses his size to his advantage inside the paint.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2387517' first='Jachin' last='Reynolds'] San Tan Charter (UH Elite 17)&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A fluid and super athletic power forward who dunks it easily. He flies up the court like a wing and moves feet well in space to defend. He can rebound the ball at its highest point with his quick springs.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1570934' first='Diego' last='Sarabia'] Queen Creek (UH Elite 17)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A point power forward type had some of the best passes of the opening night. He impressively made some passes that threaded the needle consistently. He scores with dribble drives, he uses ball fakes, hard layups with good body control in the lane and once he gets a full head of steam he will dunk it on the break above the rim.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1950115' first='Alex' last='Taylor'] Desert Vista (AZ Select 16 UAA)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A twitchy combo forward who can play and defend multiple positions. He can score with catch threes, &nbsp;he is a long strider to the basket, he is a quick second and third jumper on the glass and will throw down poster dunks. He uses his quick twitch to rebound and block shots. &nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1956209' first='Ruben' last='White'] Maricopa (AZ Grassroots 16)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A power forward who is a strong two-handed rebounder. He will dunk it easily above the rim and score with alley-oops/lobs. He handles it well for position and he is starting to face up some. He get most of his points near the basket and collects a lot of steals and blocks.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->