King of the City: 2026 Guard 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 Guard Standouts I viewed</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1445948' first='Brandon' last='Stapleton'] Chandler (AZ Gremlins Black 17) (Pictured)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A versatile combo guard or point forward type loves to get downhill with his left hand. He can also get hot quickly from the three point line off the catch. He uses his longer arms to play the passing lanes and is a good rebounder in his area.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1482211' first='Noah' last='Gloor'] Higley (AZ Gremlins Black 17)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One of the top performers of the weekend was Gloor. He may be undersized, but he has volleyball line range with speed, a tighter handle and comes with athleticism. He gets to his spots and will rise up with great elevation and let it fly. He also loves the floater game and his runners are nearly impossible to stop.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1150901' first='John' last='Mattingly'] Central (AZ Select 17 UAA)&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A highly skilled scoring lead guard controls the pace of the game. He loves the floater game, shoots it with mid-range jumpers and he is deceptively quick to burst past his defender and finish with a tear drop. He also made some incredible passes all weekend long.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2147251' first='Noah' last='Crouch'] Perry (AZ Wild Cards 17)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A physical two-way guard who is improving as a perimeter shooter. He is a tough on-ball defender with his physicality and lateral quickness. He has extended his shooting range out past the arc and always brings that intensity on defense.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1900362' first='Colby' last='Jessup'] Valley Chrisitan (AZ Select 17 UAA)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A scoring lead guard is a deep ranged shooter. He gets the ball off of his hands quickly and brings a ton of confidence. He is changing speeds better and better and has a sneaky burst with his or right left hand. His on-ball defense is improving and rebounding. He collected a couple steals that led to layups.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1591738' first='Jeehzus' last='Pagan'] Boulder Creek (UH Elite 17)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A tough two-way defensive point guard plays hard and his skill keeps ascending. He is hitting the three with more and more consistency and will hit tough shots in traffic. He has a nice mid-range jumper and he is a real competitor.  </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1490240' first='Colton' last='Watson'] Sandra Day O'Connor (AZ Select 17 UAA)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A bigger lead guard or point forward type handles the ball well and gets downhill with his physical frame and can finish off contested layups in traffic or dunk it. He will suck in the defense and finds the open shooter every time. He will also score with offensive rebound put backs plus hit the three.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2171184' first='Gage' last='Bartlett'] Bella Vista Prep (BVP White 17)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A bigger scoring lead guard can score with bursts to the basket and crafty takes using his size. He has a high level mid-range pull-up and will spin off of his defender quickly and get to the basket. He can shoot the three but seems to love it from mid.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1697292' first='Rylan' last='Parsley'] Sandra Day O'Connor (AZ Select 17 UAA)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A bigger guard or wing scores it in bunches during stretches of the game. He has a nice looking mid-range jumper, he takes long strides to the basket and he is taking the ball more and more to to the rim. He can also score some and-1's in traffic off the dribble.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1768201' first='Paxton' last='Tamlyn'] Valley Chrisitan (AZ Gremlins Grey 17)&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A scoring combo guard had a good showing. He will score with catch threes, pull-ups from mid-range and he will get to the basket off the dribble. Once he gets downhill, he is more athletic then he get credited with and will score on put backs.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2313543' first='Jordan' last='Guliford'] Basha (AZ Gremlins Grey 17)&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A physical defensive point guard handles ball pressure well and makes his opponents uncomfortable with quicker feet and hands and physical nature. He can score with getting downhill with tough drives.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2107110' first='Hudson' last='Yang'] Hamilton (UH Elite 17)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A decent sized scoring guard who is a specialist for the 6A Huskies. He is a smart passer who doesn't try to do too much with the ball. He will spot up and catch and shoot from the three point line.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1620346' first='Joshua' last='McManaway'] McClintock (AZ Gremlins Black 17)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A bigger shooting guard comes with deep range and will let it go mostly off the catch from beyond the stripe but can also pull-up from mid to the three point line. He can also get downhill and jump stop into a a bucket.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2275986' first='KJ' last='Fauske'] Seton Catholic (AZ Select 16 UAA)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A scoring combo guard is one of the better standstill shooters in the class. He will catch and shoot from the three point line and he is always in motion without the ball to free himself up. He gives hard ball fakes and will side step into a shot.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1676631' first='Nico' last='Velez'] Desert Vista (Jump Athletic)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>An undersized point guard who can thread the needle. He did it multiple times perfectly to his teammates and he was one of the better passers of the tournament. He is super patient and will throw the dime combined with his tighter handle. He will score with quick drives and hit the the catch three.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2571727' first='Cartier' last='Flores'] Westview (Legacy 17) </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A scoring point guard will fill it up with mid-range jumpers off the dribble, catch perimeter shots and he can get to the basket off the dibble. He can handle a bump and earn trips to the free throw line. &nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2491771' first='Mykell' last='Stacy'] Verrado (Legacy 17)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A decent sized shooting guard is an elusive ball handler with some speed and confidence. He is crafty to the basket with a nice layup package. He will hesitate and burst to the basket and plays with an edge to him. He is also competitive on defense. &nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->