Which Guards in RVA are the Best at Navigating Ball Screens?

With new rankings in the work and the grassroots season in full swing, we decided it was time to take a look at some of the particulars that make certain prospects excel at specific parts of the game.   Today, we take a look at 7 of the best ball screen guards in the Richmond area, players that can create for themselves and others using ball screens and will eat your defense up when doing so.   [player_tooltip player_id='2347779' first='Nick' last='Byrd'] | 6'0” PG | Hopewell 2026   Byrd had a big junior season helping Hopewell to the Class 3 state championship game, and when it comes to a guard who can run the show and run the offense while also being able to make plays out of the pick-and-roll you won't find many better than him. He's very good at reading rotations and seeing the game ahead of others, he can deliver on point passes with both hands whether it's a pocket pass to a roller or a throwback to a shooter coming off the lift, he can drag out defenders and work off the bounce with mismatches, and he can knock down shots when defenders go under.   [player_tooltip player_id='1489544' first='Alex' last='Blanchard'] | 6'0” PG | Douglas Freeman 2026   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/09/tempImageH8Kis1.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/09/tempImageH8Kis1.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-2548635" /></a></figure>   Blanchard is one of the more gritty and tough guards you'll find in the RVA, as he will say himself that his game “isn't pretty,” but he does excel using ball screens to create for himself and others in his own unique way. He shows great patience in ball screens setting his man up nicely and using his strength to play through bumps on hedges and when defenders go over, he has sneaky burst to get downhill and he finished very well in traffic, he's very good in the midrange with floaters and pull-ups, and he has excellent instincts and delivers crisp passes to shooters and rollers.   McHale Lancaster | 5'11” PG | Henrico 2026   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/tempImageDrfbqK.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/tempImageDrfbqK.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-2502954" /></a></figure>   Lancaster is one of the more underrated guards in the RVA area, and with his blend of skill and vision he really knows how to navigate ball screens and make plays for himself and others. He uses his stature to his advantage as he can change levels and change speeds to keep defenders off balance, he's very good at throwing back to hit the lift with either hand, he can score the ball off the bounce from multiple levels, and he can work in isolation when bigs switch on him too.   [player_tooltip player_id='2880100' first='Iziah' last='Robinson'] | 5'10” PG | Banner Christian 2026   While there's a lot of ways to be able to use ball screens to your advantage, one of the easiest and most obvious is if you have a ball handler who is a speed demon and can turn the corner to put pressure on the defense, and that's exactly what makes Robinson so deadly in flat ball screens. The 5'10” guard is able to come off of screens and immediately get downhill and in the paint to make the defense scramble to react and open up opportunities for his teammates, he can shoot it from deep when defenders go under to try to negate that, and he can stop on a dime or use his change of direction to create space on switching defenders.   [player_tooltip player_id='2470573' first='Cam' last='Claiborne'] | 5'10” PG | John Marshall 2027   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/09/tempImageVD9lZc.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/09/tempImageVD9lZc.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-2548484" /></a></figure>   Claiborne is one of those point guards every team would love to have as he is not only very smart and skilled, but he's also unselfish and makes the right read and decision consistently, which makes him very good when working in ball screens. The 5'10” guard can really shoot it which forces on ball defenders to push up and play over the top and makes it so the help can't play in the drop, he has great patience with a crafty dribble to get past help defenders and get in the lane, he finishes well with both hands in traffic, and he sees the floor well and makes the right decision with rotations.   Chris Lamm | 6'0” PG | Benedictine 2027   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/05/Lamm-Chris.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/05/Lamm-Chris.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-2861143" /></a></figure>   Lamm is another young guard who is very mature when he's working in ball screens, and one of the best things with him is that putting him in ball screens will create scoring opportunities for everyone that is on the floor. He's one of those guards that is able to see the entire floor and anticipates his teammates next move to be able to get them open when he comes off of screens, he can throw the skip or throw back to hit the lift, he gets downhill aggressively and can see rollers and cutters for easy buckets, and he picks his spots and scores it efficiently when he needs to.   [player_tooltip player_id='2815342' first='Larry' last='Walker'] | 5'10” PG | Petersburg 2027   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/01/tempImageMU4PvP.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/01/tempImageMU4PvP.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-2716529" /></a></figure>   Walker was very impressive for a rebuilding Petersburg team as their go-to ball handler and playmaker as just a sophomore, and while he still has a lot of room to learn and develop he's already very good when it comes to working out of ball screens. The 5'10” lead guard has great burst to be able to freeze and change speeds then blow by help and get to the rim, he is very good in the midrange with an array of floaters and pull-ups, he recognizes good times to deny ball screens and use his quickness to get in the paint, and he can make plays for others as well.

With new rankings in the work and the grassroots season in full swing, we decided it was time to take a look at some of the particulars that make certain prospects excel at specific parts of the game.