Indiana State Tournament: All Tournament- 2nd Team 14U

These 14U stand-outs came to play over the weekend! They showed what it takes to be recognized as top players.    Laeton continues to be an aggressive scorer of the basketball. He easily attacks his opponents and beats them off the dribble. Whether it's scoring in the paint or knocking down mid and long range shots, Laeton found ways to be effective offensively. This is my second write up of Laeton. He continues to show a great all-around game that allows him to play at a high level. Laeton is a great passer! He showed this skill the first time I watched him play. He was great at finding teammates with slick dimes. Some were behind the back, some were no-looks. Most of his assists led to high percentage shots on the perimeter or in the paint. Laeton is a strong guard who showed the ability to finish through contact. He finished the game with ( 8 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals. )     The big man continues to be an excellent post presence in the paint. Josiah can score around the basket with either hand. He was able to dominate inside by scoring over smaller defenders. Josiah is the perfect teammate. He works hard on both ends of the court. Josiah continues to be a great rebounder. I believe he finished the game with double-digit boards. He showed off his athleticism by running the floor and finishing with a two-handed slam during transition. During the game, Josiah surprised me by knocking down mid-range jump-shots. He did not take any perimeter shots the first time I watched him play. It was good to see him developing other facets of his game. Defensively, he continues to be a rim protector and shot-blocker who excelled at making scoring difficult for the opposition. Keep working Josiah!!     Waylon is what I call the “glue guy.” He's a great two-way player who showed the ability to be effective on both sides of the ball. Offensively, he handles the ball, scores, rebounds and defends. In his one-on-one match-ups, Waylon easily beat his opponent to the basket. Most of his drives led to tough scores through contact. He's a great free-throw shooter who converted every three-point play opportunity. Waylon is a good perimeter shooter from mid-range. I watched him make a variety of shots regardless of who defended him. He can also extend his range beyond the three point line. Waylon converted two during the first match-up against Mac Elite. Defensively, he was great at applying pressure on opposing ball handlers. His tenaciousness forced turnovers that led to positive outcomes for his team. He's a great all-around player with a bright future.     This young man did a little of everything on the basketball court. Tiyreh is an aggressive scorer who excels at getting to the rim. He's also a great offensive rebounder. If he wasn't driving to the basket for scores, many of his points came from his teammates' misses around the basket. Tiyreh attacked the boards with the same ferocity as he did scoring the ball. I'm confident enough to say he finished the game with a double-double. Many of his defensive rebounds were fast-break starters. In some instances, he grabbed the boards and hit SVO Elite players with outlet passes. They resulted in easy transition scores. Tiyreh showed the ability to score on the perimeter. He knocked down multiple jump-shots by creating space off the dribble. On defense, he used his length to block multiple shots and force turnovers. Keep it up Tiyreh!!      Jabir is an athletic big man who handles the ball, scores in the paint and defends. In the game against SVO Elite, he dominated in the post with great balance and footwork. These traits allowed him to score around the basket with finesse or power moves. Some of his scores led to three-point plays after being fouled by the opposition. Jabir can also score from the wing. Whether it was beating his opponent to the rim or sticking the mid-range jumper, defending him was a serious task for the SVO Elite squad. I watched some of Jabir's Instagram videos and saw him throw down some nasty dunks. It would have been awesome seeing him do this in the games I watched. He was a defensive monster in regard to shot-blocking. Jabir turned away most SVO Elite players when they attacked the paint. He finished the game with four blocks as the primary rim protector. Jabir is a talented player with a promising future.     Ayden was awesome! I enjoyed watching this young man play as both scorer and facilitator. His ball handling skills allowed him to be an effective passer. Ayden easily beat his defender off the dribble and found teammates in scoring positions. His assists regularly led to positive outcomes for the 502 Elite team. Ayden used the same aggressive mentality to score the basketball. Throughout the game he was able to drive by his opponents and score on floaters down the lane. Ayden did this on multiple occasions. He showed his ability to shoot the ball as well. Whenever there was an opportunity to knock down a three, he did so withe extreme confidence. In the game against Dayton Swish 2029, Ayden nailed three straight shots from beyond the arc. The defense gave him uncontested looks at the basket. I can definitely say" Ayden took full advantage of the situation." Defensively, this little guy made plays. Ayden applied great on-ball pressure to opposing guards by using quick hands and great footwork. He forced numerous turnovers and mistakes. Ayden is a promising young player who can handle the position of lead guard. Keep it up Ayden!!     Major is a hardworking player who gave his all on the basketball court. He plays hard on both ends of the floor. Offensively, he shoots the ball well from mid or long range. In the game against 502 Elite 14U, Major knocked down a couple of threes and found ways to aggressively get to the basket. Many of his rim attacks led to him scoring despite being fouled. Major calmly stepped to the foul-line and converted three-point play opportunities. He showed great effort by attacking the boards on offense and defense. Some of his scores came from cleaning up others misses near the rim. Major is a tough player who had no problems fighting for rebounds. Sometimes taking on numerous players at the same time. He was determined to do whatever he needed to help Dayton Swish 2029 win. Defensively, Major was great at applying on-ball pressure to 502 Elite players. His tenacious attitude forced numerous turnovers from the opposition. He's a talented player with a great future in the works. Keep it up Major!!     Ah'ryan is one of the most versatile shooting guards in the 2029 class. This young man did it all on the basketball court! He has excellent ball handling skills. The kind of skills he took full advantage of whenever he found himself in isolated match-ups. Ah'ryan easily attacked his opponent, beat him off the dribble and scored. Whenever there was an opportunity to knock down three pointers, Ah'ryan did not hesitate. In the game against [program_tooltip program_id='2076162' first='Team' last='Blaze Select'] 2029, he nailed four of them. Ah'ryan showed off his skills as a play-maker. The majority of his assists led to easy scores for his teammates. Some were to players cutting down the lane, some along the perimeter. Ah'ryan always played under control. I was thoroughly impressed with his ability to rebound the basketball. I cannot count the amount of times Ah'ryan attacked the glass and came away with the ball. A number of his rebounds led to second chance scoring opportunities for the team. Ah'ryan is a great player who has a chance of becoming elite in the future. Keep working Ah'ryan!!

These 14U stand-outs came to play over the weekend! They showed what it takes to be recognized as top players.