Rising Sophomores and Juniors Make Noise at JR Raptors Shootout

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Saturday was a loaded day at the <strong>JR Raptors Shootout</strong> at Rich Township High School. Over 30 teams mostly from Illinois and a couple from nearby Indiana. Here are the 2027 and 2028s who stood out.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2125641' first='Jamier' last='Montgomery'] 6'2 Crane 2027</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Montgomery is an exciting guard with good length who made plays for himself and others around him. He's slick with the rock and can get to his spots with a crossover or spin move. Jamier has the skillset to be one of the better individual scoring threats in the city.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2323613' first='Demarco' last='King'] 6'3 Phillips 2027</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I was able to catch King with his new squad Phillips. He continues to be a high-IQ guard who knows how to get his shot and create for others around him. Demarco is effective because of his size as a guard, he makes good decisions with the ball and doesn't get sped up often. One thing I continue to notice is how well he rebounds the ball and pushes the break immediately. He has a chance to prove how good he is on his own this upcoming season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2455378' first='Ed' last='Williams'] 5'10 Whitney Young 2027</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Ed made his debut with Whitney Young after leaving Lindblom. He's a strong compact guard who likes to play fast and scores well off two feet. Williams adds much-needed experience to the backcourt at Young. His presence will take some pressure off Clark from having to force anything next season.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2877539' first='Lester' last='Watson'] 6'0 Thornwood 2028</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Watson is a bigger guard who can play on or off the ball in more of a combo spot. With the ball he scores a lot in the lane using his body to fight through contact for buckets. When left wide open he will make shots. An underrated rebounder for a guard.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2879381' first='Mekhi' last='Young'] 5'11 Thornwood 2028</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Young is quick and shifty with the rock. He excelled in the open court. Some of his passes threaded the defense and were right on the money. As a scorer he got most of it done on transition plays hitting difficult acrobatic finishes. Mekhi can also shoot from deep and is capable of hitting several in one game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2531979' first='CJ' last='Pittman'] 6'0 Payton 2028</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Pittman is very cerebral for a guard. He plays at a steady pace and uses his upper body to initiate contact before scoring. CJ looked good getting downhill and putting the pressure on the opposing big guy to decide who to cover. He has a chance to be one of the better guards in a very deep class.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2396333' first='Sean' last='Souter'] 5'11 Payton 2028&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Souter was able to get some minutes with the varsity team and made the best of his situation. He's a spot shooter who gets open when playing opposite the ball. Sean showed steady play while handling the ball and he got to the basket a few times looking score. Souter has a chance to earn varsity minutes with consistent play in June.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Kaleb Young 6'7 21 Century 2027&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The big man has improved every time I've watched him. He has offensive lineman size with very good footwork in the paint. He scores well on either side of the basket moving guys back very easily. Young caught me off guard when he tried to poster a man under the rim. He missed it but he proved that at his size he is very athletic. Kaleb played the spring season with the [program_tooltip program_id='2078449' first='Meanstreets' last=''] EYBL squad.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->