NEXT National Championships: Post Players and Rim Protectors 12U

The class of 2031 has a wealth of talented big men. These young man were major contributors to their teams' success over the weekend.    Danell is what I call a “glue guy.” He does everything for the team. Whether it's scoring, assisting, rebounding or defending, Danell was always around the basketball. He excels at rebounding the basketball. Danell attacked the glass with more aggression than he did scoring the basketball. Many of his offensive boards led to easy put-backs around the rim. Whenever Semo had the opportunity to score fast-break points, Danell finished with strong drives to the basket. What I appreciated about his game was the importance he placed on making all the intangible plays. It was not about scoring for this young man. He realized the importance of doing all the other things on the court. Danell set great screens, took charges and chased after loose balls. Defensively, he excelled at forcing turnovers and blocking shots. He is the ultimate team player who gives maximum effort. Keep grinding Danell!!     Elliott is a rebounding machine! This young man attacked the glass with as much ferocity as he did on the offensive end of the court. Most of his boards led to easy scores around the basket. Other rebounds allowed his teammates to have second or third shot opportunities. I am confident in saying, “Elliott finished the game with double-digit rebounds.” He's a good finisher in the paint. He excelled at using his size advantage to score over smaller defenders. Elliott has a nice touch from mid-range. He knocked down numerous shots throughout the game. On defense, his presence was felt in the paint. Whenever opposing players attempted to drive the lane. Elliott was there to turn them away. He finished the game with multiple blocks. Keep it up Elliott!!     The big man showed the ability to be dominant in the paint. Every time Ace had a smaller defender guarding him, he went to work in the post. He's not only a threat in the paint, Ace runs the floor, scores in transition and knocks down mid-range jumpers. There were instances when Ace extended his range beyond the three-point line. He converted multiple shots despite being closely guarded by the opposition. Ace is a great rebounder! He dominated the boards on both ends of the floor. Especially on the offensive side of the court. Many of his points came from offensive boards. Those rebounds led to easy scores around the rim. Defensively, Ace showed his athleticism by having a couple of chase down blocks. His post interior defense was excellent. He turned away his opponent numerous times in the paint. Ace is a great young player with a promising future.     Ryder was the most dominant player in his teams' match-up Saturday morning. The Venoms squad had no answers for him in the post. He scored a high percentage of his points in the paint. Others came from perimeter shots and transition baskets when Minnesota ran fast-breaks. Ryder is a hard working player who hustled for everything he got on the court. Whenever he had a mismatch, he fought to get the position he needed to be effective. When he rebounded, he made sure he boxed out his opponent. If his teammate needed a screen, he made sure it was solid enough to free them for clean looks at the basket. The Minnesota team ran a lot of pick and roll actions with Ryder and the point guard. The play was very effective. Ryder scored four times when it was run. On defense, he protected the paint and forced opposing teams into bad shots. In some instances, Ryder blocked shots and forced turnovers. He's an excellent young player who has a chance to become even greater.     Alexander is a good ball handler and scorer. He easily beats his opponents off the dribble by driving around them. Alexander scored in this fashion on multiple occasions. He has a great post game in his arsenal as well. He used various post moves to be effective in the paint. Whenever he found himself isolated on the wing, he was able to use dribble moves to create the space he needed to get his shot off. Alexander knocked down a high number of shots from the perimeter. He excels at rebounding and defending. Whenever the team needed a timely rebound, Alexander went into the paint and battled for it. He gave the maximum effort needed to get his team extra possessions. On defense, Alexander was great at defending players in the post and on the perimeter. He forced numerous steals with quick hands and multiple shot-blocks with excellent timing. Keep it up Alexander!!      Carter showed off his skill as a top scorer and rebounder. He attacked the glass on both ends of the court. Carter grabbed rebounds with as much ferocity as he did when he attempted to score. He has a good handle of the basketball and shows a knack for making the right play. A great passing big man who always found teammates in scoring positions. Carter scored in a variety of ways throughout the game. He attacked the basket, made shots in the post and knocked down mid-range jump-shots. The big man showed his athleticism by running the court and scoring transition baskets. Defensively, he used his size to make scoring difficult for his opponents. In some instances, he defended smaller players on the perimeter. His effort forced numerous steals from his opponents. Carter is a good all-around player who has a chance to become great in the future. Keep it up Carter!!

The class of 2031 has a wealth of talented big men. These young man were major contributors to their teams' success over the weekend.