Chico Summer Shootout High School Playoffs: Scoring Guards

On Monday, August 11th, I attended the Chico Summer Shootout summer league at O'Connell South Common Park in Lawrence, MA. The high school division had their playoffs, and I watched four teams full of talented hoopers. Though there were many seniors who just graduated, I'll only be focusing on the players who still have more HS basketball to play.   Read: <a href="https://prephoops.com/2025/08/chico-summer-shootout-high-school-playoffs-impressive-bigs/">Chico Summer Shootout High School Playoffs: Impressive Bigs</a>   Below are some scoring guards who lit it up.    This was my first time ever watching Castillo play, and I was impressed with his offensive skillset when it comes to putting the ball in the hoop. He has a very deep bag of finishes at the rim; high off the glass finishes with contact, quick finishes before the big man was ready, and mid range floaters and jumpers. He's also able to knock down open threes off the catch and dribble. I really liked the aggression with which he attacked the rim, and I could definitely see the rising junior continuing to grow and eventually becoming a really nice D3 player or perhaps even higher if everything breaks right.     Camara is super intriguing long-term because of his length, athleticism and skillset. He's definitely skinny, but the 6-foot-1 guard can do everything offensively and has some wiggle to his handle that really excites. He can get into the lane and finish amongst the threes, but he can also stop short for pull up jumpers and three balls. I also really liked Camara's pace in the pick and roll; he understands how to get the defense on his back, and he makes good decisions for himself and his teammates once he does so. I could see him continuing to grow and think that if he blooms late, he could be a scholarship prospect.     I've seen Payne in high school and AAU, so it was super fun to see him in a streetball situation. The 6-foot-2 guard dominated, though, just as I expected. He's the best athlete on the floor but also more controlled than everyone else; he knows when to elevate and throw it down but also when to slow down and throw the defense off with slow steps. Furthermore, Payne seems to have changed his jumper a bit, and his release point is as high as its ever been, which makes him incredibly difficult to contest from the mid range. Definite D1 player.     Like Payne, I've seen Njenga play in both high school and AAU, and his game translates quite well to streetball. Despite the double rims, the 6-foot guard is a total knock down shooter from the mid range and is able to hit his shot going left and right, fading or balanced. He also has a great finishing bag at the hoop and can finish both athletically over bigs and quickly around slower players. Njenga will have a breakout year with St. George's if I had to guess, and I wouldn't be surprised to see some offers roll in for him shortly. Such an impressive combination of skill and IQ.     Klass is an MIAA legend and for good reason. The 6-foot-1 lefty guard is so shifty with the ball in his hands and can shoot it with consistency as soon as he crosses half court. On Monday night, he had his way with whoever was guarding him and made shots from everywhere on the floor despite the outdoor conditions. Additionally, he has a knack for getting into the body of the big and then peeling away for southpaw finishes -- he had a couple of these that totally wow'd me. If Klass has another great MIAA season and then reclasses at a prep school to become class of 2027, I could totally see him garnering some scholarship interest.

On Monday, August 11th, I attended the Chico Summer Shootout summer league at O'Connell South Common Park in Lawrence, MA. The high school division had their playoffs, and I watched four teams full of talented hoopers. Though there were many seniors who just graduated, I'll only be focusing on the players who still have more HS basketball to play.