MN Freshman Showcase: Max's Post Standouts

Seven of the top post prospects I saw on Saturday at the Prep Hoops Minnesota Freshman Showcase!    Preston simply goes out and plays hard on both ends of the floor. The 6'3 forward out of Woodbury was able to contribute to his team simply by sprinting the floor, cutting hard off the ball, and putting himself into position to contest everything around the basket. With his agile 6'3 frame he was faster than most guys his size, which allowed him to create open looks with his effort off the ball. Defensively he could slide his feet out on the perimeter, and did a nice job of using his long arms to not give up any easy looks around the basket.     Mekhi showcased his intriguing long-term potential on Saturday at Hopkins. The 6'4+ forward has a long frame with good mobility at his size, and a motor that allows him to dominate on the glass. Although he wasn't getting a ton of post touches in the half-court, I really liked his effort on the offensive glass to work for put-back buckets. He was also constantly sprinting rim-to-rim, and was able to get some transition opportunities from those efforts as well. Defensively he's a solid rim protector, has the mobility to slide his feet out on the wing, and controlled the glass on that side of the floor.     Prior Lake always seems to have a promising big man coming up in their program, and Landon could be the next one to track over the next four years. Already standing at 6'5, Landon was one of the tallest players in attendance, and was moving well at his size. With his long and lanky frame he was getting up and down the floor with ease, is mobile in pick & roll settings, and was able to slide his feet to contest shots around the rim. Offensively he showed he can pop out to the perimeter and knock down the open three, forcing opposing bigs to step out and guard him at the three point line.     I'm not sure there was a better all-around player in attendance on Saturday than [player_tooltip player_id='2848538' first='Justus' last='Dayee']. He did a little of everything for his team, and in games where he could have gotten a quality look just about every time he touched the ball, I thought he was extremely unselfish. Justus was constantly looking to get his teammates involved, and always had his head scanning for a deep outlet pass after a defensive rebound. At 6'5 he has solid post footwork including a lightning quick spin move to beat his defender on the baseline. His explosive athleticism makes him a threat to finish above the rim, and he was the best shot blocker I saw all day.     Although maybe not a true "post" player, Matthew stepped up for a team that didn't feature a ton of size, and was one of the scrappier rebounders I saw on the day. He was constantly battling against forwards 2-3 inches taller than him, and often times was able to secure possession of missed shots in his area. Did a great job of attacking the ball with two hands, ripping it, and then looking for an outlet pass to one of his guards. Showed the touch to finish with either hand around the basket.     Peter is a skilled forward who could end up playing either the 3 or 4 spots down the road. He was key in helping his team break the press, as he can handle it a bit, and did a nice job of seeing the floor and using his 6'3 frame to zip passes over the top of defenders. In the half-court he scored off a nice backdoor cut, and also knocked down a three off the dribble, showing a smooth stroke on his jumper.     Evan never seemed to stop moving in the half-court. He was constantly cutting off the ball, or setting screens looking to free up his teammates. He may not have been putting up big scoring numbers, but that constant work-rate helped set up his teammates with open looks. Hard working forward with some size at 6'3.

Seven of the top post prospects I saw on Saturday at the Prep Hoops Minnesota Freshman Showcase!