Impressive Wings At The Champions Classic

The shot-making from the wings at this event was outstanding, and I've loved the versatility I'm seeing. There is a new evolution of 6'4 and up basketball players that are playing in public schools, and it was on display. Ten years ago, players at that size were predominantly post players at most public schools in the NOVA, but now that isn't the case. The shot-making and ball handling from these wings were great, and one of my favorite things I saw.    One of the lone bright spots for Potomac was [player_tooltip player_id='2879944' first='Dominic' last='Mack']. Dom has a nice handle and does well creating himself. He has great touch, and at 6'5, I love the shot-making ability from three and the overall potential he has as a wing. I felt Dom would have benefited from being more aggressive early in this game and taking advantage of some of the mismatches he had with his size and athleticism.     [player_tooltip player_id='1963533' first='Ryan' last='Brzezanski'] put on a show for Broad Run. Ryan is more of a stretch 5 right now, but he projects to be much more of a wing with his frame and skill set at the next level. Ryan showed a complete offensive bag against South County. He was lights out shooting the three, and he used his size well in the paint consistently finishing over shorter defenders. Earlier in Ryan's career, he didn't play through contact well, but now it's something he excels at. He moves well at 6'8, and it's a real matchup nightmare for other bigs at this level. Ryan was great defensively, too, altering or blocking a number of shots. He had a 40 ball in an almost flawless performance.      Brady Pollard is the perfect complement to the stars this elite Broad Run team has. Brady is an excellent mover without the ball, and it got him open layups constantly. Broad Run loves to run off misses and turnovers, and Brady did a great job running the floor to get easy looks. He defends multiple positions, and even though he didn't show it today, he has a nice post-game. He has a high IQ and does a lot of the little things well.     Sebastian Ritikong was someone I really enjoyed watching. He is kind of a wing/big hybrid, and he is a smooth athlete who does an excellent job running the floor. He was the recipient of a handful of passes in transition by outrunning people. He has a good handle, and I loved his activity on the glass. He moves better than a lot of the guys at his size that he will be matched up with at this level.      [player_tooltip player_id='2884163' first='Stephen' last='Mayernik'] had one of the best performances of the weekend in Woodson's rout over Potomac. Watching Stephen shoot the ball is a beautiful thing to watch. He has a quick, compact form with no wasted motion. He has effortless range, and at 6'5, he has nice size for a wing. He did almost all of his damage as a spot-up shooter, but he has more to his game. He had a nice move where he put the ball on the floor and spun into a mid-range fadeaway. If this game were more competitive, Stephen probably woulda finished in the 40s instead of 34. He did it efficiently as well, going 10/12 from three.

The shot-making from the wings at this event was outstanding, and I've loved the versatility I'm seeing. There is a new evolution of 6'4 and up basketball players that are playing in public schools, and it was on display. Ten years ago, players at that size were predominantly post players at most public schools in the NOVA, but now that isn't the case. The shot-making and ball handling from these wings were great, and one of my favorite things I saw.