2028 Rankings: MIAA Stock-Risers

The 2028 rankings were updated today as 200 prospects appear in the list. The sophomore class continues to intrigue and show plenty of signs of promise with skilled guards, versatile wings and bigs that have the potential to blossom into legitimate college prospects. For this article, I'll look at five prospects from the MIAA A Conference who received bumps in the update thanks to their productive sophomore seasons thus far.    Stanfield makes his climb into the top-10 as he's been the primary option for the Cardinals as a sophomore. He possesses positional size and a versatile skillset that allows from him to play the 3-5 positions at the high school level. He can take advantage of mismatches by using his off the dribble game against slow-footed bigs or utilize his size and strength against lighter wings. He has the athleticism to play above the rim with a clear path, soft touch on his jumper off the catch and continues to trend in the right direction as a defensive paint presence with timing as a weak side rotator. Moving forward, things to improve on can come with continued training and the maturation process. Getting quicker laterally, more explosive vertically and continuing to tighten up his ball handling as he's shown this season will only further boost his stock both here and among college programs.     Sulaiman received a 10-spot boost up inside the top-20 and for good reason. The southpaw lead guard embodies plenty of traits that a coach would look for in a point guard and it all starts with his will to win. There aren't many in this class who give effort to both sides of the ball like Sulaiman. If he isn't providing pressure to his man the full length of the floor, he's constantly looking to jump in passing lanes, making sharp rotations to draw a charge or battle among the trees for defensive rebounds. Offensively where his game has noticeably improved is his jump shot. It was never necessarily a blemish in his game, just an area that needed some improvement to keep defenders honest. He's a downhill assassin that uses a blend of quickness and strength to bully his way to the bucket against opposing guards. His threat of shooting off the catch allows for more attacks on closeouts and his balance in getting to his spots within the mid-range has rounded out nicely. Sulaiman's ability to touch the paint with regularity also allows for him to show off his vision as a playmaker, which is an approach he'll gladly take on if it puts his team in a better position. Some of the proof can be seen in the year that freshman duo [player_tooltip player_id='2882931' first='Brayden' last='Whitaker'] and [player_tooltip player_id='2973525' first='Austin' last='Pitts'] are having.     Well-deserved bump here for Moore who shot up from No. 35 to No. 19 as he's emerged as the biggest offensive threat for McDonogh with no signs of slowing down. The 6-foot-1 combo guard can score it with volume from multiple levels and is as crafty as a finisher that you'll find in this local class. His burst and herky-jerky movements with the ball make it tough for defenders to anticipate what's coming their way. He gets good lift on his jumper and can contort his body in the air while maintaining soft touch on difficult attempts around the cup. Moore is good at getting two feet in the paint and hitting skip passes to shooters spotting up and as he evolves as an on-ball presence that can lift everyone's game around him, this ranking will only improve.     Another MIAA sophomore guard with a well-deserved boost is Word. He's a fearless lead guard that has won over the trust of head coach Pat Clatchey to man the controls of the offense while being expected to contribute as both a scorer and distributor. It's rare that an underclassmen get the nod from one of the best coaches in Baltimore history, but Word's play and consistency has left him no choice. What he lacks in size he makes up for in intensity and heart. He also gets fantastic lift on his jumper that allows him to shoot over taller defenders if needed. His cat-like quickness with his first step allows for advantages in attacking driving lanes and as we've seen in recent games, Word's vertical bounce is beginning to translate to dunks even as defenders chase him down     Johnson, along with Stanfield, have been bright spots for the Cardinals as productive underclassmen. The overall record of 11-14 is an indication of the growing pains that come with depending heavily on their younger prospects, but all have shown tremendous potential with sustained development. As for Johnson, he's a smooth operator as a southpaw combo guard who can get going at any given time as a shotmaker. Whether that be in catch-and-shoot scenarios or getting to spots off 2-to-3 dribbles, his compact and repeatable mechanics bring nice results. Continuing to grow his feel and IQ for time-and-score as well as his ability to make plays with the intent of creating for others are areas of his game that can be unlocked. Still, we are buying high here with Johnson as we moved him up 15 spots from No. 45 to No. 30.

The 2028 rankings were updated today as 200 prospects appear in the list. The sophomore class continues to intrigue and show plenty of signs of promise with skilled guards, versatile wings and bigs that have the potential to blossom into legitimate college prospects. For this article, I'll look at five prospects from the MIAA A Conference who received bumps in the update thanks to their productive sophomore seasons thus far.