Bucket Brigade: Guards

New readers: Use code Proia30     I got out to see some public school games, private school games, and out-of-town tournament games all in the same week to see local prospects compete at a high level. Having a player on your roster that can create his own shot without needing a play drawn up or ball screens set for him is invaluable in today's game. Let's dive in to a few bucket-getters that caught my eye this week!    25p 3r 5a 2s 7/9 FT vs Coolidge   -Strong has been playing at a DCIAA POY level this season and his marquee matchup at home with the Colts did not disappoint. Strong showed his ability to score from all 3 levels, get his defender off-balance to draw fouls to earn trips to the line, and facillitate in the half court to bring his team all the way back in a game that they trailed at the end of the first three quarters. His drive and kick to a shooter cut the Coolidge lead to single digits with 4:22 left forced the opponent to call timeout and his assists gave his team their first lead of the game with just under 2 minutes left and a 2-basket lead with 20 seconds left. His ability to use that scoring gravity to pass out of double teams or find teammates in transition is invaluable to this scrappy group that has been on a run of late. Definitely think that he is a candidate to be a scholarship player, especially given his high academic standing at the school.     25p 3r 5a 2s 7/9 FT vs Dunbar   -The unsigned senior bounced back well from a slow 1H with a quick 9 points in the first few possessions to help Coolidge staunch a Dunbar run. Turner hit several stepback twos, got to the rim at will, hit a tough catch in traffic before hitting the reverse layup, drove to the elbow from the baseline to hit a pull-up 2, scored on a post fader from the block after snagging the offensive rebound, and had a C2C lay off the defensive rebound to put his team up 2 possessions late in the game. If he can clean up some of the turnover issues driving through tight spaces in the halfcourt, his ability to score in the halfcourt with a strong frame at 6'3 should make him a valuable available senior on the market.     24p 2r 1a 1b vs Glenelg   -Taylor was really good in his senior night, endlessly bullying his way to the rim to bring his team back all the way back from 17 down to have a shot to win it at the buzzer. Taylor got things going with a 1-dribble pull-up 18-footer, tween tween long 2, long stride pump blew by his matchup into the extension finish at the rim, hit his defender with an up fake reverse finish off a downhill drive, knocked down a baseline pullup in the secondary break, scored on a reverse pivot post fader, swiped away the ball off his opponent's leg to force the TO with 1 min left down 6, hit a turn around 2 to cut it to 6 again under a minute, and scored off a middle drive into the 2 foot jump stop lay off window to cut it to 4. His POA defensive pressure on the ball and ability to guard up a position gives his team some roster flexibility. The Panthers came into the matchup as winners of 8 straight games, with Taylor leading the way for most of that.     22p 6r 3a 1s vs Glenelg Country   -The shooting development has really come a long way for the senior as a combo guard prospect that can fill it up in a hurry. Dankyi utilized pump fakes around the rim to get defenders in the air to earn trips to the free throw line, hit perimeter shots with improved off-ball movement as well as off the bounce coming off of ball screens, slashed from the wing to the opposite side of the rim to hit reverse layups, and had a crucial blow-by lay with the left hand late in the game. His moxie to come up with loose balls in traffic and fight back when facing deficits speaks to his character and value to this basketball team.     18p 2r 1s vs Dunbar   -Perry showed a lot of "dog" throughout the road matchup with Dunbar as an aggressive ball-hawking guard that left his imprint on the game. Loved the ball pressure that he applied throughout the game, only coming up with one steal although he forced several turnovers along the sideline. Perry did a great job with pushing the pace in transition on the ball or filling the wing off of it, hit a big and1 lay, knocked down a 3 from the wing, hit a wing 3 to stifle the Dunbar run to start 4Q, and threw down an emphatic 1-handed dunk in transition. Definitely an oversight to not have included him in our junior rankings but he will debut in our next set in a few weeks at the end of the season.

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