Heart of It All Classic - Standout Forwards With High Ceilings

Prep Hoops covered the 2026 Heart of It All Classic in Geneva, Ohio at SPIRE Institute April 3rd and 4th. There were many forwards who caught my eye during the two day event. Here are five forwards who shined during this weekend's circuit and have really high ceilings!    Carson is a versatile wing who can play multiple positions. He is a lengthy forward who scores with either hand around the basket. Starkey is a lethal ball handler who uses his agility and burst to create separation on his pull ups. You must put a hand up or he will make you pay! Love his high motor and his buy-in on the defensive end. [player_tooltip player_id='2930801' first='Carson' last='Starkey'] is also very capable of getting down hill and attacking the defense as he loves to draw contact. I saw a lot of encouraging signs from this young wing!     Curtis is a young wing with incredible bounce and athleticism. He can jump out of the gym! Newby is a speedy and explosive finisher in transition. Love his high motor and ability to play off his teammates in both the halfcourt and in transition. He greatly impressed with his on-ball defense and his willingness to compete on both ends of the floor. Curtis Newby has a very high ceiling and will continue to be a small forward to keep an eye on throughout the rest of this year!     Overby had a handful of dominating performances this past weekend for [program_tooltip program_id='2359745' first='HoopTech' last='Basketball'] 14U! His all-around game was on full display as he converted a number of difficult shots. Overby was able to demonstrate his ability to create separation from his defender getting to the basket at will. He also showed his pure 3-point stroke and his elite jump shot mechanics. I was very impressed with his ability to take over the game and score at will when he wanted to. Ashton Overby is a rising young forward who has a loud game and looks to continue to shine throughout this AAU season!     Versatility doesn't even begin to describe this young forward's game. We have him listed as a combo guard but this weekend he showed off his strong interior game as a forward! [player_tooltip player_id='3579359' first='Nasir' last='Lusane'] plays very under control showing fluidity around the basket making post finishes look easy! Nasir also has an underrated passing game for a big. He is able to use his height to see over the defense and send on point passes! Lusane also runs the floor very well in transition looking for easy leak outs and opportunities to score. Nasir is a very polished overall scorer for his age! I loved the interior presence that he offers this PlaymakerU 2032 Select team. Lusane has a very high ceiling!     There's no doubt that [player_tooltip player_id='3579560' first='Warren' last='Morres'] made a huge impact this weekend for Playmaker University Select 2032! This young man is a strong defensive anchor for his team. In both halfcourt and transition he defends without fouling, showing a strong wall up on his opponents at the rim. He is a really smart and active defender! He was a menace all weekend to score against in the paint! Warren can catch the ball and attack immediately from the rip, looking to score on layups in the post and on midrange shots. He sets strong screens and gets the ball to his open teammates with timely passes. I would not be surprised to see him have similar performances defensively throughout the rest of this AAU season!

Prep Hoops covered the 2026 Heart of It All Classic in Geneva, Ohio at SPIRE Institute April 3rd and 4th. There were many forwards who caught my eye during the two day event. Here are five forwards who shined during this weekend's circuit and have really high ceilings!