Rumble In The Rapids 17u All-Star Team – Part 1

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Prep Hoops Circuit brought Rumble In The Rapids to Grand Rapids over the weekend. It was a collection of top notch talent. The event featured next level players at all levels. There were 23 teams and just a couple days to watch about 200 players. So instead of an "All-Tournament Team", I went with an All-Star Team. These are players that, when I watched them play, put their games on a different level.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In a 2 part series, I'm going to include 10 players on the Rumble In The Rapids All-Star team! The players will be listed in alphabetical order.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">RUMBLE IN THE RAPIDS 17U ALL-STAR TEAM</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2387301' first='Alex' last='Armstrong']</strong> (West Michigan Premier MHC 2027) </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Armstrong has taken his game to new heights. His ball skills and freedom of movement are light years ahead of a year or 2 ago. He slashed to the rim with long strides that put defenders behind him. Armstrong found lanes with the ball and aggressively split defenders. He was also able to cut pass ready, catch with strong hands, and finish at the rim. Armstrong even showed the ability to dish the ball off with a pretty wrap around bounce pass for an assist.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Noah Bonds </strong>([program_tooltip program_id='2077030' first='The' last='Family'] 17u)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Bonds was more than impressive when I watched [program_tooltip program_id='2077030' first='The' last='Family']. He's long and athletic and can go to work with the ball in his hands. Bonds can shoot at any time and that was evident when he stopped and pulled up for a wing three off the bounce. He made the transition from dribble to release look effortless. Bonds was able to finish with a flip in with touch. He was also dangerous as a finisher in transition, as he attacked the side of the rim and finished with balance.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2140516' first='Makai' last='Campos']</strong> (West Michigan Premier MHC 2027) </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Campos certainly caught my eye at Rumble In The Rapids. I really liked how he took the ball to the rim. Campos stayed low with his front shoulder and ball protected. Campos was able to attack with a straight line drive on both sides of the rim. He showed the ability to score from multiple levels. An example of this was when he buried a 3 from the wing off a catch.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2872591' first='Wycell' last='Davis'] </strong>(1of1 Detroit National Team 17u)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Davis had a tremendous weekend at the Rumble In The Rapids. He consistently turned the corner on defenders and made plays with the ball. Davis showed a ton of touch around the rim this weekend. He had an athletic flip in, a spin into a pretty mid range jumper and a contested floater that he flipped up at just the right time. Davis was a threat in transition and was able to finish with a 1 handed dunk multiple times. He even shot off the bounce, specifically a wing 3 that splashed through the net.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2736345' first='Zahir' last='Haqq']</strong> ([program_tooltip program_id='2539820' first='The' last='Academy'] UAG 17u)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Haqq was so explosive and creative with the ball. He proved that he can handle and create against elite competition. Haqq shook a defender and used a tricky finish at the rim to score. He was able to use straight line speed with the ball to go coast to coast on multiple occasions. Haqq used a really effective ball fake to take his defender out of position and drew the foul on his way to the rim. He was able to use his handles to create space to get his jumper off. A perfect example of this being when he shook his man and buried a wing triple off the bounce.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->