Zero Gravity College Night: Best 5

Last night, I attended Zero Gravity's college night at Dana Barros Basketball Club in Stoughton, MA. Team Sims UA Rise, Team Sims HGAL, Team New England, NE Elite HGAL, House We Built Select, Dana Barros Basketball Club, Team Northeast UA Rise, and XLP. Loads of coaching from D3 schools were in attendance.   Each team played three 20-minute games, running clock.   Below are the five players that impressed me the most.    Ross had a heck of a night for Team Sims' HGAL squad. The 6-foot-5 forward is still skinny and relatively underdeveloped physically, but he has good length and can really shoot the basketball. He hit shots from the perimeter all night and showcased a beautiful release; because of his size and the quickness with which he can shoot, he's a phenomenal floor spacer. Ross also showed off a nice Dirk fadeaway in the mid range and impressed me with his passing ability. He'll be transferring to Suffield Academy for his senior season and projects to be a really solid piece at the D3 level, especially if he can get stronger and improve his ability to drive closeouts.     Brown was lethal yesterday. The 5-foot-10 guard won't wow you with his size or physicality, but he gets love of elevation on his jump shot and can get extremely hot once he makes a couple. Last night, he was feeling it from three and probably shot about 50% from there on the night. Additionally, he showed the ability to fight through contact and finish at the rim with contests from big men. Defensively, he's has awesome hands and always seems to be around the ball, not the mention the fact that he's a phenomenal rebounder for his size. He should be getting some D3 looks, even though he doesn't play against a high level of competition.     Pope was flat out excellent all night. He's only a freshman, but he might've been Team Northeast's best player. The 6-foot-2 guard is an excellent shooter from three point range—he has a beautiful-looking shot but also good footwork and shot selection—and he does a good job driving closeouts when the defense overplays him. He can make mid-range shots, too, and he has a high processing speed when it comes to finding teammates once the defense collapses. Pope has an extremely bright future ahead and turned a lot of heads last night.     Blue was in his new threads for Team New England last night, and he really came on as the night went on. In the beginning, he looked somewhat passive, but he started being far more aggressive as the night went on and got extremely hot from three in their last game of the night. His shot has clearly improved, but he still has amazing burst and athleticism to the rim. His passing instincts should be utilized well in Team New England's system, too, since they have a good number of huge big men to throw lobs and dump-down passes to. This AAU season will be important for Blue, who could start to really blow up recruitment wise if he shows he can be successful at this level.     Boateng was arguably the best athlete in the gym last night and was super impressive on both sides of the ball. Defensively, he always seems to be around the ball and has phenomenal hands, so he's a menace for 94 feet and has a knack for stealing rebounds like Derrick White. Offensively, he elevates extremely well and has jelly finishes at the hoop that are super difficult to defend. He needs to improve his outside shooting ability, but he has everything else in his offensive game. High level D3 programs should be super intrigued, and I could even see some scholarship programs getting involved, especially if he gets better from three.

Last night, I attended Zero Gravity's college night at Dana Barros Basketball Club in Stoughton, MA. Team Sims UA Rise, Team Sims HGAL, Team New England, NE Elite HGAL, House We Built Select, Dana Barros Basketball Club, Team Northeast UA Rise, and XLP. Loads of coaching from D3 schools were in attendance.