Great Lakes Finals: New Names Emerge

The bracketed and final Chicago stop of the Prep Hoops Circuit provided plenty of standouts from Michigan. I covered some of the more established names earlier in the week. Following are some more under the radar names that also played well broken down by class.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Class of 2027 </h2>   [player_tooltip player_id='3653367' first='Kingsten' last='Russell'] 6-3 Detroit Edison (pictured) Wing with good size bookended the event for me. Played well early Saturday morning and was still going strong near the end of the weekend. On Saturday put up 23 clutch points in a nip and tuck win over Next Level Grind. Operated well on penetration and in the forgotten area of the court known as the midrange. Evidenced by the fact that he earned those points without the use of the three-point shot. Slender frame but played with surprising strength. Did not seem to mind contact and even sought it out on drives. Helped that he played off of two feet. Competed hard in a very low scoring game on Sunday. Should form a nice senior backcourt duo with Edgar Hubbard next year for Edison.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Class of 2028 </h2>   [player_tooltip player_id='2860020' first='Deante' last='Burton'] 6-0 Detroit Cass Tech Staying in the city limits of Detroit. Burton played well for a Court Vision Elite squad whose weekend was cut slightly short by a forfeit from an opponent. That was too bad as Burton's standout game came on Sunday morning against fellow Detroit area squad [program_tooltip program_id='2075759' first='Oakland' last='Elite']. I was hoping to see a little more. Put up 21 points in that victory in did it in a variety of ways. Strong guard who had no problem getting to the basket and the foul line. Good ball handler who controlled the tempo of the game. Seemed to have the “gamer” gene and played better in crunch time. Accordingly, the majority of his points came in the second half. Cass has featured next level point guard play for nearly a decade. Burton has had to wait his turn and will probably have to wait one more year. However, showed potential this weekend and he could possibly contribute this year.   [player_tooltip player_id='3587533' first='Ben' last='Bissett'] 6-6 Rochester The Falcons were one of the true surprise teams of the 2025-2026 season. After the loss of a high-profile transfer, they ran off an undefeated regular season with some unheralded players. While I was aware of some talented backcourt prospects. I did not know Rochester had this type of talent in the frontcourt. Bissett is long lean prospect with a projectable frame that should be able to add weight. Showed excellent mobility and lateral quickness. Put up 21 points in a Saturday victory over a strong Breakaway Club out of Chicago. Showed his shooting touch and ability by hitting an early three. Was also effective at foul line. Where he got often with his ability draw contact. Also put up 11 against a Wisconsin Blizzard squad that featured a strong frontline. Rochester is not going to sneak up on anyone this year. Players like Bissett could keep the Falcons from taking a step back.   [player_tooltip player_id='2410949' first='Mapalo' last='Chapi'] 6-2 Berrien Springs From the far Southwestern corner of Michigan. Chapi is a uber lengthy guar who had a strong weekend with Harbor Impact. Played well off the ball as his squad featured a talented but heliocentric point guard option. Picked his spots well and stayed in motion off the ball. When he got the opportunity to penetrate, he took it. Showing a quick first step and acceleration. Good ball handler who appeared more than capable of running the point if needed. Played more like 6-4 guard due to his wingspan. Good shooter who showed a smooth and effortless release from deep. Hit three from beyond arc on his way to 15 points in his team's closing loss of the weekend to a very good Academy squad out of the Ann Arbor area. While the Shamrocks graduate quite a bit of talent. There is still some good young talent in the program.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Class of 2029 </h2>   [player_tooltip player_id='2850784' first='Lucas' last='Warczinsky'] 5-11 Vestaburg The storyline of the 15U championship game was too good for this former print journalist to ignore. The plucky independent shoe team from Michigan taking on the local Under Armour squad. After Michigan Ignition lost at the buzzer, a different story jumped off the stat sheet. The story of an undersized point guard from no stoplight town putting up 16 points against one of the top backcourts in the Chicago area. Did it in a patient manner and within the offensive flow. Did not force or take bad shots. Not the quickest guard but keeps defenses honest with deep range on the perimeter. Finished well at the rim despite not being an overwhelming vertical athlete. If he can keep improving athletically, he could easily develop into a small college prospect. The intangibles and fundamentals are already readily present.   [player_tooltip player_id='2957679' first='Damoni' last='Spraggins'] 6-0 Battle Creek Central One of true breakout performers of the event for this scout. Played well for BTO Elite. Has good positional size already for a scoring point guard. Has a strong upper body to go along with the vertical height. Showed court sense and the ability to adapt in game. Struggled initially with Michigan Ignition's 1-3-1 halfcourt trap (most teams do) However found the seams as the game continued and got to the basket often. Put up 18 pints in BTO's win over the Chicago Cannons. Has plenty of acceleration and burst to the rim. Part of good young backcourt at Central. A historically good program that has been down of late. Intrigued to see how Spraggins and the rest of this core develops.   [player_tooltip player_id='2427258' first='Andrew' last='Fausz'] 6-8 Olivet With Spraggins out on the perimeter. Fausz held down the block for BTO. Has an imposing frame and is every bit of 6-8. Decent mobility for his size. Could stand to improve lateral quickness a bit. However, very young and far from stone footed. Had some nice blocks and did not appear to mind contact. Excelled as an outlet passer. Which you don't often see at this age. Off of rebounds and blocks got rid of the ball quickly and with high velocity. Usually at nearly half court. Far from finished product, but there is a lot to work with here.

The bracketed and final Chicago stop of the Prep Hoops Circuit provided plenty of standouts from Michigan. I covered some of the more established names earlier in the week. Following are some more under the radar names that also played well broken down by class.