Miles Bridges Invite: Underclassmen Standouts

The first ever Miles Bridges Invite was veritable who's who of Michigan basketball. Nearly every top player from Michigan was there. With all the star power both off and on the court. It is testament to depth of young talent in the state, that some of the top performances came from underclassmen. Following are six that caught my eye from the star studded night of action.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Class of 2029 </h2>   [player_tooltip player_id='2767770' first='Jordan' last='McDaniel'] 5-10 Roseville Player who has generated a ton of attention both on and off the court in the past year. With questions about where he is going to play seemingly quieted. It was nice to just focus on his game Wednesday night. I haven't been doing this as long as the other luminaries in attendance. But I'm not sure I have seen a player this young and slight of frame, this electric with the ball in hands. It was nice to see this skill broken down a bit in the 1 on 1 portion of the camp. With no ball screens and plenty of space. You got to see him to go to work with a three dribble maximum allotment. In this setting you can tell it's not about flashy ballhandling. There is also excellent footwork and in innate ability to create space. Continued to excel and penetrate during the scrimmages. Impressive how deep he can get under the basket, yet still score at the rim.   [player_tooltip player_id='3649429' first='Codey' last='Bush'] 6-3 Romulus Summit Academy North Don't misread how I am going to start here. Bush appears the be developing into the opposite type of prospect of McDaniel (see above) While he certainly has skills to be a penetrator. He might not need to as much. Is a long and tall shot maker. Shot the ball extremely well during scrimmages. Both in the mid range and from well beyond the arc. Made a buzzer beating half court shot look like a simple runner. Gets into the shooting motion quickly and efficiently. Combined with his height and release point, very hard to block. Size also helps him at the rim, Is already next level passer (didn't see that as much Wednesday) Simply put, not much he can't do from the guard position. If he continues to grow vertically, this could be a special national recruit as an upperclassman.   [player_tooltip player_id='2957970' first='Kingston' last='Hunt'] 5-9 Detroit Renaissance Most likely the smallest player in the field. However, the stature is the only small part of his game. Just gets to rim and gets buckets. I have seen him do it at multiple big time events in the spring. Has a natural nose for the basket. Uses that sense to score over much bigger players at the rim. Gets there with an advanced ball handling skill set. While he is such a natural scorer. Also shows playmaking ability and is a good live dribble passer. Part of a deep and talented 2029 class at Renaissance who should lead the Phoenix back into contention in the rugged Detroit PSL.   [player_tooltip player_id='2885244' first='Artrell' last='Burt'] 6-6 Orchard Lake St Mary's (pictured) While the three players above him on the list are either point/lead guards. Burt fits the protype of the modern wing. It's start with the size. Is a legitimate 6-6 with good length. While he has plenty of strength. Doesn't necessarily use it to work in the post. Mainly uses it to slash aggressively to the basket. Does this with ball handling you would not expect from a player with his size. More than just a straight ahead physical driver though. Showed good counter moves when his initial attempt was cut off. Explosive vertical athlete who plays and finishes well above the rim with ease. Doesn't need to grow into his frame at all. Fluid movements and runs the court smoothly.   Reed Cotton 6-1 Grand Blanc With three lead guards and a plus sized wing. The emerging 2029 class could use a next level shooter. Enter this new addition to the host Grand Blanc program. Cotton isn't the biggest prospect, but he gets his shot off easily with one of the quickest releases I have seen. Also orders his feet and squares his shoulders with precision. This was evident in scrimmages as he converted a three point make very quickly off a turnover. On Wednesday, I didn't see much outside of the deep shooting skillset. That doesn't mean it isn't there or it won't develop. The shooting was just that impressive. I would be remiss if I didn't note that Cotton is entering an ideal situation at Grand Blanc. As the Bobcats have a talented and deep rotation that could use a shooter.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Class of 2030 </h2>   Justin Cato 6-2 Undecided We'll close with one for the future. Cato more than belonged on Wednesday as the youngest prospect in the field. Got to the basket with his athletic burst and big upper body. Uses that advanced build to absorb and finish through contact at the rim. Showed a nice touch from the perimeter in limited action. Participation was curtailed by a leg injury. Didn't look too serious (maybe cramps) and I saw more than enough to place this player near the top of Michigan's still developing 2030 class.

The first ever Miles Bridges Invite was veritable who's who of Michigan basketball. Nearly every top player from Michigan was there. With all the star power both off and on the court. It is testament to depth of young talent in the state, that some of the top performances came from underclassmen. Following are six that caught my eye from the star studded night of action.