3SSB Palmetto Road Championships: New Jersey Eye Catchers

A major event on the grassroots basketball calendar concluded a couple weekends ago as the second and final July live period came to a close. After the opening evaluation period the week prior, college coaches once again packed gyms across the country for another valuable opportunity to scout prospects in person. Adidas' 3SSB Palmetto Road Championships returned to Rock Hill, SC featuring a loaded schedule of marquee matchups featuring many of the nation's top prospects where a handful of New Jersey standouts took full advantage of the spotlight, turning in impressive performances that continued to boost their recruitment and elevate their stock. With that in mind, let's take a look at some of New Jersey's top performers from the final 3SSB session of the summer.    An efficient, volume scoring guard who can easily settle into a rhythm offensively quick and in a hurry, [player_tooltip player_id='2568339' first='Kamari' last='Whyte'] was impressive in establishing himself as a tough, physical offensive catalyst. A habitual paint toucher who excels at getting downhill, Whyte penetrated the rim at an extremely high rate and allowed his transition scoring to ignite his production— getting out early with a full head of steam in the open floor and increasing the pace for strong finishes through contact at the basket while also making defenses pay with smooth pull up jumpers in transition. Equally as impactful in the half court, Whyte demonstrated so much more of his ability to dominate around the paint— knocking tough mid range area pull ups out of different DHO's and PnR action(s) while also showcasing a potent understanding of attacking driving angles out of various types of ball screens.     A physically imposing interior paint presence who leverages his physical strength and brute force to carve out space and impact the game from the inside, [player_tooltip player_id='2470853' first='Kamsi' last='Awaka'], much like he consistently does, played with an exceptional work rate and thrived in the gritty aspects of the game. Relentless in his physicality, Awaka establishes position with strength and toughness for deep seals in the low post and allows that to be the catalyst for his offensive production — being effective with his back to the basket and using his low post game to create scoring opportunities, looking more patient in assessing the defense off entry passes and understanding angles on post ups. While also showing different ways he can score the basketball from the FT line area and down— effective in PnR action(s) as a strong roller setting a lot of high ball screens, comfortable operating in the mid post with his face up game, efficiency around the basket out of the dunker spot/ short corner area, and even imposing his will on the offensive glass to win rebounding battles and capitalize on second chance opportunities.     One of the most statistically explosive scoring performers on the 3SSB Circuit throughout the entirety of this spring and summer, [player_tooltip player_id='2610671' first='Jalen' last='Mehu'] leveraged his strong and physically built frame to be aggressive in his pursuit of attacking the basket. Mehu showed confidence in creating offense at multiple different levels— particularly in "rip and go" situations when attacking off the catch utilizing his perimeter face up game while equally excelling as a PnR ball handler, attacking mismatches with pace off the bounce in isolation off switches. Versatile in his scoring attack, Mehu also demonstrated his ability to thrive off the ball, attacking closeouts with excellent driving instincts, repeatedly attacking openings in the defense for tough downhill finishes while also mixing in soft touch in between area pull ups and flashing his perimeter shot making ability. All while taking advantage of scoring opportunities in transition, benefiting from defense turned into easy offense and long rebounds and keeping his eyes on the rim when initiating the break and even leveraging his size and strength on the offensive glass for second chance possessions.     [player_tooltip player_id='2421371' first='Akeem' last='Paul'] is a lengthy and wiry big man with hints of fluidity and mobility at his size and position who often times plays with infectious energy and a relentless motor. Paul pairs his physical tools and nonstop work rate to provide plenty of impact on the interior— thriving as a finisher around the basket, particularly in the dunker spot and short corner area as well as a roller in different PnR action(s) to convert on a number of strong, soft touch layups through contact and several athletic above the rim finishes. All while letting his impact be felt in the rebounding category, on both the offensive and defensive glass.     Even in a role that differentiates from his typical on ball responsibilities at Elizabeth High, [player_tooltip player_id='2201953' first='Jayden' last='Johnson'] still remained an effective complementary scorer. Wisely picking his spots within the flow of the offense and flourishing with slightly fewer touches, Johnson still provided value as a supplementary scorer— more specifically, with his off ball shot making out on the perimeter combined with his soft touch finishing in the lane allowing him to effectively attack closeouts and exploit driving angles.     Transition offense was a big part of what was able to get J'Khai Singletary going— filling the lanes for explosive above the rim finishes and even spacing to the corner to convert on corner threes. Singletary was equally as effective in the half court particularly attacking closeouts and getting to the rim off the bounce and stepping into in rhythm looks off the catch as a perimeter shooter.

A major event on the grassroots basketball calendar concluded a couple weekends ago as the second and final July live period came to a close. After the opening evaluation period the week prior, college coaches once again packed gyms across the country for another valuable opportunity to scout prospects in person. Adidas' 3SSB Palmetto Road Championships returned to Rock Hill, SC featuring a loaded schedule of marquee matchups featuring many of the nation's top prospects where a handful of New Jersey standouts took full advantage of the spotlight, turning in impressive performances that continued to boost their recruitment and elevate their stock. With that in mind, let's take a look at some of New Jersey's top performers from the final 3SSB session of the summer.