Five 2028 Prospects To Watch In 2026-27

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The 2026-27 academic year is just a couple of weeks away from starting in many school districts across the state. When the doors finally open, many players will quickly hit the hardwood to prepare for the 2026-27 season, which gets underway in late November. Here are five 2028 prospects to watch:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2714567' first='Isaiah' last='Brown'], Sandia</strong>: Brown isn't just the top rising junior in the Albuquerque Metro Region, he's arguably &nbsp;the top 2028 prospect in the entire state. He already holds multiple college offers. He's the conductor of Sandia's highly entertaining rock and roll basketball show. Brown diversified his game last season and posted impressive numbers: 14.8 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 6.5 apg and 5.9 steals per game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">First team all state! Couldn't do it without my teammates! #2028<a href="https://x.com/SebastianNoel47?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SebastianNoel47</a> <a href="https://x.com/AdamDiehl15?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AdamDiehl15</a> <a href="https://x.com/PrepHoops_NM?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PrepHoops_NM</a> <a href="https://t.co/PMpyPG1J7z">pic.twitter.com/PMpyPG1J7z</a></p>&mdash; [player_tooltip player_id='2714567' first='Isaiah' last='Brown'] (@zay32brown) <a href="https://x.com/zay32brown/status/2038094997132611622?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 29, 2026</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2714599' first='Izon' last='Guck'], Cobre</strong>: Guck combined with his older brother, a senior, last season to form a dynamic duo. Now that the older brother has graduated, Izon will be Cobre's leader on and off the court. He averaged 19.0 points and 8.4 rebounds per game in 2025-26. He's less than 100 points away from the magical 1,000-point plateau and should get there early in the season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Cobre Boys win the Dexter tournament and improve to 11-3. [player_tooltip player_id='2714599' first='Izon' last='Guck'] &amp; Ethan Castillo make all tournament team. Zavin Guck named tournament MVP. <a href="https://x.com/_NMAA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@_NMAA</a> <a href="https://x.com/nmpreps?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@nmpreps</a> <a href="https://x.com/PrepHoopsNM?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PrepHoopsNM</a> <a href="https://x.com/JamesDYodice?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JamesDYodice</a> <a href="https://t.co/Zz88nUDtRA">pic.twitter.com/Zz88nUDtRA</a></p>&mdash; CobreSports (@CobreSports) <a href="https://x.com/CobreSports/status/2012913409315025159?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 18, 2026</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2839492' first='Pablo' last='Romero'], Springer</strong>: Springer and nearby Wagon Mound have combined forces to make one team for 2026-27. Romero has been one of the top 3-point shooters in northern New Mexico for a couple of years. He briefly held the state record for most 3-pointers in a single game. Last season Romero averaged 18.7 points and 6.1 rebounds per game. Elite shooter. &nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Myles Candeleria, Tohatchi</strong>: Though small compared to other teams, Tohatchi was a fun team to watch last season. Like Sandia, they play an entertaining, fast-paced style. Candeleria is Tohatchi's top returning scorer and he'll be counted on to keep shooting and scoring in 2026-27 for Tohatchi to make noise in Class 3A. &nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2839414' first='Dashon' last='Bynum'], Rio Rancho</strong>: The Rams lose some key pieces from last season's team that advanced to the quarterfinals of the Class 5A state tournament. But they also bring back some important pieces as well, including Bynum. He's the point guard and we all know how important savvy point guards are in the modern game. Averaged about 10 points and 4 assists per game last season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->