GRBA Nationals - Ramsey's Sunday Standounts

When you love what you do it isn't fun watching the summer come to an end. Obviously, in terms of the seasonal summer we still have plenty of time remaining, but when it comes to the basketball calendar Sunday marked the unofficial end of the grassroots season. As usual, Prep Hoops Indiana culminated a spring and summer full of travel with the GRBA Nationals in Fort Wayne. There will be plenty of big picture recap content to come, but first let's highlight some of the top individual performers from championship Sunday at the GRBA Nationals.   <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />    The more we watch Bailey the more impressed we get. He is going to be a stock-riser in the Class of 2029 and likely break into our rankings when we release our next update. There just aren't many guys his size that move the way he moves as a rising sophomore. Bailey is a legitimate 6'7" stretch 4-man that can dribble, pass, and shoot. He scored a team-leading 18 points in their GRBA Nationals championship game win on Sunday and had several other impressive performances throughout the weekend in Fort Wayne. Look for him to have a big sophomore season at Concordia Lutheran.     Dixon has the ball in his hands a lot and that is generally a good thing for whatever team he is playing with. He had a good spring and summer on the EYCL circuit with The Family, has fit in nicely running the show for South Bend St. Joseph High School, and starred this weekend for Indiana Stack 17u at the GRBA Nationals. Davis poured in 27 points in a win on Sunday and had a few other big playmaking performances throughout the weekend. He is one of the top point guards in Indiana's Class of 2027.     [program_tooltip program_id='3587267' first='Indiana' last='Impact'] - Smith 16u won by about 70 points in the game we watched on Sunday. It was a non-competitive, running clock game between two teams of very unequal talent levels. However, I've see a lot of these prospects enough to know that big individual performances are a fluke. Fey has had plenty of excellent games throughout the spring and summer. He was really good in this one as well using a combination of his perimeter skill along with his size and strength to dominant defenders off of the dribble. Fey connected on four three-point shots and finished with 22 points in the blowout victory.     Pippins suited up with Gym Rats Black 17u this weekend at the GRBA Nationals and ended up being a big piece for them throughout their championship run. At this point any conversation about the best offensive rebounders in the state of Indiana has to begin with Pippins. The 6'5" rising senior forward from Cathedral High School plays extremely hard and is so physical in the paint. It is really hard for opponents to keep him from gathering numbers putbacks on a game-to-game basis. He ended up scoring a team-leading 18 points in their semifinal victory on Sunday. It will be interesting to continue to follow his recruitment heading into the high school season. Scholarship programs at the Division II and NAIA levels should be evaluating him closely.     It is impressive to watch how consistently productive Upshaw Jr. is, especially as a smaller guard, while playing up against older competition. He had a very good freshman season at Michigan City High School and then suited up with [program_tooltip program_id='2075551' first='Indiana' last='Game'] Gold 17u this weekend in Fort Wayne and was putting up some big time scoring numbers. Upshaw Jr. is fearless and aggressive on the offensive end. He is so shifty with the ball in his hands and does a great job of creating space to get his jump shot off against taller defenders. The 5'8" point guard finished with 24 points to lead all scores in their semifinal loss on Sunday.     It has been a very good summer in terms of scoring the basketball for Van Order and it culminated with some big performances and a GRBA Nationals championship this weekend. The 6'2" guard from Carroll (Fort Wayne) High School suited up for Gym Rats Black 17u and put the ball in the basket consistently. On Sunday he scored 17 points in their semifinal win while knocking in a couple of shots from the perimeter and flashing some sneaky athleticism as a driver. Look for him to have a big senior season for the Chargers.     Admittedly, the game we watched on Sunday featuring [program_tooltip program_id='3587267' first='Indiana' last='Impact'] - Smith 16u was the best from an evaluation standpoint. It was a 70-point blowout victory that allowed for a lot of possessions between two teams of very unequal talent. However, I've seen these guys to know that these performances aren't just a fluke. Whitaker is a big time scorer and perimeter shooter in Jimtown's rising junior class and has had an excellent summer. He put on a show in this one connecting on seven three-point shots while scoring a game-high 36 points.     It is always fun to watch Yoder play. He is normally the smallest guard on the floor, but he is also consistently one of the most productive. Yoder helped lead Westview to a Class 2A State Runner-Up finish as a freshman and was a key piece of [program_tooltip program_id='2076923' first='Club1' last=''] Prime 15u's GRBA Nationals championship over the weekend in Fort Wayne. The talented point guard averaged 8.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, 6.4 assists, and 3.0 steals per game. Yoder scored 12 or more points in the final four games of the weekend, but was scoreless in the opener while dishing out 14 assists. As he continues to grow he will quickly emerge as a guard to watch in Indiana's Class of 2029.

When you love what you do it isn't fun watching the summer come to an end. Obviously, in terms of the seasonal summer we still have plenty of time remaining, but when it comes to the basketball calendar Sunday marked the unofficial end of the grassroots season. As usual, Prep Hoops Indiana culminated a spring and summer full of travel with the GRBA Nationals in Fort Wayne. There will be plenty of big picture recap content to come, but first let's highlight some of the top individual performers from championship Sunday at the GRBA Nationals.