Late-blooming 2027 bigs

It's known traditionally within the scouting community that big men tend to develop on their own trajectory, often coming into their own much later than their smaller counterparts. In that spirit, here's a look at a handful of rising senior big men who are starting to put the pieces together but still have their best basketball lying ahead of them.    Lyn's senior season will certainly feel like a long time coming, as the emerging post was forced to sit out a season ago due to technicalities regarding his transfer from Chichester. The southpaw has grown leaps and bounds in the time since he last played a high school game, both in stature and within his game. Mostly just a tall and clumsy kid when he arrived at Roman, Lyn has blossomed quickly into a true force in the post, showcasing great fundamentals while working for deep seals and scoring efficiently over either shoulder from the block. On the defensive end he's a natural deterrent at the rim with his size and shows glimpses of being able to move his feet to keep smaller players in front of him in space. There are still times where Lyn's lack of experience shows up within the flow of a game, but his ability to serve as a fulcrum for Roman this coming year shows he's well ahead of schedule in terms of developing into a true D1 prospect up front.     It's hard to believe watching Hamidu play now that he had a hard time finding his way onto the floor for his high school team when the season ended just over four months ago. The fact that he just capped off his summer with his first D1 offer goes to show just how far the Ghanaian product has come in such a short period of time, blossoming from somewhat of a novelty item into a full-fledged two-way factor around the rim. Hamidu has always stood out with his towering size, immense length, and fluid movement ability, but has made significant strides in his ability to recognize patterns on either end of the floor and work his way into proper positions in line with the speed of the game. He knows when to get in the way defensively and when to get out of the way on offense, and the recipe can sometimes be that simple when blessed with Hamidu's physical tools. His statistical contributions still come mostly in flashes but Hamidu is putting things together at the perfect time for college coaches to take notice and for Judge to eye a PCL three-peat.     At this point it's fair to call Thomas one of the bigger sleepers in the state, as the high-upside big man continues to develop in relative obscurity out in Carbon County. Thomas has all the tools to make a real impact at the next level, with a rangy, broad-shouldered frame that's ripe to take off once he hits a college weight room. He displays soft hands and a great feel for making reads as a passer whether from the post, perimeter, or middle portion of the floor. Thomas can still be a bit robotic and has to learn where he can more consistently assert himself on lesser-talented competition, but the tools he displays while still being 16 years old are impossible to ignore when considering his long-term outlook as a scholarship-level prospect.     Shiery mostly watched from the bench a season ago as Central Dauphin made a historic run to the 6A state title, clocking some scrap minutes here and there but mostly being seen as a developmental piece for the future. Well fast forward a few months and the future is here now, with Shiery looking ripe to make a big jump into a consistent impact player. He's coming off a strong summer where he displayed swift footwork around the cup whether playing out of the post or operating on the move as a roll man or dribble-drive threat. He shows flashes as a shooter with the potential to develop into more of a '4' if he can get a bit more fluid over time. Shiery can still be a bit upright and is learning to execute plays at sufficient speed and against higher levels of physicality, but his versatile skillset and increasing confidence has Shiery trending clearly toward scholarship-level basketball.     Not playing AAU and being tucked away in the Southwest portion of the state, Wetzel understandably flies under the radar and has maybe sacrificed some development time relative to some of his counterparts. But nevertheless he's on track for a breakout at some point while showing signs of putting together some really strong building blocks on the interior. Wetzel is a skilled passer out of the post and shows good chemistry playing with his guards in the screen-and-roll game. He's a natural space-eater around the cup who's learning to assert himself more consistently and keep up with the speed of higher-level games. Scholarship-level looks could be on the way as he continues to make progress in his development, particularly with the potential of a prep year looming on the table as Wetzel will have just turned 18 at the time of his high school graduation.

It's known traditionally within the scouting community that big men tend to develop on their own trajectory, often coming into their own much later than their smaller counterparts. In that spirit, here's a look at a handful of rising senior big men who are starting to put the pieces together but still have their best basketball lying ahead of them.