Program Pillars from Colorado Live

It's easy to move on to the next event during the summer, but Colorado Live gave us a few performances that were worth circling back to. This group had solid performances and will be asked to do a ton this year that'll determine their team's success. They proved that they could handle the added pressure, but will they elevate it when the season starts?   We have showcase season coming up, and with the end of club scene coming quickly, rankings, and showcases here, now is the perfect time to lock in with a subscription.   Some of the biggest risers in our rankings started by showing up & showing out at a showcase & they're approaching quickly!   Your showcase evaluation could be the one that changes everything.   Freshman & Sophomore Showcase - August 8th (Rankings Immediately following) Top Expo (2027 & 2028s) - September 13th    Use Colorado26PH25OFF at checkout for 25% OFF & receive a custom registered graphic that comes with it! Lock in now!     Sam will have to be the engine for Green Mountain, and they will go as they go. For Green Mountain at Colorado Live, he had to do everything for their team for them to be able to operate, and he's going to take on another huge burden heading into his Senior year. Sam is one of the best scorers in the state, and I am sure that the numbers are going to back it. He gets into his mid-range shot as easily as anybody else in the state and rises up and hits it consistently. He also has the body and aggressiveness to keep sowing in bunches. Sam had a few stretches at Live where he was finishing around the basket, forced switches, and powered through. He does shy away from contact, he reads the double team, and he also got teammates involved as well. He's had a solid summer, and this was another big-time performance.     Montoya has had the spotlight at Northfield for some time now as the starting PG who they put the ball in his hands and let him operate, but now he steps into the role of being the star player, and that was evident at Colorado Live. The team's success depends on how good of a game he has, and he plays with so much confidence that he can take them there. Evo has wiggle and is difficult to defend off the bounce. He attacks, comes off of screens, and is decisive and is always looking to score. Evo is shooting the deep ball, is a creative scorer around the basket, and has to be the floor general as well. There are going to be high expectations on him all season long, and we saw a glimpse of that as he carried the way for Northfield at Colorado Live.     Richardson was on a tear at Colorado Live, to the point that I had to rewatch to see if that was actually him. He just looks like a completely different player right now, and it could be through just getting the green light. Well, he made the most of it, and it looks like GW is going to have to rely on him for the season They put the ball in his hands and let him operate, and he delivered putting up big games in each outing. He's nimble, spinning off of defenders on the block, crashing the boards, and going right up and creating second-chance opportunities for himself. Opposing teams were having a difficult time slowing him down and he was playing all 5 positions. Richardson brought the ball up the floor, started on the wing at times, and attacked from different spots, and will be asked to be the man based on what we saw at Colorado Live. He's playing with an edge right now that we even saw for [program_tooltip program_id='2836105' first='Pluto' last='Prospects'] this summer and looks like one of the bigger stock risers in the class. Big event for him.     His coordination has just come such a long way and looks like a different player right now. He's moving in transition, grabbing the ball and finishing with next-level dunks, and looks to have one of, if not the highest, ceilings in the state right now. You'd have to rewatch some of those games at Colorado Live to see just how good he could be. Brooks was grabbing the ball and keeping it high, keeping it away from the defense and not allowing players to take it out of his hands by staying strong, which is progress for him. He is still getting used to using his body and coming into his own, but he moves well and is fluid for his size. Brooks went against other good bigs at Colorado Live and continued to stand out and look like a guy who could be unstoppable at times. He even stepped out and hit the 3-ball a few times, which really showed the versatility, and if you're thinking about going to watch a game, his performance against Chatfield is where I'd start. Brooks easily looked like one of the top players at the event, and now you want the consistency to pick up where he has to be a big-time, impactful performer every night. It's all coming together.     Wyatt is another big man who has seen it all start to come together, and he's stacking solid performances in a row. At Colorado Live, he showed that he has added more offensive weapons to use, and he's going to be looked at to carry the scoring load at times. He's starting to keep the ball high and finish through contact, he has a back-to-the-basket game and is consistently hitting the over-the-shoulder hook shot that nobody else can get to. He's backing guys down, and the coordination on catch-and-go's is much improved as well. They're running the offense through him right now a ton and he's showing up in each game as a impactful player. He's going to be a guy with a lot on his plate this year and Creek should be in the mix to win it all with him playing well. He played well at Live.     Legend is a team that you don't know which team you're going to get. They have solid big men and depth that make them an interesting team that could turn some heads this year, but it all is going to come down to how good [player_tooltip player_id='2570907' first='Khalil' last='Hudgins'] is. Hudgins was their best player last year, but he'll have to take it up a notch if they want to really make some noise, and at Colorado Live, he had his moments. We want to see that aggression stay and for him to have those take-over moments. He'll have to find that balance of being a playmaker who can get teammates going, but also take over as their leading scorer as well. He's able to score in various ways and plays at his own pace, and now it is about getting teammates on board with that as well. At Live, he showed flashes, like his performance against Horizon, where he took advantage of a mismatch and went on a run. That's what he should be for them this year as it makes them one of the dark horse teams that have a chance.

It's easy to move on to the next event during the summer, but Colorado Live gave us a few performances that were worth circling back to. This group had solid performances and will be asked to do a ton this year that'll determine their team's success. They proved that they could handle the added pressure, but will they elevate it when the season starts?