Central Cali 2028 Player Rankings

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This is the 2nd version of the Class of 2028 Player Rankings, with the first round of player rankings for this class located published in September of 2025, and includes the high school basketball season and postseason, as well as the Spring and Summer portions of the club season, and the month of June with their high school teams. I have expanded this list from 30 to 50 players from around the Central Section. This list of players was compiled using my own evaluations, along with feedback from knowledgeable media, coaches, and other relevant basketball personnel from the Section, to make up the top 50 rising junior prospects for this updated round of player rankings for the 2028 Class. However, the order of players on this list is my own. This list takes into consideration two key factors in determining where players are ranked, and will be the same criteria used each time this list is updated. <em>The criteria for these rankings are as follows: current skill level and production on the court, as well as future projection at the collegiate level. </em>Below is the last 10 players of these players rankings, featuring #41 through #50, which will round out this version of the 2028 player rankings Top 50. In this article, you will find the following information: current rank, their previous rank in parentheses, the player's name, height, player position, and current school they are attending. There may be some school info that has not been fully updated, as there are a few unknowns out there as of the time of this writing. We begin this updated list with Jaythan Rivera.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>41 (31) Jaythan Rivera (5'9 | PG) - Bakersfield Drillers (CA)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Rivera moves down 10 spots and comes in at #10 in this updated player list. Rivera played the back-up point guard role for the Drillers last season behind one of the top lead guards in the Section's in RJ Shehee, and stepped up as the main lead guard during the month of June for Bakersfield. Rivera has shifty handles and moves to shake his defender, has the court vision to make tights reads to teammates off the drive and kick pass, to the diver out of the pick and roll action, and up the court in transition to get ahead of the court, and moves fluidly off the ball to get open looks off the catch from beyond the arc.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>42 (NR) [player_tooltip player_id='3461842' first='Sammy' last='Medina'] (6'5 | PF) - Garces Memorial Rams (Bakersfield CA)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Medina makes his debut on this list of player rankings is the big man from Garces Memorial, [player_tooltip player_id='3461842' first='Sammy' last='Medina'] at #42. Medina held down the post last year for the Rams scoring in the paint and controlling the boards. Medina had a strong showing in the month of June, with his brother back from injury, making for a serviceable duo of bigs in the paint for Garces. Medina has good interior footwork, uses moves to create space from his defender in tight spaces around the basket, using the drop-step, spin-move, and up-and-under for the finish, good court vision and decision making to make great reads from the top of the key, from the low-block to players cutting off the ball, up the court to get the ball ahead in transition, or cross court to open shooters on the perimeter. Medina controls the boards on both ends, gets points off the put-back, limits opponents to single shot possessions, and is a solid defender to alter shots around the basket.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>43 (NR) [player_tooltip player_id='3035266' first='Alec' last='Odsather'] (6'7 | PF) - Porterville Panthers (CA)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Making his debut on this list of player rankings and coming in at #43 is the stretch-four, [player_tooltip player_id='3035266' first='Alec' last='Odsather']. Odsather saw a relatively reduced role last season, given that the Panthers were senior heavy, but he was one of the main points of focus over the Summer in June with Porterville. Odsather has a lengthy and wiry build, runs the floor well in the open court, moves well off the ball to get to his shot spots, is efficient with the 3-ball off the catch to pull rim protectors away from the basket, and has enough handle to attack the basket from the top of the key or off the baseline after the pump-fake from the corner three. Odsather is active on the boards on both ends, gets points off the put-back, limits opponents to single shot possessions, alters/blocks shots in the paint, as well as the strides to close out and contest perimeter shots.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>44 (NR) Olatunde Turner (6'5 | WF) - Frontier Titans (Bakersfield CA)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Turner makes his debut on this player rankings list, coming in at #44. Turner played JV last season and was not a player on my radar. He had a strong showing at the Clovis North Nike Summer Showdown, as he provided the length and height in the post that the Titans were missing last season, and kept that level of play up throughout June. Turner has a long wing-span, active hands, and good timing to block/alter shots in the post, the strides to close out and contest perimeter shots, gets points off missed shots, limits opposing teams to single shot possessions, outlets the ball quickly to get up the floor to get ahead of the defense, and finds openings around the basket in the dunker spot or at the top of the restricted area for easy catch and score opportunities.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>45 (NR) Patrick Salazar (5'10 | CG) - Coalinga Horned Toads (CA)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Salazar makes his debut on this list of updated player rankings, rounding out the top 45. Salazar had a strong sophomore season, helping lead his team to the D5 Section title, and West Sequoia League's Underclassman of the Year honors, averaging 13 plus points per game. Salazar has solid handles, shifty moves to create off the dribble, using the crossover combos, and the hesitation to get space from his defender, is effective with the jumper from the mid-range to the 3-point line, is a crafty scorer around the basket over height, using the spin-move and reverse lay-ups to score over height in the paint, and has range on the 3-ball off the catch. Salazar has good court vision to make quality reads with the ball in his hands, makes plays up the court and off the drive and kick pass, and is a tough on-ball defender that jumps passing lanes and gets into his opponents dribbling space to force turnovers.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>46 (NR) Gabriel Venegas (6'4 | WF) - Bullard Knights (Fresno CA)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Making his debut on this list of player rankings is the wing/slasher from Bullard, Gabriel Venegas at #46. Venegas was on JV last season and dealt with an injury, but made his presence felt in the month of June with Bullard, as well as recently at the Fresno Pacific Prospect Camp, where he showcased his skill set and versatility on both ends of the court. Venegas has good foot-work and touch on shots around the basket, using the drop-step, up-and-under, or the spin-move to create space in tight windows to score in the paint, has nice touch on the jumper from the mid-post to the 3-point line off the catch, and makes good reads from the top of the key to players cutting off the ball. Venegas has good length and timing to block/alter shots in the paint, the agility to stretch out and contest perimeter shots, and the quick twitch to jump passing lanes or get deflections that cause steals and open court offense.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>47 (NR) Amarion Taylor (6'3 | WF) - Tulare Western Mustangs (CA)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Taylor is making his debut on this player rankings list and comes in at #47. Taylor is a high level multi-sport athlete and had a solid sophomore season for the Mustangs, averaging approximately 8 points and 7 rebounds per game. Taylor has active hands and quick lateral movement, stays in front of perimeter players, is able to hold up against taller players in the post, and has the timing and instincts to jump passing lanes, deflect passes, poke the ball out, as well as alter shots in the paint or step out on the perimeter. Taylor is active on the glass, releases the ball quickly to get up the court, has nice touch on shots around the basket, has good off ball movement to get open, using back-cuts or off ball screens, and is effective with the jumper.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>48 (NR) Ezra Jordan (6'5 | WF) - Bullard Knights (Fresno CA)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Jordan makes his debut on this list of player rankings for the 2028 class and comes in at #48. Jordan was more of a role player this past season and is part of a good group of rising junior prospects for the Knights, as he looks to be more in the mix of the rotation this coming season. Jordan has good size and length to operate in the post, can score using the drop-step, up-and-under, or reverse lay-ups to avoid shot-blockers in the paint, is active on the boards to get put-backs off misses, helps limit opponents to single shot possessions, gets up the floor to get open for catch and finish transition points, and is a serviceable rim protector in the paint. Depending on his role and production, Jordan is a player that could see movement upward when this list is updated.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>49 (29) Clay David Laurente</strong><strong> </strong><strong>(5'9 | CG) - Clovis North Broncos (Fresno CA)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Laurente moves down a bit and comes in at #49 in this updated list of player rankings. Laurente was part of the rotation this past season and was a quality utility player for the month of June with the Broncos, impacting both ends of the court. Laurente has solid handles, shifty moves to keep his defender off balance, keeps the dribble alive to probe the defense, has the court vision to make tight reads off the drive and kick pass, to the diver out of the pick and roll action, or up the court to players ahead in transition. Laurente has active hands and good instincts to jump passing lanes, poke the ball out, or deflect passes to generate steals, moves fluidly off the ball to get to his shot spots, and is accurate with the 3-ball off the catch.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>50 (30) Owen Carte (6'2 | CG) - Tehachapi Warriors (CA)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Rounding out this list of player rankings for the rising junior class and coming in at #50 is Owen Carte of Tehachapi. Carte had a solid sophomore season for the Warriors, leading Tehachapi in scoring with 11 points per game. Carte has quality handles, the moves to create off the dribble, using the crossover combos and hesitation to get space from his defender, is accurate with the jumper from the mid-range to the 3-point line off the bounce, is crafty on shots around the basket, and moves well off the ball to get open looks off the catch. Carte has good court vision to make plays off the drive and kick pass, to the diver out of the pick and roll action, and up the court to open players in transition.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->