Central Cali 2028 Player Rankings

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. 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. Below is the next 10 players of these players rankings, featuring the #31 through #40 players, which will be followed by the last 10 players, #41-#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 Cash Hertel.   31 (NR) Cash Hertel (6'3 | WG) - Fresno Christian Eagles (CA)   Making his debut on this list of rising junior prospects is Cash Hertel of Fresno Christian, coming in at #31. Hertel was a serviceable role player this past season and helped the Eagles win another league title, followed by a solid showing at California Live to wrap up the month of June. Hertel is an athletic and bouncy slashing wing/guard that has solid handles, the moves to create off the dribble, using the crossover, hesitation, and behind-cross to get his defender off balance, moves well off the ball to get to his shot spots, is effective with the jumper from the mid-range to the 3-point line off the bounce or the catch, and is a crafty scorer around the basket. Hertel has quick hands and good instincts to jump passing lanes, deflect the ball, or poke the ball out to get out in transition, where he can show off the bounce with some transition dazzlers off the steal. Intriguing player who will see his role increase on both sides of the ball this coming season.    32 (NR) Kamani Harris (6'3 | WF) - McLane Highlanders (Fresno CA)   Harris makes his debut on this list of rising junior prospects, coming in at #32. I had heard a bit about the dual sport athlete during his sophomore season, but it was his showing in the D4 Section title game, where he was inserted into the game early, due to Demetrius Simon getting in foul trouble in the first quarter, and made his presence felt throughout the game, finishing with 9 points and 6 rebounds, both well above his season averages and showed the potential for the wing/slasher. Harris is active on the boards, gets points off the put-back on missed shots, limits opponents to single shot possessions, runs the floor well to get ahead off the defense, seals his defender off to get open on the dive out of the pick and roll action, was effective with the mid-range jumper, has the physical prowess to score through contact at the basket, and will be relied upon to make an impact once he is done with the football season.    33 (NR) Conner Jenkins (5'11 | PG) - Tehachapi Warriors (CA)   Another player in this group of 10 on this list of player rankings making his debut is lead guard Conner Jenkins, coming in at #33. Jenkins had a solid showing last season at the annual Garces Memorial Christmas Elite 8 tournament, with that level of play enduring throughout the season, which earned him 1st Team All-SYML honors, with averages of 10.2 points, 3.3 assists, and 4 steals per game, to highlight his two-way impact on the perimeter. Jenkins has solid handles, keeps the dribble alive to survey the floor for openings to attack, has solid moves to create off the bounce, using the crossover combos and hesitation to get his defender off balance, has the court vision to make reads to open teammates off the drive and kick pass, to the diver out of the pick and roll action, or cross court to open shooters, is effective with the jumper from the mid-range to the 3-point line, and is a crafty scorer around the basket. Jenkins is a strong on-ball defender with active hands, great timing, and instincts to jump passing lanes, poke the ball out, or deflect passes to generate steals and transition points.    34 (NR) Lukas Siskauskas (6'3 | WG) - St. Joseph Knights (Santa Maria CA)   Making his debut on this list and dropping in at #34 in sharp shooter Lukas Siskauskas. Siskauskas had to play JV last season due to transfer rulers for players coming from other countries, but played on the EYBL Circuit with Team Why Nots 16s for the Spring before departing to Lithuania to play for his county's 17u team for the month of June and early part of July. I have not seen Siskauskas in person live, but have seen film on him and his game probably deserved to be higher on this list, but I will have to see him live first. Siskauskas has handles to keep the dribble alive and survey the floor, the moves to shake his defender to get downhill, using the crossover combos, hesitation, and fade-away to get space from his defender, has good body control and lift to connect on the middy through contact, and has the burst off the bounce to get by his initial defender to score at the basket, using the reverse and up-and-under lay-ups among bigs in the paint. Siskauskas is lights out from beyond the arc, moves fluidly to get to his shot spots off the ball, and scores on volume off the catch. He is solid on the boards, and has good court vision to make reads up the court or the diver out of the pick and roll action. He is going to be a pivotal piece for the Knights and one of the top 3-point shooters in the Section.   35 (22) Dalen Mason (6'3 | CG) - Bullard Knights (Fresno CA)   Rounding out the top 35 is Dalen Mason, who moves out of the top 30, but that has more to do with me having seen more players from this class than anything else. Mason was a key piece for the young and inexperienced Knights this past season, who relied heavily on senior Ja'Vance Coleman Jr. to carry the scoring load. From what I saw in June with Bullard, the scoring load will be more disaggregated this coming season and Mason was one of the main guys in the mix over the Summer. Mason has a strong handle on the ball, keeps the dribble alive to probe the defense to find openings to attack, has a strong build to absorb and score through contact in the paint, gets good lift on the mid-range jumper, makes good reads off the drive and kick, as well as up the court to push the pace of play, given he is a good positional rebounder. Mason is a lock-up on-ball defender with active hands, timing, and lateral quickness to jump passing lanes, poke the ball out, and get deflections that lead to steals and easy points in the open court.    36 (21) Damarion Cartwright (6'4 | WF) - Bakersfield (CA)   Cartwright moves down 15 spots from the previous round of player rankings for the 2028 class, and comes in at #36 in this updated list. Cartwright is a lengthy and wiry wing/slasher that will be a big piece for the Drillers this coming season, who will have a different look but arguably more athletic and he is a reason for that. Cartwright has a long wingspan, has good footwork and timing in the paint to block/alter shots around the basket, the long strides to close out and alter shots on the perimeter, is a versatile defender that can stay in front of smaller players and hold up against taller players in the post, and has the timing and quick twitch to jump passing lanes, deflect passes, and turn defense to offense. Cartwright has nice touch around the basket, finds the dunker spots for easy catch and score opportunities, is effective with the mid-post jumper, and excels in the open court using his length and on court speed to get behind the defense.    37 (15) Quinton Cuyler (6'4 | WG) - Bullard Knights (Fresno CA)   Culyer comes in at #37 in this updated list of player rankings, moving out of the top 20. Cuyler has a good frame and the skill set to be a top 20 player in this class, which I saw flashes of over the Summer with Bullard, but not consistently enough to stay in the top 20. Cuyler has good handles, can create his own shots off the bounce, using the crossover, between-cross, hezzy, and fade-away to get space from his defender, is effective with the jumper off the dribble from the mid-range to the 3-point line, and is accurate with the 3-ball off the catch. Cuyler is active on the glass, gets second chance points off put-backs, runs the floor well in the open court to get ahead of the defense, and is a crafty scorer around the basket to finish among height. Depending on what his role is with the Knights, he could move up this list by the next round of this list when updated.    38 (NR) Malakhi Lopez (6'2 | WG) - Centennial Golden Hawks (Bakersfield CA)   Another player making his debut on this list is the multiple sport athlete Malakhi Lopez, coming in at #38. Lopez caught my eye quickly in my first time seeing him during his sophomore season for the Ram, and has impressed each time I have seen him since. Lopez is transferring from Garces Memorial to Centennial of Bakersfield and will fit their style of play very well, which is heavy on tempo, playing fast, and forcing opponents to make mistakes. Lopez moves fluidly off the ball, gets to his shot spots, can score in volume with the 3-ball off the catch, has the handles and moves to create off the dribble, using the crossover, spin-move, and hesitation to get by his defender, a great burst off= speed off the dribble to get into the paint, and is a crafty scorer at the basket, using the reverse, up-and-under, and euro-step lay-ups to score over height. Lopez has great bounce, alters shots on the perimeter, has good lateral quickness and active hands to jump passing lanes, deflect the ball, or poke the ball out to generate steals. This is a nice addition to the G-Hawk roster.     39 (24) Hideo Yamaura Jr. (5'11 | CG) - Hanford Bullpups (CA)   Yamaura comes in at #39 for this updated list, moving him out of the top 30 for now, but he will have a chance to climb back up with his transfer to Hanford from Sierra Pacific. Yamaura had a solid sophomore season for the Bears, where he averaged nearly 9 points and 5 assists per game. I saw him at one event with Hanford and he displayed the lead guard play that will help the Pups with depth and having multiple players that can lead the offense. Yamaura has solid handles, keeps the ball on a string to survey the floor, has the court vision to make reads off the drive and kick pass, cross court to open shooters, up the court in transition, or to the diver out of the pick and roll action. Yamaura has the moves, using the crossover combos, hesitation, spin-move, and fade-away to get space from his defender, moves well off the ball to get to his shot spots, and is efficient with the jumper from mid-range to the 3-point line off the bounce or the catch. Pesky on-ball defender that gets into his opponents dribbling space.    40 (NR) Daryl Scott (5'10 | PG) - Fresno Christian Eagles (CA)   Rounding out the Top 40 and making his debut on this list is Daryl Scoot of Fresno Christian. Scott was key for the Eagles this past season, as he gave Fresno Christian a dynamic lead guard to run the offense and let senior Leon Madec play off the ball with his lethal shooting from deep. Scott has elite handles, keeps the dribble alive to find holes in the defense, has a variety of moves to get his defender off balance, a great burst off the dribble to blow by his defender and get into the paint, has the court vision and decision making to make precise passes off the drive and kick pass, to the diver out of the pick and roll action, or up the court to push the pace of play. Scott gets to his shot spots, can score it from deep off the catch, and is a crafty scorer in the paint.

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. 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. Below is the next 10 players of these players rankings, featuring the #31 through #40 players, which will be followed by the last 10 players, #41-#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 Cash Hertel.