MIAA Senior Showcase Backcourt Standouts

On Monday, August 17th, I attended the MIAA Senior Showcase at Babson College in Wellesley, MA. 38 rising seniors in Massachusetts public school hoops showed off their talents during three games.   Below are eight backcourt players who stood out.    Rodriguez shined as the fastest and quickest player in the gym and probably the most explosive athlete at the cup. The 6-foot-2 combo-guard relentlessly attacked the rim and showed off some really great finishing touch with his left hand on a number of occasions. In the open floor, he has the hops and body control necessary to take contact from opposing bigs and still convert, but he can also make spot-up threes in the half court and has solid passing vision. Rodriguez needs to play a bit faster and make quicker decisions once the ball gets swung to him, but he shows flashes of being able to do so and seems like he'll take that type of coaching seamlessly at the college level, which makes me think he'll be a really solid D3 player.     Right behind Rodriguez in terms of backcourt explosiveness was Medina, who got above the rim on a number of occasions and showed off some really solid athleticism all night. The 6-foot combo-guard has a super sharp handle and really good change-of-speed dribble moves, so he's impossible to stay in front of and is always a threat to blow by. Once he gets into the paint, he can finish effectively with both hands but also makes some really nice dump-down passes to teammates. He can also hit threes off the dribble and the catch. Medina should be a star for Quincy High School this season and will be one of the top scorers in the MIAA if I had to guess.     I hadn't seen Hassell play before Monday night, but he came out of the gate swinging when he hit a handful (or so) of threes in the first game and then continued his hot shooting throughout the night. The 6-foot-1 guard has really solid fundamental skills and does a good job moving without the ball to make himself available to teammates—he's shot ready at all times and knows what he's going to do with the rock when it gets swung to him. When the defense starts overplaying his shooting, he's also able to drive closeouts and hit pull-up jumpers or keep the offense moving. Hassell is a smart player who should get some D3 interest.     Brown is a true point guard who understands how to run the show and can make plays as both a scorer and facilitator. Though he's only 5-foot-11, the Woburn and Middlesex Magic product has good quickness and only goes north and south with his dribble (rather than east and west), which makes him difficult to stay in front of and effective at puncturing the paint. He also hit a bunch of threes throughout the night, both off the dribble and off the catch, which proved he can score if there's a crowded paint. Brown should be one of Woburn's star players this season—he just finished a good season with Middlesex Magic's UA Grind team.     Lyons is a fascinating player. The 6-foot guard feels like he's some minor improvements in his game away from being a top-5 player in the gym. The lefty has incredible quickness with the ball in his hands and a knack for turning the corner around defenders with his tight handle and low center of gravity—he can literally get into the paint whenever he wants. Once he gets there, he often goes to a pull-up jumper—which looks smooth and comfortable but isn't converted at a high rate—or a much higher-percentage finish at the cup with his left hand. Lyons is a more consistent pull-up jumper away from being a really interesting D3 prospect, and I wouldn't be surprised to see him get some solid recruitment this season.     Volkringer was probably the strongest pound-for-pound player in the gym and can do literally everything on the basketball court. The 6-foot-3 combo-guard has a beautiful three-point shot (which he can shoot off the dribble or off the catch), but he's also a confident ball-handler who can use his physicality to bully players in the paint and then finish easily at the cup. If the defense collapses, he's also able to make on-time, on-target passes to three-point shooters, which comes especially easy to him because of his strength and ability to see over the defense. Volkringer was a key part of Plymouth South's deep tournament run last season, and he should be one of the best players in the state this year and a really solid D3 prospect. His game strikes me as one that'll translate seamlessly to the next level.     Marshall wasn't too noticeable during the first couple games of the night, but he absolutely went off during the third game and wow'd me with his skillset. The 6-foot-2 guard has super long arms and has some finishes that are ridiculously impressive, especially when he fully extends his arm over the outstretched contest of the defender. But he's also a great three-point shooter and hit a handful of threes in the last game of the night. Marshall is going to have a lot more offensive responsibility at Oliver Ames this season with the loss of some key seniors, and I wouldn't be surprised to see him D3 recruitment rise as a result. He just needs to improve his confidence and be in attack-mode all game, which he'll learn to do.     Monday night was my first time seeing Defay, and I was really impressed with his overall game. The 6-foot guard doesn't have much of an offensive weakness and is able to threaten the defense from all three levels. He can get all the way to the paint and finish comfortably with both hands, he can hit pull-up shots in the mid-range, and he can light it up from three. He was one of the most confident drivers in the entire gym and showed off his athleticism on a number of occasions. Defay is a sleeper to be one of the more productive players in the entire state this season, and he should absolutely find a D3 fit after that. Perhaps he does a PG year.

On Monday, August 17th, I attended the MIAA Senior Showcase at Babson College in Wellesley, MA. 38 rising seniors in Massachusetts public school hoops showed off their talents during three games.