Prep Hoops Iowa Freshman Showcase: Tony's Top Defenders

The second annual Prep Hoops Iowa Freshman Showcase took place in Des Moines on Sunday afternoon, with around 70 incoming freshmen and eighth graders taking the floor. Healey Hill and I were in attendance throughout the event taking notes on every player in attendance, and we'll have a slew of coverage coming throughout the next week. I was primarily responsible for covering Teams 1, 2, 5, and 6, while Healey handled 3, 4, 7, and 8. In this article, I'm taking a look at five of the top defensive players I saw on Sunday.    Despite giving up four inches and a good amount of weight in his matchup against [player_tooltip player_id='3537131' first='Lucas' last='Heller'] on Sunday afternoon, Imhoff was exceptional defensively. He does a great job getting low and using his strong legs to hold his spot on the block against bigger players, using leverage to his advantage. In addition to his strong play as a one-on-one defender, he showed really good awareness as a team defender, rotating over to contest shots routinely. He's really good on the glass, making strong contact on his box outs and high-pointing the ball, and he has soft hands. On the offensive end, he showed that he can score on the block, pound the offensive glass, and occasionally step out and space the floor with confidence from the 3-point line.     Defensive effort can be very hit-and-miss in these types of showcase events, but that was no concern for Clark, who was routinely picking up opposing ball-handlers full court and making them work just to bring the ball up the floor. He's a really quick guard who moves well laterally, has quick hands, and also has a knack for jumping passing lanes and turning defense into offense. He's a pass-first lead guard on the other end who puts pressure on opposing teams with his speed, ball-handling, and vision.     Like Clark, McCuller is a player who really seems to take pride in his work on the defensive end. He communicates well on that end of the floor and was making life really tough on opposing ball-handlers throughout the afternoon, getting up into their shorts and making them work way harder than they'd like to just to initiate offense. He moves exceptionally well side-to-side, has really quick hands, and is willing to scrape it up with bigger players as well.     Collier was the biggest player in the gym on Sunday, and as such, he was a dominant rim protector. But he wasn't just a dominant shot blocker because of his size. He showed great awareness defensively, knowing where his man and the ball were at all times and rotating over to help his teammates at the bucket. He moves his feet surprisingly well for a young big man with his size and frame, holding his own against quicker guards, and he talks really well on that end of the floor. He was one of the best communicators that I saw on Sunday, constantly talking his teammates through screens, letting them know he was available for help, and encouraging them. He's a young big man with some serious promise and long-term potential.     An eighth grader from Davenport Assumption, Davis shined with his play as an on-ball defender, using his eye-popping length and athleticism to his advantage on that end of the floor. He does a great job sitting in his stance and moving his feet side-to-side, and his long wingspan allows him to not only cover more ground and get into passing lanes, but also to contest shots against bigger players. He's a really impressive athlete who looks like he's going to be a big-time contributor as a two-way guard for the Knights.

The second annual Prep Hoops Iowa Freshman Showcase took place in Des Moines on Sunday afternoon, with around 70 incoming freshmen and eighth graders taking the floor. Healey Hill and I were in attendance throughout the event taking notes on every player in attendance, and we'll have a slew of coverage coming throughout the next week. I was primarily responsible for covering Teams 1, 2, 5, and 6, while Healey handled 3, 4, 7, and 8. In this article, I'm taking a look at five of the top defensive players I saw on Sunday.