Rising Stars Showcase: Boys Consolation Standout Players

Sacramento, CA - Saturday, August 15th, I made the trip up to Sacramento High for the annual Rising Stars Showcase hosted by Coaches Corner. The event featured two girls semifinal games, a three point contest, and a championship game, with the boys following the same format, to make for a fun and entertaining day of hoops. This article looks at 6 prospects from the teams that lost in the semifinals, referred to here as the consolation teams, that made the most of the opportunity in the one game they played. In this article you will find the following information: the player's name, height, player position, current school they are attending, and the stats I kept from the event. We begin this updated list with [player_tooltip player_id='2952326' first='Will' last='Farrington'].   Team Warriors    Farrington is a lengthy and skilled wing/slasher that can operate in the post, as well as score the ball from the perimeter, puts up points in volume, and has great athleticism to impact both sides of the ball. Farrington had a strong showing in his team's semifinal game against the Clippers, as he would score 11 points, connecting on 3 threes in the loss. Farrington moves fluidly off the ball, gets to his shot spots, gets great lift with length on the jumper, and is accurate with the 3-ball off the catch. Farrington has enough handles to push the ball up the court, the moves to attack off the wing, active hands to deflect passes, alter shots, and jump passing lanes to get out in transition, where he has elite bounce to take flight with some dazzling dunks.     Griffin put on a stellar display of lead guard skills in his team's semifinal game loss to the Clippers, as he would put up a game high 20 points, to go along with 6 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals to help give his team a chance. Griffin has elite handles, keeps the ball on a string to probe the defense for openings to attack, has a variety of moves to shake his defender, using the crossover combos, hesitation, spin-move, and fade-away to create space from his defender, a great burst off the bounce to get by his defender, is effective with the mid-range jumper, and is a crafty scorer around the basket, with the up-and-under, reverse, euro-step, and floater to score over height in the paint. Griffin has great court vision, makes precise passes to open teammates off the drive and kick pass, to the diver out of the pick and roll action, or up the court to open players in transition. Solid on-ball defender with active hands, good timing, and quick movement to deflect passes, jump passing lanes, or poke the ball out to get turnovers and easy offense.     Zaragoza is a physical, skilled, and rapidly developing forward that runs the floor, has various moves to operate in the paint, and is relentless on the glass. Zaragoza had a strong showing in his team's semifinal loss to the Clippers, putting up a near double-double of 10 points and 8 rebounds, and will be a great addition for the Pride, who have an elite perimeter attack with the likes of [player_tooltip player_id='2212735' first='NJ' last='Gray'], [player_tooltip player_id='2605708' first='Juelz' last='Richo'], [player_tooltip player_id='2137369' first='Asante' last='Johnson'], [player_tooltip player_id='2484360' first='Tayshaun' last='Bozeman'], and more, to hold down the interior and add a true rim protector. Zaragoza has solid footwork, moves to get separation from his defender, using the spin-move, up-and-under, shoulder fake, and the hook/floater with great touch on shots around the basket. Zaragoza gets points off the put-back, limits opponents to single shot possessions, releases the ball quickly to get up the court, can make reads from the top of the key to players cutting off the ball, and sets good screens with good timing on the dive out of the pick and roll action.    Team Celtics    Miller may have been the player with the highest upside at the Rising Stars Showcase, as he displayed his elite two-way impact around the basket, great energy and hustle on each play, and once he develops a consistent jumper, sky is really the limit for the young forward. Miller made his presence felt in various ways in his team's semifinal loss to the eventual champs, Team Clippers, finishing with 14 points, earning numerous trips and scoring from the free throw line, 11 rebounds, and 4 blocks, showcasing his massive wingspan, timing, and agility to dominate around the basket. Miller uses his long strides to get ahead of the defense, gets plenty of scoring opportunities off the missed shot, limits opponents to single shot possessions, blocks and alters shots around the basket at a high clip, has the lateral movement to close out and contest perimeter shots, and deflects entry passes that often lead to steals and turnovers that his guards can take advantage of. Miller has nice timing on the dive off the pick and roll action, seals his man off nicely when posting up, uses the spin-move, face-up jumper, and has nice touch on shots around the basket.     Smith had a great showing at the Rising Stars Showcase, with a crossover move that had the crowd on its feet and arguably the play of the Showcase. Smith would lead all scorers in his team's semifinal loss with 15 points, showing he can score the ball from 3-levels. Smith has dynamic handles, shifty moves to get his defender off balance, good lift and body control on the jumper, with accuracy from the mid-range to the 3-point line, and a crafty scorer around the basket, using the euro-step, reverse, and up-and-under lay-ups to score among height. Smith has active hands on defense, alters shots on the wing, has the timing and reaction to deflect passes, jump passing lanes, or poke the ball out to get out and score in transition.     Robinson had a strong second half showing for Team Celtics, helping his team claw back in the game before falling short, scoring 9 of his 11 points after intermission, to go along with two blocks. Robinson has solid handles, moves to create off the bounce, a good burst off the dribble, keeps pressure on the defense, and moves fluidly off the ball to get open looks off the catch.

Sacramento, CA - Saturday, August 15th, I made the trip up to Sacramento High for the annual Rising Stars Showcase hosted by Coaches Corner. The event featured two girls semifinal games, a three point contest, and a championship game, with the boys following the same format, to make for a fun and entertaining day of hoops. This article looks at 6 prospects from the teams that lost in the semifinals, referred to here as the consolation teams, that made the most of the opportunity in the one game they played. In this article you will find the following information: the player's name, height, player position, current school they are attending, and the stats I kept from the event. We begin this updated list with Will Farrington Will Farrington 6'7" | PF Campolindo | 2029 State CA-N .