Fall League Whip-Around (9/11-12): Scoring Guards

I attended fall league games September 11-12 across the valley at the ACU, Central, and Best in the West fall leagues. Here are some of the more intriguing scoring guards from the weekend.    Quick guard who attacks downhill in a flash, using a quick first step and sudden lateral bursts to blow by defenders and create layups at the rim. The step-back three is a go-to move for him, whether he is working out of the pick-and-roll or using a quick behind-the-back dribble to create the space and readjust into the shot. Plays with terrific pace in transition, finishing off steals and accelerating through traffic with a good handle. Disruptive on the other end as well, recording multiple steals and flashing into the paint to break up entry passes.     Can get to the rim at will, with a real feel for contact once he gets into the paint, waiting on the bump before going up and readjusting in the air to finish. When he has it at the top of the key he will slow his approach and then burst into the lane to get by his man for the layup. Excellent finisher who gets there a variety of ways: hesitation moves, spins, and slicing through multiple defenders. He can really get to the paint from just about any starting point on the floor. Has the ability to shoot it from three as well. Consistently active on the defensive end with quick hands, turning steals into fast break opportunities and facilitating for teammates in the open court. Can pick pockets both on the ball and when rotating from the weak side to help.     Midrange scorer who plays bigger than a guard. Has a real feel for creating his own shot, working post-ups into turnarounds and able to pull up off the dribble. Had good success in the second game of the day, converting baseline post-up turnaround middys. What he really excelled at this past weekend compared to the SWBC was his ability to force contact and get to the line. Got there consistently in the second game off offensive boards and put-back attempts. He has a strong build and takes advantage of it on that extra effort, which makes it easier for him to finish through contact.     Proved he could be a capable pull up shooter with a strong slashing game, attacking downhill on bigger defenders, able to re-adjust his layup attempts going up at the rim. Mixed in some pull-up threes as well, with a clean release. Played well in transition, making the right reads in the open court and finding his teammates on the break. Played good on ball defense, and took the [player_tooltip player_id='2432574' first='Terrance' last='Byrd'] assignment for most of their game against SDO, holding up well on him near the perimeter and in the post despite the size disadvantage.     Loves to utilize spin moves near the top of the key to get separation from defenders, using it to get downhill for easier layup attempts. Showed off his midrange game by hitting pull-ups in that area of the court as well, and liked to mix in hesitation movements when driving into the paint before kicking it out to the open man. Plays with a high IQ when close to the rim and out in transition, seeking out contact, jump stopping, waiting for defenders to bite and leap, then leaning for the potential and one. Which is a good idea at his size, and gets him to the line more.     Catch-and-shoot threat who is comfortable letting it fly from beyond the arc, knocking down multiple shots off the catch and coming out of the pick-and-roll into a dribble pull-up, getting his feet set quickly. Can put it on the deck as well, driving through multiple defenders and converting at the rim. Also showed aggressiveness fighting for offensive rebounds and looking for put-back attempts. Active hands on defense, turning steals into fast break layups for his teammates. Good vision too, able to find cutting teammates while he is driving himself.

I attended fall league games September 11-12 across the valley at the ACU, Central, and Best in the West fall leagues. Here are some of the more intriguing scoring guards from the weekend.