MVPs who caught our eye at the Expo 

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Expo brought the best out of players that were there and they truly went in and battled. Some had loud moments, and others starred in their role but these names kept coming across my notebook as some of the top performers on the day. I went back and rewatched the event and saw prospects who stood out throughout the entire event. There was 2-3 guys who could've honestly made this list from my last article as well but ultimately here's the guys that I went with who felt like they made the biggest impact at the Expo. This is who I would've put as the All Expo 1st-Team. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2959409"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6aac614a8896c"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Valdez's IQ is through the roof and it stands out every single time that I watch him. He's an alpha and the best passer in the state in my opinion and this was an event that he played with the Junior and Seniors and really stood out. He's hitting cutters, he pushes the pace on makes and misses and gets his guys easy points by just knowing where they should be. He also creates so much separation with the ball on jumpers and breaking guys down off the dribble in iso or using the screen because of his anticipation. Valdez is going to look great in these kind of situations because he's not having to see double teams each time out and playing with guys who can create on their own so having a pass-first PG makes it that much easier. This was an event that the 3-ball was on and he kept knocking down shots. Cruz is under control, runs the show and him getting out to the event and playing hard the entire time only boosts his stock even more. He loves hoop and <a href="http://competing.he/">competing.</a> He was one of the top guys on the day.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2960397"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6aac9402e0bcf"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Diggins might be one of my favorite watches moving forward and was undeniably one of the top players at the event. He made the event better with his presence. He competed on both ends, communicated and encouraged teammates to run faster and close out on guys and hyping them up when they got going. He owned the spotlight with full on effort. He broke guys down off the dribble, finishes above the rim, passed to open guys and knocked down 3-point shots as well and his play was contagious. He's a leader type of player who is athletic and looking to make the next play. He had some dominant stretches where he was doing what he wanted and others where he played a bit reserved depending on the matchup and him just keeping it on the entire time would make him a very dangerous player. He's good enough to want to guard the best player every single game and challenge himself as he's a two-way standout. We liked what we saw from him in the state playoff run but I think we get that kind of player for the entire season. Diggins was very good at the event. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2531917"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6aac9402e0c07"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Ulmer is good, but right now we might be seeing the best version of him that we've ever seen. He's very skilled and was finishing with either hand, he takes over at times and scores with ease and what I feel separates him is you know what kind of player you're going to see each time out. A lights out scorer who can't be denied. You can tell that Ulmer is very comfortable on the floor right now as he came to the event and played with a chip the entire time. I liked the level of fire that he brought to the Expo. Usually prospects are trying to find the mismatch, not him, he wanted to go at the top guys and he was loud about it. He had a matchup against another top 10 kid and he guarded him and wanted to show that he could defend as well and went right at him and let him know about it too. He was maybe a bit too aggressive at times but I will take that if you're going to challenge yourself defensively as well. He came up with steals and multiple blocks as well. This was a good barometer for him as you don't see the double teams at showcases. If he went into every single matchup like this he might be a real problem this year. Maybe a switch has flipped for him and he's maybe who benefited most for me by getting out to the event. MVP of the event for me.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2506209"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6aac9402e0c3a"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Patrick came into the event and took it seriously and that's what you ask for for a top guy in the state. He's made a jump and could've mailed it in until the HS season but he wants to get out and compete, get better and push himself and that goes a long way. He was dominant as ever. There were times that he looked too big and the other prospects there looked hopeless at times. Scary thing is I think he's getting taller. He was handling the ball like a guard, bringing the ball up the floor, handling pressure and still getting to his spots and his 3-point shot was also on. He hit multiple in a row, worked the middle, got some back to the basket plays and also had some wild dunks including a windmill dunk through the lane that shows how versatile he is. If he wanted to have his way on the block every play he could and he should try and find a way to start games out maybe with 8-10 points down there and then open up just to see some go through the net. For him to be the highest ranked player there, he treated it like he still wanted to get better, and had a stretch where it got chippy with another top guy and he was losing the battle and then realized what was happening and took on the matchup and said that he wanted to defend a guard. It was fun and a fay that I feel like I learned something about him actually. Solid day and a top 2 guy on the day.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2531909"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6aac9402e0c69"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">This was the best that we saw from Bryson and he's so skilled and competitive and those are two things about his game that doesnt get talked about enough. He checks off plenty of boxes and got to show them off at the Expo. He hit 3's, had blow by finishes, is strong and absorbed contact and still finished and plays off 2. He plays within the flow of the offense and while I wanted him to be a bit more aggressive and hope he takes the aggression to the high school season it was great to see him make the extra pass, find teammates and still go and get his own. He's a finisher and scored in bunches. There were min-runs that he went on that he was hitting step backs, getting to the rim off the screen and in those last two games on the day, he truly took over. Defensively he was jumping passes for steals and finishes and had a couple of dunks as well. He's very athletic and showed his two-way prowess. Bryson is a versatile defender who defended multiple positions and he also turned that into baskets on the other end. I'm curious to see how he looks this year, if its anything like this then just buy stock now. I liked what we saw from Bryson.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block -->