WV Hidden Gems 2nd Edition

<p class="p1" style="text-align: left;"><strong><span class="s1">More gems from West Virginia!</span></strong></p> <p>We look everywhere for talent in the Tri State these next five student athletes are the hidden jewels that are exciting to watch, Some of these young men don’t even look like hoopers. These “Don’t judge a book by its cover” players can really light it up on the court !!!!! </p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p class="p1"><strong><span class="s1">[player_tooltip player_id="977514" first="Ben" last="Gilliam"] 2021 6’6” SF/PF </span></strong></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s2">Ben is a strong powerful kid who destroys his opponent, He averaged a double double this year at Woodrow Wilson. He has a way of finding the basketball.<span class="Apple-converted-space">  </span>This young man if you’re not careful will dunk on you for being between him and the basket. The Nickname Big Red should be an indication of what he looks like. Ben was runner up in this years Dunk competition at the Night of Champions in South Charleston with a dunk palming a ball in the left and right hand and dunking them at the same time. He has been working on his mid range jumper and<span class="Apple-converted-space">  </span>dribble package for this coming season. He should be a be problem for other teams in WV. D2’s and NAIA schools are already reaching out for him to visit. Playing for Woodrow Wilson High School in Beckley </span></p> <p class="p3"><strong><span class="s3">[player_tooltip player_id="977585" first="Drew" last="Reed"] 2022 6’4” SG</span></strong></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s2">Drew AKA “Silent Assassin” isn’t a known kid but he should be and he will be. This kid just finds a way to score. Starting out as being a deadly outside shooter he’s worked every day on the little things , dribbling, weight room , studying the game and it shows. The older he gets the more he sees the game like a coach. He was a big part of St. Albans High Schools first crack at a State Championship in a few years. When the Covid hit they were set to be playing on the big stage. He is a hooper with a love for basketball like i’ve never seen. Remember this name and remember Prep Hoops calling it first!!! [player_tooltip player_id="977585" first="Drew" last="Reed"] is the picture of Work Ethic marrying Talent !! D2’s better be hitting this kid up. He will be suiting up for The St. Albans Red Dragons this upcoming season </span></p> <p class="p3"><strong><span class="s3">[player_tooltip player_id="977536" first="Palmer" last="Riggio"] 6’0” SG 2021 </span></strong></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s2">Palmer a duel sport athlete is really good on the hardwood. This young man can only be defined as everything. This utility player does it all hustles, rebounds, dives on the floor plays defense, scores. There is nothing this kid can’t do. Every year getting better and better. He’s a matchup problem for a lot of WV teams. He had a very successful run with a Brand new coach at Cabell Midland this year. They were on fire on year. Very impressed with his court awareness and his way of adopting to the game and different teams they play. He should be getting recruited by D2’s NAIA coaches looking for glue players that can do what they need done. He will be starting at Cabell Midland High School this season. </span></p> <p class="p3"><strong><span class="s3">Joesph “Joe Joe” Patterson 2021 6’2 PG </span></strong></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s2">Joe Joe is currently going into his senior year at Huntington High School. This praying mantis of a defender knows how to use his length and wing span to speed up a offensive player. Joe Joe is very good at pressuring teams and creating turnovers into transition buckets. He’s very quick using his off speed and misdirection to space the floor and see targets cutting to the basket. He’s a floor general with no problem getting his team in the right places. His focus for the summer is shooting, Working hard to earn a free education during his final season as a highlander. D2</span></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s3"><strong>Jayden “J Nerv” Nervis. 2022 6’6</strong>” </span></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s2">Jayden is a Guard/Wing player with a damaging quick first step. Very good at working from a triple threat and breaking down a defender. His shot has improved with has run with Moravian Prep this past year. This down hill scorer has no problem getting to the Basket with his long frame. For his length he is very fast and has to contain by other kids his size Jayden has the ability to score at all 3 levels and able to read defenses to be able to get his team in positions to score. He’s already getting interest from several D1 schools. This kid will be a big time player. His competitive nature and lack of tolerance to losing makes it hard for teams to shut him down. LM-HM D1’s will be all over him this year. </span></p>