2021 top facilitators in the 5A playoffs

<p>With the season over, we want to take a look back at a season that was before we head onto the grassroots scene. Here we focus on some senior guards that stood out as facilitators in 5A during their state-run.</p> <h2><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="770403" first="Myles" last="Purchase"] – Cherry Creek</strong></h2> <p>Purchase is one of the biggest game-changers in the entire state and certainly one of the most athletic. He is a tenacious defender that opposing guards never feel comfortable around; he impacts the game in multiple ways and is a big part of why the Bruins only had one loss all season in one of the most difficult conferences in the state. Purchase is a two-way player known for his defense, but his offense was also on display this year. He is the team's best facilitator, and he is able to make things happen. He is a knockdown shooter that can get downhill and finish at the rim but is also liable to set up a defender to have to choose when to guard him or his teammates. In the playoff run, he put up 15 points, 20 points, and 10 points, but the defense really stood out as he came up with timely rips, which ended up being points in transition. Purchase is a Division I athlete playing football at the next level but was effective and a proven winner in every setting and had a solid senior run that came up a bit short.</p> <h2><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="965745" first="Alonzo" last="Paul"] – Regis</strong></h2> <p>Paul was the guard that went a bit under the radar the season but was the heartbeat of that Regis team that went 14-2 on the year. Plenty of what Paul does goes beyond the scoreboard as he forces defenses to have to adjust, and he is the team's best facilitator and playmaker. Defenses cannot be set up in zones with the team's outside shooting, but he cannot be contained in man, which leaves opposing teams with difficult decisions. Paul has a quick first step and excellent court awareness. He can score on the break, gets inside of the defense when there is a zone set up, and makes the defense move. In the playoffs, he continued with that strong play. He was scoring and making the defense rotate, passing quickly and moving away and not allowing defenses to key in on guys, and that goes a long way. Paul is a guard who can play at the next level and should be getting some eyes his way.</p> <h2><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="916967" first="Garrett" last="Arnold"] – ThunderRidge</strong></h2> <p>Arnold is one of the most unselfish guards that the state has had in the last four years who was capable enough to put up big numbers but put his team first and in the position to win every time out. It was no coincidence that the team barely lost when he was playing, and that was while playing through injuries for most of his senior year. Arnold did not play a ton in this condensed season, but the Grizzlies knew who they could count on when it was winning time. Arnold found the open man and was the vocal leader of the team. He set teammates up, and when he got the ball, the team seemed to play with a sense of urgency. Arnold finished in transition, forced teammates in the right position, and took care of the ball. He had flashy passes and made the right play, and that is what you need from your point guard who went a bit under the radar but did enough to be named state champs.</p> <h2><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="759207" first="Ben" last="Bowen"] – Mountain Vista</strong></h2> <p>Bowen is not a point guard, but that seemed to be a part of his game that he added this season, and he looked excellent in the ball-handling role. Bowen read double teams and various box-and-ones to get himself open and also generate points to open teammates. Putting Bowen at the guard spot forced the trap to come up the middle and opened up the rest of the floor, and he did that as he had a career-best year passing the ball and his team adapted to it. In his playoff run, he was a dual-threat as he opened up with a pedestrian 16 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals, and 6 assists on a relaxed night before giving his team all he had in a 27 point, five rebound night against a solid Eaglecrest squad. Bowen left it all out on the floor and had a successful season considering. Great run for the 6’5 combo-guard at Mountain Vista.</p> <h2><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="916972" first="Cade" last="Palmer"] – Rangeview</strong></h2> <p>Palmer was a player that I felt had the most to prove this season as he was stepping into a role as a knockdown shooter to more of a true point guard role, and it showed how diverse his game really is. To have your best shooter have the ball in his hands on every possession is dangerous for opposing teams, and with so many players from two straight undefeated years team graduate, it was on him to carry the torch. Well, he certainly handled his own and put his team in a position to score every single night as the Raiders went 16-0 straight games to push the winning streak to over 60+ games over the last couple of seasons. In the playoffs alone, Palmer was rock solid as the Raiders leading scorer put up 15.7 points and 6.7 assists a game. Palmer was seeing faceguards and different looks and was still managing to wiggle loose to make a play. He was who the team relied on to be the facilitator, and he led the team to wins before finally falling in the Final 4—stellar season for the senior guard.</p> <h2><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="965741" first="Michael" last="Wolf"] – Regis</strong></h2> <p>Wolf is lights out from deep and a consistent and reliable shooter for Regis. Wolf upped his scoring in his senior year as he is starting to look more comfortable with the ball in his hands. Wolf is a deadly shooter from deep that makes the right play and throws zip passes to get the offense going. The Raider's offense was a bit more free-flowing with him in the game as defenses have to extend the defense, or he would make them pay, and when his shot was not falling, he was able to score over smaller defenders at the rim. Wolf started the see his game open up a bit more as he started making the extra pass as it re-positioned the defense. He was a guard that opposing teams keyed in on, and he was still able to score 17 points, a 29-point (career-high) eruption, and 13 points in the playoffs. When Wolf is on, there are not many more entertaining players in the senior class, and we got to see a bit of that as Regis went on their run.</p> <h2><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="916991" first="Nick" last="Fallin"] – Rock Canyon</strong></h2> <p>Fallin has a taller and slender body at 6’3 but what he was able to do at the lead guard spot with the ball in his hands is one of those moments that will stick with me for quite some time. Rock Canyon went on a magical run by pulling off two upsets in the first two rounds of the playoffs, and it was their point/combo-guard that got it done. Fallin shined bright with the lights on him when it mattered most and led his team to a couple of playoff wins along the way. He put up 17 points in a blowout win over Overland that turned heads and then exploded for a career-high 35 points in an OT win, which led all scorers in the playoffs. Fallin was hitting everything. He went 5-9 from deep, got inside and finished, and also got it done at the FT line. He was also finding holes in the defense and quickly getting it out of his hands before the defense set. He was not facilitating as a point guard typically would, but putting the ball in his hands opened it up for others to operate, and he made it happen.</p>