Class of 2022: Stockrisers

<p>I got to watch a lot of basketball this spring and summer, and there were a lot of players in New Mexico that stood out while playing in both local, and national tournaments! Now that school year has begun, and the basketball season is only three months away, I want to name a few players in the Class of 2022 that are my biggest stock risers from this summer and last season.</p> <p>6’6 F [player_tooltip player_id="1192089" first="Ollie" last="Fell"], Espanola Valley: My first time seeing Ollie was in the 4A semi-final game against Del Norte where he really impressed me with his athleticism. He stands around 6’6, and has a knack for knowing where to be on the defensive end getting a bunch of blocked shots. He is raw offensively, but opposing defenses need to watch out for him on the offensive glass where he can punish teams with put backs. </p> <p>5’10 PG [player_tooltip player_id="1192090" first="Garret" last="May"], Espanola Valley: May was named his districts player of the year this past season, and was a great leader for Espanola. He’s more of a throwback point guard that is defensive minded, he is a good playmaker that doesn’t try to do too much with the ball, and runs his team like a well oiled machine.</p> <p>6’3 [player_tooltip player_id="1207585" first="Scotty" last="Mullin"], Alamogordo: Mullin burst onto the scene this past season proving to be on of the top snipers in the state. He helped Alamogordo to an 11-2 record, and averaged around 20 points per game. He will be an interesting guy to watch next year as we have a traditional 16 seed playoff.</p> <p>5’8 PG [player_tooltip player_id="1225473" first="Oscar" last="McCoy"], Volcano Vista: Oscar is an underrated player in New Mexico. He handles the ball very well, and has a lot of poise with the ball in his hands. He is a good finisher for his size, and just an overall competitor. Greg Brown loves kids like this, and I expect him to be a key player off the bench for another deep Volcano Vista team.</p> <p>5’11 SG [player_tooltip player_id="1128606" first="Javier" last="Mendoza"] (featured), Atrisco Heritage: Mendoza is a do it all guard that stepped up big for Atrisco last year. He averaged about 12 points per game, and always seemed to be competing for rebounds and defending opposing teams top scoring threats. A streaky shooter that can light it up from beyond the arc if he gets hot.</p> <p>5’11 CG [player_tooltip player_id="1076693" first="Joren" last="Mirabal"], Magdalena: Mirabal was rank 27th in our latest rankings, but has proven to be in the top 10! The 1A player of the year, and arguably the best player in all of 1A through 3A, averaged 28.4 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 4.9 assists per game leading the Steers to a state title. He is one of the best shooters in the state with legit NBA range that should hear from a few division 2 schools before the end of his career.</p> <p>6’4 F Keagon Caton, Rio Rancho: Keagon is the son of former University of Utah guard Ben Caton. Like his dad Keagon can really shoot the basketball, but what impresses me the most is his motor. He is grabs a ton of offensive rebounds, sells out on defense to draw charges, and doesn’t cause too many unforced turnovers. He is sneaky athletic and is developing some wing skills. It should be interesting top see his development over this summer as he could turn in to the next star player for the Rams.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p>