Circle City Summer Shootout: 2022 Guards

<p>The Circle City Summer Shootout happened over this past weekend and even though there were much bigger tournaments going on, this was a chance for us to take a look at some under-the-radar prospects. Here, we take a look at some 2022 guards that stood out. </p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Nathan Hoffman</strong> - 6’1 SG - Bloomington North - Indiana Elite Blaze Select 2022: Hoffman is a shorter two guard that works well off the ball to get an open look. Shot the 3 a ton here but his shot was just a little off in the game I watched. Was mixing it up in the lane a little bit and got in there and was able to rebound on both ends. He has shown in the past that he is a pure shooter so not concerned at all with this off shooting performance. Big fan of his willingness to find other ways to contribute if his shot is not falling. Hoffman is an interesting talent to watch this next year.    </p> <p>[player_tooltip player_id="1152148" first="Marco" last="Fitch"] - 6’0 PG - Bloomington North - Indiana Elite Blaze Select 2022: Fitch is a smaller lead guard that again played with that scrappiness that he has shown in the past games I have seen from him. Was pushing the tempo a ton here and showed off a little pull-up jumper as well. Rebounded well and defense was strong and aggressive. Still not much of an outside jumper but not 100% certain that should be a huge concern as he is more of lead guard that will penetrate and either finish or kick it out. Also should point out he is a really good ball-handler and is smart with the ball. Another tough performance for Fitch here.    </p> <p><strong>Donovon Cunningham</strong> - 6’3 SG - Castle - Indiana Elite Blaze Select 2022: Cunningham is a bigger shooting guard with a good amount of strength and hustle. Ran the floor very well and would mix it up in the inside and outside evenly. When he was in the inside, he used his bigger frame to go up strong and finish through contact. With his outside game, he is more of a catch-and-shoot type of shooting guard. On defense, he can guard pretty much any spot besides maybe the lead guard. Solid showing from Cunningham.   </p> <p><strong>Evan Whitesell</strong> - 5’10 PG - Wes Del - Legends 2022: Whitesell is a shorter yet aggressive lead guard. Pretty quick and handles the ball very well. He is solid athletically and gets down and plays defense and even showed off some nice shot blocking ability. Did not see a whole lot of his jumper this time around but he was pretty good on the drive and finished pretty well. The one big takeaway from Whitesell is that he is tough and knows how to play the floor general spot.  </p> <p><strong>Malachi Coaster</strong> - 6’0 PG - Tindley Prep - Indy Nets Basketball 2022 Elite: Coaster is a shorter lead guard that has a high motor. He was playing all over the floor here and it just seemed like he was constantly trying to make a play on both ends. Solid outside shooter and knocked a couple down off the catch. Was real aggressive on defense and used his speed and energy to stay on top of the ball handler. This was my first time seeing coaster but I could already tell that this guy leaves it all on the floor at all times. </p> <p><strong>Layden Adair</strong> - 6’0 PG - Scecina Memorial - Indy Nets Basketball 2022 Elite: Adair is a shorter point guard that is pretty shifty. Had a few moments in the game where he showed the ability to slice the defense and make a play at the basket. Not really an outside shooter as he looked like he preferred to utilize a floater which looked to be pretty consistent. Also was not afraid to go amongst the trees and fight for a few rebounds. Overlooked guard that a solid day.  </p> <p><strong>Quincy Stamps</strong> - 6’2 SG - Indianapolis Metropolitan - Indy Nets Basketball 2022 Elite: Stamps is a shooting guard with a huge frame. For being such a bigger player you would think he would be more post but his skillset was showing that he is a guard. Can do a little bit of everything on the offense like shoot, drive, facilitate, and more. Outside jumper is solid but his best play is when he uses his speed and body to truck through contact and finish at the rim. Lot of skill in this bull of a player. </p> <p><strong>Rhett Harmon </strong>- 5’7 PG - Columbus North - Indiana Elite Swish 2022: Harmon is a shorter, quick lead guard that again showed how smart of a player he is on both ends. Mixed it up a little bit on offense and was sharp with his post feeds and even showed a little bit of his outside game. Really liked what I saw on defense from him as he had a few strips and steals that led to fastbreak opportunities. Ball handles were spot on and rarely saw any mistakes from him when he had the ball in his hands. Just like when I watched him in the spring, Harmon showed off his sharp ball IQ and played to his strengths.  </p> <p>[player_tooltip player_id="870288" first="Christopher" last="Royal"] - 6’4 SG - Bloomfield - Southwest Rebels: Royal is a lanky shooting guard that can really light it up at times. Can shoot the ball from all over the floor but especially good in the game I saw with his fadeaway jumper and 3 off the catch. One of the more underrated parts of his game is his court vision and his ability to see his open teammates and provide them with some good looks as well. Could see him primarily being off the ball long term once he plays at the next level. Royal is a confident player that can be so automatic at times. </p> <p>[player_tooltip player_id="1169396" first="Hayden" last="Maiben"] - 6’2 PG - Maconaquah - Triple Threat: Maiben is bigger combo guard that has solid toughness on both ends. Pretty balanced on the offense and noticed how well he cuts to the basket and finishes. On defense, his size and aggressiveness helped him guard both the guards and forwards. Was arguably the toughest guard when it came to rebounding that I saw on the entire day. Needs to continue to fine tune his skills a little bit more but does look like the type of player that wants to get better and put in that work in order to. </p> <p><strong>Cooper Galli</strong> - 6’3 SG - Mt. Vernon - Indiana Faith 2022: Galli is a taller two guard that can really light it up from behind the arc. Started off the game with 3 straight 3p's and was just knocking them down with so much confidence. Most of his outside jumpers came off the catch and it was a quick release that made his shots so hard to contest. He worked hard off the ball too and showed that he could knock down shots anywhere from behind the arc. Galli is a pure, natural shooter.    </p>