Geico Nationals: Link Academy vs Prolific Prep (Pt. 2)

<p class="p1"><span class="s1" style="font-size: 14pt;"><b>Geico Nationals: Link Academy vs Prolific Prep (Pt. 2)</b></span></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s1">FORT MEYERS, FL—It’s hard to believe but Geico Nationals is in its thirteenth year of existence and its been quite a ride with a staggering amount of players that have ended up in the NBA, including Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons, and Jaylen Brown to name a few. This year is no different as there are a plethora of highly-talented ballers in <b>[player_tooltip player_id="889560" first="Jordan" last="Walsh"]</b>, <b>Chris Livingston</b>, <b>Dariq Whitehead</b>, <b>Keyonte George</b>, and Gatorade National POY <b>Gradey Dick</b>.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s1"><b>Budding Star</b></span></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s1"><b>Omaha Biliew (Link Academy)</b></span></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s1"><b>2023, F, 6-foot-8, 220 pounds</b></span></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s1"><b>Joel’s Take: </b>With all the talent that will be leaving this team, I’m intrigued about what Biliew will evolve into going forward. He showed glimpses of his physical traits in this game versus Prolific Prep. He is a beast in transition where he has that lethal combination of power and explosiveness. He has solid ball skills, can attack off the bounce, and he’s a willing passer in the paint. As he continues to tighten his overall offensive game, he looks like one of the Top 10 prospects in the class.</span></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s1"><b>Destination Unknown</b></span></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s1"><b>[player_tooltip player_id="594069" first="Julian" last="Phillips"] (Link Academy)</b></span></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s1"><b>2022, F, 6-foot-8, 190 pounds</b></span></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s1"><b>Joel’s Take:</b> In his quarterfinal game, Phillips couldn’t find the touch with his jump shot. However, in this game, he converted some feathery shots both in the mid-range as well as out to the 3-point line. His triple-threat game looked tight as he utilized the up-fake to convert an up-and-under step-through move for the finish. As of this writing, this LSU de-commit has Auburn and a host of others in pursuit.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s1"><b>Versatile Post</b></span></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s1"><b>[player_tooltip player_id="981141" first="Tarris" last="Reed Jr"] (Link Academy)</b></span></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s1"><b>2022, F/C, 6-foot-10, 265 pounds</b></span></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s1"><b>Joel’s Take</b>: If Hunter Dickinson decides to stay, Head Coach Juwon Howard could have a lethal (High/Low) post-game with Reed. The big-bodied C/F can score with his back to the basket or face-up his defender and take them off the bounce. He converts over either shoulder and his hands and touch are soft. Some of the moves that stood out were an off-hand finish in the paint and a relentless baseline finish that showed resiliency.</span></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s1"><b>Clutch Performer</b></span></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s1"><b>Trey Green (Link Academy)</b></span></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s1"><b>2023, G, 5-foot-11, 165 pounds</b></span></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s1"><b>Joel’s Take</b>: Despite missing a couple of studs including [player_tooltip player_id="1252976" first="MJ" last="Rice"], Prolific Prep put up an epic effort against Link Academy. He marked all the boxes in the scoring column as he hit 3s and delivered a smooth runner off the bounce. Toss in a slashing drive and a look ahead pass to a cutting teammate (Biliew) put evidence into that “clutch 4th quarter performance”.</span></p> <p class="p1"> </p>