Second Live Period: Day 2 standouts (Part 1)

<p>The second evaluation period in SoCal was chaotic to say the least, as at least six showcases and live-period events took place throughout the region.</p> <p>I had a chance to attend four of the events, primarily focused on San Diego teams, but had a chance to watch quite a bit of basketball.</p> <p>On Day 2, I attended the SoCal Live, The Stage, Pangos Live and West Coast Elite’s live period event. Here’s my first sampling of standouts.</p> <p><a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2022/04/IMG_8457.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1442343" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2022/04/IMG_8457-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" /></a></p> <h3>Pearson Carmichael, 6-6 2024 G, Players Play 16u Elite</h3> <p>This was my first time seeing Carmichael live after he made a ton of noise during the first spring live period, and it’s easy to see why. The big guard checks off a lot of boxes: He’s a heady combo guard who can get to the basket (plays at a good pace, doesn’t get sped up) and finishes through contact, he’s a consistent shooter both off the catch and in pick-and-roll action, he’s an excellent rebound for his position and can guard 1-4 at the HS level. Moreover, he gives max effort when he’s on the floor. Definitely one of the top prospects I watched all weekend. </p> <p><a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2022/04/IMG_8459-1-crop-3616x2374-1651343404.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1442349" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2022/04/IMG_8459-1-crop-3616x2374-1651343404-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /></a></p> <h3>Vladimir Khryapa, 6-7 2024 W, Lakeshow 16u Shaughnessey</h3> <p>The son of former NBAer Viktor Khryapa, Vladimir has a lot of great physical tools. At 6-7, he has a long, wiry frame and doesn’t look close to done growing. He has solid ball skills and can attack downhill and finish with either hand. His perimeter shooting is streaky, but his mechanics are solid and he has a quick release. Defensively is where he has a chance to be special and versatile defender at the next level as a 3/4 combo. He’s one to watch. </p> <p><a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2022/04/IMG_8454-crop-1858x1220-1651343500.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1442351" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2022/04/IMG_8454-crop-1858x1220-1651343500-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /></a></p> <h3>Ryan Enos, 6-8 2024 F, Players Play Elite 16u</h3> <p>Enos was the second player from Players Play who received a ton of attention during the first live period. When you’re 6-8 and shoot the ball as well as he can from the perimeter, it is easy to see why. Enos has an excellent frame and albatross-like length, moves well without the ball on offense, setting solid screens and sprinting to open spots on the perimeter, and getting his feet set quickly. He shoots it especially well from the wings and corners. He tracks offensive rebounds well and does a solid job finishing those through contact or above the rim. In order to unlock his vast potential, he needs to improve attacking closeouts and scoring in the midrange and paint off the dribble (he’s ponderous off the bounce) and must improve his lateral quickness to defend pick and rolls or mobile four men on the perimeter, as he struggled at times to contain dribble penetration. </p> <p><a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2022/04/IMG_8465-crop-1008x662-1651343565.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1442354" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2022/04/IMG_8465-crop-1008x662-1651343565-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /></a></p> <h3>[player_tooltip player_id="1380769" first="Connor" last="Sevilla"], 6-0 2023 PG, Team Infinite</h3> <p>The Dougherty Valley guard put on a master class of playing with pace against superior athletes in the back court in his team’s surprising win over Prodigy Elite. Sevilla used change of pace to consistently get Prodigy’s guards on his hip, which allowed him to get paint touches at will. From there, he played off of two feet and either scored with an array of crafty finishes around the basket or drew double teams and found open shooters or dump-off passes to his bigs. Later in the game, Prodigy sent aggressive double teams to get the ball out of his hands, and he forced a few turnovers, but when left one-on-one, he had his way. He’s a college prospect at some level. </p> <p><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1442356" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2022/04/IMG_8470-crop-1779x1168-1651343721-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /></p> <h3>Delyle Williams, 6-2 2023 G, Team Elev8 16u National</h3> <p>Elev8’s 16u team had several younger 2023 prospects on it, and Williams was the catalyst of the team’s win over Players Play Elite. A big-bodied guard who can dribble, pass and shoot, it was Williams’ energy and effort on the boards that sparked the second half comeback, as well as a stretch in which he hit consecutive threes and assisted on a third to Eric Castillo (an under-the-radar 2024 point guard out of La Habra) to give them the lead. Williams’ body might not scream "high level prospect," but his productivity warrants a hard look from schools. 4</p> <p><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1442359" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2022/04/IMG_8534-crop-1666x1094-1651343815-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /></p> <h3>Tombe Pittia, 6-8 2022 F, Lark’s Elite</h3> <p>Pittia, who played at Balboa School this year, is an intriguing undersized five prospect with some elite athleticism and length. His skill-set is still pretty unrefined, but his energy on the boards, lateral quickness and ability to stunt and recover in pick and roll, as well as block and contest shots rebound out of his area, are all high level, as is his finishing on the offensive boards. He had 3 tip jams in the first half, including two highlight ones over a 7 footer. In this era where unsigned seniors are less of a priority for D1s, a D2 who is willing to develop the other areas of his game would be getting a steal. </p> <p><a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2022/04/IMG_8533-crop-1794x1178-1651343900.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1442361" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2022/04/IMG_8533-crop-1794x1178-1651343900-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /></a></p> <h3>Giovanny Evanson, 6-5 2023 PG, NW Reign (OR) 17u</h3> <p>Evanston is a silky smooth lead guard with great size, length and feel. He can play too high sometimes, but his change of pace out of the pick and roll allows him to get paint touches consistently and he picks teams apart with his passing and crafty finishing out of the set. Making him more intriguing is his athleticism, as he was able to finish above the rim in the haflcourt attacking out of the pick and roll. He needs to get stronger as well as maintain his effort level defensively and become a better shooting threat off the bounce (sometimes over penetrates), but there is a lot to like about the package he brings. He’s a borderline D1 prospect. </p> <h3>[player_tooltip player_id="996386" first="Jimmy" last="Baker"], 6-1 2023 PG, Prodigy Elite</h3> <p>While this wasn’t the best I’ve seen Baker play, some of the constants in his game translate well to the next level. He has elite burst and ability to get into the paint and knows how to play off of two feet. He draws a lot of fouls because of this and gets to the line frequently, a nice bonus for a guard. He is an elite on ball defender due to his exceptional foot speed and lateral quickness and comes from a program known for producing high-level defenders. The next leap in his game has to be becoming a consistent shooter from the perimeter and midrange. </p>