Prephoopsnext Middle School Camp- Indiana: Camp Standouts

The Prephoopsnext Middle School camp was a big hit over the weekend. These young players showed why they stood out above the rest.    Watching this young man play was truly awesome! Brodey dominated the competition for most of the afternoon. Whoever guarded him on the court didn't have a chance. Especially in isolated situations. There was a sequence in the three-on-three sessions, where he literally scored the ball on five straight possessions. Brodey has excellent one-on-one skills to get around defenders and get to the basket. This guy scored around the basket in a variety of ways. Whether it was converting on floaters down the lane or scooping in reverse lay-ups; Brodey was an unstoppable force on Saturday. He didn't disappoint in the full-court sessions either. Brodey handles the ball, finds teammates with pin-point passing and of course, scores. He's also a really good shooter. I watched him nail multiple threes and a decent amount of perimeter shots. This young man was a complete threat for the opposition throughout camp yesterday. I really appreciated how aggressive Brodey stayed whenever he was on the floor. Keep it up Brodey!!     Zane plays the game with a high level of energy. He constantly made positive plays for his team Saturday. This young man really excelled at breaking down the defense and attacking the paint. (sometimes scoring through contact) I watched him convert a number of three-point play opportunities in the game. He was able to take full advantage of smaller players guarding him in the paint. Zane has an excellent all around scoring game. He can score in the post, slash to the basket, knock down perimeter jumpers and nail long distance threes. He's very athletic and loves running the floor and scoring in transition. He converted at least five baskets when his team had the opportunity to run on fast-breaks. What I really loved about watching Zane play, was his emotion on the floor. Whenever he made a play, he got pumped up! The energy he let off always seemed to bring energy to all his teammates. On defense, Zane was really great at timing passes, shooting the lane and taking the ball away. His steals lead to many of the teams scores in transition. He 's a great player with a very high motor on the basketball court. I expect nothing but the best from him in the very near future. Keep balling Zane!!     I can't say enough about this young man! This is may second write up of Jay. After watching him play Saturday afternoon, I must say, "Jay has made himself into a big time player!" Don't get me wrong? He was good the first time I watched him play in middle school. Now after seeing him play over the weekend, I can say he's boarding elite status. In the middle school game, Jay excelled at breaking down defenders and attacking the basket. I really didn't see a high percentage jump-shot or passing ability. Well, that's changed in a big way! For months, Jay has been telling me how much he's improved his game. This young man now has the ability to consistently make threes. I watched him knock down four of them in one of the full court sessions at camp. He's also a really good passer who found a number of teammates with flashy passes. Many of those assists lead to easy baskets. Jay continues to stay aggressive offensively, that hasn't changed. He's just incorporated shooting and passing to his arsenal. Having these new skills will make him a dangerous player to handle defensively. Speaking of defense, Jay continues to be a great on-ball defender who causes turnovers and forces opponents into mistakes. Keep working Jay!!     I thoroughly enjoyed watching this little guy do his thing on Saturday afternoon. I've always had a thing for rooting on smaller players. Especially if they play fearless an hold their own. Well, Anthony did all this and more. To be a sixth grader, this young man plays just as advanced as his older peers. Despite being the smallest player on the floor, Anthony showed the capability of running the lead guard position at a high level. I watched him dish off solid assists, which always found the open man. Many of his passes lead to high percentage shots for his teammates. Anthony showed the ability to handle the basketball, break down opposing defenses and score in the paint when the option was available. Every time I looked up, I saw Anthony battling for rebounds, chasing down loose balls and generating turnovers on defense. He's very crafty with the basketball. Having these skills allowed him to get his shots off on the perimeter. Anthony's a lethal shooter from three-point range. During the full-court sessions, I watched him nail six of them. He's a fearless competitor who had no issues going up against older and larger opponents. Great job Anthony!!     Laeton's a great offensive scorer and facilitator. He's the kind of player who can be the team's lead guard, while having the skills of being the top shot-maker. During the camp's half-court sessions, Laeton was practically un-guardable. Every opponent who attempted to stay in front him, truly had a hard time doing so. Whether it was breaking them down off the dribble, knocking in pull-up jump-shots or beating them to the rim; there were no answers for Laeton. On numerous occasions, I watched him attack the defender, get into the paint and draw fouls. He's a strong guard who showed the ability to score despite being contacted by the opposition. In the full-court sessions, Laeton's game became even better! He had more space to operate by using the whole court. His passes became more fluid and his scoring became easier. He's a flashy passer who showed a knack of finding the open man near or around the basket. Most of his dimes lead to positive outcomes for his teammates. Laeton was able to show off his shooting ability during the full-court sessions. As I said, he had more space to take advantage of his talents. He was able to knock down threes and score in transition multiple times during the games. Keep Balling Laeton!!     Kingston was one of the hardest working players at the camp. When I say, " this guy did everything" I mean it! Kingston brought the ball up-court and facilitated the offense on numerous occasions. This lead to positive outcomes for his teammates. He had a quick first step that made him tough to guard for his opponent. He often used this move to blow by defenders and get to the basket. Many of his scores came off these kind drives to the rim. Others came from offensive rebounds he grabbed in the paint. Kingston played with maximum effort! He tried to make every play needed to help his teams win. Whether it was staying in "attack mode," grabbing boards, blocking shots or playing defense; Kingston was a difference maker Saturday afternoon. Some of his baskets came from running the floor and scoring in transition whenever his team forced turnovers. Defensively, is where I really appreciated his effort. Kingston was a big time pest for the opposition. He applied constant on-ball pressure and forced a couple of steals. He also blocked multiple shots and made scoring difficult for his opponent. Keep it up Kingston!!     This is my second write up for AJ. I have definitely noticed a difference in his game, compared to the first time around. AJ has become stronger and a much better ball handler. Whenever I watch him play now, I see a strong guard who attacks the basket, scores through contact and converts his free-throws. He easily breaks down opponents off the dribble and gets anywhere he wants on the floor. In the full-court camp sessions, AJ attacked the defense and made plays for himself or his teammates. Many of his assists came from opposing defenses collapsing on him when he attacked the paint. Either he kicked out passes to open teammates on the perimeter or near the basket. AJ has really improved his play-making and floor leadership. He's more of a vocal leader now. When I saw him the first time, AJ was really quiet. The newest asset I saw in his arsenal has become the capability of being deadly accurate from mid-range. He displayed these skills by making a high number of perimeter shots throughout multiple games. AJ can knock down the occasional three pointer when its available. If he can enhance his ability of making three-pointers, AJ will become the complete package on a basketball court. Keep working AJ!!

The Prephoopsnext Middle School camp was a big hit over the weekend. These young players showed why they stood out above the rest.