Westtown Invitational: 2028 standouts (Sunday)

Westtown hosted its annual pre-Thanksgiving tournament, featuring eight high-level prep programs from across the Northeast for three days of early season action. After taking in the championship Sunday slate, we'll kick off coverage with a handful of 2028 prospects who impressed over the course of the day.    Among the more improved prospects in the region, Fernandez has gone from the obscurity of Rhode Island freshman-team ball to being a true force at the prep-school level within just a few months' time. A hulking presence on the interior, Fernandez capped a strong weekend with an effective 18-point effort in a tight third-place win over Redemption Christian. He has soft hands and natural finishing touch over either shoulder, punishing single coverage with patient and efficient moves on the low block. The Dominican national showed glimpses of ball skills and shooting touch to develop over time, while looking more effective changing ends and protecting the rim after having cut close to 30 pounds from his frame. Being this effective already while still in the relatively early stages of development at his size, Fernandez appears to have a bright future with potential for the highest levels of college basketball if he continues on his current track.     Maybe the most intriguing new find of the day, Jordan caught the eye right away with a unique blend of size and fluidity with budding strength and explosiveness. Not just a bundle of physical tools, he would go on to show a diverse skillset with a healthily aggressive two-way mindset. A natural guard who's grown several inches into a modern mismatch forward, Jordan played all over the floor on both ends. He was effective flashing to the middle of the defense to make plays as a scorer or facilitator, while also stepping out to the perimeter to display a smooth, confident shooting stroke and developing ball skills while on the attack. On the other end, Jordan was effective moving his feet with guards in space while also using his size to crash down for rebounds and help-side blocks in rotation. Still a bit rough around the edges, he boasts a high ceiling if he's able to put all the pieces together in the years to come, with a D1 offer from Rider already in tow.     West Nottingham took a tough loss at the hands of Phelps' prep team, but Browne nonetheless managed to continue a hot start to his repeat sophomore year. With 16 of his 22 points in the first half before the deficit got too wide, he showed his smooth multi-level attack while staying consistently aggressive within the flow of the offense. Known primarily as a jump shooter, the Baltimore native knocked in a lone 3-pointer but really impressed with a series of knifing drives to the rim, displaying improved ball skills and finishing prowess. We'd like to see a bit more from him in the floor game moving forward, but Browne's blend of natural scoring instincts with elite positional size makes it easy to see why he's so highly-regarded as a prospect.     Among the more established scorers in his class nationally at this early stage, Phillips was up to his usual tricks on his way to an efficient 17 points despite Westtown's championship loss at the buzzer. The jumbo guard shined with controlled aggression attacking downhill, rising up for multiple dunks in traffic and consistently drawing contact on his way to 11 free throw attempts. He showed improved poise as a decisionmaker once he drew extra defenders while also using his foot speed on the defensive end to cover ground and make plays in passing lanes. There aren't many more effective downhill scorers in the class, with the rounding out of his floor game being a promising sign as it pertains to Phillips' long-term development.     While it came largely with the score bordering on out of hand at times, Pochkhua did more than enough in an 18-point second half on Sunday to warrant mention here a prospect worth tracking. A skilled big new to the U.S. from the eastern European nation of Georgia, he used his strong frame to establish leverage both in the post and attacking off the bounce out of faceups, warding off his man for tough finishes inside or drawing contact and converting efficiently at the foul line. He also showed admirable competitive fire, competing to the final whistle despite a lopsided margin. The European influence and FIBA experience is easy to see in Pochkhua's processing ability and offensive versatility. He'll have to work to establish a more clear defensive role in the long run, as he's a bit undersized as a rim protector and slow of foot guarding on the perimeter, but his blend of size, skill, and toughness put him at least on a likely path to a scholarship when the time comes.

Westtown hosted its annual pre-Thanksgiving tournament, featuring eight high-level prep programs from across the Northeast for three days of early season action. After taking in the championship Sunday slate, we'll kick off coverage with a handful of 2028 prospects who impressed over the course of the day.