Minnesota’s Top Ten “League Pass” Rankings: Class AAAA
In this article:
The NBA season is underway and that means games every day across the country for all you basketball junkies! Sure, the Golden State Warriors are on pace to plow through the league once again, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t…
Access all of Prep Hoops
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingThe NBA season is underway and that means games every day across the country for all you basketball junkies! Sure, the Golden State Warriors are on pace to plow through the league once again, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t fun and interesting and exciting players, teams and storylines to follow in between; how will DeAndre Ayton pan out in Phoenix? Is Trae Young going to be Steph Curry 2.0? People who love basketball, these questions are for you, and so is today’s content.
Today we run through some of the more thrilling teams around the state of Minnesota at the Class AAAA level that you should dig up a livestream on or check out in person if you can!
10) Eastview – The Lightning still have another year of their core after this one, but big strides over the summer in the games of Steven Crowl and Tate Machacek bode well for the other high school in Apple Valley. Eastview is poised to take over section 3AAAA with their high dose of talent, and adding point guard Jaylen James to the mix gives the bigs someone to feed them the ball and provide perimeter scoring. Ryan Thissen is another junior expected to be a factor with his defense and outside shooting. They’ll build off of their 12-17 record in 2017-18.
9) Shakopee – Speaking of more 2020 talent, the Sabers have a ton of it. The trio of Caleb Druvenga, Will Cordes and Charlie Katona is dynamic and fast-paced, structured to run-and-gun for lots of points. They hit the 80 and 90 mark multiple times last season and Katona has emerged as a legitimate Division 1 wing prospect. Druvenga has always been underrated as a passer and Cordes is a capable scorer off the ball. A couple years of rebuilding could be turned around quickly for this team.
8) Buffalo – Let’s keep talking juniors! With the Bison it begins with Matt Willert, 6-foot-4 small forward with extended range from downtown. I saw him on the biggest stage of his career last season (section final) and he delivered big shot after big shot. A bona fide number one option for his high school team, not to mention his Comets squad on the grassroots circuit. Then all-purpose worker Tony Dahl returns to fill in all gaps everywhere, plus shooter Brandon Maatz and prolific quarterback Aidan Bouman are back on the wings. Buffalo has shades of a contender in section 8AAAA so we’ll be watching them closely all season.
7) Cambridge-Isanti – It begins with Henry Abraham and probably ends with him too. The 2020 guard averaged 21 points per game and will continue to be the focal point of the offense. The Bluejackets went a surprising 18-10 last season and will be a likely favorite in section 7AAAA returning more pieces like seniors Luke Malamisuro and London Williams. Expect Abraham to be a nominee for multiple POTW awards this year and for Cambridge to reach the 20-win mark.
6) Champlin Park – Josiah Strong graduated but the Rebels seem to have more depth than just about any other year. A massive lineup of forwards will see time along with Augustana commit and bucket-filler Bennett Otto. Add summer sensation Juwan Grant to the backcourt rotation again and that’s a formidable two-man machine. Junior forwards Jared Walter and Cooper Olson saw time last season and will be in the mix for double-digit numbers, plus senior center Alex John as a rim protector and dunker in the middle is a threat on both ends. And we haven’t even mentioned lengthy defensive stoppers Jacob Johnson and Kato Seley yet! Champlin Park lost six games last year and that seems about right again this season, maybe even less.
5) Prior Lake – Dawson Garcia and Robert Jones pose twin tower threats standing 6-foot-10 each. Matchup problems for days in the South Suburban with those two. Then Sam Nissen knocking down every three-pointer known to man is the backcourt stalwart. He’s a great pace-pusher and manipulator of transition. Jackyse Jacox is the ideal off guard to take on the best backcourt defensive assignment and he creates turnovers to run that fast break. Carson Schoeller as a third big man at 6-foot-8 just feels like gravy. Consensus top 10 team all year with their talent, we’ll see how their spacing works out.
4) Rochester John Marshall – Matthew Hurt is one of the ten best 17-year-old basketball players in America, so that’s the main explanation for this ranking. He put up 34 points and 14 rebounds per game in 2017-18. But what we’re all going to forget until we see them (this includes me) is the set of role players around him who make the Rockets functional. Hurt will have the ball in his hands for most of every game. The moments when he doesn’t are the ones that will separate this team from its floor (still somewhat high, top 20 ranking in AAAA) to its ceiling (state tournament participant). Montrae Hiatt was impressive last season scoring around 8 a game and Simon Werven is another senior with experience. Watching this team in the summer was a good preview: basically Hurt does the bulk scoring and makes a few unbelievable plays per game, and the surrounding talent works their tails off to win their matchups. A solid recipe that will work, especially when everyone buys in. They need to be closely observed, not only for the wow factor of their star player.
3) Park Center – Lots to talk about with the Pirates. Dain Dainja is a star post player who expands his dribble and perimeter game every time he plays. Not many in the NWSC are touching his abilities. His company of Emmanuel Tamba (my pick for best backcourt defender in the state), Tommy Chatman (one of the summer’s best stock raisers, pure scorer, surefire D2 talent), Detavious Frierson (freaky good leaper and rebounder), David Ijadimbola (shifty point guard with great anticipation skills) and Khari Broadway (a battle-tested PC veteran entering his fifth year of varsity hoops, one of the better defensive wings out there with a vastly improved playmaking ability) will be hard to measure up to around the metro. James Ware has made sure to beef up the non-conference schedule with early season matchups against Prior Lake, Eden Prairie and Edina on the slate. This team’s kryptonite has been the neighboring Orioles; will they reach the promised land this time around?
2) East Ridge – The heap of Division 1 talent on this roster (and deeper still, Division 2 and 3 level prospects) is nothing short of remarkable. The size advantage with Ben Carlson, Courtney Brown, Kendall Brown, Alex Larson and Brody Kriesel all standing taller than 6-foot-5 with ball skills makes for a nightmare on defense if you’re a Suburban East foe. Zach Zebrowski, Kendall Blue and Patrick Lynott seem to be the ballhandling and shooting guys along with Kendall Brown. This team has it all and with a few more years of contention down the road, expect the Raptors to keep rising. A must-see squad as a basketball fan.
1) Eden Prairie – There are a handful of teams you could pick as preseason number one in AAAA. I’m rolling with the Eagles. Their quartet of juniors who return to the starting lineup (Dobbs, Henry, Christensen, Andrews) along with Lukas Dunford in the middle brings so much big-game experience that it’s hard to pick against them. Do not forget—Eden Prairie defeated the top-ranked team in ALL FOUR CLASSES at the time of those rankings. Wins over Minnehaha Academy (easily a AAAA level team), Minneapolis North (same deal), DeLaSalle (still the best team in AAA over the last eight years) and Cretin-Derham Hall (state champion) all in the same season? AS SOPHOMORES? I’ll take that group against anybody. Add in South Carolina transfer Ariel Bland to fill another forward spot and this team has size, speed, shooting, basketball IQ, and everything else you need. Don’t miss out on this team.