Omaha Westside Preview: Player Evaluations from Practice
During the opening week of the Nebraska high school basketball season and I got the chance to catch an early glimpse of the Omaha Westside basketball team. This is an experienced group that looks to be lead by a talented…
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Continue ReadingDuring the opening week of the Nebraska high school basketball season and I got the chance to catch an early glimpse of the Omaha Westside basketball team. This is an experienced group that looks to be lead by a talented senior class and a duo of lockdown sophomore defenders. Here are the players that impressed in Omaha Westside’s third practice of the season.
Jadin Booth – 6’0 Guard – UNO Commit class of 2020
Jadin Booth looks happy to be back on the practice floor. The senior UNO commit has had an impressive career, averaging 19.6 points over his last two seasons. Even though Booth has shown the ability to take and make difficult shots, he does a great job playing in this offense and swinging the ball to open teammates. As someone who has been around and played for Coach Simons for a few years, Jadin can be an extra coach on the floor. Early in practice, he helped younger teammates on the sideline when they were confused about a new offense set that was being put in. Booth is a hard worker and a good teammate that is in store for a great finale to his high school career.
PJ Ngambi – 6’1 Point Guard – Class of 2020
Ngambi may share some of the duties of taking the ball up the court this season, but there is no question he is one the best ball handlers in the state. PJ can create shots for himself by sizing up defenders with crafty dribble moves or lulling them to sleep and then blowing by with quick drives to the hoop. The lefty point guard has a pretty jump shot and does a good job of elevating around the rim to finish against bigger defenders.
Carl Brown – 6’4 Forward – Class of 2020
Brown is a lengthy shooter that doesn’t need much separation to get his shot off. He uses a combination of turn-around and fade-away jump shots to be an effective half court scorer. Carl plays with patients and has good footwork to get defenders up in the air or off balance. Even as a longer wing players, Brown plays low to ground and is able to leverage defense around the rim or get by players hips on blow-bys. He competes on defense and is a loud communicator in transition and on-ball actions.
Chandler Meeks – 6’0 Guard – Class of 2022
Chandler Meeks is a competitive combo guard that should see an increase in his statistical production entering year two. In his freshman season, Meeks averaged 3.3 per game, a number that I would expect to triple this season. One thing that won’t change entering year two is Chandler’s defensive versatility. He can pressure the ball, guard multiple positions, and force turnovers. With the amount of talented guards on this Omaha Westside team, Chandler spends a lot of time playing off the ball on offense, which can be good for him. Instead of having to be the initiator, he can focus on what he does best offensively, which is force the issue and attack the rim.
Reggie Thomas – 5’11 Guard – Class of 2022
Reggie Thomas is another sophomore combo-guard on this Westside squad that will give teams in the Metro defensive problems this season and years to come. Thomas is a muscular guard; but he plays with the speed and agility of a player half his size. He can guard and switch onto multiple positions, using his strength to battle with bigger matchups. Having the ability to put a tough nosed defender like Reggie on one of the opposing teams best players to conserve offensive energy for players like Jadin Booth and Carl Brown will make things much easier for this team.