Thornton, a guard out of the Brimmer & May School in Massachusetts, was on a heater all weekend long. The 6’1″ guard proved to have some real shot creation ability with the ball in his hands and in-the-gym range on his jumper. He showed the ability to break down opponents off the bounce in isolations, to create space to get his shot off, and to make contested shots late in the clock. Without the ball, he did a nice job of sliding into passing windows and was consistently shot ready on the catch. As far as instant offense goes, few in the gym could match his ability to get hot in a hurry.

Thornton, a guard out of the Brimmer & May School in Massachusetts, is ranked #7 among the shooting guards and #76 overall. The 6’1″ guard was one of the breakout performers of the NEPSAC Showcase for me, showcasing serious competitive fire, the ability to play on or off the ball, and elite shot making from behind the arc. He has some wiggle with the ball in his hands, does his work early to be shot ready on the catch, and even shows some creativity as a scorer in the mid-range. On the other end of the floor, he’s able to defend either guard spot and makes plenty of plays off the ball that lead to turnovers.

Thornton really impressed me last night as a scorer for Team Sims HGAL. He isn’t super big—only 6-foot-1—but defenders seem to bounce off of him in the lane, and he has a knack for getting to his spots in the mid range and contorting his body for good looks. He has super nice touch, and he handles it well enough to create for himself and others. He didn’t play a huge role on Brimmer and May’s team this season, but the HGAL circuit will be a good place for him to show off what he can do offensively. D3 programs should certainly be interested in him, and perhaps he can carve out a role with Brimmer next year to make that more likely.

Thornton comes off the bench for Brimmer and is as solid as they come. The 6-foot-1 guard can shoot it from three, and he understands how to cut and move without the ball to get open shots. The quickness of his release also helps him get solid looks off. When the defense overplays him, he can attack closeouts and make really smart spray out passes in the paint. Defensively, Thornton had a nice Jose Alvarado sneak-attack steal and showcased really good hands and activity against South Kent. He should find a D3 spot in a couple years.

Thornton, a scoring guard out of the Brimmer & May School, checks in at #177 overall and #35 among the shooting guards. Thornton is at his best in catch and shoot situations, where he does a nice job of doing his work early and being shot ready on the catch. He moves well without the basketball, does a nice job of running the floor in transition, and has a quick release with deep range on his shot. He’s improved with the ball in his hands, can attack a closeout to get to the rim, and is a quality open floor defender that really does a nice job of guarding the ball.

I love his intensity diving for loose balls on the floor. Closes out on shooters well with a high hand. Good hands while catching and has a quick release shooting. Has the ability to knock down shots even off inaccurate passes not in the box. Does a really good job rebounding for a guard reading the trajectory of the ball and spin off the shooters hand. This player is a D3 prospect but has two more years and aau to raise his stock.