Ibarra had a big game in the district championship against Omak. Quincy’s point guard got in some foul trouble and when he left the game a lot of the ballhandling fell onto Ibarra. Omak came with high pressure to try and take advantage of the situation, but Ibarra was calm and actually used their aggression against them to split defenders and work his way into the midranges and paint to knock down shots. He’s a guy who can really switch up speeds and eat up a lot of space with a methodical attack. He finished the game with 16 points, 14 rebounds, five assists, and two steals, scoring efficiently from all around the paint, and coming up with some huge rebounds, really filling a lot of needs for his team in a tight game.

Ibarra had a solid game in a loss to Zillah and kept using his patience and footwork to score around the paint and out of post ups. When he faces up, he has a nice pullup out of one dribble either direction and was getting buckets by keeping his man off-balance with tons of hesitations and pivots.

Here’s another Quincy Jackrabbit with All-State potential. Ibarra is a patient player who gets his buckets with fakes, footwork, and soft touch, spraying shots from all over the halfcourt. He can score going any which way and does a great job working the heart of the defense, splitting defenders and converting tough shots.

Ibarra made quite a few heady defensive plays that had a lot to do with his anticipation and quick hands. He’s not the quickest or strongest guard out there but he was reading the floor, anticipating flow, and making a number of plays by slinking off his man to jump passes and even come over for blocks in the paint. These were well-timed plays that put his team in position to get out and run as well.

Julian was a standout last year in the Top 250. I only watched one of his games this year. I have watched him many times in between. He has some of the best footwork you will find. He uses it to free himself for shots from anywhere. He uses it to get closer to the hoop. He uses it for everything you can use it for. He is also a great shooter from three. His shot is effortless and smooth. Could have been an all tournament selection. He is always solid and a certified bucket getter.

Julian has been showcasing a lot of growth over the summer when playing for BDH Elite. He can score the ball well, being able to drop 15/20 any night. He finds his teammates nicely, keeping his head up and eyes open when facilitating the offense. His body frame has been starting to shape into a college athlete body. He has great length, utilizing his length to his advantage on the defensive end.

Ibarra is part of a three-headed monster at Quincy, all of whom averaged over 20 points per game last season. Obviously, scoring is not an issue for the Jackrabbits, but with Ibarra’s size and IQ, he really should be a more consistent defender. He definitely shows the ability to impact the game on that side of the ball and can be a big-play guy on defense blocking shots and racking up steals, but sometimes he lets offensives struggles leak into his defensive play. Again, with his IQ he has shown he has the potential to be a high-impact two-way player, it’s just about finding a way to maintain that high level of play on both ends.

I like his game in that he is able to make tough shots with regularity. He uses good footwork and plays at his own speed, setting up the defense and knocking down shots from mid-range with fadeaways, and step throughs. He can shoot the three. He has a high basketball IQ. He is versatile. He is strong enough to be effective scoring at the rim. It might not have been what he would consider a highlight but he made a nice cross court pass in the half court for a wide open three. I thought it was definitely notable as I see so many times that pass would be effective to get open looks. Maybe a lost art, was glad to see it happening.