Sakihama always impresses me with his on-ball defense and table-setting ability. He locks up on the defensive end and is a nice floor general for STM, always setting up teammates for easy looks and making the kick-ahead pass to jump start transition. But against Vermont Academy, he also showed off a nice-looking three-point stroke that I haven’t seen before. If he can consistently take and make three-pointers, that’ll make his offensive game so much more dynamic and difficult to stop. The senior recently de-committed from Merrimack but should find another scholarship somewhere. So fun to watch.

My goodness, I absolutely love Sakihama’s game. He’s a full court hound defensively, constantly poking at the ball and sliding his feet to beat the offensive player to the spot. Offensively, he’s lightning quick with the rock in his hands and is one of the best passers I’ve seen in the region. He loves to go to the look-away pass which almost always throws the defense off and gives the shooter or dunker-spot hanger an extra second to make a decision. He’s the exact type of guy you want to play with as a big man because he can make all the passes you would need him to make in the pick and roll and half court. He should be a low D1 guy in my opinion, despite his size.

Sorry to every other player that I’ve written about in my Summer Notebook series, but Sakihama is my favorite watch in all of New England. I saw the 5-foot-9 point guard at the NEPSAC Showcase where he was giving high major D1 guards absolute hell for 94 feet, taking the ball from them again and again. He was the best on-ball, pesty defender I saw this summer. Offensively, Sakihama has ridiculous quickness and can get to wherever he wants on the court, and then he also has some of the best vision I saw this summer. Just an unbelievably electric player to watch — someone I can’t speak highly enough about. He just committed to Merrimack recently, but higher level D1 coaches will be kicking themselves that they overlooked him because of his height.

Sakihama, fresh off a commitment to Merrimack College, makes his first appearance in the New England rankings after arriving at St. Thomas More. A standout this summer at the FIBA 17U World Cup, Sakihama popped onto the scene in New England with his performance at the NEPSAC Showcase. Arguably the top on-ball defender at his position, Sakihama has an elite feel for the game on that end of the floor as he anticpates opponents movements and does a great job of creating turnovers. Offensively, he has terrific vision and is already a next level passer. He’s a good athlete that utilizes that athleticism to counteract his lack of height. At the end of the day, he does two things at an elite level that you expect a lead guard to do – set up his teammates to score and generate easy offense off of turnovers. He should play a big role in STM’s success this winter and could be a major riser in our next update come December.

Sakihama was my favorite player I watched today, and it’s not that close. He’s the best passer in the gym and also maybe the best on-ball defender. He was making special passes all day and had complete and utter control of the entire floor. Even though he’s only 5-foot-9, he’s a special floor general who should be looked at by D1 programs searching for a point guard.