Monday, May 4, 2009

More Run N Slam Reports

A few other top players I saw this weekend..

Alex Gauna 6'8 PF-Committed to Michigan State. Hit us with a variety of post moves and also stepped out and hit a 3 or 2 on us. He was very good.

Andre Dawkins 6'5 SG-Committed to Duke. Dawkins might have been the most athletic player I saw in the tournament. He took off from outside the lane against 2 guys and if he wasn't fouled he would have completed the dunk. Duke has been missing some athletes other than Henderson lately and he will fill that void.

Keith Appling 6'3 PG-Committed to Michigan State.The Michigan Mustangs PG was very good. He was explosive, quick as hell, and great handles. I do not remember him shooting from the perimeter though. Still a high major just with his athleticism.

Austin Etherington 6'6 SG-Struggled with his shot in the 2 or 3 games that I saw. I think some of that inconsistency might be due to the fact that he is still working his way back from micro fracture surgery.

Brad Elam 5'10 PG- An underrated point guard that can score inside and outside. Very quick and uses ball screens very well. Although on the small side, he can still shoot over people to an extent.

Aaron Bluitt 6'0 PG- Bluitt is a D-1 type of player when he is looking to take the ball to the basket aggressively rather than just settling for 3's. A good shooter but forces it from the outside often instead of getting in the lane.

Taylor Wayer 5'11 PG- Wayer had a good weekend. He is strong so when he gets into the lane he can use his body to create fouls. I would like to see him attack the rim even more.

Kellon Thomas 5'10 PG-The freshmen continues to make me a believer in him. Strong and heady, Thomas rarely makes mistakes with the ball. He is also a good shooter so defenders cannot lay off him to protect from the drive.

Run N Slam Top Performers

I came up with some short summaries of a few players that played well this weekend in Fort Wayne at the Run N Slam tournament.

Kendall Marshall 6'3 PG- Committed to North Carolina. Marshall was always in control. He led his Boo Williams team very well. He can do it all although not a lights out shooter, he is a very good shooter. He distributed the ball first and looked to score second.

Travis McKie 6'6 SF- Committed to Wake Forest. McKie will fit right in at Wake. Athletic and can shoot...does Wake Forest recruit any other type of player? He was very good in the games I saw.

Jared Sullinger 6'8 PF-Committed to Ohio State. Sullinger dominated the top ranked player in the class of 2010 Josh Smith in their match up. Sullinger is more athletic than he looks although he is not a super athlete.

Ralph Hill 6'6 Junior wing that recently committed to Dayton- My team played against him and I did not know him before the game. He had about 5 dunks in the first quarter on us. He was explosive on the drive and we had no one that could body him out of the lane. He also buried a 3 after I yelled at our guys to give him a step because he couldn't shoot.

A.J. Hammonds 6'11 Frosh- Very skilled for a young big man. Only a freshmen, once he loses his baby fat he will be a big time player. He has just enough of a mean streak to dominate.

D'vauntes Smith-Rivera 6'2 Frosh-Power guard. Done growing to my knowledge so he is a little bit different than most highly ranked players. He is also smarter than he is athletic. He uses change of pace better than most college players and then he uses his body when he gets in the lane. Needs to add range to his game to be a high major player although high majors are all over him.

Ron Patterson 6'3 Frosh-Strong and athletic but also highly skilled especially in the mid-range game. He pulls up exceptionally well for a player his age. Definitely a high major player.

Dejuan Marrero 6'7 Frosh- Athletic as you can get for a big guy his size. Runs well and can get up. Showed a mid-range jumper that could make him impossible to guard.

Rapheal Davis 6'3 SG Frosh- Shoot the ball really well in the 3 games that I saw him play in so it can't be luck right? Davis looked like he had a solid body to go along with his skills. I will follow him more in the future.

Ohio Basketball Club 16u had a bunch of 6'6-6'9 skilled players that could run and shoot the ball. I did not get any names on them though.