2010 Final Rankings Posted

My final rankings for 2010 have been posted on inbasketballsource.com. Make sure to check them out and leave some feedback!!!

IndyBall.com Impressions (2013)

The 2013 class might not quite be as good as the 2012 group, but it looks to be very good. Again, Eric Gordon All-Stars have a great group of prospects.

Basil Smotherman, Jr. 6'5 Heritage Christian is long, baby-faced, quick, athletic, and is a great shooter from the outside. He plays smart and within himself. He has reportedly been offered by Purdue already. I was really impressed with his game in the first couple times I have seen him.

Zak Irvin 6'4 Hamilton Southeastern is built like Smootherman with his long, wirey frame. He played JV this year for HSE and should be a nice second option to Gary Harris next year for them.

Devin Davis, Jr. 6'6 Warren Central was really active, plays hard, he looked comfortable on the perimeter although he did most of his scoring damage inside. He had a nice dunk driving from the arc in a half-court set. I see him being a wing in college.

RJ Currington, who is from Schererville but attends Oak Hill Academy in Virgina, was not at the tournament this weekend.

Darryl Baker 6'3 Jeffersonville (Team Southern Indiana 2012 Red) was playing after being out the high school season with a knee injury. Baker is strong, good court vision, and can shoot it really well from distance. Hopefully, he will be 100% soon and I will get to see how he really measures up with the other top 2013 players.

IndyBall.com Impressions (2012)

2012 is a loaded class in Indiana. There is enough talent in the 2011, 2012, and 2013 classes in Indiana for college coaches across the nation to all get a piece of the action.

The Eric Gordon All-Stars 2012 team is just absolutely loaded. All the next players are on the EG10 team.

Jeremy Hollowell 6'6 Lawrence Central has added some muscle since last summer. Hollowell didn't have the high school season most people thought he would. It wasn't a bad year, but he was inconsistent and people questioned his motor. Today, he was back in his AAU form. He buried a couple of 3's sandwiched together with a couple of powerful dunks. His length, athleticism, and skill set is unmatched in the 2012 class.

Rhett Smith 6'6 Sullivan has also added some weight to his frame. I'm not sure if that has affected his quickness. His pump fake and drive game was very good last year. His 3pt form looks more smooth than it did last year.

Nick Osborne 6'7 Muncie Central is really strong for his age. Osborne dominated the glass in the game I saw. He is really active and tough inside. He even showed some lateral quickness by containing a guard on the perimeter.

Brent Calhoun 6'8 Warren Central has improved around the basket. He is finishing much more consistently now. He has always been able to block shots and rebound, but now he is a threat on the offensive end.

Dylan Langkabel 6'4 Morristown was not as athletic as he looked when I saw him during the high school year. He did knock down a couple of 3's though. His skill set will not be questioned when determining what level he can play in college. The deciding factor will be his athleticism and who he can guard.

There are other very good players that I have not listed. Ronnie Johnson (North Central), Kendall Waters (Pendleton Heights), Patrick Ingram (North Central).

Grant Meyer 5'11 Silver Creek (Team Southern Indiana) impressed me with his shooting ability. Quick release and always in control, I will be watching him this spring.

Sam Hunt 6'7 Jennings County (Team Southern Indiana) is a big man prospect I haven't seen before today. He did some good things and moved pretty well. I will be keeping an eye on him this spring.

I didn't get a chance to see the Indiana Elite One team featuring Ron Patteron, Kellen Dunham, and Kellon Thomas. I should get a chance to see them Sunday.

IndyBall.com Impressions (2011)

The club has started and it is great to be back. There is a lot of Indiana talent in the tournament. There aren't many out of state teams, but it is a good first tournament for most teams.

2011

Alex Pritchett 6'7 Bedford North Lawrence (Spiece Select) had a dominating performance Friday night. Pritchett is very active, great motor, tough, physical and finishes well around the rim. He has the ability to shoot from the outside, but is still improving. He can play at the MM level, but probably not higher.

Justin Gant 6'8 Terre Haute North (Spiece Select) was much more aggressive on the boards and in the post than I have seen him in the past. If he continues to play aggressive, he will have a great summer.

Austin Richie 6'1 Lowell (CAPS All-Stars) had a huge first half in a game tonight. When Richie gets into an offensive rhythm, he is tough to stop. His whole game improves when he is knocking down shots. He gets into the lane more and finds teammates better when things are going well for him. I'm not sold on his quickness yet or his ability to play PG at a level higher than LM. I hope to see him more this spring.

Brandon Dunaway 6'1 Corydon (Southern Indiana) always plays within himself, finds a way to get into the paint, and is a good shooter. He looks like a good D2/NAIA prospect.

Chandler Guion 6'2 Lapel (Spiece Indy Stars) was in foul trouble in the game I saw, but I was impressed with his athleticism and quickness. He is a point guard, but is usually creating his own shot rather than looking to create for others.

Nate Gross (sp?) 6'5 Madison-Grant (Spiece Indy Stars) is a very good offensive rebounder, good motor, and a pretty good athlete. LM would be a stretch, but I think he could be a really good player at the D2/NAIA level.

Isiah Hill 6'9 Howe Academy (Eric Gordon All-Stars) still impresses me with how much weight he has lost. That being said, he still needs a lot of work. He still needs to get into better shape and his offensive game needs a lot of work. He could be a project for a LM or MM school willing to take a chance.

Ryan Taylor 6'5 Lawrence North (Eric Gordon All-Stars) hit three 3's to start a game this afternoon. He also went coast to coast splitting a couple of defenders on his way to a lay-up. He needs to be a wing at Louisville and it looks like he making strides towards achieving that.

Chris Page 6'4 Plainfield (Eric Gordon All-Stars) puts up big numbers for Plainfield, but he was basically their only scoring option this year for a bad team. Page can shoot it from the outside and is good off the dribble. Who he can guard is a question for me.

I have not seen many of the 2011 teams play yet. I hope to see Indiana Elite Team Indiana Sunday along with a few of the other 2011 teams.

AAU Begins!

Friday marks the start of the AAU season. I will be attending the Indyball.com tournament held at North Central High School in Indianapolis. The national tournament going on this weekend is the Boo Williams Invitational in Virginia.

I'm trying to compile a database of all the teams from Indiana. If you are a coach, player, or parent and would be willing to send me a roster for the team you are associated with it, I would greatly appreciate it. Please include grade level of the team, high schools, and height.

This is like Christmas in April for basketball fans!

Indiana Kids

Here is a list of Indiana kids in the NCAA tournament playing on non-Indiana teams.

Todd Hanni G 6-4 215 Sophomore Danville, IN UNLV
Armon Bassett G 6-2 180 Junior Terre Haute, IN Ohio
Tommy Freeman F 6-5 190 Junior Muncie, IN Ohio
Mark Titus G 6-4 215 Senior Brownsburg, IN Ohio State
Gary McGhee C 6-10 250 Junior Anderson, IN Pittsburgh
Jeff Robinson F 6-9 200 Freshman Indianapolis, IN Xavier
Joe Hughes F 6-6 205 Junior Indianapolis, IN Xavier
Dallas Green F 6-8 210 Senior Indianapolis, IN Robert Morris
Zak Estes G-F 6-4 200 Sophomore Indianapolis, IN Richmond
Kyle Kuric G 6-4 190 Sophomore Evansville, IN Louisville
Stephan Van Treese F 6-9 230 Freshman Indianapolis, IN Lousivlle
Dominic Moore F 6-10 195 Junior Fort Wayne, IN Arkansas-Pine Bluff
Mason Plumlee F 6-10 230 Freshman Warsaw, IN Duke
Miles Plumlee F 6-10 240 Sophomore Warsaw, IN Duke
Jonah Baize F 6-6 205 Junior Evansville, IN Clemson
Dairese Gary G 6-1 205 Junior Elkhart, IN New Mexico
Errick Peck F 6-6 215 Freshman Indianapolis, IN Cornell

I believe that is the complete list. If I missed someone, please let me know!

Next Level Translation

One thing that most parents, fans, and players themselves struggle with, at the high school level, is how a player's game will translate to the college level. Most fans seen a kid who scores 20 points per game and automatically think he will be a good college player. That player might very well be a good collegiate player, but some characteristics make it more or less likely. Most casual fans can tell how skilled a certain player is, but will he be able to do those skills at a faster pace against smarter, quicker, stronger opponents?

One example of being a great player at one level and not having it translate to the next level is former Oklahoma All-American Hollis Price. Price was generously listed at 6'1". He was probably closer to 5'10" than he was to 6'1". So, his height would be a major factor in the NBA. Height alone won't disqualify you from playing at any level (middle school all the way to the NBA). A player will have to be able to offset the disadvantage with a great strength though. Usually if a player is shorter than the average he will have to be unbelievably quick in order to create separation. Hollis was very quick for the college game, but probably average or slightly below average for an NBA point guard.

The next level is always made up of better athletes and more skilled players. The NBA is disliked by many people because of the lack of effort. That is true, but they are the best in the world. NBA benches are filled with college All-Americans. Guys that might have been the best player their college ever produced might struggle to get off the bench in the NBA. Hollis Price was a consensus second team All-American and never even made an NBA roster.

Every college team is made up of guys who led their team in scoring in high school. That is true for every college level as well D2, D3, NAIA...not just D1. That is hard for most people to understand. People see someone struggle to play well in the Big Ten and assume he isn't very good. If he was in a smaller conference though, he would probably be the leading scorer for a lot of teams. It can be very deceiving to the eye at times.

One player that has started a lot of arguments between fans of Indiana high school basketball is Nic Moore. The junior point guard from Warsaw is a great high school player. Not good, he's been great since he stepped on the floor as a freshmen. There is no doubt he is very skilled, hard nosed, and a smart player. He has a few things that will likely hold him back from playing in a major conference (Big Ten, ACC, Big East, etc.)and those things include his height and his lack of ultra quickness. He is very quick for the high school game, but he has average or below average quickness for those major conferences.

A lot of people think I'm just "hating" on Nic Moore. For one, I hate the phrase "hating on" someone. I respect his game very much. I just think he has some things that would make it very hard for him to play well in a major conference. He could even play for some of the weaker teams in the major conferences, but he would likely struggle against the good teams. His toughness and competitiveness definitely help offset his height disadvantage. I don't believe it is quite enough though.

I hope this helps parents, fans, and players to be more realistic about what level they think someone can play.