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2011 NIKE EYBL PEACH JAM REPORT (PART II)

By Brian Bosworth

After a lunch break for teams, college coaches, and scouts alike, the 17U tournament got back in swing on Tuesday evening with jaw dropping performances becoming commonplace.

Peach Jam 2nd Session Scoreboard:
Team Takeover 85, Athletes First 54
Oakland Soldiers 69, Texas Titans 51
Memphis YOMCA 71, City Rocks 62
BABC 79, Meanstreets 70
All-Ohio Red 73, Houston Hoops 69
Baltimore Elite 78, Boo Williams 71
NJ Playaz 72, California Supreme 60
CIA Bounce 55, All-Iowa Attack 53
Georgia Stars 78, Arkansas Wings 71
Indy Spiece 62, Louisiana Select 61
CP3 66, The Family 61
Mac Irvin Fire 60, Howard Pulley Panthers 53

Here are the highlights from some of the top performances NBE caught in action on Tuesday:

Brandon Ashley (Oakland Soldiers 2012) – Ashley is a big time combo forward who scored the ball in a number of different ways from the low post. He made numerous jump hooks over his left shoulder including one over the outstretched arms of shot blocking specialist Prince Ibeh. Ashley also brought the crowd to its feet with an incredible put back dunk after running down the lane and corralling the board. Not only a low post threat, Ashley showed face up game as well making an 18 foot jumper and using 2 dribbles to get to the rim from the 3 point line. He really has a versatile offensive skill set and is a nightmare match up for almost any defender.

Aaron Gordon (Oakland Soldiers 2013) – Ashley’s frontcourt mate with the Soldiers is a highlight reel waiting to happen. Gordon has been drawing comparisons to Blake Griffin throughout the spring and it’s easy to see why. On one play he faced the basket from 20 feet, used 2 dribbles to drive baseline and finished with a two handed dunk from the other side of the rim over a defender. At another point Gordon got a steal and led the break going between his legs on the dribble to get by an opposing guard and then whipping a perfect behind-the-back pass to teammate Jabari Bird for a dunk. Gordon also has the substance to back up his flash as he buried 3 pointers, finished inside and cleaned both backboards en route to 19 points and 12 boards.

Matt Jones (Texas Titans 2013) – Jones is a 6’4” scoring guard who can really fill it up from behind the arc. He has perfect form on his jump shot to go along with a quick release and has a tendency to make 3 pointers in bunches. Not only a shooter, Jones used ball screens dribbling in both directions to get to the rim and finish with both hands. He does need to improve his attacking game but there is evidence that he’s already working on that and has made progress.

Prince Ibeh (Texas Titans 2012) – Offensively, Ibeh is very raw and doesn’t try to do much beyond layups and dunks. On the defensive side of the ball however, Ibeh is a force challenging everything that gets anywhere near the rim. He tallied 10 rebounds and 4 blocked shots in this contest and those blocks are coming against top 20 players nationally in Brandon Ashley and Aaron Gordon. He didn’t back down from the star studded Oakland Soldiers frontline and forced them to think before just punishing the rim.

Julius Randle (Texas Titans 2013) – One of the best players in the country in the 2013 class, Randle struggled in this game but his talent is obvious. He ended with a respectable 13 points and 11 rebounds but took 14 shots to get there. Randle is at his best when he goes to work on the low block where his combination of strength, footwork, and patience make him a nightmare to deal with. Constantly facing double and triple teams throughout this game, Randle forced the issue at times but that is his role on this Titans team. One difficult outing here doesn’t change the fact that Julius Randle is in the middle of the discussion for top player in the class of 2013.

Daquien McNeil (Baltimore Elite 2013) – After playing with the 16U club for most of the spring, Mcneil has been called up to the 17U for this tournament. He didn’t miss a beat in this game getting into the lane at will and both drawing fouls and finishing plays. His 20 points fueled Baltimore Elite and all 20 of those points came either at the rim or from the free throw line after being fouled at the rim. Mcneil has a very quick first step and once he gets inside can explode off the floor and absorb contact. He didn’t show a perimeter shot in this game so that is likely an area that needs improvement but he is certainly a high-major scoring guard.

Jamel Artis (Baltimore Elite 2012) – Artis has incredible size as a 6’6” combo guard who has a chance to end up as a point full time. He has range on his jumper past the college 3 and hot shots both off the catch and off the dribble. His most impressive skill, however, is his court vision and passing. Artis routinely came off ball screens, got into the lane, and got layups for teammates by threading the needle. Very few players at his size have this type of skill set which will make Artis a hot commodity.

Troy Williams (Boo Williams 2013) – The nephew of legendary program director and head coach Boo Williams, Troy is a big time athlete at the wing position. He is at his best in transition where he can use his great speed to run the floor and then finish at the rim with big time leaping ability. Williams has very long arms on his 6’6” wiry frame and uses them along with his elite hops to be a high level rebounder from the wing. His jump shot needs work but his form appears to be solid so as long as Williams puts the work in he should be able to improve. He is a no doubt high-major wing and likely a top 25 player in the class when it’s all said and done.

Anthony Barber (Boo Williams 2013) – A scoring point guard, Barber was a very quick first step and a nose for the rim. He understands angles very well and seems to get his shot up at the rim before the defender expects him to be there allowing him to finish over interior players. Barber also showed range on his jumper albeit in limited attempts. As with most young points, Barber’s decision making can wander at times but this is something that should come with age.

Alex Poythress (Georgia Stars 2012) – Poythress is converting from a combo forward to a full time 3 and the transition appears complete. He can make shots from behind the arc but is at his best attacking the rim where he uses his speed and strength to get by defenders and punish the rim. Poythress had 4 dunks in the first half alone each one more impressive than the last. Defenders just get out of the way when Poythress is approaching the rim because trying to stop him is a fruitless effort. He did show some questionable body language at times and needs to give more consistent effort but when Poythress is going full throttle, he is one of the toughest covers in America.

Tony Parker (Georgia Stars 2012) – Parker is a load in the paint who has a very refined offensive game from the low block. He showed drop steps, jump hooks, spins, up and unders, and just about everything but the kitchen sink. Parker has one of the most complete offensive packages you will ever see for a high school player in the low post and is also very patient with the ball inside. In addition to all that, he even knocked down a couple 17 foot face up jumpers which simply isn’t fair for a man his size. Conditioning will always be something Parker has to focus on as he has a very big frame and he seems to have that message as he appears in better shape than when I saw him in April.

Jaron Blossomgame (Georgia Stars 2012) – committed to Clemson – Blossomgame is a run and jump athlete who knows what he does well and sticks to it. He tries to dunk everything in sight and is very successful at doing so as his uses his great length and big time hops to attack the rim. He didn’t show any off the dribble game or an outside shot but honestly didn’t have to. He went 9-11 from the floor for 21 points so it’s hard to criticize the young man’s offensive choices in this game.

Archie Goodwin (Arkansas Wings 2012) – Goodwin is fresh off a wrist injury and is wearing a large brace on his non shooting hand. It still seems to be bothering him as he sometimes lost the ball when trying to use his left and just doesn’t appear to have strength in the wrist yet. That didn’t stop Goodwin from scoring in bunches, however, as he put up 25 in this game by scoring from all three levels. Goodwin is one of the fastest players in the country with the ball in his hands and is constantly attacking the rim. He also showed off his 3 point stroke which looked better than it had earlier in the spring but his bread and butter and getting in the paint to score. He throws shots in from all kinds of angles once he’s there and doesn’t shy away from contact. Goodwin is one of the best pure scorers in the 2012 class and should continue to improve as he gets healthier.

College Coaches in Attendance:

Texas Titans vs. Oakland Soldiers – Head coaches were all over this game with John Calipari (Kentucky), Scott Drew (Baylor), Sean Miller (Arizona), Leonard Hamilton (Florida State), Mike Montgomery (California), Bill Self (Kansas), Lorenzo Romar (Washington), Thad Matta (Ohio State), Roy Williams (UNC), Ben Howland (UCLA), and Johnny Dawkins (Stanford) leading the charge. Assistants Jeff Capel of Duke and Damon Stoudamire of Memphis were also courtside.

Baltimore Elite vs. Boo Williams – John Thompson (Georgetown), Ed Cooley (Providence), Seth Greenberg (Virginia Tech), Buzz Williams (Marquette), Brad Stevens (Butler), Leonard Hamilton (Florida State), and Paul Hewitt (George Mason) were head coaches tracking this one with assistants from Kentucky, Maryland, Syracuse, and Washington also taking in the action.

Georgia Stars vs. Arkansas Wings – This was another popular game with Josh Pastner (Memphis), Cuonzo Martin (Tennessee), Seth Greenberg (Virginia Tech), Roy Williams (UNC), Mike Brey (Notre Dame), Mike Anderson (Arkansas), Bill Self (Kansas), John Calipari (Kentucky), Thad Matta (Ohio State), and Leonard Hamilton (Florida State) leading the head coaches. Assistants from Duke, Alabama, Memphis, and Arkansas also were on hand.

Recruiting Updates:

Aaron Gordon – Gordon stated that basically the entire PAC-10 and Mountain West conferences were all over him specifically mentioning Washington, Stanford, Arizona, New Mexico, UNLV, Texas and Kansas as schools of interest.

Matt Jones – Since coaches staring calling on June 15th, Jones said he has been hearing the most from Duke, Florida, Texas, Providence, Miami, Oklahoma, Baylor, Texas, Texas Tech and Memphis. Jones said he is looking for a school with strong academics and an up tempo style that will allow him to do what he does best, shoot the ball.

Daquein McNeil – McNeil said the schools on him the hardest right now are Virginia Tech, Florida, VCU, Richmond and Maryland with Virginia Tech, VCU and Maryland having offered.

Kameron Williams – An explosive scorer on Baltimore Elite’s 16U squad, Williams’ father told me that they are getting calls from Richmond (offer), VCU, NC State, Penn State, South Florida, Providence, Washington and Miami.

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