UPDATED 2019 Rankings: Breakdown
UPDATED RANKINGS HERE Highest Debuts No. 15 Agueck Deng (Valley) Another in a ridiculous wealth of Valley bigs. The Tigers already have Division I prospect Blake Brinkmeyer and top 2017s Quinton Curry and Charley Crowley, and now Deng…
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Highest Debuts
No. 15 Agueck Deng (Valley)
Another in a ridiculous wealth of Valley bigs. The Tigers already have Division I prospect Blake Brinkmeyer and top 2017s Quinton Curry and Charley Crowley, and now Deng is emerging. The 6-foot-7 rangy power forward was slamming all over guys this summer.
No. 31 Cortaviaus Seales (North Scott)
The younger brother of current North Dakota guard Cortez Seales and top 2018 Corvon Seales, Cortaviaus is starting to make a name for himself. He’ll could make his way into an impact role with North Scott this season.
No. 36 Quinn Schultz (Xavier)
Schultz is a well-build 6-foot guard who will not star with a loaded Xavier squad, but could certainly make his way into the regular rotation. He was fantastic in June during the Urbandale Team Camp.
No. 55 Keontae Luckett (New London)
The sidekick to prolific scorer and fellow 2019 Mason Porter, Luckett is the thunder to his lightning. A well-built and speedy 5-foot-9 point guard, Luckett is a true point guard with great vision and is skilled to boot.
No. 57 Jamie Spinks (Roosevelt)
The first thing that catches the eye is his great length, and man does he use it well. Spinks is a 6-foot-2 wing who gets to the hoop and finishes well. He’ll swipe plenty of steals this season with the Roughriders, and should block plenty of shots on the perimeter too.
No. 59 Colten Parkins (North Polk)
We first saw him last year at the Norwalk Team Camp, and he was good. Well he grew a few inches and was superb at the same camp this season. He’s a sharpshooter who sees the floor well, and plays with swag.
No. 66 Marcus Edwards (Hoover)
No surprise here, another nice Hoover guard coming through the ranks. Edwards is already gaining a reputation as being clutch — he’s certainly not afraid to take the big shot. He filled in with Kingdom Hoops Elite 15U while Locure was away at the Hardwood Classic, and played exceptionally well.
No. 67 Mosai Newsom (Waverly-Shell Rock)
A long and rangy big, Newsom had a big summer playing with Iowa Mavericks Purple. He’ll get some tutelage this season playing behind Northern Iowa-bound Austin Phyfe, and could emerge as a star before his senior season.
Movin’ on Up
It’s tough to move up once you’ve already reached the top-5, but we had no choice but to nudge G-H-V forward James Betz up from No.5 to No.4 — despite a strong offseason by Aidan Vanderloo — after his utterly dominant summer. As a freshman with the Cardinals the 6-foot-6 stretch-four averaged 9.2 points, 6.2 rebounds and just north on a block per game. Look for those numbers to skyrocket during his sophomore season after a summer playing — and dominating — top competition on the 15U and 16U circuit with Kingdom Hoops Elite.
Top Spread Even
The other classes have a more Barnstormer-heavy top-6. Iowa’s premier program boasts the top-3 guys in 2018, and the top-4 in 2017. And although the ‘Stormers do hold the top spot in 2019, with 6-foot-8 guard Patrick McCaffery, this class is spread even among its players with Kingdom Hoops, Martin Brothers and Barnstormers each placing two in the top-6. Tyreke Locure and James Betz are holding it down for Kingdom Hoops and could be the most dynamic grassroots duo in the state. McCaffery and Derek Krogmann are a long and dominant duo for the ‘Stormers. And Aidan Vanderloo and Owen Coburn are an elite inside-outside duo with Martin Brothers. Will they all stay loyal to their programs? Time will tell.
Top 30 Grassroots Breakdown
Barnstormers — 11 (McCaffery, Krogmann, Hilmer, Hart, Hutcheson, Quinn, Molstead, Carter, Wolf, Timmerman, Frericks)
Martin Brothers — 4 (Coburn, Vanderloo, Stanislav, Cuvelier)
Kingdom Hoops — 4 (Locure, Betz, Deng, Malual)
Iowa Elite — 3 (Keough, Williams, Garwood)
All Iowa Attack — 2 (Faber, Gauger)
Cornsharks — 2 (Hinote, Williamson)
Dynasty — 1 (Cornwell)
Pump ‘N Run — 1 (Porter)
Mavericks — 1 (Rundquist)
N/A — 1 (Smallwood)