Prospect Spotlight: Julien Wooden (2019)
When Northside sophomore Julien Wooden broke the first Vantage Hoops 2019 rankings last spring at number 13, it was based mostly on the potential we saw in him as a long term prospect. He join a stacked team that had…
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Continue ReadingWhen Northside sophomore Julien Wooden broke the first Vantage Hoops 2019 rankings last spring at number 13, it was based mostly on the potential we saw in him as a long term prospect. He join a stacked team that had just come off making a run to the 3A State Semifinals, and he wasn’t even the most played freshman on his team (take a bow Devon Russell).
However, at 6’5” with long arms and a smooth stroke from deep as a lefty, we saw that, if he continued to develop, he had a chance to be a no brainer division one prospect. About halfway through his sophomore season, he’s looking like he could develop into an even better player than we originally thought.
After seeing Wooden at Northside’s annual Christmas Tournament, in which he was named to the All Tournament Team, it looked like he had improved on all the things we questioned about his game. He shot it confidently and well from deep, he attacked the rim hard and showed toughness finishing through traffic and he willingly guarded the other player’s best perimeter threat, something that he stresses is just as important as scoring points at Northside.
“We come in every game thinking defense,” Wooden said. “Coach Pope preaches defense every day in practice, so we come in every game trying to succeed in that.”
Wooden showed flashes of his potential in April with Spectrum 16U.As for his improvement, Wooden contributes it just as much to getting acclimated with his teammates and understanding his role as much as all the hard work and time that he’s put in.
“It’s a lot of experience, and also team chemistry. A lot of it comes from my team, they’re looking for me a lot more and getting me the ball where I can make plays,” Wooden said.
While his confidence and aggression offensively have been the biggest improvements for Wooden, he still showed skill development as well. He pushed in transition, he used his body to protect the basketball, he picked his spots and his motor seemed higher than before.
His improvement is great so far, but Wooden knows that he’ll need a lot more work if he’s going to be ready for the big time in a few years.
“Probably finishing around the hoop. I need to get stronger doing that, and I think if I do that I should be solid offensively.”
As for what he believes Northside needs to do, his mindset stays on the defensive end, because he knows that defense wins championships.
“We definitely want to get better every day on the defensive end, and I think if we do that we’ll have a good chance at states. Our goal every year is to get to the state championship and hopefully we can win it this year.”
With the return of two starters in the backcourt and two sophomores who have improved with time, Northside looks like they’re yet again the top contenders for a 3A State Title west of Richmond. If they’re going to get it done after two straight failed trips to VCU, Wooden will have to find a way to provide size and athleticism along with being a mismatch on the perimeter offensively.
Be sure to keep an eye on the 6’5” wing out of Roanoke, because he might just blow past us without us realizing it.