Prospect Spotlight: Bryce Pope (2019)
Bryce Pope has heard the whispers for years: great shooter, but lacks athleticism, lateral quickness. He’s not a Division 1 player.
This year, Pope, a 6-2 combo guard from Torrey Pines High School, committed to putting an end to those whispers.
“I’ve been in the weightroom, working on my lateral quickness and my speed,” Pope said. “I know that’s one of my weaknesses, so I’ve been working hard to improve that.”
Sporting a noticeably slimmer physique, Pope has rounded into a potent three-level scorer. He’s still potent shooting it off the catch, but he’s able to attack the basket and score with an array of floaters and runners.
Additionally, Pope is as good of a shooter in San Diego pulling up off of one or two dribbles.
Playing this year for the California Bearcats Select 17u team, Pope has taken his game to the next level. Recently, coaches named Pope and his identical twin brother, Michael, to the Basketbull Hoops Hall of Fame Invitational All-Tournament Team.
The Pope brothers nearly led the Bearcats to the upset of the tournament, as the team took Expressions Elite, a Nike EYBL team, to the wire in a close loss.
Pope said his performance proves he can play at the game’s highest levels.
“It shows that I can compete at that high level, and that my teammates and my coaches have the trust in me to do so,” Pope said.
Pope said he’s working to improve his defense against quicker guards and his ball handling and point guard play.
On the college front, Pope said he’s heard from several Division II programs, including Cal Baptist, UC San Diego and Point Loma Nazarene University.
Grateful for the interest, Pope said he believes he can play Division I basketball.
“I think that I’m a really pure scorer,” Pope said. “And that’s hard to find. Whenever my team needs a bucket, I can give them one.”
Pope said he hopes to lead his Torrey Pines team to a CIF Open Division title this season. He also wants to make the All Avocado West First Team and All-CIF Second team.