Top Five: Texas GASO Part 2
The Great American Shootout was filled with exciting games, high level talent, and college coaches in the stands. Here is Part 2 of the top five things I noticed this past weekend.
PC North Role Players are better than I thought
The Putnam City North Panthers heading into the 17-18 season are built like a coliseum.
The pillars of the program are junior Micah Thomas, seniors Adokiye Iyaye, Chris Braggs Jr. , and Blake Owens.
Those four are the foundational pieces to a potential championship team.
However, players like Kalen Wade, Shayon Janloo, and others will replace a quality stable of role players that PCN had last year.
Wade has had a good summer and will see the floor this year. Janloo is an energy player who gives great effort and can get to the basket.
There is a D2 arms race for OK bigs
Blake Owens, Dalton Vinson, and Braden Boyer have Division 2 coaches from far and wide coming to Oklahoma for quality size.
All three hold offers from certain schools in the state but they are beginning to earn interest from schools in Kansas, Missouri, and Arkansas.
Boyer even got an offer from a school in South Carolina.
Owens, Vinson, and Boyer have had good performances this summer and their hard work is starting to pay off with scholarship offers.
Jackson Dyer has a nice right hand hook shot and a post game that shows potential
Dyer performed well at the GASO. He is a legit 6’8 or 6’9 who is mobile and a body that a college strength coach can work with.
Dyer was efficient in the post using his go-to right hand hook shot.
He looked comfortable with the ball in his hands down low. That is a big factor when recruiting a HS big.
Dyer also showed a nice touch with his left hand as well.
He isn’t a bouncy athlete but he is no stiff either and he also another 2018 big who can get the job done from Oklahoma.
Dalton Vinson will be a better player in college
Vinson is one of the best defensive rebounders I have seen in a long time.
He also has a polished post game that is rarely utilized on the summer circuit.
At 6’7, Vinson has great touch around the rim so his guards drive into the lane knowing they have him as an outlet.
He could play harder at times but I believe that is a habit that can be fixed.
Vinson will get into a college system and start to put it all together combining his elite rebounding ability and versatile offensive game to become a very good college player.
I’m scared the forfeit trend is growing in AAU
There is obviously no excuse for forfeiting a game unless of emergency.
Unfortunately, I am seeing a trend of quitting in summer basketball.
The most egregious part of it all is that it is the coaches and program directors supporting the forfeit.
This weekend a prominent Nike EYBL forfeit which changed the landscape of the event and it decreased the amount of exposure some kids got.
I believe AAU is a good vehicle to get kids exposure and to build values.
Both should not be done without the other. Forfeiting is never a good lock for your program or the sport.