The Fabulous Freshman: I’ve arrived and I Got Game
2 years ago, UCONN women’s coach made the statement “men’s college basketball is down.” He cited the fact that there are fewer true scorers and pure shooters. Many other coaches disputed the claim saying defense and defensive schemes are better nowadays. For the state of Florida, we couldn’t disagree more with coach Auriemma because of the talent level of the guys we have produced and still producing.
Back in 1991/92 The Fab 5 from the University of Michigan was a sight to see due to the play of its freshman class. I’ve looked around at the freshman in the Tampa area to see if I can come up with some fabulous freshmen to watch because each year a freshman walks on campus and is so talented that he makes the varsity squad. These guys are guards and all but 1 of the freshman we are recognizing exceeded that thought and are starting on varsity for their school. Will they turn into high school stars? Will they make their respective teams exceed expectations? We don’t know but the fact that they start as a freshman tells me we need too keep an eye out on them.
The Fabulous Freshmen:
Walter Clayton (Lake Wales) – 6’2 G, plays with Team Knight for travel ball. Walter has been at the top of all scouts’ radars for years because of his dominating play during his early years with Taylored Athletes. He’s very versatile and gets the job done no matter what he’s asked. I’m told he has very few weaknesses.
Jalen Harris (Jefferson) – 5’9 G, plays with Team Henson and Tampa Titans for travel ball. I’ve heard he can flat out score with the best of them but for Jefferson this year he’ll be playing PG, it’ll be interesting to see his progression from the scorer to the facilitator.
Jordyn Manning (Plant City) – 5’7 PG, plays with Team Henson travel ball. For Plant City, he’ll be asked to lead a team of upperclassmen with lofty goals. He has a high basketball IQ and constantly keeps pressure on defenses. Will the pressure mount up and be too much? We’ll see.
Diante Hollis (SLAM Academy – Sports Leadership and Management Academy) – 5’7 PG plays with Bay Area Hoops Elite and Tampa Titans for travel ball. He starts at the new school and its early in the year, so we don’t have a gauge on him or this team, but Hollis is working hard. He leads the team in EVERY statistical category.
Charles Crews (Strawberry Crest) – 5’10 G plays with Bay Area Hoops Elite and Team Knight for travel ball. Crews is a very polished player offensively, defensively is where he’ll be challenged. Every high team needs a 6th man who can give its team a boost, if his play on defense is as good as his offense then the Chargers could surprise some teams.
Isaiah Reed (Seffner Christian) – 5’10 PG plays with Tampa Titans for travel ball. Reed works hard, day in and day out. I wasn’t expecting him to be on varsity this year but the Crusaders coaching staff says he’s worked so hard that he’ll start now. With his tough work ethic, I expect to see remarkable things for years to come.
Freshmen will make mistakes, growth and maturity from those mistakes is what will make them great. As the season continues, watch these fabulous freshmen to see if they make my end of the season top lists.