Prospect Spotlight: Nic Zeil (2019)
I was able to catch up with Nic recently as the Park Hill High standout has been having a great Spring for the Kansas City Pacers.
Nic is a very versatile prospect who is one of the many weapons that the Pacers have on their 17U Blue squad, which is their top tiered team.
He has been with the Pacers since he first started playing organized ball, which was the fifth grade. What he called out that is special about the Pacers is their commitment to the players in everything they do.
They are more concerned with furthering their players and helping them out than building up the program to an elite level. For them it’s all about us and I wouldn’t trade that for anything.
Nic is a 6’7” wing/stretch four who can do whatever his coach needs to give his team the best opportunity to win.
“I’m a lot to handle for most defenders” said Nic after asking him about his overall game.
It’s hard to disagree.
I’ve seen Nic stretch the floor with his three-point shooting ability or take smaller defenders on the block as he’s comfortable in the paint and consistently has an impact on the boards.
He prides himself on his overall toughness which makes him fun to watch as I saw a handful of games at the Prep Hoops Series Tournament in Kansas City just the other weekend.
The number one focus in his development is his on-ball defense on the perimeter.
It’s easy for about anyone to see how Nic is special on the court but off the court he also excels in the classroom as well.
He currently is sitting on a 4.2 cumulative GPA and an ACT score of 30. Numbers I could only dream of in high school despite my many efforts.
He draws inspiration from his mother who didn’t skip a beat in providing for him and his brother after his father’s passing in 2011.
Nic has heard from a decent size list of schools between last year and this Spring as he continues to show promise.
Furman State, American University, Air Force, Cornell, Western Illinois, and Southwest Baptist have all contacted him so far.
What’s most important to Nic next year is that he is a part of a program that fits his style of play and that he is challenged academically.
Although he is undecided on what he wants to major in, he wants to focus in on strong liberal arts school as that interests him the most at this point.