Nike Summer Championships: Top Forwards
While multiple ranked guards made up our top guard portion of Nike Summer Championship reviews, the top forwards were unranked, under the radar athletes. Nonetheless, these players were still difference makers and even though some are unranked, there is still time for them to join Prep Hoop’s rankings. Here were Saturday’s top performers at the forward position.
Tre Williams- 6’7 PF- Reynoldsburg (OH)/All Ohio Red
Williams was a tremendous inside threat throughout the day Saturday. He knows how to use his body in the paint and has the footwork as well to be an offensive threat at the next level. He was a great finisher and although his opponents were undersized, he still finished well with multiple players guarding him. Tre showed himself to be a shot blocker as well as he disrupted opposing bigs as a result.
John Aicholtz- 6’2 SF- West Clermont (OH)/Cincy Classics
One of the more under the radar players from Saturday, Aicholtz definitely made his name known against Beyond Ball out of Iowa. Although he plays as a small forward, Aicholtz showed an ability to shoot from beyond the arc and hit the 3PT shot. As the bottom man of a half court 1-3-1 defense, he did a great job covering both corners and took those areas out of the picture. One of my favorite traits in Aicholtz was his leadership skills as I saw him pick up a teammate that had made an error early in the game rather than yell.
Kaveon Ross- 6’5 PF- Hamilton Township (OH)/Miller Factory
One of the most impressive prospects during the entire weekend, Ross (PHO #44 2020) was a disruptive presence on both ends of the floor all day Saturday. A ridiculously talented athlete, Ross finished well near the basket and defended the rim well on the defensive end. If anything, the multiple Division II schools in attendance on Saturday were impressed with Ross’style of play.
William Hyde- 6’4 SF- Jackson (OH)/NEO Shooting Stars
Hyde was listed as a center in the media packet, but his style of play on Saturday definitely resembled a small forward. A hard working player, Hyde showed great work ethic during his game against Miller Factory. Possessing great court vision, he looked like a guard at times finding open teammates during their loss. One of his best traits is Hyde’s ability to get to the rim from the perimeter.
Deshaun Nettles- 6’6 SF- Cleveland Central Catholic (OH)/ TNBA Ohio
Nettles is unranked in our 2020 class rankings, but this weekend he showed he could potentially join our updated rankings before the season. A long and athletic small forward, Nettles is a dynamic rebounder due to his size and athleticism. He runs the floor well for a forward and would excel in a run-and-gun offensive style. Nettles also exhibited great shot blocking skill as he was a difference maker on the defensive end of the floor as a result.