Top 250 Expo Best Underclassmen Defenders and Hustle Players
Sometimes at expos and showcases, people get caught up in the high scorers and flashy players, but lose track of the top hustle players and defensive nightmares. These types of players are a coach’s dream and many great defensive guys find ways to attract attention with this skill. Saturday provided me an opportunity to see some talented sophomores that showed tremendous hustle and great defensive presence at the Indiana Top 250 Expo. Here are some of the top performers.
Brennan Beauser- Bishop Chatard (2021)
Brennan possessed great hustle that caught my attention during 5 on 5 action on Saturday. For a player of his size, he ran the floor very well getting up and down on both ends and finding way to be involved in the play. His ball handling and finishing in traffic made the offensive end of the hustle stand out more, but regardless, Brennan was one of the top hustle players throughout the day.
Brooks Barnhizer- Lafayette Jeff (2021)
By far one of the top overall prospects among underclassmen in attendance, Brooks was a defensive nightmare for opponents on Saturday. At 6’6, he has the length to disrupt passing lanes on the perimeter. However, he made most of his defensive plays at the rim. A proven athlete, he used his length and timed his blocks well, easily pinning several shots off the backboard.
Jackson Paul- Churubusco (2021)
Jackson was a scrappy player at the Expo. He demonstrated his strong defensive presence on the perimeter and played with a lot of enthusiasm. One area where he impressed me was his ability to move on offense without the ball. He moved from side to side forcing his defender to follow and opening up opportunities for teammates to attack the rim.
Dorian Harris- Merrillville (2021)
Dorian had one of the better defensive performances among the underclassmen at the Expo on Saturday. An athletic guard, Dorain has quick hands on the defensive end which allowed him to not only disrupt ball handlers, but gave him opportunities to jump passing lanes and create fast break opportunities for himself.
Lane Sparks- Greensburg (2021)
While many people think of hustle guys as players that run up and down the floor well, another area where guys show great hustle is how they attack 50/50 balls. Lane impressed me on Saturday with his ability to crash the glass and contest for rebounds. At 6’2, he has good size for a guard and his ability to finish in traffic makes him a dangerous weapon when it comes to containing offensive rebounds.