Next Man Up: Who Will Replace 2018’s Top Players?
With the season upon us, there are some sizable roster holes at schools who graduated D1 players back in the spring. Here’s a look at which players could step up and replace the players who have moved on.
#1 Trevon Faulkner, Mercer County – Kaelin Drakeford – Drakeford has patiently waited for his time to shine. After spending two varsity seasons as a role player and glue guy, the pressure is going to be on Kaelin to step up and fill the scoring void left by Faulkner.
#2 Andrew Taylor, Corbin – Matthew Taylor – Look no farther than Andrew’s little brother for someone to step up and replace him. Matthew was fourth on the team in scoring last season while predominantly being a better than average role player for the Hounds. Taylor should be the secondary scoring option at worst this season and, if he can stay healthy, Matthew could be the breakout player in the 13th region.
#3 CJ Fredrick, Covington Catholic – Jack Davin – Davin played a ton for the Colonels last year but didn’t get many shots. That should change this season as Davin should be the primary wing scorer for Cov Cath. With CJ and Aiden Ruthsatz gone, someone is going to have to score for Cov Cath and Davin is more than capable.
#4 Mickey Pearson, John Hardin – Alex Matthews – As has been documented here before, Alex averaged a double double last season for the Bulldogs even though Coach McCurry said he never ran a single set for Alex to score. That will definitely be different this year as Matthews should be the primary inside/out threat for John Hardin as they look to repeat as regional champions.
#5 Adam Kunkel, Cooper – TJ Deere – Deere is a Covington Catholic transfer who should see a large increase in production from his 1.5 points per game last season with the Colonels. TJ had a big AAU season and has earned some small college offers already before his Senior year even begins.
#6 Jayden Scrubb, Trinity – Jamil Hardaway – Hardaway is another player who has quietly waited his turn for a bigger role on his team. Jamil is big, strong and athletic and should capably fill the role of starting forward for the Rocks this season.
#7 Skyelar Potter, Warren Central – Kobe Brents – Brents is nowhere near the athlete that Potter is (not many are) but he can replace a lot of his scoring ability on the wing. Recently transferred from Glasgow, Kobe is going to step into a starting role from day one with the Dragons and could be a breakout candidate.
#9 Anthony Wales, Fern Creek – Jaden Rogers – Wales was the point guard for Creek for 3 years and now he hands the keys to the offense over to Rogers. Jaden will have pressure on him to produce right from the beginning but he had a strong summer and some legit college interest to carry him into his Sophomore season.
#13 Cooper Robb, Scott County – Bryce Long – Bryce has been a starter and impact player for Scott County for the last two seasons but Cooper was on another level as far as clutch play and coming up big in big games. Scott County has a number of capable guards but Long is the one that should have the first crack at becoming a clutch shooter and big game go to player.
#19 Darius Harding, Elizabethtown – JaQuais Franklin – Darius left E-town as one of the best in school history and Franklin has the tools to be better. JaQuais has size, length and athleticism to be a big time player right away in the region this season for a Panther team that will try to avoid a total rebuild.