Next Up Freshman Camp: Top Forwards/Posts
This past Saturday, 60 freshmen (and a handful of 8th graders) traveled to Taylor County for the annual Next Up Recruits camp. Here’s a break down of some of the best forwards and posts at camp.
- Just an 8th grader, Louisville’s Kaleb Glenn is a man child. Every bit of 6’4, Glenn was dunking everything in individual drills but as soon as games started he barely got to touch the ball thanks to the selfish nature of showcase camps like this one. Kaleb has the look of a high major player in 2023 but he’s going to have to grow at least 4 inches to get there.
- Eastern high school big man James Jewell was one of the best prospects in the entire camp. He’s about 6’5 and long and extremely athletic. Jewell is very skinny but he wasn’t afraid to mix it up physically even though he did get pushed around some over the course of the day. By the end of the day, James’ teammates were trying to lob everything to him as he ran the floor. He also showed touch on his jump shot and hit consistently out to 15 feet and beyond. Jewell will be a high major player if he grows and his frame looks like he’s going to keep growing quite a bit. He’s been billed as a guard by some but hasn’t got the handle yet for me to call him one.
- Robertson County forward Justin Becker was very underwhelming in the drill portion of camp. He often just went through the motions and didn’t seem too engaged. When the games started in the afternoon, Becker flipped the switch and looked like the player I had expected to see all day. Justin had a sequence where he was dribbling in the open court, went behind his back to shake an opponent then finished at the rim. As with all these young guys, Justin will have to grow to reach his potential but he’s got a chance. He can also stretch the floor with a good jump shot but he’d have to show he can move his feet well enough to guard wings in the future for him to be classified as one.
- Frankfort High was well represented by Jackson Twombly all day at camp. The 6’5 forward competed in drills and dominated when the games started. Jackson isn’t in great shape right now but his motor never stopped running and he took pride in battling with Jewell in the drills portion of the day. Jackson showed off a good jump shot and hit several threes in the games. Look for Twombly to start or at least play a major role at Frankfort all season long.
- Another prospect from Louisville, Manual’s Owen Walsh was one of the most consistent players of the day. He played hard in every game and pushed himself to be one of the best in every drill. Walsh isn’t going to scare anyone in the layup lines but he’s a very solid player and his motor was among the best at camp. As a prospect, he’s a tweener and had the look of a kid who is done growing already. But he should be a really solid player in Louisville over the next 4 seasons.
- Saturday’s camp was predominantly guards and wings but Corbin’s John Allen and Madisonville’s Brytton Walker both showed flashes of potential over the course of the afternoon. Allen is a big body who knows how to use it to gain position and he dominated the post drills against smaller competition. Walker had a tough day at camp where smaller, quicker guards and forwards attacked him off the dribble during the games. Both Allen and Walker showed potential but both need to improve their conditioning to go along with their skill level around the block. The game is changing and traditional post players are getting phased out. For Allen and Walker to reach their potential moving forward, they both have some work to do.