Open Gym Report: Grant Generals
PrepHoops Oregon will be hitting up open gyms in the Portland Metro area this next month to get an early look some of the top teams. Tuesday night’s visit was to see the 6A defending champions, the Grant Generals. While Benson transfer Emmanuel Stewart was not there, the rest of the key players for this year’s squad were there playing games under the watchful eye of Grant assistant coach Russell Millage.
Here are observations on the players present:
Aaron Deloney (2019)
In this type of setting, Deloney could easily dominate offensively but the senior instead chose his spots between looking for his own shot or setting up teammates. Don’t mistake this for not playing hard because Deloney certainly did on both ends. He didn’t shoot many threes, instead choosing to take it hard to the basket, but his shot looked solid. Deloney also looked visibly stronger as he has clearly been spending a lot of time in the weight room.
Ty Rankin (2019)
This evening, Rankin was the most dominant player in the gym. The 6-foot-2 senior pretty much did whatever he wanted to offensively, whether it was drain long threes or take it strong to the hoop and finish. Rankin didn’t play selfishly either, as he found open teammates with crisp passes and he was extremely tight with his handle and hesitation moves. Whether he was matched up a fellow varsity player or against a younger guy, Rankin played hard on every possession.
Eric Fraser (2020)
Fraser played JV last season but there’s no question he’ll be playing varsity this year. At 6-foot-3, he will be one of the taller members of the team but his role will be to knock down shots – and he did a lot of it in this workout. He has a smooth looking quick release that he can get off the catch and shoot or with a dribble pull-up. Fraser also did a nice job finishing around the basket.
Laquandre Taylor (2020)
Nicknamed “Tiny”, Taylor is a very long (6-foot-8 wingspan) and spindly 6-foot-4 who actually operates best as a point guard as he has a crafty handle and good court vision. He effectively used his length to finish at the rim on offense and also to block shots from the weak side on defense. The knock on Taylor has been his outside shooting, but it appears he has been working on his form and he knocked down a couple of long jumpers.
Cade Ealy (2020)
Grant lacks size this season, so they will be looking to some smaller guys to do the dirty work and Ealy should be one of those players. Ealy – who will easily be recognized for his glasses/goggles – wasn’t afraid to mix things up inside at 6-foot-3 and was your classic “hustle guy” as he was constantly around the basketball. On offense he launched a lot of open threes and while he didn’t make many, the word was he will be given the green light to shoot them.
Dondrae Fair, Jr (2022)
Grant will have some freshmen getting varsity minutes this year and it’s clear that Fair will be one of them. At 5-foot-10, he is very well built for his age and he was able to utilize his athleticism and strength to get to the basket almost at will. Fair wasn’t particularly consistent with his outside shooting, but he did hit a few jumpers. His ball-handling and ability to push the ball up the floor were evident and it’s not hard to imagine him playing some minutes at backup point guard this year.
Some recruiting notes:
- Originally scheduled to take an official visit this weekend, Deloney informed PrepHoops Oregon that his trip to Vermont will instead take place the weekend of November 3rd. The previous weekend, October 27, he will take his official visit to Portland State. If the point guard signs in the early signing period, it appears it will be between those two schools.
- According to Millage, one of the members of last year’s team – Kelton Samore – has picked up scholarship offers from Brown, Holy Cross, and UNC-Asheville. Samore is playing a prep season at Bridgton Academy in Maine this year.