Section by Section: The Gameplan Busters of Class AAA
In Class AAA basketball this year what player will set fire to that three days of gameplanning that opposing coaches did in practice? NHR runs you through one per section.
Section 1AAA. Mason Zick of Northfield. What makes Mason so tough is that you never really know what angle he will be coming at you from. The Raiders staff will play him many different spots and use him in many different ways. Last year playing with a pair of future college players, Zick was a top all around weapon scoring 15-16 a game with six boards, three assists, and 2-3 steals a contest. At 6-foot-6 he is versatile and can be used in many ways.
Section 2AAA. Malik Willingham of Waseca. Your best bet is to take likely your best player and have him deny Malik at all times. But often that’s not something a coach can do much because all of that effort trying to limit Malik (you have to guard him two steps above the arc so you need to find him fast) will drain a player and open up the rest of a quality team at Waseca for success. Fact is teams tried to gameplan against Malik all 17u season and he just kept draining shots to commonly score 20 plus every game (which is very rare in 17u hoops).
Section 3AAA. Jack Thompson of St. Thomas Academy. In section play and in Metro East competition it was extremely rare that opposing coaches had a guy that was as intelligent and as quick as Thompson to try and stop Jack from putting the ball on a teammate’s hands in the right spot. That’s the job and Jack does it very well which is why the Cadets have been to state the last two straight seasons and it’s also why a team like Tartan couldn’t stop Jack (STA beat them twice last season).
Section 4AAA. J’Vonne Hadley of Mahtomedi. As it stands right now Hadley is the most talented junior in Class AAA basketball. What makes him tough to stop? Judging by the way Hadley plays he spent his younger years being really productive inside because he knows how to use his body deep but in the last 2-3 years he’s become more of a wing as the skills there are improving daily. Add in Hadley’s athleticism in a quality frame and you have one of the toughest players to defend in the class.
Section 5AAA. Logan Nagorski of Big Lake. Logan is unique because of the combination of skill and size he brings to the court. What makes him tough to gameplan against is that Logan is allowed to play all over the court because he has a double-double producer in Wyoming football commit DeVonne Harris competing along side of him. With Harris playing in the paint Logan can play away from the basket meaning opposing coaches have to use a guy with size that can move his feet to guard Nagorski and that’s a tough task.
Section 6AAA. Tyrell Terry of DeLaSalle. The Islanders will be the deepest team in Class AAA basketball and running the show is the best backcourt passer in the state of Minnesota right now in Tyrell Terry. The Stanford commit has so many different talented players to utilize not to mention his own scoring touch ranks with the best in Class AAA hoops. Opposing coaches will be so worried about the plethora of Islander athletes hounding their players they may not have the time to deal with a focus of Terry’s hot hand at the top of the arc with Jamison Battle on one side and Cade Haskins on the other.
Section 7AAA. Jon Stimmler of Princeton. The Princeton Tigers have a lot of great parts that will work together and win a load of games. What separates them is that their big man Jon Stimmler is not only a steamroller with a touch, he’s also got agile feet that move extremely well off a ball screen. Big Jon loves him some contact and the Tigers will love the win total this season.
Section 8AAA. Matthew Johnson of Fergus Falls. Johnson will be tough to contain but as far as the gameplan busting part goes, that will happen when he has the best feel for all the new teammates around him. Johnson will be depended on for a lot this year and he has the mental approach to take care of business earning victories, he may just need a bit of time so young teammates can gain experience.