ACBL 16U Week 4 recap: Part 1
Thursday night I attended week 4 of the Arizona Club Basketball League at Arizona Christian University. 16U teams were on display. Here were the results: Team Arizona Black Elite 80 Team Arizona White 58 AzVenom Blk 57 TripleThreat 55 Prime BB 70…
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Continue ReadingThursday night I attended week 4 of the Arizona Club Basketball League at Arizona Christian University.
16U teams were on display.
Here were the results:
Team Arizona Black Elite 80 Team Arizona White 58
AzVenom Blk 57 TripleThreat 55
Prime BB 70 Factory 60
TripleThreat 66 AzVenomRed 62
Here were the standouts from Thursday night:
2021
Shay Cain SF 6’4″ Agua Fria (AZ Venom Blk)
-Cain is one of the more unique prospects you’ll find in the soph class. He’s only around 6-foot-4 but plays like he’s 6-foot-7. He rebounds everything near him with an incredible motor, unreal length and a desire to get the ball more than his opponent. He handles the ball like a true point forward than makes pin-point passes anywhere on the court. He missed all of the HS season so his skill level with his shooting is a little behind. He is currently ranked #26 in the class rankings and can easily move up in the top-20 with more development.
Damon McNeal SF 5’10” Desert Edge (AZ Venom Blk)
-McNeal is another Venom player who plays hard. He may be undersized but grabs rebounds in his area at a high level. He is a very efficient player and can make jumpers from mid to the 3pt line. His older brother DJ was a late bloomer and Damon seems to be in the same category but he’s on the right path with playing the right way and with high effort.
Joe Kelsey PG 5’10” Desert Ridge (Prime Basketball)
-Kelsey is one of the best players I have viewed that I didn’t get a chance to see yet. His speed and skill are obvious to go along with his natural feel for the game. Besides being fast, he also changes speeds smartly to keep the defenders off balanced. He can shoot it from mid to the 3pt line effortless and has that inner confidence to do what he needs to do to win the game. He makes others better when he’s not scoring and is quick on the ball defensively. He will need to get stronger like a typical soph but has many D1 traits to like for the future, It will be interesting to see how big he gets.
Kelsey is one of the best scorers that no one knows yet. That will change quickly.Kaden Kennedy SF 6’4″ Desert Ridge (Prime Basketball)
-Kennedy is another new player for me. He is strong, smart and plays hard. He is most effective inside the paint and always seems to be in the correct spot for rebounds and put-backs. He can hit the deep ball and has a nice stroke. The duo of Kennedy and Kelsey will be tough in the HS season next year.
Colin Carey SF 6’6″ Sunrise Mountain (Factory)
-Carey had an “off game” with only 23 points. He was sick as a dog and literally coughing during the game. His skill and bounce area always on display and we have said numerous times how good he has been early on this club season. He keeps escalating his status as one of the best sophs and one of the best players in the West Side.
Elijah Cole SF 6’4″ Shadow Mountain (Factory)
-Cole is an unique player like Shay Cain. He is another point forward type that handles it well and can make others better. He defends well in space and is mostly a downhill scorer. He is a capable 3pt shooter but needs to make strides moving forward to become more consistent. He can take the rebound off the glass and then coast to coast. His handle is tight with great in and out moves and plays fast.
2022
AJ Riggs SG Highland (Team Arizona White)
-Riggs is a consistent shooter from deep. He has a big IQ and smartly moves without the ball to open spaces. He can do some other things but he looks to be a specialist for the future.
Landon LaMancusa PG Gilbert (Team Arizona White)
-LaMancusa is a pure PG. He looks for teammates all game long and has a good pace to his game and gets the game between the ears. He can shoot it from the perimeter and can change speeds to get by his man. The cerebral PG will be a great asset to the Tigers for the future.
2023
Maurice Lakes SG will attend Mesquite (Team Arizona Black Elite)
-Lakes is an extremely strong downhill player. He is very athletic for his grade and blows by his opponents seemingly at will. He is a physical defender using his speed and length.
Cohen Gonzales PG will attend Mesquite (Team Arizona Black Elite)
-Gonzales feel for the game is really high. He can score it from all 3 levels and has good quickness to get into the lane. He sees the court well and although he is smaller, he controls a tempo of a game and skill is high to make a big impact in a result of a game.
Lakes and Gonzales have a lot of talent for the future to make a big impact at Mesquite HS.