EYBL Atlanta Preview
Atlanta, Georgia – The 2019 Nike EYBL season is set to begin this weekend in the first and only spring live period at the Lakepoint Sports Center in Emerson, Georgia. The Nike EYBL is in it’s 10th year and Lakepoint…
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Continue ReadingAtlanta, Georgia – The 2019 Nike EYBL season is set to begin this weekend in the first and only spring live period at the Lakepoint Sports Center in Emerson, Georgia. The Nike EYBL is in it’s 10th year and Lakepoint will host their third consecutive EYBL session for the third season in a row. The Nike EYBL is always loaded with the best prospects in the nation regardless of class. We preview which top matchups and top individual player matchups to look forward to for this weekend.
2020 G Cade CunninghamDrive Nation (TX) vs Texas Titans (TX) – 4/26 6:15pm Ct. 2
The battle for Texas’s best in the Nike EYBL will begin early and I mean early. Drive Nation and Texas Titans are set to start things off Friday afternoon and this court will probably draw a pretty huge crowd. The Texas Titans are making their return to the 17U division in the Nike EYBL. An alumini you might remember that also played for the Texas Titans? Julius Randle. Why could this matchup draw a huge crowd? You may ask. This matchup also features three top-10 junior prospects going head-to-head. PG RJ Hampton of Drive Nation will face G Cade Cunningham and F Greg Brown III of the Texas Titans. Schools like Duke, Kansas, Kentucky, Virginia, LSU, Oklahoma State, Memphis, Baylor, and North Carolina are just a few schools these three prospects have combined.
2021 F Jonothan Kuminga
NY Rens (NY) vs PSA Cardinals (NY) – 4/26 6:15pm Ct. 3
Another all state head-to-head matchup will be in play to start off the Nike EYBL season, this time between two of New York’s Nike grassroot programs in the NY Renaissance and Pro Scholar Athletes Cardinals. Now the PSA Cardinals, for the first time in three years, will be without their former star point guard Cole Anthony, so that makes room for new stars. 2020 points guard AJ Hoggard and Jamal Mashburn will run the point guard duties for PSA this AAU season. The PSA Cardinals also feature two of the top-50 sophomore prospects in SG Adrian Griffin Jr. and C Franck Kepnang. For the Rens, top-5 sophomore prospect F Jonothan Kuminga will be looking to run things this year for them. Other top prospects like 2020 G Nate Tabor, 2020 SG Ethan Morton, and 2020 F Lance Ware will also return this AAU season in a NY Rens uniform. PSA Cardinals defeated the NY Rens last season in the same location.
2020 SG Josh Christopher
Playaz Club (NJ) vs Vegas Elite (NV) – 4/26 9:45pm Ct. 2
Vegas Elite, out of Las Vegas, Nevada, will be making their Nike EYBL 17U debut Friday night against the 2014 Nike Peach Jam champions, Playaz Club (NJ). Vegas Elite will be one of the top teams and favorites to win the 2019 Nike Peach Jam title this year, well on paper that is, and why wouldn’t they be? Their big four features top-15 prospect 2020 SG Josh Christopher, top-5 prospect 2021 SG Jaden Hardy, Gonzaga commit 2020 F Julian Strawther, and top-50 prospect 2020 C Mady Sissoko. 2020 F Jabari Abdur-Rahim, a top-50 prospect, headlines this year’s Playaz squad. His matchup against Josh Christopher will certainly draw a type of crowd Friday night. Top-50 2020 C Elijah Hutchins-Everett will matchup with Vegas Elite center Mady Sissoko, another matchup to keep an eye on. 2020 SG Noah Taitz of Vegas Elite will also be featured in this one.
2020 F Jalen Johnson
Phenom University (WI) vs Drive Nation (TX) – 4/27 9:30am Ct. 9
What a great morning matchup to begin day 2 of the first session of the Nike EYBL season. Another top-10 matchup 2020 PG RJ Hampton will be apart of with his Drive Nation (TX) team. This time he will be up against 2020 F Jalen Johnson and his loaded Phenom University squad. Phenom University is also one of the top teams and favorites to win the 2019 Nike Peach Jam title. They also feature top-25 prospect 2020 F Jaemyn Brakefield and top-5 prospect 2021 F Patrick Baldwin Jr. One of the most underrated prospects in the 2020 class, PG Reece Beckham, will also be apart of this Phenom University squad this season.
2020 PG Sharife Cooper
AOT Running Rebels (GA) vs Team WhyNot (CA) – 4/27 4:00pm Ct. 1
Georgia’s own Athletes of Tomorrow Running Rebels will be playing their first major matchup of the Nike EYBL season in the first session against Russell Westbrook’s Team WhyNot squad. These two programs both met last year and in the same building and where AOT pulled off the comeback win. The individual star studded matchup to keep an eye on in this one will be at the point guard position. Top-25 prospect 2020 PG Sharife Cooper of AOT will be facing top-25 prospect 2021 PG Devin Askew of Team WhyNot. Cooper is the EYBL’s recent underclassmen of the year and Askew will be looking to receive the same award this spring, summer. Both Cooper and Askew are dynamic playmakers in their own way and will begin the afternoon session on day 2.
2020 F Scottie Barnes
Vegas Elite (NV) vs Nightrydas Elite (FL) – 4/27 5:45pm Ct. 5
Nightrydas Elite (FL) are coming into the 2019 Nike EYBL season with a very loaded starting five after acquiring top-10 prospect 2020 F Isaiah Todd. Todd will be pairing up with 2020 F Scottie Barnes, another top-10 prospect in the junior class. Both Todd and Barnes will be surrounded by other playmakers including top-10 prospect 2021 F Moussa Diabate, 2020 SG Dudley Blackwell, and Florida State commit 2020 PG Nasseem Khalid. Their matchup against the loaded Vegas Elite (NV) squad will probably attract the biggest crowd of the weekend. This matchup here will feature at least 8 to 10 nationally ranked prospects in the 2020 and 2021 class. This game could be considered the game of the session once it is all said and done.
2020 SG Brandon Boston Jr.
Oakland Soldiers (CA) vs AOT Running Rebels (GA) – 4/28 8:00am Ct. 5
This matchup here will certainly bring out all the national media outlets and video productions and we should expect a very big crowd early Sunday morning. This matchup will feature two top-10 2020 prospects in SG Brandon Boston Jr. of Athletes of Tomorrow and G Jalen Green of the Oakland Soldiers. 2022 PG Dior Johnson of the Oakland Soldiers will also be featured in this one and will have an interesting matchup with 2020 PG Sharife Cooper. 2020 W Eugene Brown III, 2020 F Zaire Williams, 2020 C Dylan Cardwell, and 2020 SG Zach Harvey will also be featured in this one.
2022 F Emoni Bates
Bates Fundamentals (MI) will make their Nike EYBL debut
Bates Fundamentals out of Michigan will be making their Nike EYBL debut this weekend in Atlanta, Georgia. The Bates Fundamentals program features the overall number one player in the 2022 class as of right now in forward Emoni Bates. The 6-foot-7 freshman phenom has been taking the national scene by storm throughout the high school season and will be looking to do the same this AAU season. Emoni was recently named the Michigan Gatorade Player of the Year as a freshman after leading his Lincoln High School (MI) squad to a state title. Bates Fundamentals will be playing three pool games this weekend in the local Atlanta areas. Their schedule: 4/26 6:30pm at Marietta Middle School, 4/27 8am at Lakepoint Sports Center, and 4/27 3:30pm at Kell High School.