Bluegrass Games State Tournament: 15u Preview
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The Bluegrass Games State Tournament takes place this weekend at the Kentucky Basketball Commission in Lexington. Over the next 3 days, we’ll be previewing the 3 age groups and breaking down the teams and players to watch. We start with…
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Continue ReadingThe Bluegrass Games State Tournament takes place this weekend at the Kentucky Basketball Commission in Lexington. Over the next 3 days, we’ll be previewing the 3 age groups and breaking down the teams and players to watch. We start with the 15u age group.
Top Teams (alphabetical order):
D1 – The D1 team is full of solid players from in and around the 12th region. They are loaded with good guards like Jaxon Smith, Aden Slone and Luke Imfeld. They do lack solid post play but they are capable of shooting their way to multiple wins this weekend.
DM Elite 2023 – Yes they are a 14u team playing up but this Darius Miller squad is full of most of the best rising Freshmen in the state. Reed Sheppard, Dallas Roberts and Kaleb Glenn make a formidable trio who have been battle tested at the varsity level in high school already.
KY Future Elite – Several of our top ranked players in 2022 are on this Future team. The core of Tim Hall, Turrell Cleaves and Tre Irvin are a formidable group while they also have quality depth from guys like Tyson Barrett and Chance Garner.
Manimal Elite – This Manimal squad is probably the best 15u group in the state but they’ve not played like it lately. They have a lot of firepower with Justin Becker, Brandon Rayzer-Moore and Turner Buttry on the perimeter and James Jewell is a top notch rim protector on defense.
Top Players (no particular order):
Justin Becker, Manimal Elite/Robertson County – Some thought that Justin was a product of being at a Class A school and playing a weaker schedule but he is proving that he can put up big numbers against the best in the country. Expect him to be a matchup problem all weekend.
Tim Hall, Kentucky Future Elite/Dunbar – One kid that can matchup against Becker is Tim Hall. The Dunbar forward is strong and a very good athlete. He’s long and finishes around the rim. Would be interesting to see Hall go against Becker and Jewell of Manimal Elite in the bracket.
Chavez Woods, Kentucky Ambition/Butler – Woods missed almost all of the high school season with a broken wrist but has had a good AAU season thus far. He’s played well enough to earn an invite to the Crossroads Elite Camp.
Rico Cole-Carr, M.A.T.T.S. Mustangs/Ballard – The guard from Ballard is on the smaller side but is a big time scorer. Rice is a capable finisher with either hand and capable of getting to the rim about any time he wants.
Jaxon Smith, D1/Lincoln County – One of the stars of the state tournament, Smith set himself up for a big AAU season and is continuing to raise his game before he gets to his Sophomore season. Look for Smith to put up big scoring numbers this weekend.
Reed Sheppard, DM Elite 2023/North Laurel – After being the leading scorer at North Laurel as an 8th grader, Reed continues to show the ability to score it at a high level. This weekend will be the first time I’ve seen him in four months. Hopefully he impresses again.
Turrell Cleaves, Kentucky Future Elite/Butler – If you want upside in a prospect, look no further than Turrell. Cleaves is long and athletic and plays with a mean streak. He needs to find a better motor but he remains one of my favorite prospects in the class.
Brandon Rayzer-Moore, Manimal Elite/Jeffersontown – Rayzer-Moore is a silky smooth scorer that has good positional size already and is only going to get better as he develops. His playing time with Manimal isn’t consistent but he’s one of the best 2022’s in Kentucky.