Las Vegas Main Event And West Coast Championships: Day 1 Standouts
It’s finally here! The summer open period has arrived. Thousands of grassroots teams will be descending upon Las Vegas this month. And while it’s no secret that the majority of the top players are participating on the Shoe Circuit this…
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Continue ReadingIt’s finally here! The summer open period has arrived. Thousands of grassroots teams will be descending upon Las Vegas this month. And while it’s no secret that the majority of the top players are participating on the Shoe Circuit this week, there are still several players looking to make a name for themselves. Here were the day 1 standouts:
Jaden Brownell Utah Premiere 2021 Las Vegas Main Event – Brownell has a shot to be a unicorn. He’s 6’8, super skilled, and a better than average athlete as he shows here. He has a soft touch with both hands around the rim, and can step out and stretch the floor to about 18. He has extremely strong hands and is a vacuum type rebounder, who grabs in and out of area boards. Showed good touch with both hands around the rim. Defensively he was the best rim protector of the day.
Assani Berkeley Oakland Soldiers 2021 Las Vegas Main Event – Explosive 6’3 athlete. Berkeley is lightning quick and attacks to finish over, through, or on top of you. He will need to refine his outside shooting, however when he’s playing downhill in transition, he’s a problem. He had several impressive dunks on the day including this one.
Taj Degourville Chosen Few 2024 Las Vegas Main Event – I have been told that there are better 8th graders in the state than Degourville. That may be true, however until I see them Degourville is the best. At 6’2 he is the primary ballhandler for his team. He has an advanced offensive game that already includes euros, step backs and COD’s. He is a knock down shooter, that you have to close to. What makes him different is that at this age he understands how to show the ball and put it on the floor to create a shot for himself or teammate.
Parker Christensen Utah Premiere 2021 Las Vegas Main Event – Crafty floor general with a tight handle and high basketball IQ. Handled pressure well, and was able to create off the dribble for teammates.
Craig Comanche 702 Attack Las Vegas Main Event – Comanche is a drive first guard that gets consistent paint touches. His go to move is a drive right spin back left off the dribble, you know it’s coming but no one was able to stop it all game.
Keenami Maggard Team Select Varsity Black 2019 West Coast Championships – Maggard put on an show in his first day of the tournament dazzling the crowd with an array of dunks including one off the glass to himself. At 6’4 204 he is a special athlete that is transitioning from football. (he had 84 tackles and 20 sacks last year maxpreps.com) He’s just now getting his basketball legs under him. He’s not a consistent enough shooter but he has good mechanics and shoots it effortlessly from deep. He made a couple 30 footers in the game. He will be attending Los Medanos J.C next fall. If he can refine his perimeter skill set, in two years he will be a D1 player.