A-Town Showdown: Saturday’s Best Scoring Guards Part 2
Second half of day: Clifford Davis Clifford Davis (Atlanta Aztecs 17U, Thomasville) – tournaments like this one and others are just the kind of awesome staging grounds for a talent like the 6-0 Dais to emerge, playing at the southern…
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Continue ReadingSecond half of day:
Clifford Davis (Atlanta Aztecs 17U, Thomasville) – tournaments like this one and others are just the kind of awesome staging grounds for a talent like the 6-0 Dais to emerge, playing at the southern edge of the state can mean only local attention in many cases, so Davis’ virtuoso 28-point performance against SEBA was right on time, he had me wiggling in my seat multiple times with his spectacular athleticism, yet he possesses plenty of basketball skill as well, when he wasn’t skying for dunks on the break or off an alley-oop he was scorching the Warriors from well beyond the arc, his physical frame and superb handle made him nearly unguardable, he was quite simply a breakout star who deserves all the attention that comes his way.
Brendan Rigsbee Brendan Rigsbee 6'2" | CG North Gwinnett | 2021 State GA (Atlanta T-Wolves 17U, North Gwinnett) – When you spot the neon green jerseys of the T-Wolves in a gym, you’d be remiss to not walk over and watch this collection of talented sleepers, Rigsbee like his other teammates can put together some highlight reel stuff with his fearless combination of power drives, 3-point bombing and exceptional open floor finishing, he like Brookes Kahlert Brookes Kahlert 5'11" | PG St Pius X Catholic | 2021 State GA took it to Team Speights and their heralded bunch and it was pure joy to watch, he was gaining attention from schools below the D-1 level well before this past weekend, but at 6-2 he has the skills to find his way onto a smaller D-1 roster in my view.
Jax Bouknight Jax Bouknight 6'1" | PG Blessed Trinity Catholic | 2021 State GA (Atlanta T-Wolves 17U, Blessed Trinity) – Never to be outdone is the sneaky Bouknight, who again showed his near unlimited shooting range, quick release and underrated athleticism in shocking Speights for most of the game before they pulled away late, he can play the point, the 2, and even slide over to small forward with his leaping ability and smarts as a rebounder, another potential steal for a team seeking versatility, boundless enthusiasm and smarts.
Jaren Williams (Atlanta Nets 16U, Langston Hughes) – In my travels this summer I’ve come across quite a few from Hughes and they are not just a group of terrific athletes but clearly sound ballplayers from a strong program, Williams isn’t all that big at 5-10 but makes it for up by knowing how to play the game, he has one of the best mid-range games I’ve seen this summer finding openings and not wasting energy trying to bull his way to the basket, he loves to run the floor and can finish in close as an excellent leaper, he’s also one of the summer best on-ball defenders I’ve seen. Pebblebrook’s Khalil Porter of the Nets also deserves mention for his 3-point shooting prowess, he’s a virtual lock if left open from anyhere along the arc and will nicely augment the great size the Falcons possess next winter.
Trey Harris Trey Harris 6'4" | SF North Paulding | 2022 State GA (SBT 17U, North Paulding) – I had gotten a little tipoff to how good a shooter Harris was in watching them work out a few weeks back but you never know in game action, well the 6-4 2022 product playing up wiht the 17s is an absolute must-guard for if he’s left alone you can almost book it, a quick release makes things even harder on defenders but it’s his mechanics which are hard to miss, he’s a modern-day catch-and-fire Dell Curry type, he can put it on the floor too and keep you honest and showed creativity close to the basket, a serious riser in the 2022 class.
Kervens Yacinthe Kervens Yacinthe 6'5" | SF Paulding County | 2021 State GA (SBT 17U, Paulding County) – He had a monster weekend in full, and when I saw him Saturday against the Auburn Raptors he was excellent as he’s come to show nearly every time out, at 6-5 he can play and guard 4 spots which makes him a real find for a program in need of a slider who can give you different things every night, you have to love his handle and moxie with tons of confidence that he score on anyone, a big-time effective combo of fierce dribble-drive efficiency together with deep range out past the arc makes him as tough a guard as there was all weekend.
Kyle Duncan Kyle Duncan 6'4" | CG Centennial | 2021 State GA (HYPE 2021, Centennial) – Duncan’s name has been coming up nearly every weekend this summer for his excellent all-around performances, and he didn’t let up at A-Town, I remember well seeing him last regular season and thinking to myself what tremendous upside he had, we’re seeing some of the natural growth that comes with time and confidence in his game, he’s a solidly built 6-4 who can get whatever shot he wants using the bounce to drive it or create space for an advanced mid-range game, he’s an absolute gazelle on the break and is as good a rebounding guard as you’ll find in the ATL-area, he’s on a lot of school radars right now which will only increase with a skill set like his.