Proving Grounds: Saturday Backcourt Impression-Makers Part 3
Our part 3 peek in a loaded day for guard play at Proving Grounds. [player_tooltip player_id="820306" first="Noah" last="Melson"] Noah Melson Noah Melson 6'3" | PG Alexander | 2023 State GA (Team Forrest 15U, PG, 6-3, Alexander) – Just as he…
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Continue ReadingOur part 3 peek in a loaded day for guard play at Proving Grounds.
Noah Melson Noah Melson 6'3" | PG Alexander | 2023 State GA (Team Forrest 15U, PG, 6-3, Alexander) – Just as he did at A-Town two weeks earlier Melson shined for what was perhaps GA’s marquee program in attendance in a Team Forrest club packed with ranked or rising players from all over the ATL-metro, he has such an advanced scoring mentality he makes things look easy that aren’t all that easy, he can slide off the ball and play the 2 but truly shines with control of the engagement where he can be both a scoring point and a facilitator, he doesn’t miss many opportunities to finish smoothly off the break or step through double teams and knock one down in the mid-range, in the 15U grouping he’s certainly among this summer’s top risers.
Dajuan Devonish (Deep South Blue Devils 16U, PG, 5-11, Etowah) – Devonish (pictured above) plays for a Blue Devils club rife with guards so each time out it seems a different player stands out, for most of the weekend it was hard to miss the play of the polished junior-to-be, so quick with the ball and possessing a scorer’s mentality from the lead spot, that speed also makes him a top-level defender, truly at his best when he dices up defenses to draw and dish for the Devils many shooters one can see the enormous potential in his all-around game and it’ll be interesting on a guard-heavy Eagles squad how he’ll mesh this coming winter.
Darwin Randolph, Marcus Long and Jordan Harris (North Metro Elite 17U, East Hamilton, TN) – This trio has brought an interesting mix to NME’s already stacked lineup that has been cruising through most of their competiton this summer, all three bring something special to the team, the 6-0 Randolph has been impressive from day one as a physical PG with tremendous quickness off the bounce, he’s got the stroke to beat you but also uses his frame to go the rim with authority, he’s also been one of the top on-ball defenders I’ve seen all summer, Long at 6-2 is more of a rim-attacker and floor runner who can beat you with exceptional athleticism, he’s a handful for defenders to keep up with and is big enough to slice through traffic and get to the rim to draw contact, with all the shooters NME can put on the floor it was great to finally see the 5-11 Harris get some solid looks and put his sweet stroke to work, he’s got a natural 3-point shooters eye and can be especially lethal together with Randolph and Long as he can spot up and kill you from deep while the other two are drawing defenders.
Jesse Taylor (Quiet Storm 16U, SG, 6-1, Butler) and Ahmed Soumahoro (Quiet Storm 16U, SG, 6-2, Berkmar) – These two also put on a show at A-Town and continued their strong play this past weekend, I love Taylor’s power game from the guard spot combining with his ability to knock it down from deep, he can draw you out to the line and then blow by and thorough you to the basket and finishes at such a high percentage, Soumahoro is an uber-athlete who seems to glide from spot to spot, a lot of variety in his scoring game most of which occurs closer to the basket, he can rise above you or float one over your outstretched hand, both are elite defenders who can draw attention from next-level coaches just on that end of the floor but need to be looked at for their full games.