2021 All-Grassroots 3rd Team
This summer, I made it a point to see as many players as possible. I went to as many tournaments as I could. Saw and went to as many underground runs and workouts as possible and added hundreds and hundreds…
Access all of Prep Hoops
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingThis summer, I made it a point to see as many players as possible. I went to as many tournaments as I could. Saw and went to as many underground runs and workouts as possible and added hundreds and hundreds of miles to my car. After watching and evaluating scores of new talents over the past few months, we have updated our rankings updates and also included new players, particularly to the class of 21’ to prepare for their upcoming senior season. Here are the players who really stood out for me that I had the opportunity to watch in person this summer.
Colton Gillingham Colton Gillingham 6'0" | CG Greeley West | 2021 State CO – Colorado Chaos
Jarmell Johnson Jarmell Johnson 6'3" | SG George Washington | 2021 State CO – Colorado Miners
Blakeley Stoughton Blakeley Stoughton 6'3" | SF Regis Jesuit | 2021 State CO – Pro Skills
Eddie Kurjak Eddie Kurjak 6'8" | PF Longmont | 2021 State CO – Colorado Titans
Nolan Marold Nolan Marold 6'7" | C Thunderridge | 2021 State CO – Colorado Hoops Academy
Gillingham is a player that really stood out this summer and separated himself from the bunch. He is a player that scored in bunches and plays the right way. He is a two-way player that defends at a high level, which translates to easy scoring opportunities and contagious play on the other end. Gillingham went into every situation as a relatively unknown player and held his own and led the Chaos to countless victories. Not many players this summer had the scrappiness and tenacity that he had.
Johnson is a physically gifted athlete that made it extremely difficult to slow down the Knights in an up and down game. He uses all of his 6’3 frame and has the speed and strength to go along with it. When he is out and running and pushing the pace, there are not many individual defenders that can corral him. Johnson consistently knocked down the 3-ball, created plays for others, and had his usual highlight dunks. Johnson is a player that looks best when the ball is in his hands, and he is able to make plays for himself and get the freedom to create. Towards the end of the summer, with injuries to teammates, he was in a rhythm and ready to go.
Stoughton had his fair share of highlights this summer, and there was a maturation to his game. To begin the summer, he was a physically gifted athlete that was going with highlight dunks, aerial attacks and used as a slasher to developing into a knockdown shooter that scored with ease by summers end. Stoughton was the teams leading scorer on multiple occasions and, when healthy, is a difficult player that applies pressure to opposing teams. He has the size at 6’5 and is an aggressive attacker that can score both inside and out. His best basketball is ahead of him, and it is starting to come together.
Kurjak is a big man/forward to build around. He has so many intangibles and a relentless motor, and when it all comes together, he will have one of the best ceilings out of anyone in the class. Kurjak uses his 6’7 frame as an aerial attack as he is not afraid to go up with any opposing player. He dunks, defends the paint, and is an interchangeable defender that can stay in front of the guards as well. Kurjak is a hard worker that is a glass-cleaner, and while his offensive game is still developing, he did make improvements as the summer progressed.
Marold held his own this summer and did all that was asked of him. He got bigger and, with that, made improvements to his game. He is setting harder screens, rebounding in bunches, and also is an immovable force down low. He battled with the other top bigs in the state this summer and showed that he belongs. Marold is a high IQ big man that gets after it on both ends of the floor. He is dunking, showed an improved back to the basket game, and does plenty of things that does not show up on the scoreboard. Marold is a high academic player that schools should be flocking to and was one of the very best this summer.