5 Takeaways: East St. Louis vs O’Fallon
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O’Fallon traveled to East St. Louis. O’Fallon led most of the way, but the Flyers closed it out on their home floor as East St. Louis took home the win 64-58. We dive into our thoughts on the game in…
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Continue ReadingO’Fallon traveled to East St. Louis. O’Fallon led most of the way, but the Flyers closed it out on their home floor as East St. Louis took home the win 64-58. We dive into our thoughts on the game in our 5 Takeaways: East St. Louis vs O’Fallon.
Evolution of Christian Jones Christian Jones 6'4" | SG East St. Louis | 2022 State IL
A lot of times I will have prospects tell me they are a certain position, but what you see on the floor doesn’t back that up at all. A couple months back Granite City to East St. Louis transfer 6’4” 2022 Christian Jones told me he was a point guard. I hadn’t seen him in a while other than Bradley Beal Elite workouts where he played off the ball. Playing with his new high school team he definitely showed there are a lot of combo guard skills in the tool box! Lengthy guard has a silky smooth handle being able to weave in and out of traffic. He was most effective in transition pushing it with his long strides while always having his head up looking to make a play for himself or a teammate. Several fantastic dishes throughout the night passing ahead or getting in the teeth of the defense before dishing off. The best came in the clutch moments of the game when he went baseline and distributed a wrap around pass to Rich for a key bucket. He didn’t score much on the perimeter instead getting the majority of his buckets in the paint on floaters. Best score was a shifty take where he took a bump then got it on the rim for an and-1. Did have a few turnovers on his drives during the gather where he was a little loose with it. Finished with 10 points.
Evaluating Pair of Unique Prospects
Overly physically developed prospects are some of the toughest evaluations. Macaleab Rich from East St. Louis has a college outside linebacker body right now as a sophomore in high school. The 2023 small forward does the majority of his production on the offensive end on the interior. Posts up wings and pounds them into the rim for scores. Spin moves and quick takes from the mid-post area. His quickness and physicality inside is impressive. Didn’t see much in the way of growth as a perimeter player in this game as he didn’t even hit his usual one three a game. His tenacity on both ends makes him a college prospect worth tracking. High level rebounder that at 6’5” is a monster multi positional defender. Has a knack for getting steals and blocking shots. Always seems to make the key play defensively as he did in the fourth quarter with a swat and taking a charge. Finished with 17 points. Projects as a D1 forward. His counterpart in this game Dawson Algee from O’Fallon is listed at 6’3”, but plays on the interior as well. At the high school level he is the ultimate junk yard dog undersized post. Elite motor and wide body allow him to maul on the offensive glass for put backs and clear the defensive glass. Finishes dump off passes and cleans up the junk around the hoop. Did actually hit a three in this game, but also struggled on other attempts from three and the foul line. Algee will absolutely be a beast as the small college level despite his lack of height. He had 15 points.
Senior Sleepers for East St. Louis
Three forwards for East St. Louis are worth a look for D3, NAIA, and JUCO programs. The highest ranked of the trio is David Granger. Long and athletic 6’7” four man that runs the floor with such ease. That is where he makes his money rim running in transition. His length on the defensive end both laterally and vertically are assets as well. Went for 10 points. Ryan Stevenson made an impression on us in this game. The 6’3” wing hit a pair of threes and showed fluidness in the open floor en route to 12 points. Bouncy 6’6” power forward Jalen Watson brings energy on the interior crashing the glass for second chance points.
Pair of Sophomores Emerge
Always love finding new names and we liked a pair of sophomores in this one. East St. Louis has a big bodied sophomore center in Damarion Brown. The 2023 post was impactful in the first half coming off the bench where he had a put back, spin move, and finished a dump off. Late in the contest he snatched a rebound out of mid air and put it back in. Efficient and showcased touch in the paint for his 8 points. O’Fallon 2023 6’3” shooting guard Jalen Smith is a slick handling guard that can create his own shot off the bounce and take it coast to coast in traffic. Won at a nice clip on straight line drives for 9 points.
Breakout Night for O’Fallon Senior
Dashaun Mosley led the game in scoring netting 23 points. The little known 5’9” point guard was in a zone draining threes over and over again. Also hit some pull ups from mid-range. He got to his spot and let it fly. Clean mechanics on his jumper. Could help at the small college level as an energy bench scorer!