’23 Solomon Ball discusses his recruitment
One of the main reasons that I made the trip up to the Saint James Invitational was to get eyes on 2023 Saint James guard Solomon Ball Solomon Ball 6'3" | CG Brewster Academy | 2023 State #106 Nation New E . Ball, who currently ranks as the no. 8 prospect in our 2023 MD/DC Player Rankings, continues to pick up momentum with his recruitment thanks to his high-level play after his return from injury.
Saint James is in the middle of the process of rebuilding their program with Ball as a key foundational piece. As great as that sounds, it also means that he and his teammates have had to suffer some rough losses and battle through adversity.
“It’s all a part of the process,” Ball continued, “I’m not used to losing a lot, but it’s all a part of the process that we’re in with the growing pains. This is our third game with a full team, so we’re still trying to get into the mix of things. Even though our record is struggling, I think we definitely have a chance to bring the MAC Championship back home with us. It’s just going to take growing pains against good competitions.”
Ball missed 11 games of the 2021-22 season with a fractured thumb that he also tore three ligaments in.
“I’m feeling really good now. My legs feel great and my thumb isn’t in pain. I even jammed it a bit in today’s game, but I’m fine.”
Ball used this summer and fall to improve on many aspects of his game. What may have helped him the most though, was his natural maturation and growth.
“I’ve gotten much stronger and even with my vert being pretty good already, my athleticism has improved. I’m able to control it off of two feet and finish over bigs and other defenders. I think it was a mixture of just me naturally growing and also me staying in weight room. I’m a late bloomer, so I had to grow into my body and stuff, but also me dedicating time to the weight room and focusing on explosive stuff.”
Ball isn’t lying when he said how he can finish over bigs. His improvement athletically has been something I’ve been taken aback by since I saw some film from fall workouts. He’s easily playing above the rim and with his plus length for 6-foot-3, it often times surprises defenders how high he can extend the ball before punching it in the rim.
An area that Ball has improved is attacking off the bounce. He was good at creating off of 1-or-2 dribbles back in the summer, but would often times make a decision as his confidence lacked in creating off counter moves. He looks much more comfortable in that sense, which allows him to create more opportunities both for himself and others.
DePaul was in attendance for Ball’s game against SoCal Academy where he recorded 23 points while going 10-for-10 from the free-throw line. Despite coming up on the losing end, proving himself against some of the best talent the country has to offer was enough for head coach Tony Stubblefield to officially offer.
“Coach Stubblefield facetimed me the following day and just told me that he liked how I was able to go at the competition as good as they were. They have a bunch of four and five-stars, so he liked that I just went at them without hesitation, He liked my edge.”
Ball told Prep Hoops that Xavier, George Washington, St. Joseph’s, Richmond and VCU have been the programs in consistent contact recently. He plans on setting up visits with St. Joseph’s and VCU.
One of my favorite players to watch in the Saint James Invitational so far is the host team's @solo_ball5; insanely athletic, and a smooth operator on the court.
Scored 54 points in two games – the first two games since he was out for 10 weeks.
@WDVMTVhttps://t.co/DwCcmHIVNH pic.twitter.com/Cw1sKbT9NH
— Allif Karim (@AllifKarim) February 5, 2022