Five 16U Teams That Impressed This Spring
The Spring session of AAU is complete and we are taking a look back at some of those players and teams that made an impression the first two months. Here are five of those teams that impressed at the 16U level this Spring.
DistinXion 2020 Black
For DistinXion, they did really well when we were able to watch with guys like Keegan O’Neill and Turner Royal taking over the game a bit. They have a good group of guards with Josiah Ricketts and Justin Fickling adding to their depth. One of the better surprises was to see Noah Hupmann become more of an impact player. He gives them true size that can finish inside although he’s a little bit just sticks and bones right now. They have some real game and could be a force in July in the local tournaments.
Indiana Elite 2020
Almost as we expected, IE 2020 only lost 1 game this Spring and it was a tough one but this group is really talented and they have had more players develop quicker than expected adding to their depth in a class that is just so-so. Anthony Leal has been very consistent and one of the best players in the class. Also, Nijel Pack has really stepped up and is in the conversation as the best point guard in the class. Over, they have the highest expectations and to date, they have met them and will have bigger challenges ahead in July.
Indy Heat 2020
Expectations were kind of all over the place for this Indy Heat team as it was a little bit of a rebuild but at the end of the day they have really impressed bringing a group of players to the forefront that we might not have known that much about before. Jaden Ivey is among the guys, individually, that impressed the most this Spring. So talented and a guy to put at the top of the 2020 Rankings. Hayden Jones and Garrott Ott-Large kind of solidified their status and when Tayson Parker was healthy he gave them a different look with his speed and athleticism. They played fast and had more athleticism than you would expect. Really good team that has surpassed our expectations.
SYF 2020
SYF has stayed within their area the last few years and this group is one of the better ones they have had in a while. Charlie Yoder is among the toughest competitors in the class and a guy to watch moving forward. Cleveland Neal and Tommie Moore give this team even more toughness and scoring ability. Ben Jones playing up helps and showed he could bring some value to the level. For the area, it is nice to see group with more talent than we knew about in the Spring.
UA Grind 2020
Maybe the biggest surprise this Spring with regards to just one specific team was UA Grind 2020. They have talent and are good but what they did on the UAA circuit was such a surprise for anyone that follows this State. Dillon Duff, Kenny Tracy, and Michael Saunders Jr. grew to a new level of talent and they had that togetherness that made them play as a team, on just another level.