Top Freshmen at #Elite80
When I first became involved shortly after the turn of the century, there were a handful of area teams that allowed freshmen to play on varsity yet over the years, many times these freshmen would wind up taking their squads…
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Continue ReadingWhen I first became involved shortly after the turn of the century, there were a handful of area teams that allowed freshmen to play on varsity yet over the years, many times these freshmen would wind up taking their squads to new heights, from Erin Grant winning 4 straight state titles at Mansfield in the highest classification to Eboni Mangum scoring 28 points in the final quarter to help lead Dulles to the state championship to more recently that dynamic guard duo of Rori Harmon Rori Harmon 5'7" | PG Cypress Creek | 2021 State #12 Nation TX and Kyndall Hunter Kyndall Hunter 5'8" | SG Cypress Creek | 2021 State #23 Nation TX going year before last, they’re back and let us not forget what Desoto did last season, Sa’Myah Smith Sa’Myah Smith 6'4" | PF DeSoto | 2022 State #14 Nation TX , Amina Muhammad Amina Muhammad 6'3" | PF DeSoto | 2022 State TX , Michayla Gatewood Michayla Gatewood 5'8" | PG DeSoto | 2022 State TX , Tionna Herron Tionna Herron 6'3" | PF DeSoto | 2022 State TX , Jiya Perry Jiya Perry 5'11" | SF DeSoto | 2022 State TX , Jamia Harris Jamia Harris 5'7" | SG DeSoto | 2022 State TX so once the politics and theories were thrown out of the window, many figured out that they’re just freshmen ahead of the curve who didn’t fall into the “the best thing about freshmen is that they become sophomores” nonsense but here are some of the 2023 standouts from thew #Elite80
Kierra Merchant Kierra Merchant 5'10" | CG Westfield | 2023 State TX -Spring- I don’t even remember what team she was on when I first saw her but the way she did things instinctively told me a lot. She falls into the “long and athletic” category and plays the passing lane nicely but she also can attack the basket and has a nice pull-up jumper as well as a huge upside
Jorynn Ross Jorynn Ross 6'2" | PF John Cooper | 2023 State TX -John Cooper-another saying I amended was “you can’t teach size” by adding when you can play and what she showed me over the school season trickled down to the camp because she is on the verge of breaking out. Her power in the paint, her rebounding on both ends as well as running the floor afterward all stood out
Layla Conley Layla Conley 5'7" | SG Harlan | 2023 State TX -Harlan-when you drop five-thirty footers in the 7th grade, maybe 6, I am going to remember you and she’s just kept adding range and other offensive tools so I’ll never forget her. As she breaks many records in high school, she’s added attacking off the dribble as well as creating her shot under pressure even more
Makayla Evans-Westside-the pull-up jumper a few years ago put me on notice that she was on to something in the 7th grade but her poise under pressure at a young age was definitely a plus. Her range continues to extend even further and she’s showing she can create while being guarded tightly
Kaitlynn Evans-Westside-plays the passing lane like an All-Pro cornerback, I haven’t used that in a while but it fits. She’s always alert on defense and reads it nicely but her athleticism and length play a big part in what she brings to the table and her slicing to the basket and finishing with contact keeps getting better
Brianna Vargas-Burges-every time I see her she shows me something new or is putting extra touches on what she has so her ability to see the floor was probably one of the first things that impressed me as well as her range which is even deeper but the midrange, creating off the dribble and attacking are all looking good