PureSweat/ Justin Barrington training session 9/17
On Thursday I was invited by Justin Barrington to attend another one of his Pure Sweat training sessions, this time in Marion, IL. Justin does a great job working with the girls to improve their skills and also to get…
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Continue ReadingOn Thursday I was invited by Justin Barrington to attend another one of his Pure Sweat training sessions, this time in Marion, IL. Justin does a great job working with the girls to improve their skills and also to get them going hard and getting into shape. We were lucky enough to have interest from the Lady Brad Beal Elite club to bring some of their girls down for the session. We ended up with 11 girls and the gym was loaded with talent. Here is a breakdown on the Illinois girls that participated.
O’Fallon Lady Panthers
Shannon Dowell Shannon Dowell 5'9" | SG O'Fallon HS | 2023 State IL and Zsana Hawkins Zsana Hawkins 5'11" | C O'Fallon | 2023 State IL are both 2023 players that have been with the Brad Beal Elite club this summer. Shannon started from the beginning of her freshman campaign for OTHS and Coach Knolhoff and has shown skills to go with her raw athleticism. She is long and wiry at 5’9-5’10 with long arms and legs. Shannon can really jump which allows her to finish in the lane over most defenders. With her natural build and talent she should end up being an elite defender as she can easily cause problems with her length. Ball handling and a consistent outside shot and a high motor will help make Shannon the elite level player she can be. Zsana, or Z as she is known, is a big bodied post player that makes up for the lack of ideal height with her strength and effort. I have yet to see anyone question her heart or work ethic so she will keep getting better. She was mainly a JV player at the start of the year for O’Fallon but had some key minutes later in the season. She establishes position well and rebounds well on both ends. To maximize her potential Z needs to master using her left hand and working in the high post to hit mid range shots and beat girls off the bounce.
Carterville Lady Lions
The Doyle sisters, Alecia and Amayah were in attendance. Alecia Doyle Alecia Doyle 5'7" | CG Carterville | 2022 State IL is a returning starter on the team that made a state tourney run. She is a 2022 that has a D1 offer from SIU and is poised to take off in her junior campaign. She is going to be the unquestioned leader returning and the 5’8 guard should get plenty of opportunities. She is an athletic player that can run and jump but shows the skill set to succeed too. She has a smooth way about her and an improving jumper that she can hit from deep range behind the arc. Amayah is a 2024 strong athlete that has a nice skill set. I have been told more than once that she is a high level softball player and I can see why. She is very powerful and was banging down low with the posts, but is also agile enough to play on the wing. In basketball right now she looks like a nice young stretch 4 that can play college ball if she chooses basketball and keeps developing.
SWC Guards
The Lady Brad Beal Elite club has three 2023 guards that will make plenty of noise in the SWC before they are done. Two have already been heard from in their freshman seasons. Jailah Pelly Jailah Pelly 5'9" | SG O'Fallon | 2023 State IL is a long and very athletic guard from East St. Louis. She has sprinters speed and uses it well in a fast paced game. Jailah started from day one for East Side and had a nice season where she averaged over 12 points per game. If Jailah can continue to work on her ball handling and developing a consistent outside shot she will be an excellent player. Her speed and length translate to her potentially being an elite weapon on defense. Laylah Jackson Laylah Jackson 5'6" | PG O'Fallon | 2023 State IL is a 5’6 Guard from Belleville East that came in and showed that she has in the gym range and the confidence to take big shots. She hit 50 three pointers and averaged 11 points per game as a freshman. Laylah can also take the ball to the rim but needs to continue to improve that part of her game as teams will no doubt crowd her to try to take away the 3-point threat. In addition Laylah was not born with the extreme athleticism of some of her teammates so she must continue to improve her decision making and how quickly she can process what she sees so she can make moves quickly. The other SWC guard is an up and comer that not many people know about yet. Maliah Sparks is from Belleville West and has come a long way in the last 12 months. She has a thin frame so she can hopefully continue to get stronger to handle the physical play that will come in the SWC and the college game. Mailah is a smooth ball handler that has an explosive burst in her first couple of steps. Her outside is still improving but she can and will take the open shot if it is there. Her willingness to compete and not back down is something that jumps off the page as she competes with players that have more accolades.
The Freshman
No matter how you twist it, Amiah Hargrove is a talented young lady that has been talked about in deep southern Illinois for a while now. Not many people are unaware that this tall, athletic and talented player is in Christopher waiting to start her high school career. Most everyone knows her dad played in the NFL and I am very sure many schools have begged her parents to let her attend their school. Everyone has a plan for her. So do her parents and I am sure they will control the chaos that may surround her. Amiah is about 6’2, may be best in the post right now but shows great agility and a developing wing game that will ultimately tell how far she can go. The ball handling in tight spaces and changing directions will be areas for her to keep improving. She has great touch and the ability to rise up and shoot over players. The first time i saw her last year she owned the workout with a quick one or two dribble move into a pull up 15 foot jumper that nobody could stop. She is special and I am excited to watch and see how far she goes because not only is she an athlete, she is obviously humble and hard working. The kind of kid you want to see do well.
I thoroughly enjoyed this workout. There were 11 talented players going at it and working hard. I am very happy to continue my relationship with Justin and was very excited to spend some time with Jonathan Bush and Neal Proemesy from Brad Beal Elite. All of these men are great basketball minds and do their best to help these players become great players and even better people.