War Games Fall Finale: All-Underclassmen Team
The Insider Exposure and FBC collaboration event brought talent from all over the country. There were several very competitive match-ups which gave us a good opportunity to evaluate many of the young teams at the War Game Fall Finale. Here…
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Continue ReadingThe Insider Exposure and FBC collaboration event brought talent from all over the country. There were several very competitive match-ups which gave us a good opportunity to evaluate many of the young teams at the War Game Fall Finale. Here are our selections for the All-Underclassmen Team.
First Team:
Jaloni Cambridge | PG | 5’6″ | FBC United The Family | 2024
Cambridge made it very clear that she is a two-way guard that will lock up on defense and will provide consistent offensive production. She was great when guarding the ball and picked up multiple steals from clean strips and shooting the passing lanes.She showed repeatedly that she can go from defense to offense in a hurry. She has good ball handling and can take on the pressure from presses while delivering good passes or beating the traps herself with quickness. A skilled finisher at the rim, that also showed nice range going 2 of 4 from behind the arc. She also finished with 4 steals and 3 assists.
Samyha Suffren Samyha Suffren 5'8" | PG Cannon | 2023 State NC | SG | 5’8″ | Team Curry 16U | 2023
Suffren played a very energetic and offensively aggressive game against Team Felton. She has a good handle and used her dribble moves to shift defenders, putting them on her hip to get to the rim. She showed that she can finish through contact consistently. She also used her handle to create separation to get her jumper off and showed her range hitting three three-point field goals. She showed good passing ability but was in attack mode most of the game. Her strong frame and shifty ability kept defenders off balance allowing her to finish with 22 points.
Sydney Bowles Sydney Bowles 6'1" | CG Woodward Academy | 2022 State #17 Nation GA | SF | 6’2″ | Georgia Pearls Jr. National | 2022
One of the more skilled big guards in her class, Bowles was relentless in her efforts to score the ball. She played a major roll in the success of the Georgia Pearls who went 4-0 this weekend. She is a true example of a three level scorer and has the size to play every position on the floor. Bowles showed her strong driving ability which is hard to stop with out fouling. She found a couple of catch and shoot opportunities around the perimeter as well. Even with a guard skillset, Bowles is not afraid to take her efforts to the block and looked to post up smaller guards for some post work. She has a complete offensive game and looked more than capable defensively this weekend. Bottom line is there are few girls that can score the ball in as many ways as she can effectively.
Joyce Edwards Joyce Edwards 6'3" | PF Camden | 2024 State SC | PF | 6’3″ | FBC United The Family | 2024
Edwards was my favorite player to watch because of her versatility on both ends of the floor. When on the court, Edwards was able to cause challenges for post and guards alike. She has the size and toughness to bang in the interior and the length and quickness to defend the perimeter. Whether it be blocking shots and crashing the glass or guarding primary ball handlers and disrupting actions, Edwards displayed the ability to do it all. Offensively, Edwards showed some nice footwork on the block and an ability to drive the ball from either elbow to get layups. She also showed great vision when passing out of the post where again her height allows here to see over most defenders. Right now, things look very easy for her.
Breya Cunningham Breya Cunningham 6'3" | C La Jolla Country Day | 2023 State #3 Nation CA | C | 6’3″ | San Diego Waves | 2023
Cunningham was the most complete underclassmen post player. She battled in the in the paint well against the FBC Playmakers 17U. I was most impressed with her ability to score the ball from the low block. She did a great job of fighting for position and giving her guards a clear target to deliver the ball. She showed great hands, grabbing passes no matter the placement, and showed a high IQ with choosing the correct move to score. She understands angles and has a soft touch around the rim. Defensively she provided rim protection, picking up five blocks on her way to a double-double with 21 points and 10 rebounds. She showed that back to the basket play is still alive and well.
Second Team:
Malaya Jones Malaya Jones 5'3" | PG Grayson | 2024 State GA | PG | 5’5″ | FBC Black Next Gen | 2024
Jones has created a nice buzz here in Georgia. The small, fast, and skilled guard showed a good defensive mind and scoring ability. She handled the point guard duties in her game against Flight Silver and did well. She is very fast in transition and has good vision to find open teammates. She showed that her advanced ball-handling helps her get uncontested looks at the rim with her jumper or at the rim. She showed some touch on her floater when getting the ball up over long post which is very necessary for a guard her size. Her speed makes it very hard to defend her when she has the ball or not because she knows how to keep moving and space the floor.
Taliah Scott | SG | 5’8″ | FGB | 2023
I was only able to catch the second half of her game against Team Curry but that was all I needed to add her to this list. Although Scott’s ball-handling and vision is already at a high level, it was her scoring efficiency that caught my attention. She showed an understanding of what to do and when to do it. Whether she made the strong drive to the rim or settled for the catch and shoot jumper, she seemed to make the correct read every time. She has elite athleticism from the guard spot and it showed on the defensive side where her lateral quickness forced guards to just give up the ball. The combo guard has a level of excitement to her game.
Jailyn Banks | SF | 5’9″ | Flight Silver | 2023
Banks used her nice frame and athleticism well this weekend. She was most effective driving the ball and getting the the foul line three different times. She showed the muscle to be able to defend multiple positions both inside and out. Her willingness to crash the boards proved to be beneficial. She grabbed seven rebounds going over and sometimes through bigger interior players. Banks has the frame to really get to the rim while taking bumps and hits from defenders.
Abigail Johnson Abigail Johnson 5'9" | SF Ankeny | 2021 State IA | PF | 5’10″ | Flight Silver | 2023
At first glance you might not expect for Johnson to play the way she does but she is a true competitor. A little undersized for her position she was able to make a major impact on the glass. She uses her wide frame very well and has a textbook boxout technique. She was able to score eight in the game but she gobbled up rebounds as if they were passes to her. She finished with 12 rebounds against post players with great size. She also notched a block showing good anticipation and IQ from the weakside.
Mallory Collier Mallory Collier 6'5" | C Bartlett | 2023 State TN | C | 6’4 | FBC United The Family | 2023
Collier brings great size and physicality from the post position. She can be trusted to provide good rim protection and to aggressively pursue rebounds. She runs the floor very well which she showed after blocking a shot and then rim running to get a layup in transition. She showed nice footwork and great passing in the high low actions after making timely reads. She showed an ability to seal other bigger post and scored a couple of layups around the rim after good catches. Rebounding and shot blocking are strengths of hers.