January 1, 2014

Holiday Hoops

Gregg Rosenberg
ArizonaVarsity.com Basketball Analyst

Talk about it in Hardwood Locker Room

On December 26th, 27th, 28th, 30th and 31st ArizonaVarsity attended a total of 25 games at three different locations. The first location was at Greenway HS in Phoenix (Ariz.) for the Judy Dixon Tourney. The second location was at Mountain View HS in Mesa (Ariz.) for the VisitMesa.com Event. The last location was at McClintock HS in Tempe (Ariz.) for the McClintock Holiday Shoot-Out.

Over the long week of hoops, here are some of the signed players who played well:

6-foot-5 SG 2014 Jake Toolson attends Highland and committed to BYU. Toolson was one of the best players this week as he averaged over 35 points per game.

6-foot-7 W 2015 Dane Kuiper attends Corona del Sol and committed to New Mexico. Kuiper was one of the best players this week showing off his all-around play.

6-foot-3 PG 2014 Casey Benson attends Corona del Sol and committed to Oregon. Benson proved this week that he is the best team leader in the state.

6-foot-9 PF 2014 Payton Dastrup attends Mountain View and committed to BYU. Dastrup demonstrated his athleticism and touch this week.

6-foot-6 SG 2014 Sam Jones attends Gilbert Christian and committed to Penn. Jones was hitting shots from deep all week.

Here are some unsigned individual player takes from the five days.

Players with Division-1 potential
6-foot-3 SG 2015 Kenzo Nudo attends Chaparral. Nudo has one of the purest strokes in his class. He can get his shot off very quick with immense confidence. He also is deceptively athletic and can take the ball to the basket and finish off lay-ups or dunk on occasion. He defends hard, but needs to get quicker and make better use of his left hand. Nudo has offers from Santa Clara, GCU, NAU, Weber State and Northern Colorado.

6-foot-4 W 2015 Jalen Jenkins attends Red Mountain. Jenkins is an athletic point-forward type. He can throw down when he is near the basket very quickly. He can facilitate for his team, but is normally looking to score. He can hit shots from mid-range, but he has to extend his range further and clean up his form. He is a very good rebounder and defender who has a high motor. He also can post up smaller guards and score in the paint. He will have to improve his decision-making and right hand to further his game.

6-foot-3 SG 2016 Nkeal Harry attends Marcos de Niza. Harry had one of the most impressive games by anyone in his class by finishing with 36 points. He scored from all three levels and actually was an efficient 12 out of 16 from the field and made 10 free throws. He can score from long range, hit you with the floater, rebound well; tip-in balls and is an extremely underrated passer. He also defends well with his strong frame and quickness.

6-foot PG 2017 Alex Barcelo attends Corona del Sol. Barcelo is a very mature freshman who sees the court well and can hit shots consistently from the perimeter. He has a good pace already and is never rushing or speeding up his control of the ball. He can pull up from mid-range or throw the dime to his teammates. His body is sturdy to defend and get physical, but he will have to get quicker long term to defend the faster guards and improve his left hand. He is easily one of the better players in his class.

6-foot-3 SG 2016 Cameron Satterwhite attends Gilbert Christian. Satterwhite is a long and lean prospect that has a smooth jumper out to the arc. He flies around with his long strides and rebounds well for a guard. He can hit the mid-range jumper and he is improving taking the ball to the hole. He has great length to defend, but will have to start putting on some weight and getting stronger to take the ball in the paint more consistently and the punishment that comes with it. Satterwhite holds a NAU offer.

5-foot-11 PG 2015 Brandon Hoffer attends Chaparral. Hoffer is a strong true pass-first point guard who is the best floor general in his class. He is very difficult to take the ball from and plays at a controlled pace to get his teammates involved every game. He is strong enough to take the ball to the basket and is an improved shooter out to the arc. He needs to continue to be a more consistent shooter and get a little quicker to defend the speedy point guards. Hoffer has interest from NAU, Northern Colorado, Colgate,Cornell and Columbia with his 3.7 GPA.

5-foot-10 PG 2016 Malique Washington attends McClintock. Washington is real physical guard that is improving his scoring. He can easily take the ball to the basket and score lay-ups or get to the free throw line at a high rate. He hits perimeter shots more consistently, but he still needs to fix his form. He can facilitate for his teammates, but has to find a happy medium of scorer to passer. His defense on the ball is solid as he uses his lateral quickness and strength to his advantage.