San Diego gets “live” – a Full-Time Hoops Evaluation Period Primer

Any prep player serious about playing basketball at the next level has had April 25-27 circled on their calendar for months now.

This weekend, hundreds of college coaches will crowd into gyms across the country looking for players to fill their next recruiting classes.

The NCAA refers to the weekend as the “Evaluation Period” on its recruiting calendar, though its sometimes also referred to as the “live” or “open” period.

The weekend is the lone evaluation period on the NCAA’s recruiting calendar this spring due to an unusually late Easter, so it holds even more significance to both coaches and recruits.

San Diego teams will be scattered across the Western Region, attending several major basketball tournaments in an effort to provide their players with opportunities to showcase their wares in front of college coaches.

Full-Time Hoops is here with a brief primer on the upcoming weekend, including where local teams will be, which players are poised to have breakout weekends, and other pertinent information.

Who’s going where?

San Diego-All Stars: Double Pump Hoop Fest, Anaheim CA

Gamepoint: 17u Red; 16u Black- Adidas Gauntlet, Dallas, TX

17u Black, 17u White: Under Armour Jayhawk Invitational, Olathe KS

17u Silver, 16u Red, 15u Black, 15u White: Pangos Spring Spectacular, Las Vegas NV

Coastal Elite: Double Pump Hoop Fest

Top Gun: Pangos Spring Spectacular

San Diego Warriors: Double Pump Hoop Fest

San Diego Cougars: Double Pump Hoop Fest

Next Generation: Pangos Spring Spectacular

Compton Magic (several SD prospects): Adidas Gauntlet

Earl Watson Elite (several SD prospects): Jayhawk Invitational

The Blues: TBA

Ground Up: TBA

Who are some potential breakout stars?

San Diego All Stars: 2016 Justin Davis, 2015 Lynard Steward and 2015 Jordan Alexander. Davis has steadily improved his game this year, culminating with several big performances in the CIF playoffs. He’s got a great frame for a wing, and while his skillset on the wing is still raw, he has the work ethic to continue to improve. Steward, a diminutive scoring guard from San Ysidro, can fill it up in a hurry and could definitely fill a Chazz Williams-type role at the next level. Alexander fell off of a number of team’s scopes due to academic ineligibility this year, but served notice at the So Cal Hoop Review this month that he’s still a force to be reckoned with. A solid showing in Anaheim will certainly boost his stock.

Gamepoint: 2015 Dominic Hovasse, 2015 Justin Young and 2016 Eric Monroe: Hovasse, a 6’2” combo guard from Torrey Pines, is one of the most underrated scoring guards in San Diego and has the athleticism and pedigree (father, Tom Hovasse, played briefly in the NBA) to warrant college interest. Young, a 6’7” forward, will remind some of current Oregon Ducks PF Jordan Bell- a long, athletic defensive menace whose handle and passing in transition makes him fun to watch. Monroe, only a sophomore, is often overlooked in San Diego’s loaded 2016 class, but has been playing at a very high level so far this spring and could firmly propel himself into mid-major discussions playing well with the 17u Black team this weekend.

Coastal Elite: 2015 Abdul Shanun and 2016 Marco Cobian: Shanun has become a hot name in a short period of time after strong performances at the Hoop Review and the Bigfoot Easter Showdown in Las Vegas. Cobian, who is still on the fence as a football and basketball prospect, could go a long way to curry interest of the hoops variety with a strong weekend.

Compton Magic: 2016 Omajae Smith, 2016 Martin Tombe: Smith has made some marked improvement over the past season with his ball skills, but it’s his grit and motor that make him a player to watch. Tombe is an undersized four man who has a very unique skillset with his ability to handle the ball and shoot from midrange.

Next Generation: 2016 PG Takoda Browne, 2015 F Austin Knoxand 2015 F Xavier Browne: The trio of relatives from Mississippi had a bullish year at Kearny, leading the Komets to a Division 3 title. Takoda, a hyper-athletic and feisty floor general, is one of the more underrated point guard prospects in San Diego. Xavier, a 6’4” pogo stick, is a versatile defender and a capable spot-up shooter from the perimeter. Austin is an explosive combo forward who plays much bigger than his listed 6-5 height.

Other breakout stars to watch:

Brandon McCoy, 6-9 200 PF, Morse/ Ground Up: McCoy has turned heads with his play during April thus far, and possesses the physical package and talent to be a high-major prospect.

Sam Bockman, 6-6 200 PF, El Camino/ Gamepoint 17u Red: Bockman is an undersized forward whose athleticism and motor allow him to be effective in the low block on both ends. He’s being billed as an Ivy League prospect due to his play and his high academic marks. He’ll get a chance in Dallas to prove it.

Reed Farley, 6-3 SF La Jolla/Top Gun 15u Elite: Farley has the athleticism and hoops IQ to catch some eyes this weekend in Las Vegas, though most of the attention will likely be on the 17u level.

Kajahn Patton, 6-3 185 G, Gompers/San Diego Cougars: Patton is a scoring guard who can fill it up in a hurry at the small-school level. He now has a chance to acquit himself against top competition.

Richard Polanco, 6-8 200 PF, Army Navy/ San Diego All-Stars 16u: The beastly wing is an intriguing prospect with his point-forward ability (passing IQ is tremendous).

Who has the most at stake?

Dalton Soffer, 6-5 180 SG, Poway/ Gamepoint 17u Black: Soffer, one of the state’s elite shooters, is coming off a season that saw him curry interest from a number of Division 1 programs, including UC Irvine and Yale, but did not see that interest materialize into an offer. He’ll need to show that he’s more than just a shooter, including improvement handling the ball and defending on the perimeter. Soffer could do that this weekend.

Patrick Fisher, 6-4 175 PG, La Costa Canyon/ Gamepoint 17u Black: Fisher had a solid year at La Costa Canyon as the team’s defensive specialist and glue guy, but colleges want to see more from him in terms of ball handling, game management and perimeter shooting. He has the size and defensive ability that coaches covet, but he has to turn the corner in those other aspects of his game.

Will Christmas, 6-3 170 G, Oceanside/ Coastal Elite 17u Premier: Christmas emerged on the D1 radar with a solid fall, he still needs to make significant leaps in several areas of his development to firmly establish himself as a prospect on that level. He plays too high, and his perimeter shooting, while improved, is still an area of concern. He could address all of those issues with a strong weekend.

Travis Fuller, 6-8  200PF, La Costa Canyon/ California Supreme: Entering the fall, we had him ranked as our No. 1 2015 prospect, and started the year out validating that ranking, but his play faded toward the end of the year.  Fuller, however, served notice on his new team at the Hoop Review that he is still a top prospect in his class with his ability to stick the perimeter shot and assert himself on the glass. This weekend’s EYBL Session in Sacramento gives him the ultimate stage to showcase his talents.

Who to follow?

If you’re unable to attend the tournaments, dozens of writers and scouts will be providing updates on Twitter and other platforms. Here are a list of names to follow:

Scouts and writers:

Frank Burlison- Twitter: @frankiebur; site:www.burlisononbasketball.com

Joel Francisco, ESPN- Twitter: @JoelFranESPN

Indihoops- Twitter: @Indihoops

Ronnie Flores, Cal-Hi Sports- Twitter: @RonMFlores

Dinos Trigonis, Full Court Press Editor/ Pangos events: Twitter: @trigonis30; site: fullctpress.net

Neal Nieves- Publisher, Bruin247 Twitter: nealnieves, @bruin247

Evan Daniels, Scout.com- Twitter: @EvanDaniels

Josh Gershon, Scout.com- Twitter: @JoshGershon

Reggie Rankin, ESPN- Twitter: @Reggie Rankin

The Dunk News- Twitter: @dunknews

Dave Keefer, California Preps/ Rivals- Twitter: @DaveKeefer

Edward Lewis, Bruins Sports Report/ Rivals- Twitter: @EdwardLewisBSR

Jayhawk Invitational: @jayhawk_Tourney

Team Twitter accouts:

Gamepoint: @gamepointnation @gamepointelite

San Diego All-Stars: @sda_basketball

Coastal Elite: @coastal_elite

Top Gun: @TopGunBball

Compton Magic: @compton_magic

Earl Watson Elite: @EarlWatsonElite

San Diego Warriors: @SD_Warriors1

Next Generation: SITE www.ngsandiego.com