Braylon Mullins: More than a Shooter

There may not be a player in the country who has seen their public perception improve more throughout the grassroots season than 6’5 G/W Braylon Mullins. Playing for Indiana Elite on the 3SSB (Adidas) circuit, Mullins emerged from relative obscurity over the past few weeks, having spent the last high school season playing for Indiana public school Greenfield Central in lieu of a prep school with a nationally recognized brand.

At first glance, Mullins seems to embody the role of a traditional movement shooter. Taking over 8 threes per game, these attempts make up over 60% of Mullins’ shot diet. And with Mullins converting from three at a scorching 44.6% clip, it seems as though he’s simply executing the role of a shooting specialist at a high level. However, examining the tape will show Mullins, in many ways, is the offensive engine of an undefeated Indiana Elite team which currently boasts an average margin of victory of 19.5 points per game!

Mullins’ broader skillset is what separates him from other impressive shooters in his class, but he very well could be the best long distance sniper in the 2025 class as well. As previously mentioned, Mullins has been extremely efficient on a robust volume of 3’s per game, but his mechanics and versatility are especially notable for a young player. Mullins has total comfort shooting off various play-types, from more conventional movement sets like this Rip Stagger Screen-the-screener set ran below…

to off multiple dribbles in transition…

Or in the half-court, like this Hawk action (a UCLA cut followed by a side PNR) where Mullins takes advantage of any cushion provided to him by quickly transitioning into his shot.

As teams became aware of Mullins’ reputation as a shooter, his seemingly limitless range and hair-trigger release forced opponents to ramp up their aggressiveness on close-outs to run him off the line at any costs. This is where Mullins was able to shine, and his finely tuned process off the catch was put on full display.

Compare these two BLOB (Baseline Out of Bounds) plays. In the first clip Indiana Elite runs a Screen-the-Screener set with Mullins setting a cross screen for Malachi Moreno and receiving an exit screen which he makes the corner 3 off of.

In a similar BLOB play where Mullins sees a much more aggressive trailing defender, he confidently attacks the closeout and his clean footwork allows him to get into his floater attempt on balance and score.

Even plays where Mullins isn’t a primary feature of the action, the speed he’s able to process off-ball and the pace he plays with coming off screens allows him to make the most of his gravity as a shooter. Take the play below for example, Mullins skips the ball to an open teammate in the corner and receives a Hammer screen for, presumably, a corner 3 afterwards. However, instead of settling into the corner Mullins recognizes his defender’s back is turned to him and cuts to the basket, making himself available for a pass from his driving teammate. From here makes an interior touch pass to Malachi Moreno. Even with the pass being bobbled, Mullins shows advanced situational awareness for a high-school player here.

These kind of quick decisions are littered throughout Mullins’ tape, and while these reads aren’t necessarily the most advanced, Mullins’ consistent execution (marked by a sterling 1.21 Assist/Turnover ratio) is the hallmark of an elite, complementary, offensive player.

Ultimately, seeing Mullins’ success on the defensive end is where he completely shed the ‘just a shooter’ label in my eyes. Officially, Mullins has only been credited with 6 steals over 13 games on Synergy. However, much like on the offensive end, Mullins’ situational awareness and high activity level allow him to be an impactful player on this end.

In this clip for instance, Upward Stars runs an empty corner PNR where the guard rejecting the screen triggers a backline rotation. Mullins perfectly times his rotation, sinking into the corner as the corner kickout is made, and his off-hand deflection secures the turnover for Indiana Elite. Mullins’ hand speed and accuracy as a defender help compensate for a slighter frame as well. Plays like the clip below, where Mullins is briefly thrown out of position as his assignment curls the pindown screen, but he capitalizes on the ballhandler being slightly late on the pass with another off-hand deflection.

Mullins has strung together numerous impressive two-way performances so far this spring, but the subtleties of his game on both ends make me confident he’ll continue to rise in stature throughout the summer. Rarely are elite shooting talents able to contribute in as many areas of the game as Mullins, and it is these skills which make him a recruiting priority for the nation’s elite college programs.

Dewayne Brown: Modern Classics

There may not be a position across all sports undergoing more of a drastic transformation than the modern big-man. From traditional back to the basket centers, to stretch 5’s, and now bigs in certain instances being expected to initiate offense from the perimeter, the requirements to be considered a ‘modern big’ seem to constantly be a moving target. What makes Florida Rebels center and Tennessee commit Dewayne Brown such a standout prospect, and in my opinion the most underrated big man in the ’25 class, is how capable he is fulfilling all these roles at this stage of his career.

Brown’s bread and butter currently is his low-post game. Being one of the more physically developed bigs in the class (listed at 6’9 and 250 pounds), Brown has a developed sense of how to create space in the post not only with his size but refined footwork. Brown’s clean footwork and patience in the post allow him to consistently create finishing windows which he can capitalize on as an ambidextrous finisher.

A skill Brown may be best in all of EYBL in is establishing post position as early as possible, however for as talented a team as the Florida Rebels are, they can struggle making entry passes to Brown in the post. This dynamic often forces Brown to create post-up opportunities for himself like the play above, where Brown crashes down from the top of the key to setup a catch on the low-block. Despite the denial on the entry forcing Brown into a suboptimal catch point, his up fake on the drive helps him avoid the rotating topside defender and get an easy finish.

For how inconsistent his team is in creating post touches for Brown, the fact he’s currently sitting 6th in total post possessions across EYBL play, 4th in PPP, all while drawing fouls at the highest clip of any player with 40+ post-ups, speaks to his skill as an interior player. Even when Brown is forced to operate outside of the post, in sets more aligned with ‘modern’ big man play like the clip below, he finds ways to finish. Here Brown keeps out of a DHO and navigates the help with a pro-hop to get the finish.

Along with his footwork, Brown’s hands are his greatest weapon. Areas where explosive leaping ability is widely considered a prerequisite to thrive, like offensive rebounding and rim protection, Brown is able to excel in because of his vacuum hands and timing.

Whether he’s defending opposing bigs like Cameron Boozer on the perimeter…

Or finding himself cross-matched onto wings like Sebastian Williams-Adams…

Brown’s hand accuracy and timing enable him to serve as a positive defensive anchor.

As far as his rebounding ability, for my money there’s not a more consistent presence on the offensive glass at this level than Dewayne Brown. I don’t think there’s a play that better encapsulates his strengths as a rebounder along with the previously mentioned interior footwork than the following clip. Brown’s late hands allow him to snatch the board over Cameron Boozer before Boozer is able to properly judge the trajectory of the missed shot. And when the ball finds Brown he Barkley’s on his drive to create a deeper paint touch, and Euro-steps into the finish over Boozer. From beginning to end this play is a wild display of coordination and agility from a player Brown’s size.

What Brown’s game lacks in above the rim finishes and highlight blocks he makes up for with a poise well beyond what’s typically seen from a young big. The diversity of Brown’s skillset is what makes him exceptional and a prime candidate to outperform his ranking at the next level.

Courtland Muldrew: Seizing Opportunity

The 4th and final EYBL Session took place in Kansas City and flew somewhat under the radar as a number of headlining talent opted to attend USA Basketball’s tryouts for the u18 Americup team. For 6’3 Team Thad guard Courtland Muldrew this scheduling conflict represented an opportunity to step into a higher usage role than he’d previously seen, as his teammate 5-star guard Jasper Johnson attended the USAB minicamp. In Johnson’s stead, Muldrew proved to be one of the best advantage creators on the circuit, despite significantly scaling up in usage.

Muldrew routinely generated deep paint touches without a screen, and parlayed these paint touches into finishes or free throw attempts at an outstanding clip. Over the course of 5 games in Kansas City, Muldrew drew 41 free throws attempts, none of which came in late game must-foul situations. Muldrew’s ability to live in the paint was made possible by an ideal set of driving tools, from a lightning quick first step to contact balance reminiscent of an elite runningback, seldom was any point-of-attack defender able to stay in front of Muldrew.

Here you can see Dwayne Aristode, one of the premier perimeter defenders in the country, unable to stay in front of Muldrew as he drives to his left. And perhaps as impressive as Muldrew’s ability to repeatedly create downhill separation from defenders, is his array of finishing footwork. Muldrew is equally capable of driving and finishing with either hand, and here uses goofy-leg (jumping with the same foot as the hand attempting the layup) to disrupt the timing of the help defender.

The catalyst of Muldrew’s rim pressure is his explosive first step, as his handle is more rudimentary than most primary ballhandlers at the moment. However, Muldrew’s able to remain effective inside the arc due to his intersection of touch and an understanding of how to play off 2 feet. Synergy is somewhat limited categorizing shot types (runners and floaters) but in the four games I was able to watch and manually log Muldrew’s shot attempts, he went 3/7 on floaters, a very respectable number for a player with Muldrew’s volume of drives.

This possession is a perfect example of the interplay between the two skills of Muldrew, he drives off the catch and jumpstops to ensure his floater attempt is taken on balance. This penchant for playing off two feet lets Muldrew access a variety of counters on drive, such as the play below where he gains leverage on Dwayne Aristode after rejecting the screen, and uses the momentum from Aristode’s recovery to create space for a midrange stepback.

What’s so compelling about Muldrew’s driving ability is unlike many downhill guards at the high-school level, whose reliance on getting in the paint often comes at the cost of developing as a perimeter scorer, Muldrew has shown reason for optimism on this front. While Muldrew’s only shot 34% from three on 4.6 attempts/game (12 games), he’s been steady from the line coming in at 89% on 65 attempts. Equally encouraging as Muldrew’s touch indicators is how he’s already shown an understanding of how to enhance his drives with the shooting threat he currently possess. Compare the two plays below for example, in the first clip Muldrew takes and makes a three when the defender provides a cushion to account for the driving threat.

In the subsequent play, Team Thad runs Motion Strong for Muldrew, a set typically ran for shooters. The pace Muldrew plays with coming off the staggers gets his defender to bite on the up-fake, and this provides Muldrew the opportunity to attack the front of the rim.

Courtland Muldrew may not be a conventional point-guard at the moment, but possesses a combination of advantage creation and 3 level scoring tools matched by only a few other guards in his class. And in the previous session when Muldrew was given more decision making responsibilities he showed progression over the course of the weekend. Adding more quality reps running ballscreen actions to his resume, like the play below where Muldrew runs a side PNR and holds the tagging defender with his eyes to pry open a cleaner finishing window for the rolling big.

Chris Cenac: Standout Amongst Standouts

Before he’d even put up a shot, 6’10 big man Chris Cenac demanded my attention from the very first game of his I’d decided to turn on. Cenac’s decision to play for the NXTPRO, the newest shoe circuit sponsored by Puma, made his games more difficult to watch so my first encounter with Cenac was when his Young Game Changers (YGC) team was pitted against JL3 in an early season event. JL3 is far from lacking athletes, but Cenac’s length and fluidity at his size was immediately eye-popping.

Take the following sequence for example, Cenac is pulled away from the basket, with his man settled at the top of the key. When a drive from the strongside wing collapses the defense, Cenac helps-the-helper by sinking into the weakside corner, and keeps eyes on the ballhandler so he’s able to steal the kickout pass. A player Cenac’s size being able to make this rotation is abnormal on its own, the fact Cenac is then able to push the break, and has the wherewithal to find a teammate as his drive is walled off is spectacular.

Cenac would continue to impress as a ballhandler in the open court, even flashing as a live dribble passer.

As is often the case with young bigs with burgeoning perimeter skillsets, Cenac’s process on-ball could be questionable at times, but how consistently Cenac was able to get into his jumper proved his handle was functional at his size. Across 4 handtracked games Cenac was a promising 9/21 on jumpshots (42.8%) including going 3/9 (33.3%) from three. As always, free throw shooting factors heavily into any shooting projection for me, and Cenac was a respectable 17/25 (72%) from the line across this sample of games.

The shooting splits along with plays like this, where Cenac comfortably steps into a 1 dribble pull-up three over a respected rim protector in Xavion Stanton…

Or here where Cenac gets to his spot above the free-throw line and hits a pull-up jumper, is indicative of there being more substance than style to Cenac’s shooting projection.

Anytime a player Cenac’s size shows an aptitude for shooting it tends to become their primary draw as a prospect, but this is a case of defensive versatility being as enticing. As previously mentioned Cenac is a rare mover at his size, capable of playing defensive roles besides primary rim protector because he can guard in space. But he also has the length and discipline as a rim protector to use his size without fouling. In the possession below, YGC’s defense is in a scramble situation after JL3 secures an offensive rebound, Hudson Greer drives into open space and makes the dump-off pass, which should lead to an easy finish for the springy 6’9 forward Nigel Walls. Cenac’s fluid enough to flip his hips and explosive enough to elevate with both arms extended to block Wall’s attempt.

Up until this point I’ve kept the scope of my projections limited to how players may contribute at the collegiate level, however the manner in which Chris Cenac made his imprint on games forced me to acknowledge that he may only be a single season contributor in the NCAA.

King Grace: Guarding His Yard

In Under Armour’s first session, Texas Impact 4:13 G/W King Grace won overall MVP, and considering his statline (24 ppg on 43% from 3 and 54% from the field) a natural assumption to make would be it was Grace’s scoring output which landed him on this list. And while I do plan on discussing some of his offensive merits, what caught my eye was Grace’s doggedness as a defender.

King Grace is listed at 6’4 185 pounds, but with outstanding length and strength for the position he proved to be a suffocating Point-of-Attack defender. Grace would use his physicality to disrupt ballhandlers like the play below, where he avoids the screen and immediately crowds Josiah Sanders’ handle to force him into a backcourt violation.

Averaging 1.6 steals/game through the first two sessions, Grace possesses an exceedingly rare trait for a high-school perimeter defender. Grace’s motor, length, and timing saw him dictating certain possessions. Instead of simply capitalizing on the opponent’s errors or sacrificing his positioning to hunt turnovers, Grace forced opponents into mistakes. Like in the following play, Wisconsin Playground run 77 Flare, Grace going under the 1st screen prompts his teammate guarding the 2nd screen to show at the level before recovering back to his original assignment. The ballhandler sees this sequence play out and makes presumably the correct read by passing to his teammate coming off the flarescreen, but Grace diagnoses the play, and intercepts the pass for an easy transition dunk.

Grace thrives playing this cat-and-mouse game with ballhandlers, and maximizes opportunities in different roles. Here you see him mirror his man to prevent the drive, provides gap help on the secondary drive, but keeps his off-hand in the passing lane as he recovers. This clip is a wonderful distillation of how Grace’s physical tools and defensive anticipation manifest to create havoc and in this case generate a turnover.

Grace’s offensive skillset can best be described as low maintenance. While his handle as it currently stands may not be creative enough to consistently initiate offense, Grace was hyper-efficient in primarily Princeton type sets Texas Impact would run for him. A competent spot-up shooter, Grace’s decisiveness in these actions compensated for his lack of shot versatility. Compare the two possessions below for instance, in the first clip Grace runs off a double stagger and when he’s denied the entry, Texas Impact flows into Bilboa, where a double stagger is set and the offensive player in the corner rejects the first screen, triggering Grace to come off the pindown and take the 3.

In the next clip Texas Impact runs a similar concept out of a 5-out alignment called Point Over, where Grace is setting a pindown, but instead of a second screen the big is operating as the trigger man out of a DHO. As Grace comes off the hand-off the opposing big lifts to take away the 3, and Grace simply drives and finds his big on the roll.

Grace’s tape lacks some of the flash of other wings in his class, but the areas he excels in are typically the most conducive to a smooth transition to the next level.

The post Ahmed’s Starting 5 appeared first on Swish Theory.

Jamarion Batemon: Flamethrower

One of the first players on the Adidas 3 Stripe Select (3SSB) to catch my eye was 6’3 Combo Guard and 3 star recruit, Jamarion Batemon, playing for Power 5 out of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Batemon, for my money, is one of the preeminent shooters in the 2025 High School class. Over the first two sessions Batemon shot a combined 42/84 from 3 for a scorching 50% and an equally impressive 10 attempts per game. And while watching games, the degree of difficulty and variety of play-types Batemon was being used in was perhaps the most striking aspect of his performance. Batemon’s team, Power 5, used him primarily as an off-ball player in movement sets. One of the most consistent features of their offense was running Batemon off movement using elevator screens and double staggers like the play below. Batemon draws a foul on the make because of the minimal shot prep he requires to get his shot off.

Batemon isn’t limited to shooting off the catch either, as what makes him such an impressive shooter for his age is he’ll seize any amount of cushion provided to get into a 3pt attempt no matter the variables presented by the game situation. Whether it be in ballscreen actions like the play below…

…or in transition…

…Jamarion Batemon is a threat to shoot from deep virtually any time he crosses half-court. This has allowed him to be a focal point of a Power 5 team which has exceeded expectations so far this season. His proficiency as a shooter was no more apparent than in their matchup with, in my opinion, one of the best teams on not only the Adidas Circuit but one of the best AAU teams in the country in Team Loaded Virginia. Batemon put on a masterful shooting display where he finished with 32 total points and went 9/19 from 3, almost unheard of volume for a high school player.

While Batemon’s potency as a shooter is not in doubt there are areas of his game he’ll need to develop to fully exploit this skill at the next level, namely his comfort as a ballhandler. Batemon didn’t see much PNR usage and due to the threat he presents as a shooter typically saw aggressive coverages in ballscreen action which dissuaded him from attempting to create. However, my favorite aspect of high school basketball is the rate some of these players are able to adapt, and Batemon was no exception. His timing and accuracy as a passer in the PNR improved from Session 1 to 2, and while it often didn’t translate in assists, Batemon’s decisiveness helped keep the offense on schedule.

As Batemon gained experience seeing these coverages he began to develop counters and even leveraged the respect he’d garnered as a scorer to get downhill.

Batemon’s passing growth wasn’t limited to on-ball usage, he was also able to parlay the respect his shooting was given to extend advantages for his teammates. Take the play below for instance, Batemon comes off an Exit screen in a SLOB play, and immediately hits the screener when he draws a second defender. The defense is immediately put into rotation and the initial screener finds an open shooter in the right slot. This doesn’t result in an assist, or even a basket, but Power 5 generates a good look and a potential hockey assist for Batemon, predicated on his shooting gravity.

Ultimately Batemon will need to make significant strides as a ballhandler and defender as he rises through the ranks, but the significant short term growth, in tandem with his strong foundation as a shooter, saw Jamarion Batemon as my biggest riser through the first few weeks of the season.

Josiah Sanders: Driving Offense

My second standout is slightly more off the beaten path compared to many of the other prospects who will be discussed, but 6’4 Point Guard Josiah Sanders was one of the most impressive lead guards and offensive engines I was able to watch during Under Armour’s first and only session to date. Sanders is an unheralded recruit hailing from Denver Colorado, and runs with the Utah Mountain Stars at the moment. Sanders was able to average 26.3 PPG, 8.0 RPG, and 7.3 APG in a 4 game sample in session 1, and as the numbers would indicate his impact on the game was comprehensive, and notably unique.

What first caught my attention with Sanders was the poise and craft he displayed as a PNR operator. While Sanders is a left handed player he is functionally ambidextrous, capable of driving in either direction and making quick, accurate, passes with both hands. Compare the two clips below, Sanders is running similar side PNRs and the moment he senses the helpside defenders cheating over, he whips in skip passes to his teammate in the corner.

Sanders’ vision as a passer is definitely noteworthy, but what separates him from other capable ‘game manager’ type passers at his position is the consistent aggression and acumen he possesses attacking the basket. Despite being 16, relatively young for his class, Sanders’ contact balance and pace as a driver allowed him to place pressure on the defense and create windows to play-make for his teammates. Through the 4 games Sanders played he averaged 10 free-throws per game and a 0.49 free-throw-rate. Sanders effectively toggled through different speeds on drives and his unique cadence kept point-of-attack defenders off balance to where he was able to create contact with second level defenders.

Small details so rare in young guards are present in Sanders’ game, and made evident in the clip above. He isn’t able to create separation from his defender initially, retreats to allow the screener to twist the angle of the screen, and when Sanders drives he initiates contact with the defender to improve his driving angle and as a result draws a foul on his off-hand finish for an And-1 opportunity. Sanders’ penchant for accessing the middle of the floor paired with his patience make him a dynamic playmaker at this stage.

The most glaring flaw currently in Sanders’ game, from what I was able to see, was his versatility as a shooter. Essential for ball dominant guards is an ability to shoot off the dribble and from distance. Sanders finished Session 1 only 3/12 from 3, but there is plenty of reason for optimism. First of all, Sanders’ ball dominance allowed for significantly less opportunities to shoot off the catch, and while attempts weren’t going in he looked comfortable and fluid taking pull-up 3s.

And while some may take issue with this kind of qualitative assessment, Sanders was also an efficient 85.7% from the line (24/28). Watching Sanders I don’t believe there’s a greater discrepancy between ability and notoriety for a prospect in the 2025 class, and teams are starting to take notice, as Sanders received his first Power 6 offer from Tennessee almost immediately after the conclusion of Session 1.

Kai Rogers: Checking Boxes

The first frontcourt player in my ‘Starting 5’, Kai Rogers is also the first player on the list I would consider a national recruit. Already boasting numerous Power 6 offers, the 6’9 Center for Under Armour’s Wisconsin Playground Club was exceptional in the first Session, managing to make his presence felt on both ends. Rogers averaged 3.3 blocks and 1.3 steals over the course of 4 games. While he is an impressive athlete with plus length, Rogers isn’t the quickest leaper, instead winning with an advanced sense of timing and rare dexterity for a young big.

Take the play below for instance, Rogers was primarily deployed in as a drop coverage big in ballscreen actions and here he funnels the ballhandler towards the help when he rejects the screen. Once the ballhandler makes the pass to the roller at the free-throw line, the topside tagger is put in conflict when his initial assignment relocates to the top of the key. This conflict pries open a driving lane for the big to drive, but Kai Rogers immediately engulfs the drive and blocks the shot while its still in the big’s hands, and Rogers makes this play on the ball with his off-hand!

Rogers definitely isn’t perfect protecting the paint and his range as a rim protector is somewhat limited by his footspeed, however he is fully capable of making corrective rotations like the play above and deterring potential rim attempts with his ball tracking ability. Perhaps the greatest attribute Rogers possesses as a shot blocker is his ability to avoid foul trouble despite the rim protection burden placed on him as Wisconsin PlayGround’s only big man consistently featured in the rotation. Rogers never fouled out of a game and averaged a mere 3 fouls per game in Session 1.

For all the potential Rogers displayed on the defensive end, he was almost equally effective on the other end of the floor. Rogers’ fluidity in the low-post along with his physicality allowed him to impose his will on opposing big-men. Adept in scoring with both hands, Rogers’ only warts were possessions where he was over-ambitious, which is to be expected of a young post player trying to expand his game en-route to winning games. But while results were inconsistent, there were moments of self creation from Rogers which are incredibly rare to see from frontcourt players his size.

Rogers’ ability to either function as a lob threat or score on the interior with his back to the basket often forced defenses’ hands, leading to a stellar 0.67 free-throw-rate, but his consistent appearances at the line revealed his greatest offensive shortcoming at the moment as Rogers was only 47% from the line on 19 attempts. Poor free throw shooting doesn’t at all take away from Roger’s projection at the next level, in my opinion, and I am fully expecting Rogers to widely be considered one of 2025’s best big men by summer’s end.

Sebastian Williams-Adams: Point-Center

6’7 JL3 Forward Sebastian Williams-Adams was one of the most impactful players in EYBL play through the first two sessions and his play at these events can best be described as all-encompassing. Williams-Adams played one of the most unique roles I saw across all circuits in how amorphous his responsibilities seemed to be. Williams-Adams was typically used as JL3’s primary rim protector, and despite not being the tallest player in JL3’s frontcourt he was able to consistently utilize his exceptional strength and dynamic leaping to alter shots around the rim while simultaneously holding up against heftier post players. Whereas on offense, Williams-Adams had the second highest share of initiating responsibilities after their more traditional PG Christian Jones. Due to his explosive first step, Williams-Adams was able to consistently collapse the defense and find teammates. The sequence below exemplifies the two-way impact Williams-Adams presented. On the defensive end, JL3 has their first line of defense penetrated by the opposing PG when he sees the JL3 big man cheating up at the level and rejects the screen. The PG drives into the paint unencumbered, but Williams-Adams baits him into a layup attempt by slightly feigning a contest, and instead jumps after the guard and emphatically blocks the shot.

In the ensuing possession, Williams-Adams finds the ball in the corner after the initial PNR is stifled, drives the baseline and as he forces the defense into rotation finds Nigel Walls with an interior pass which leads to Walls being fouled on the shot attempt.

Williams-Adams was relentless in applying pressure on the front of the rim, as while EYBL was inconsistent with their statkeeping and free-throw stats aren’t readily available, Williams-Adams was a regular at the line over the course of the first two sessions. Even without a consistent jumper to attract hard closeouts, Williams-Adams was able to generate paint touches in stampede actions.

And when his primary defender sagged off to prevent clear driving opportunities out of stampedes, Williams-Adams had enough handle creativity and acceleration to manufacture space. Like in the play below, Williams-Adams uses a snatch dribble to draw Caleb Wilson out just to explode past him and draw the foul.

Williams-Adams has a ways to go as a shooter and will need to flesh out this part of his game as he’s forced to play more as a conventional wing, but the combination of physical dominance and two-way creation he’s currently able to exercise eases concerns of how he’ll translate to the next level.

Will Riley: Scalable Offensive Star

6’7 Canadian G/W Will Riley is the rare instance of a wing sized player deserving the moniker of ‘point-forward’. Riley’s ability to soak up usage both as a primary ballhandler and a complementary offensive piece was truly a joy to watch. Riley was equally proficient creating out of ballscreen actions as he was finishing plays as a shooter. His proficiency on-ball was a byproduct of his exceptional touch, advanced screen craft, and depth of off-the-dribble counters.

The interplay between some of these skills can be seen in the play below. Riley sees the POA defender cheating towards the screen and Riley uses double cross to get a step driving towards the basket and the use of the cross-body gather prior to throwing the baseline cutter hold the backline defenders attention just long enough to prevent them from making a play on the ball.

Riley saw almost an equal amount of his usage come in more typical off-ball actions for a wing. Such as the play below, UPlay runs a ‘Peja’ action for Riley, where he sets a RIP screen before receiving a handoff intended to get him an open 3 which he hits.

Riley’s sense of how to leverage this shooting ability when he’s used in UPlay’s 5-out concepts separates him from other shooting slanted wings his age however, he recognizes the threat his shooting presents and its ability to dictate terms with the defender. Despite Riley’s lack of physical strength he has extremely impressive stamina, and weaponizes it off-ball by using a series of feints and cuts like th play below. Riley adjusts to his defender overplaying the hand-off and retreats into open space, after the catch the second his defender relaxes Riley re-drives to the basket and hits a floater over the smaller defender. The fact Riley, at 6’7, has a floater thoroughly integrated into his scoring arsenal shows how high his skill level is for the age group.

And when teams have attempted to take away Riley’s windows to score in hand-off actions he has been more than willing to move off the ball.

These nuances in Riley’s game will make him an easy fit next to other talented players at the next level, and as the physical element of his game progresses and he’s able to more consistently draw fouls, Riley may find himself playing the primary role even when stationed next to other high-level offensive players.

The post Starting 5: Early Standouts of the Grassroots Season appeared first on Swish Theory.

You don’t have to look very far back to find examples of ill-fated pre-draft college seasons resulting in incomplete evaluations come draft day. How many teams regret passing on Jalen Duren and AJ Griffin just one year later? My guess would be quite a few. College basketball is great, but it’s limited. A season really only offers one context, from role to health or surrounding talent. Every cycle we talk about how context matters in projecting forward future NBA roles, so it would make sense that seeing prospects in additional pre-draft contexts gives a clearer picture. 

The only issue with that is, where do you even start? Pretty much every prospect plays high school basketball, but only some of those games come on TV, and some of those games are in the Overtime Elite league, which is like high school, but also not, but also has some actual high school teams playing in the league. 

Then we get to grassroots basketball, more commonly (and I think incorrectly?) referred to as AAU. There are three major shoe circuits, with each having their own events throughout the summer and a few inter-circuit events sprinkled in along the way. On top of the enormous amount of teams scattered across multiple leagues, team rosters and jersey numbers can be more difficult to find than you expect.

All in all, those hurdles make the prospect of scouting pre-college basketball feel a little unapproachable. As I began my yearly summer catch up this year, I figured it was time to finally, truly, dive straight into the wilderness. The result has been a newfound love for youth basketball, though that did come with a few hurdles along the way.

The goal of this piece is to help people who are looking to understand youth hoops find it all a little less overwhelming, while hopefully helping you skip a little legwork. We’ll go through a few of the things I think are foundationally important to understanding the general landscape, and a few helpful resources for when the process becomes confounding.

High School Basketball

At its most basic level, high school basketball is pretty straightforward to understand. The vast majority of schools look a lot like the schools the general public grew up in, large student bodies and a competitive sporting environment. The difference between public and private school in basketball terms is about the same as it is in the real world: they are very similar, with private schools having a few more (financially driven) opportunities.  

The biggest private schools play their own national circuit, NIBC, as a way of garnering greater national exposure. The highest end private schools are littered with NBA talent, but teams like Duncanville, Camden and Wheeler are public schools with three of the best prospects in the class. Top flight private schools or academies have a competitive advantage in their depth and national presence, but the high end talent is relatively spread out over both public and private schools.

Full games are generally easier to find for high school vs grassroots, though the bigger academies like Link or IMG have an embarrassment of riches in that department. For public schools, almost every district has a team that records every game to put on YouTube. If you are lucky, that team has prospects, and now you’ve lost an entire evening to the doldrums of AAAA North Texas high school basketball.

GEICO High School Basketball Nationals

The GEICO Nationals tournament is the best of the best, consisting mostly of private basketball academies like Sunrise Christian and Montverde. Public schools are able to receive an invite, but laws differ from state to state regarding public schools playing national competition or against private academies. 

As a general rule, this is the high school basketball holy grail. At no other event will you find such a dense collection of NBA talent, and the games are aired on National TV (and later uploaded to YouTube via helpful third parties). It’s a great event, one that showcases future lottery picks every season.

State Champions Invitational

The State Champions Invitational is a newer event that was created to showcase state-champion public school programs on a larger scale. Inclusion is still dependent on the aforementioned state laws on national competition, but the event is always stacked with high-end talent. These games are aired on ESPN and their family of networks, but are more difficult to find in the Youtube ether. Hopefully, as the event gains more attention and a larger public audience, that changes.

Overtime Elite

The reputation of Overtime Elite precedes itself with a billing as the next great basketball developmental program. While there are continued questions as to OTE’s future viability as a pre-draft destination (especially when compared to more established, pro-oriented programs like the G League Ignite and the NBL Next Stars), their viability as a pre-college developmental environment should not be questioned. 

Their site is clean, they have basic and legible stats, and their games are often available on Youtube or Amazon Prime, with a direct from the game box score. That kind of accessibility is unfounded in this space, and something that gives OTE a leg up in the high school basketball world.

Grassroots Basketball

Oh, the unknown. Grassroots basketball is a bit of a black hole at times, but with each passing year a new resource pops up to make things a little bit brighter. The scene is dominated by three major circuits, where teams play against each other in circuit events throughout the summer. 

There are leagues for nearly all ages with 17U meant to consist of players entering their senior year of high school, though some players choose to play up a year (and in the case of AJ Dybantsa, dominate while doing so). Sometimes the only tape you are able to find on Youtube is two years old from when they played 16U, but film is film, I will not discriminate. 

There are quite a few independent teams that are not a part of either shoe circuit, but will commonly play events like Who Wants The Smoke where they match up against shoe circuit clubs. Which circuit is which matters really only in what teams will play at which event, trying to find worthwhile value in comparing competition or talent level feels unproductive. Each league has their fair share of talent, though one may get more attention than the rest. 

Really, what matters most is what teams play on which circuit. Each circuit has their own nuances in structure but when you boil it down, film is still film. Thankfully selectbasketballusa.com made a helpful list of the teams in each league shown below.

Nike EYBL

The Nike Elite Youth Basketball League has long been seen as the cream of the crop, and for good reason. Their track record of producing NBA talent is unparalleled in the space, and while it has become more competitive that track record of dominance is noteworthy. This year, eight of the top ten RSCI recruits played on the EYBL circuit, with top pick contenders Ron Holland, Matas Buzelis, Isaiah Collier, DJ Wagner, Justin Edwards, Omaha Biliew and many others. The roster is deep.

Adidas 3SSB

The Adidas 3 Stripe Select Basketball circuit is well established with a lineage of NBA talent. While not as publicly discussed as EYBL, 3SSB has a deep roster of high major talent led by T10 recruit Ja’Kobe Walter, with Dink Pate, Baye Fall, Reed Sheppard, TJ Power and (personal favorite) KJ Lewis. Overall, a solid league with decent tape accessibility, though their official site does leave much to be desired. 

Under Armour UAA

The Boys Under Armour Association is the final leg of the well known circuits, with 3ssb being its closest comparison. Led by potential lottery pick Stephon Castle, UAA boasts yet another deep roster of potentially impactful freshmen like Caleb Foster, Elmarko Jackson, Blue Cain and more. Unfortunately, compared to the other leagues team/roster info can be incredibly difficult to find. On the plus side, the Middlesex Magic youtube page is a treasure trove of tape, like finding an oasis in the desert. 

New Balance Pro16

The New Balance Pro16 league is the newest of the four circuits, and while they may not have as much established, highly ranked prospects, the competition remains strong. Gehrig Normand and Dylan James are the two RSCI T100 prospects on the circuit with a growing collection of future prospects. Internet resources remain limited but are comparable with the bigger leagues.

Resources

Now we have established the general framework of the leagues we are working with, it’s time to dig a little deeper. Youth basketball is a mess of individual leagues and conferences, finding places with consolidated information is a must. Knowing who to watch, what teams they are on, the numbers they wear and the teammates they have is a more complicated task than it seems.

RSCI Rankings

This is a fairly obvious place to start. This may not be breaking news, nearly every top draft pick is a highly-rated recruit coming out of high school. The rankings are by no means a be-all-end-all, Keegan Murray wasn’t ranked and ended up the fourth overall pick (!), but it is a great starting point. If you look at late risers like Jeremy Sochan and Patrick Williams or sophomore studs like Jaden Ivey and Bennedict Mathurin you will find them ranked in the Top 100 entering college. It’s a long list, but it is chalk full of NBA players throughout it. If you are beginning to create your watch list, the RSCI Top 100 is the place to start. 

MADE Hoops Power Rankings

This is a stupendous resource. The site has a paywall for future class rankings, but their 2023 rankings are public. The actual rankings themselves are nice, but the real draw is that the board lists not only the high school team for each prospect, but the grassroots team as well. That kills an enormous amount of leg work searching google for players and teams, and gives you a great starting point on what high school and grassroots teams should be at the top of your watch list. Great stuff. 

The Season Ticket

Now that you have the players you are looking to see and the teams they play on, The Season Ticket site, and more specifically The Circuit (a subheading on the site) is just about a one-stop -shop for rosters, team schedules and rankings for all age groups, both high school and grassroots (you can even sometimes find a box score!). You can dive into any league you want, though EYBL and 3SSB rosters are the most filled out. 

Finding actual team rosters with numbers and game dates is awesome. It can be incredibly hard to pin down what games players played in, the times they took place, and the teams they played against. Once you pick your team, there should be more than enough here to familiarize yourself with the surroundings. 

Cerebro Sports

Cerebro is a basketball site with Mark Cuban as a public investor and the infamous draft twitter stylings of the illustrious Prospect Development Web. There is an enormously steep paywall for individuals attempting to use the platform, but the free resources available are more than worth an initial email signup.

You are able to see the five most recent events for each player, which is incredibly helpful for international and OTE prospects (where an entire season is listed as one event). For US based high schoolers, the stats are a little more hit and miss, with some prospects showing stats for over 20 games and others less than 10. 

You are able to see the Top 10 performers for each event, but you can’t just search for an event, you have to select it through a player’s profile. This can be a little tricky at times, but is worth a few extra clicks in order to see the bigger picture of top performers for any given event. A very cool tool, but one that requires some corporate overhead to make the cost worthwhile. 

How Context Changes Stats

This is a more general bullet point to end off the section, but an important one to consider when looking at statistical output in high school and grassroots basketball. The first thing, and most consistent across levels, is that teenagers are not good three point shooters, and they often have a more difficult shot diet than they will in the league. 

Shooting in the low 30s on good volume in high school is a good thing, very few players (with the necessary athletic gifts) are able to score efficiently on jumpers as a 17-year-old. This is why AJ Griffin never should have fallen out of the top seven on draft night, but I digress. 

The difference between high school and grassroots is not a cut and dry one. Grassroots teams tend to play at a higher pace with a more free-flowing style of game with high school representing a more structured context. Statistically speaking, that added pace can affect numbers to a degree, but team context plays a much larger factor. 

Sean Stewart was the best player on the Florida Rebels, but at Montverde he was the sixth man the majority of his senior season. Omaha Biliew was the only high-profile recruit at Waukee his senior year, but played for Mokan Elite with fellow T100 prospects Cameron Carr, Trey Green and 2024 five-star John Bol. Playstyle differences matter, and each context tells you something unique in that regard, but you have to know the difference in on-court role and context to see it.

Searching for Tape

This is the single most stressful part of pre-college draft scouting. Finding quality tape, ideally for free, is a more difficult task than it may seem. Struggling to find full games for prospects was the largest barrier to entry for me: there is nothing I hate more than being in the mood to watch tape, only to waste precious time trying to find it. My philosophy when scouting is to maximize the time spent watching tape, and it is hard to do that when you’re searching for a needle in a haystack.

I decided to take a different approach this summer, getting ahead of my actual tape watching and accumulating film for as much of the RSCI Top 100 as possible. The process was a long and arduous one, but I have been able to find full games for every single prospect in the Top 100, with most prospects having a full game of high school and grassroots.

I have hyperlinked the games I could find in the below excel sheet, just click on the team name on the far right and dive straight in. A quick note: I tried not to link the same game twice for prospects on the same team and sprinkled in condensed videos when I ran out of full game tape. If you are itching for more of a certain prospect (or the link for the player is a shorter video), look for other prospects that played on the same team, you should find what you’re looking for.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1aiQO8DqFD9zT47gdtQrj7oo8cbqsrZlJrkC3a5NeWeo/edit?usp=sharing

YouTube

YouTube, the one and only. There is no other place with free youth basketball tape, but you do need to know how to search. Finding actual game tape is not as easy as typing “Ron Holland Full Game” into your search bar (though with better video titles and captions, it could be!), you will need to be smart about your searches. I’ll go through a few helpful rules I try to follow when searching for games.

Know Your Date Ranges

Grassroots games take place over the summer before a prospect’s senior year, meaning all videos should be roughly a year old. Very rarely are games uploaded months after the fact, so it is pretty safe to assume the NJ Scholars video uploaded in April is not the tape you’re looking for.

High school basketball takes place during the year, so those games should all be less than a year old, and going back a year will take you into the previous season. That can be fine, for both grassroots or high school, if the prospect you are trying to watch was actually on the team the year prior. 

Know What Prospects Look Like

Jersey numbers are a figment of your imagination. They will be listed on the circuit or on other sites, but they are rarely consistent (particularly in grassroots). My personal best practice: google image search “[player name] [team name]”. 

I will look for jersey numbers they’ve worn, if they wear a t-shirt, if they have a recognizable hairstyle, general build, anything to help. If you’re in doubt, search a highlight video and compare movement styles. Sometimes good tape takes a little digging.

Start Specific

Youtube searches are a finicky business, and using too many keywords can be overly exclusionary. With that said, sometimes searching “Dennis Evans Hillcrest Basketball” takes you directly to the video you are looking for. Start specific, and eliminate keywords as you go, until you get down to “[team name] basketball”.

Know When to Keep Scrolling

This one is a little on the finicky side, but sometimes scrolling a little longer is all it takes. There are so many different age groups and years of competition to sift through, and it was very common for quality, full game videos to be buried 50 videos deep in a search. If you are still seeing videos with the team name you searched, keep going. 

Try Google

This one is kind of weird, and honestly I am not sure it “works” from a search engine perspective, but going into the Google videos search bar and looking for games helped me find a few that I just couldn’t seem to get on YouTube. There are at least no “recommended” videos you have to skip past when scrolling. 

BallerTV

The single best publicly available accumulation of high school basketball games, BallerTV is certainly worth a look in your search for tape. The pricing isn’t spectacular, but they do allow you to purchase individual events. You’ll get access to teams that are harder to find (like Dennis Evans on Team Inland) and inter-circuit matchups you won’t find elsewhere. The interface isn’t as smooth as your typical streaming service, but the juice is worth the squeeze if you purchase one of the more star-studded events. 

Twitch

Twitch is the single best place to find EYBL tape, you can find the entirety of Peach Jam on there now, but it is only for the 2023 year (next year’s class). Streams air live on the platform and are available to watch for an extended period of time after, but not an indefinite one. 

Sifting through the different streams and the games within them can be tedious, but that is a small price to pay for a literal metric ton of prospect tape. You just have to do it in a more timely manner than a midsummer cram session.

Parting Thoughts

High school and grassroots basketball is awesome and overwhelming simultaneously. There are more names than you could ever keep track of, yet people seem to do it all the time? Following the ins and outs of future high school classes is an enormous task, and that enormity can make the space feel unapproachable. 

You don’t have to live and breathe grassroots hoops to gain value from watching it, or even joy. Basketball is still basketball, and finding quality tape of players throughout their development journey and in differing contexts is invaluable. Hopefully with a little framing the greater picture of youth basketball is a little clearer. Sometimes to make a circuit work you just have to connect a few dots.

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