There are times when it can be very helpful to look at the statistics and, yes, winning is still very important when ranking the top players at an event. And this definitely was the case when we gave 6'7 Jr Cade Cunningham from Montverde (Academy) FL the nod over 6'8 Jr Jalen Johnson from Glendale (Nicolet) WI for the #1-ranking based on performance at the NIKE EYBL (Elite Youth Basketball League) session, which was held this past weekend at the Lakepoint Sporting Community - Champions Center in Cartersville, GA. Not only did Cunningham finish ranked #6 in scoring with 25.5 ppg, tied for third in assists with 6.2 apg, tied for 19th in steals with 1.8 spg, and tied for fourth in blocked shots with 2.0 bpg, but he also led his team to a 4-0 record and combined with 6'9 Jr Greg Brown from Austin (Vandegrift) TX to provide the Texas Titans with one of the best one-two punches in entire event. However, even more important, Cunningham has the skills and versatility necessary to do a little bit of everything, plus he has excellent speed and quickness and an extremely high basketball IQ and does a great job of making everybody else around him better. He also is an excellent defender, plays with a competitive edge, and is talented enough to be in the discussion when we start talking about the top five players nationally in the Class of 2020. And so is Johnson, who has the size, skills, versatility, and athleticism necessary to be like a point/forward and was the the catalyst behind Phenom University's runner-up finish last summer in the NIKE EYBL's 16-Under Division. He also came up big at crunch time last summer when scored eight points in the last 14 seconds and hit the game winning shot in the semi-finals at the 2018 NY2LA Sports Summer Jam. And this time around he averaged 16.3 ppg, 7.0 rpg, and 5.3 apg, which was good enough to get him tied at #41 in scoring, tied at #27 in rebounding, and tied at #3 in assists.
On the other hand, Johnson also had a better supporting cast, which included the likes of 6'10 Soph Patrick Baldwin from Sussex (Hamilton) WI, 6'9 Jr Jaemyn Brakefield from Huntington (Prep) WV, 6'3 Jr Reece Beekman from Baton Rouge (Scotlandville Magnet) LA, and 6'8 Jr Jamari Sibley from Glendale (Nicolet) WI. If you will recall, Baldwin is an excellent 3-point shooter and he is good enough to be ranked #1 nationally in the Class of 2021 by the HOOP SCOOP. Brakefield is another multi-dimensional athlete with excellent size and he makes a living off transition and finishing at the rim. Beekman is another guy who is like a jack-of-trades with his ability to play either guard spot, score in a variety of ways, and be an excellent defender, plus he provided the perfect complement in the backcourt to Johnson, as is evident by the fact that he finished tied #5 in the event in assists with 6.0 apg. Sibley's game is still very raw offensively, but it's hard not to like his great length and athleticism, plus he has quick hands and feet, is an excellent rebounder and shot blocker, and he will step out and knock down an occasional 3-pointer. However, when the dust had cleared on Sunday morning, the Texas Titans knocked off Phenom University, 86-67, and Cunningham led the way with 32 points, six rebounds, eight assists, two steals, 14-20 field goals, 0-1 3-pointers, and 4-7 free throws. In contrast, Johnson finished with 18 points, seven rebounds, three assists, 6-15 field goals, 0-5 3-pointers, and 6-11 free throws.
There also are times when you learn to just throw out the statistics and clearly this was the case when we gave 6'5 Jr R.J. Hampton from Little Elm (H.S.) TX the nod over 6'0 Jr Sharife Cooper from Powder Springs (McEachern) GA for the #3-ranking in this event. Cooper was the leading scoring with 31.2 ppg, plus he finished ranked #2 in assists with 7.0 apg and tied for ninth in steals with 2.0 spg. However, his team finished with only a 1-3 record and neither Cooper nor 6'6 Jr B.J. Boston from Norcross (H.S.) GA played as well as we've seen them do so in other venues. Part of the problem was that the outside shot was not going down, as they combined 6-23 3-pointers, and they didn't have a killer around the basket and a thoroughbred in transition the way Isaac Okoro was for this team a year ago. Hampton also didn't have much of a supporting cast, as is evident by the fact that his team finished with a 0-4 record. But he did manage to finish with 28.8 ppg, 4.5 apg, and 2.0 spg, which was good enough to get him ranked #2 in scoring, tied for #17 in assists, and tied for #9 in steals, and he does have excellent size for his position, a great feel for the game, and a knack for both being able to score and make his teammates better. He also is good enough to be in the discussion when we start talking about the top five players nationally in the Class of 2020 and he good speed and quickness with the ball, excellent moves to the basket, and does a good job of knowing when to score and when to get his teammates involved.
It also was a close call between 6'5 Jr Josh Christopher from Lakewood (Mayfair) CA and 6'9 Jr Ziaire Williams from Sherman Oaks (H.S.) CA, who are our #5 and #6-ranked players in this event and also may be the second and third best players in the state of California, behind 6'11 Jr Evan Mobley from Temecula (Rancho Christian) CA and ahead of 6'5 Jr Jalen Green from Napa (Prolific Prep) CA. What Christopher does best is score and he did so in a variety of ways en route to 23.5 ppg, which was good enough to tie him for ninth in scoring in the event. However, Christopher also has excellent passing skills, as is evident by the fact that he finished tied for fifth in the event in assists with 2.2 apg, and his speed and quickness and willingness to compete make him a tough match-up at the defensive end. Williams will need to get bigger and stronger physically, but he has great size for his position, has developed much more of a takeover mentality, and he showed that can flat out score to the tune of 25.0 ppg, which ranked him #7 in the event in scoring. He also knocked down 8-17 treys and was one of the best outside shooter's that we saw all weekend. In contrast, Green is more of an athlete than a skilled basketball player and his forte is getting to the rim and bringing the house down with one spectacular dunk after another. He did manage to finish with 16.5 ppg, which tied him at #38 in the event in scoring. But his outside shooting is suspect (he was only 5-18 from behind the arc), he is not a tougher customer, and it was blatantly obvious that Williams (and not Green) was the best player on an Oakland Soldiers team that went 2-2.
We also thought that 6'8 Soph Jonathan Kuminga from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY and 6'10 Soph Mike Foster from Milwaukee (Washington) WI both really helped themselves with strong performances when we saw them in action playing for the New York Renaissance and the Mac Irvin Fire respectively on the first night of action. Kuminga is another guy with a great combination of size and athleticism and, although his skills aren't as refined as 6'9 Soph Patrick Baldwin from Sussex (Hamilton) WI and 6'7 Soph Terrence Clarke from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH, who are the consensus #1 and #2-ranked players in the Class of 2021, he may have more upside and he played better this weekend. Not only did he average 20.0 ppg, which was good enough to tie him at #16 in scoring in the event, but he also has great quickness and athleticism, is versatile enough to play both inside and outside, and he still is only just beginning to scratch the surface in terms of reaching his upside and potential. Foster will need to develop more of a takeover mentality in the post, but he is a good rebounder, can score around the basketball and has a soft touch on his jump shot, and has the size and physical attributes necessary to be an excellent inside/outside guy. He also averaged 16.8 ppg and 8.0 rpg, which was good enough to tie him at #35 in scoring and tie him at #10 in rebounding in the event, and he was the best player on a team that went 3-1.
Another guy who seems to just get better and better every time we see him play is 6'4 Jr Nimari Burnett from Napa (Prolific Prep) CA. This time around he finished ranked #8 in scoring with 23.8 ppg and, whether it be attacking the basket or knocking the outside shot, this guy always seems to put up big numbers. He also has a good combination of speed, quickness and athleticism and brings a competitive edge to he table, which probably stems from having grown up in Chicago, IL and played at Chicago (Morgan Park) IL prior to transferring to one of the premier basketball factories in the country a two years ago. This next one will probably come as somewhat of a surprise, but 6'0 Jr R.J Davis from White Plains (Archbishop Stepanic) NY averaged 21.5 ppg, 4.5 apg, and 2.8 spg, which good enough to rank #14 in scoring, tie for #17 in assists, and rank #2 in steals, and he was the catalyst for the NY Renaissance. He also has good ball handling and passing skills, excellent speed and quickness with the ball, and he has great body control and a knack for being able to get to the rim. He will need to continue to get stronger physically, but he can both run a team and score in a variety of ways, is an excellent defender, and is talented enough to be ranked in the 50-100 range nationally.
And just missing being ranked among the top 10 players in this event were 6'6 Jr Jabri Abdul-Rahim from Blairstown (Blair Academy) NJ and 6'3 Jr D.J. Steward from Chicago (Whitney Young) IL We would like Abdul-Rabim even more if he was a tough customer, but it's difficult to argue with the fact that he he averaged 28.0 ppg and finished ranked #3 in the event in scoring and the fact that he has a terrific pedigree, which stems from his father (Shareef Abdul-Rahim) being a former NBA All-Star. Abdul-Rahim is another guy who will have to get bigger and stronger, but he has good speed and quickness, great moves to the basket, and is evolving into an excellent outside shooter, as is evident by the fact that he was 15-34 behind the arc in this event. Steward is another guy with knack for being able to light up a scoreboard, which he did to the tune of 21.5 points and 7-17 3-pointers over the weekend. He also has good enough ball handling and passing skills to play some point guard and the speed and quickness necessary to be an defender and rank among the leaders in the event in steals with 2.0 spg. We also don't want to forget about 6'9 Jr Greg Brown from Austin (Vandegrift) TX, who finished ranked #34 in scoring with 17.0 ppg and tied for seventh in rebounding in 8.8 rpg. Right now Brown does most of his damage around the basket, but he does have the foot speed and quickness necessary to defend smaller guys out on the perimeter and his outside shooting and ball handling and passing skills continue to improve.
We've already mentioned 6'9 Soph Patrick Baldwin from Sussex (Hamilton) WI, but, quite honestly, he might be too unselfish for his own good and, as a result, kind of gets lost in the shuffle on a really good Phenom University. On the other hand, he has a great combination of size, skills, and athleticism, can be like money in the bank when he gets hot from behind the arc, and his basketball IQ is off the chart. Remember, his father is the head coach at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and the younger Baldwin is a chip off the old block and a class act both on and off the court. Another one of the bigger surprises was 6'3 Jr A.J. Hoggard from Huntington (Prep) WV, who finished tied for 21st in the event in scoring with 19.0 ppg and clearly was the best player on a well-balanced PSA Cardinals team that went 3-1. Hoggard has good ball handling and passing skills, great body control, and excellent size for his position and he is very adept at using his speed, quickness, and athleticism to get to the rim. And providing the perfect complement to Hoggard when we watched the PSA Cardinals knock off the NY Renaissance, 70-68, on Friday night was 6'3 Jamal Mashburn Jr from Wolfeboro (Brewster Academy) NH, who just misses being ranked among our top 25 players at this event. If you will recall, Mashburn is a strong physical athletic combo guard who is a tough match-up when he attacks the rim and he plays with the same kind of intensity that his father (Jamal Mashburn Sr) did back during his playing days.
And, when we dig a little deeper we find that 6'2 Jr Cameron Thomas from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 6'5 Jr Michael Peavy from Duncanville (H.S.) TX, 6'10 Soph Paolo Banchero from Seattle (O'Dea) WA, 6'3 Soph Jaden Hardy from Henderson (Coronado) NV, 6'5 Jr Jalen Green from Napa (Prolific Prep) CA, 6'6 Jr Chris Moore from West Memphis (H.S.) AR, 6'7 Jr Terrance Williams from Washington (Gonzaga) DC, 6'7 Jr Cam'ron Fletcher from St. Louis (Vashon) MO, 6'3 Jr Caleb Love from St. Louis (Christian Brothers) MO, and 6'8 Jr Justin Lewis from Baltimore (Polytech) MD all played well enough to get mentioned in the 16-25 range. Thomas has a reputation for being one of the best outside shooters in the high school ranks today and this sharpshooting athletic 2-guard finished ranked #5 in the event in scoring with 26.5 ppg, plus he had 12-24 treys. Peavy finished ranked #11 in scoring with 23.2 ppg and tied for 16th in rebounding with 7/8 rpg and, with his quickness, athleticism, and ability to get to the basket, he was the catalyst behind a 3-1 finish by Pro Skills. Banchero runs the court extremely well for somebody his size and he finished tied at #21 in scoring with 19.0 ppg, tied at #2 in rebounding with 11.0 rpg, and tied at #2 in shot blocking with 2.5 bpg. However, he's not that tough a customer and we expected a lot more of out somebody who is ranked among the top five players nationally in the Class of 2021. Ditto that with regard to Hardy, who has world-class athleticism and is ranked as high as #2 nationally in the Class of 2021 by ESPN.com. He did finish tied at #27 in scoring with 18.0 ppg, but he also has a gunslinger's mentality and, as Hardy went down in flames in their final game with only 10 points 2-8 3-pointers, so did the Vegas Elite team in their only defeat in a 74-73 upset by Team Final.
We've already talked about Green, who ironically is the #2-ranked player nationally in the Class of 2020 by ESPN.com. Moore is a strong physical athletic versatile wing who rebounds well for his size and makes a living attacking the basket and finishing at the rim. Williams is an inside/outside guy who knows how to us his size, strength, and toughness to get it done around the basket, but also is versatile enough to be able to step outside and keep you honest with his outside shooting. He also was Team Takeover's leading scorer with 15.2 ppg and second leading rebounder with 6.8 rpg. We thought Fletcher, who is a versatile athletic wing forward, was the best player for Brad Beal Elite when saw him finish with 18 points, eight rebounds, and 7-11 field goals on Saturday morning against the NY Lightning. However, Love ended up being their leading scorer with 19.5 ppg, plus he finished tied at #12 in assists in the event with 5.0 apg and has the versatility and athleticism necessary to play either guard spot. So you can shake these two guys up any way you want and it won't matter to us. Gaines is a good old-fashioned 4-man who plays with a lot of energy, rebounds and blocks, and knows how to score around the basket. He also was the leading rebounder in the event with 11.8 rpg and finished ranked #11 in shot blocking with 1.7 bpg. We also don't want to forget about 7'0 Jr N'Faly Dante from Bel Aire (Sunrise Christian) KS, who a year ago was the flavor of the day in NIKE's first EYBL session of the spring when he finished with 18.5 ppg, 9.8 rpg, and 2.0 bpg and was our #2-ranked player in the entire event. However, this time around he averaged only 6.5 ppg, 6,5 rpg, and 1.8 bpg and wasn't even the best player on a very average 2-2 Mokan Elite team. In other words, Dante clealy was the biggest disappointment of the entire weekend and the value of his stock is on the decline.
1) 6'7 Jr Cade Cunningham from Montverde (Academy) FL (Texas Titans)
2) 6'8 Jr Jalen Johnson from Glendale (Nicolet) WI (Phenom University)
3) 6'5 Jr R.J. Hampton from Little Elm (H.S.) TX (Drive Nation)
4) 6'0 Jr Sharife Cooper from Powder Springs (McEachern) GA (A.O.T. Running Rebels)
5) 6'5 Jr Josh Christopher from Lakewood (Mayfair) CA (Vegas Elite)
6) 6'9 Jr Ziaire Williams from Sherman Oaks (H.S.) CA (Oakland Soldiers)
7) 6'8 Soph Jonathan Kuminga from Centereach (Our Savior New American) NY (NY Renaissance)
8) 6'10 Soph Mike Foster from Milwaukee (Washington) WI (Mac Irvin Fire)
9) 6'4 Jr Nimari Burnett from Napa (Prolific Prep) CA (Team WhyNot)
10) 6'0 Jr R.J Davis from White Plains (Archbishop Stepanic) NY (NY Renaissance)
11) 6'6 Jr Jabri Abdul-Rahim from Blairstown (Blair Academy) NJ (NJ Playaz)
12) 6'3 Jr D.J. Steward from Chicago (Whitney Young) IL (Mean Streets)
13) 6'9 Jr Greg Brown from Austin (Vandeg6ift) TX (Texas Titans)
14) 6'9 Soph Patrick Baldwin from Sussex (Hamilton) WI (Phenom University)
15) 6'3 Jr A.J. Hoggard from Huntington (Prep) WV (PSA Cardinals)
16) 6'2 Jr Cameron Thomas from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA (Boo Williams)
17) 6'6 Jr Michael Peavy from Duncanville (H.S.) TX (Pro Skills)
18) 6'10 Soph Paolo Banchero from Seattle (O'Dea) WA (Seattle Rotary)
19) Soph Jaden Hardy from Henderson (Coronado) NV (Vegas Elite)
20) 6'5 Jr Jalen Green from Napa (Prolific Prep) CA (Oakland Soldiers)
21) 6'6 Jr Chris Moore from West Memphis (H.S.) AR (Woodz Elite)
22) 6'7 Jr Terrance Williams from Washington (Gonzaga) DC (Team Takeover)
23) 6'7 Jr Cam'ron Fletcher from St. Louis (Vashon) MO (Brad Beal)
24) 6'3 Jr Caleb Love from St. Louis (Christian Brothers) MO (Brad Beal)
25) 6'8 Jr Justin Lewis from Baltimore (Polytech) MD (Team Melo)