2024 Watch List: Best of the Best in Southern Illinois

In this article I introduce you to some of the most heralded players in the 2024 class. These players are from the Central and Southern part of the state and have caught my eye. Everyone on this list shows the ability to play the game at a very high level and some have already drawn college scholarships. All of them should be expected to draw multiple offers and most of them will be D1 offers. &nbsp; <ul> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="265474" first="Aaliyah" last="Guyton"] Aaliyah is a smooth point guard that is drawing heavy attention from fans, opposing coaches and college recruiters. She has great handles and vision that allows her to function as a high level point guard that makes her team better. In addition Aaliyah is a complete player, she can score inside and outside along with being a potential force as an on ball defender. As most people know, she comes from great lineage. Her dad AJ was an outstanding Illinois high school player and had a very good career at Indiana and beyond. Aaliyah has the skills and the work ethic to make for a great career.</li> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="265424" first="Amiah" last="Hargrove"] Amiah is a tall and strong athlete that has the dreaded word, potential. She is already very good but spends much of her time in the paint playing high school ball at the 1A level. There is nothing wrong with that. Where she will truly carve her space in the recruiting arena will be in the spring and summer playing with BBE. There she will be able to, and needs to, show more of a perimeter game. If she can show the ability to hit the 3 consistently and guard/beat players on the wing, then she could be a high level D1 wing at 6’2. Amiah is a very good player and an even better kid right now. She can take what she has and parlay that into a free education, but if she wants to really get somewhere, high level D1 and beyond, that will come with continued improvement of her ball handling and outside shot.</li> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="264888" first="Grace" last="Nelson"] Grace made as big of a splash as any 2024 this year. You can talk about 1A ball to me all day long, but when a kid scores 17 points and I have to ask "what happened" and " my gosh, who guarded her, they must be a great defender", then you know the girl is putting on a show. Grace averaged 28.7 points per game, and I have to be honest, I did not see it coming. I knew she was extremely athletic and extremely talented, but I had no idea she was going to score like this. Grace is long and can run, so she is excellent in the up tempo game and getting to the rack. Where she has improved her game in my eyes is she is shooting better from the mid range out past the 3-point line than I expected. Grace plays high level AAU ball with the Indiana Elite Havoc so she will be challenged and get a chance to show if she can play against the "3A/4A" types that people assume are better.</li> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="264889" first="Jilyan" last="Burgener"] Jilyan is a nice left handed shooter that shows the skills and intelligence for the game that tells you she is a player. Where you see this is in a pass, in positioning on both offense and defense and just in the way she looks to create. Jilyan is not going to be the most athletic player on the floor, but she gains a step by knowing what to do and when to do it. She is a great wing player to run with a quality post as she really understands when, how and where to deliver the ball. In addition she is one of the better spot up shooters you will find so she is hard to help off. Jilyan is a player that has the skills, they need to be improved all the time like anyone else, but in a drill setting, she looks the part. What will ultimately drive her ceiling will be quickness, strength and most importantly her ability to guard.</li> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="265427" first="Denver" last="Anderson"] Denver is a fluid athlete that just looks like a player. Some girls you can watch in warmups, not have any idea who they are, but just know they can play. Denver is that kid. Like many young players with size she spent many minutes in the post when she was young, but, also like many tall kids that are talented, when someone needed to break the press it was Denver. She has now expanded her game on the wing to be comfortable shooting the 3-point shot from well beyond the arc to also attacking the rim. Denver is a team player that will do whatever is needed. She has a natural ability and flow to her athleticism and makes it look easy at times.  As she continues to improve her ball skills and ability to create her own shot Denver will maximize how far she can go.</li> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="265426" first="Tessa" last="Crawford"] Tessa is an outstanding ball handler that can really control her team and the tempo from her point guard position. She is very good at moving the ball around her back or between her legs to change direction and is comfortable at all times using these moves. Most often she uses them to clear space to run the offense or avoid traps. She has the chops to use them to create space for a step back 3-pointer and is not afraid to take it. When she begins to use her handles more often to attack the basket and create for herself and her teammates is when she will reach that next level.</li> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="265453" first="Marisa" last="Gant"] Marisa is a very athletic player that had a nice freshman season at Springfield Southeast. She was named honorable mention All Conference and averaged over 12 points per game. Marisa uses her considerable quickness/speed along with great agility to be an excellent defender and create scoring opportunities. She excels in an up tempo game where she can use these tools in a much bigger space. In the half court she can use her dribble to get to the lane where she can finish with a wide variety of shots. Marisa is the type of player that already has much the natural traits of a college player, as she continues to improve her shooting and other skills her game will draw considerable attention from recruiters.</li> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="265433" first="Mya" last="Wardle"] Mya is a lead guard who is a floor leader and a pure point guard. She makes the right pass and always looks up the floor to advance it to her scorers. Mya is an advanced ball handler that has the ability to break down defenses to create opportunities for herself and her teammates. She plays under control and knows to use a change of pace to surprise the defense with her first step. Her athletic ability allows her to be a very good defender and work well in a fast paced full court game. Mya is the daughter of a coach and shows that intelligence for the game in the way she plays.</li> <li><span style="font-size: 1rem;">[player_tooltip player_id="265430" first="Landry" last="Smith"] Landry stepped into a key role right away for an established top 1A program. from day one due to injuries she was counted on to be the point guard. With her athletic ability there was no secret she could be a very good ball handler and defender. Landry was expected to able to show well in an up and down fast paced game where her natural abilities could take over. But, Landry surprised some people. Her 12.5 points per game came from making more threes than expected and ultimately she was the second leading scorer on the team, which was not expected. Landry has that natural quickness and speed but has really improved as a basketball player.</span></li> </ul> These are just a few of the very talented players in the 2024 class that are drawing attention, there are more articles to come on this outstanding class.