Who I’ve Seen Part 1 : 2022 Summer Ball All-Kansas 2024 Team
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As we head into fall many players have been or are going to be hitting exposure events. It is a good time to reflect on summer ball. After having shared my all-Summer Ball all-Kansas 2023 team I now want to…
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Continue ReadingAs we head into fall many players have been or are going to be hitting exposure events. It is a good time to reflect on summer ball. After having shared my all-Summer Ball all-Kansas 2023 team I now want to share the 2024 team. As I prefaced parts one and two of the 2023 team, it is composed only of players that I saw play live. Growing a couple over last year to 18 players this team of mine requires to separate articles to give all included the space they need. My stops to see action in person included the MAYB Hall of Fame Exposure and Summer Kickoff events Wichita, the Hutchinson Community College team camp, and the three wildly successful Prep Girls Hoops Circuit events in Kansas City, MO, and Wichita. I also specifically scouted 16U teams at a PGH Circuit stop in Edmund, OK. A limitation on inclusiveness of players and clubs is readily apparent. More than even last summer, many clubs and players chose to compete primarily outside the state. Some who did compete in state but I did not happen to be where they were playing. Other players did attend events where I was but unfortunately I did not get as quality look at them as I would have liked. This part 1 is composed of point and shooting guards. Part 2 will share the combo guards/small forwards and bigs.
Point Guards
Hailey Contreras Hailey Contreras 5'5" | PG Liberal | 2024 State KS , 5’4″, PG, Liberal, SSA Gameball Basketball – I have been watching Contreras’s game grow for a couple years and was able to see her at the Hutchinson Community College team camp. Stepping into more of a floor leader role this upcoming season with the graduation of Western Activities Conference player-of-the-year and Presbyterian College bound Ashley Carrillo. Contreras has strong, quick handles; deep range and good elevation on her perimeter shot; uses her body well to shield when finishing; and makes solid entry passes and dishes. She is also a strong back court defender. This past season she averaged 10.6 points shooting 70% from the field and 44% from three. This summer she made the Elite 40 2024 class all-tournament team.
Amani Lipscomb Amani Lipscomb 5'2" | PG Houston | 2024 State TN , 5’2″, PG, Maize South, Oklahoma Swift – Lipscomb is another player I have been watching for a couple years and she has ratcheted up hers a few levels this past season. I was able to see her playing with her fellow Mavericks at the MAYB Summer Kickoff and running with the Swift at Prep Girls Hoops Dynasty (KS) ‘ last=”]’ last=”]’ last=”] Circuit events. Her growth has been in her skills set and her leadership. She has substantially improved her perimeter jumper; is a strong 1-on-1 full court defender and off-ball thief; has strong hops; can make entry passes with either hand; rebounds and clears well; and is able to create her own shot. She is also developing consistency in her step-back jumper. What is also notable is the confidence her teammates have in her. Off the rebound they know where to look for her to get the transition game going. They also know she knows where they are supposed to be in transition and in the half court offense. Big reasons why she is not just one of the best 2024s in the Wichita area but also one of the best regardless of class.
Ashley Singhateh Ashley Singhateh 5'8" | PG Maize South | 2024 State KS , 5’8″, PG, Eureka, Arkansas Banshees/Southwest Elite – The two-time Tri-Valley League first team selection will continue to provide opponents nightmares when they step on the floor to face the Tornados. Playing with her Eureka teammates at the June MAYB Summer Kickoff she used her strong handles, ability to push the ball down the floor, quickness, and scoring ability to lead the show. Because she commands so much attention her teammates benefit from her interior dishes. Singhateh has terrific hops and goes back up quickly off the rebound.
Shooting Guards
Jacqueline Hall Jacqueline Hall 5'10" | PG Pittsburg | 2024 State KS , 5’10”, SG, Pittsburg, Missouri Legacy – After reading about what my colleague Michael Riddle had to say about Hall in is May 10 Standouts article from Prep Girls Hoops Live I was eager to get a long look. Later in the summer I saw her at a Prep Girls Hoops event playing with her Legacy teammates. Not only is she a dynamite shooter but she has good quickness, feet, hands, and length. Strong potential to play the stretch four. Good footage of exposure workout. Good quickness, feet, hands, and length. She also catches well on the fly, finishes with either hand, and has good handles. A high potential candidate to play the stretch four at the next level, Hall will be making a great deal of noise these next two years and will draw a great deal of attention from college coaches.
Sophie Hurley Sophie Hurley 5'8" | SG Maize South | 2024 State KS , 5’8″, SG, Maize South, Next Level Eclipse – I caught Hurley playing with her high school teammates at the Summer Kickoff. She runs well, moves well without the ball, defends with steady quickness, dribbles with speed, and finishes in transition well off the steal. But what really caught my attention was her zone busting perimeter shooting and her ability to make the opposite side block lob with consistency.
Nevaeh Jones Nevaeh Jones 5'8" | CG Labette County | 2024 State KS , 5’7″, SG/PG, Labette County, Wheat State Elite – I finally had the opportunity to see Jones play at Summer Kickoff playing with a Team Prodigy group full of southeast Kansas players. With a couple more inches on her I can easily see as small forward material at the next level. While she needs to improve her feet on her three point shot, she is a legitimate threat. Jones has good quickness, handles, length, and ability to go end-to-end with her head up in traffic. She makes good use of ball fakes to create on the perimeter to get to the basket or create her own jump shot. I also like her quick release.
Jera Kruleski Jera Kruleski 5'7" | SG Holcomb | 2024 State KS , 5’7″, SG, Holcomb, Magic Basketball – The Great West Activities Conference second teamer earned Battle at the Border USJN Pool WW all-star honors and caught some attention from my colleague Matthew Martinez at May’s Prep Girls Hoops Rocky Mountain Mayhem Circuit event. Kruleski is a recognized perimeter shooter with range whom I saw at Prep Girls Hoops events in the past and at PGH Dynasty (KS) ‘ last=”]’ last=”]’ last=”] Circuit events this past summer. She creates well in the half court and uses a variety of moves to put up a lot of points. Still growing her game on both ends of the floor, she played well this summer.
Elizabeth Romer Elizabeth Romer 5'10" | SF Kapaun Mt. Carmel | 2024 State KS , 5’10”, SG, Kapaun Mt. Carmel, KS United – Romer’s play this summer started strong and kept on going. She not only played with energy and buried perimeter shots like a summer ago but, when I saw her in April, was showing explosiveness to the basket from the wing and in transition. She used her length well defensively. My colleague Simmie Colson selected her to his 2022 Border War Big 12 First Team.
Featured image: Pittsburg 2024 Jacqueline Hall Jacqueline Hall 5'10" | PG Pittsburg | 2024 State KS . Photo: Robert Kelly.