Final 2023 Rankings: Top Combo Guards

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As the final 2023 rankings have been released, let's take a look at some of the top combo guards from this senior class. This list includes three of the finalists for the 2023 Miss Kentucky Basketball award.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["164384"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"One of the finalists for Miss Kentucky Basketball, Ford has one of the most impressive high school resumes around. She finished the season in the top 50 for four of the five individual statistical categories KHSAA tracks. She was 4th in scoring at 26.1 PPG, 6th in rebounding at 12.5 RPG, 26th for free throw percentage at 79.1%, and tied for 49th in three's made per game after averaging 2.3 made triples per game. The Murray State commit showed an ability to take over games when her team needed her to, while also being a very unselfish, team-first type of player. Ford has a very bright future ahead of her and should be able to make an instant impact for the Racers next season.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["164391"],"_player_evaluations_1_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"Another finalist for the Miss Kentucky Basketball award is Manual's [player_tooltip player_id='164391' first='Jakayla' last='Thompson']. Thompson played in one of the toughest regions in the state, so being picked as the candidate for the 7th Region is a huge accomplishment in itself. However, what she brought to the floor made her impossible to keep off of that list. After playing guard her entire high school career, her team needed someone to play down low this season. Not only did Thompson step into that role, but she really was a difference maker for her team in every game. Manual's only 2 losses this entire season came to a team that just won the state championship in dominating fashion. Thompson averaged a team-best 15.2 PPG and 5.5 RPG. She will be a huge addition for the University at Buffalo next season.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_player":["164400"],"_player_evaluations_2_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"Another Crimson player, Tolbert is always one of the most impressive players on the floor. She is like a glue type of player who can contribute in big ways on both ends of the floor. She can apply so much pressure defensively and did a great job of coming up with steals on a regular basis. Offensively, she could bring the ball down the floor or play off of the ball, but either way, she made stuff happen. If she wasn't scoring herself, she was typically creating for her teammates. Like I mentioned above, her team's only losses this season came to the team that just won the 2023 Girls' Sweet 16, so she certainly ended her high school career on a high note. She averaged 11 PPG and 2.8 RPG this season. Tolbert will be playing for the University of West Georgia next year.","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_3_player":["200350"],"_player_evaluations_3_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"Guess is also a finalist for the 2023 Miss Kentucky Basketball award after a really solid high school career. In her senior season, she led her team to a 25-6 record while averaging 23.7 PPG and 9.4 RPG. She finished in the top 10 on Kentucky's scoring leaderboard for the season and also was tied for 26th for free throw percentage after shooting 79.1% from the line. Guess is a two-way player who showed an elite scoring ability both inside and out. She shot an impressive 44.3% from 3 this season, while consistently finishing tough baskets around the rim. Her drives proved hard to stop time and time again. Guess is committed to play at Lindsey Wilson next season.","_player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_4_player":["255506"],"_player_evaluations_4_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"Another Lindsey Wilson commit, Gentry also showed her special knack for scoring the basketball all season long. While her team struggled this season, she was certainly the highlight as she was their leader in nearly every statistical category. Gentry averaged 18.8 PPG and 8.1 RPG. Despite being the player opposing teams would focus on stopping, she still shot 50% overall this season. She finished in the top 50 for scoring across Kentucky this season and with the 17th best free throw percentage (80.9%). What makes Gentry so special is her versatility. She has shown an ability to score on all 3 levels, along with an ability to elevate over defenders to get her shot off.","_player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_5_player":["199609"],"_player_evaluations_5_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_5_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_5_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_5_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_5_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_5_evaluation":"Weaver is one of the most underrated players I saw this season. Despite playing on a loaded Manual team, she always impacted the game for the Crimsons. For starters, she can really disrupt the opponents offense with her defensive abilities. She consistently made things hard on whoever she was guarding. On the other end of the floor, she didn't force shots and really did a great job of creating good looks for both herself and her teammates. She moves without the basketball to get into the gaps and when she has the ball, she attacks those gaps. Weaver is a great shooter who can knock down shots inside or out. She averaged 10.4 PPG and 2.3 RPG, while shooting 49.4% from 3. Weaver will be heading to Three River College next season.","_player_evaluations_5_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_6_player":["199615"],"_player_evaluations_6_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_6_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_6_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_6_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_6_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_6_evaluation":"Smith is another extremely underrated player. She was one of the biggest keys for a Mercy team that remained in the top 25 all season long. What she brought to the floor couldn't always be seen in the stat sheet, but it was always evident when you watched her team play. She could handle and distribute the ball extremely well. Smith also could score the ball inside or out, though she was consistently looking to get the ball to her teammates. She averaged 9.8 PPG and 2.3 RPG. I wish I had stats like assists and steals because I know those numbers had to be high as well. Smith could really impact the game on both sides of the ball and Mercy will greatly miss her presence on the floor next season.","_player_evaluations_6_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":7,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6410be9cb6fe7"} /-->