Guard Play at The Classic
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The featured image is of Jessa Troy (2025) of Penn High School and Always 100 Takeover 16U. This past weekend marked the annual “The Classic” tournament in Louisville, Kentucky, hosted by Ohio Basketball. There were close to 100 teams from…
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Continue ReadingThe featured image is of Jessa Troy (2025) of Penn High School and Always 100 Takeover 16U.
This past weekend marked the annual “The Classic” tournament in Louisville, Kentucky, hosted by Ohio Basketball. There were close to 100 teams from Indiana in attendance, 48 total courts in use, and a number of the nation’s top colleges and universities represented. I continued my quest to see each Indiana grassroots team this Spring & Summer multiple times, so I had a specific schedule, but I did stumble into a couple of teams I have already seen multiple times early this Spring. Below is a look at seven guard prospects who I felt stood out in the games I was able to watch this weekend.
Kennedy is a really nice athlete, she moves well in all directions, and she plays with a constant motor. She has some strength to her and can absorb contact getting downhill, but she is an elite shooter with a quick release. For the Lady Knights this Winter, Kennedy was an impressive 80-183 (43.7%) from 3-point range. This past weekend she showed the ability to also handle the ball, run/initiate offense, and she did a nice job of attacking the basket as well. She plays in a defensive system at Norwell, but I feel like she can apply that and be a really nice on-ball defender at the next level also.
I’ve talked about Norah a few times previously, and I continue to enjoy her upside for some of the Midwest’s better small colleges. She has a fairly strong frame, the ability to get downhill, change directions, and score in the paint, plus she has some shiftiness around the perimeter and the ability to make rhythm jumpers. I would like to see her play a little more consistently against top competition, and I need to better evaluate her defending upper-tier guards, but she certainly has shown the physical ability and the offensive skill it takes to contribute somewhere at the next level.
Highlights
Heaven Thompson Heaven Thompson 5'8" | SG Decatur Central | 2024 State IN
Heaven Thompson Heaven Thompson 5'8" | SG Decatur Central | 2024 State IN
I noticed Heaven playing well at The Clash back in April in Hamilton, Ohio, and she continued her solid play this past weekend in Louisville, Kentucky. She is a strong, physical, assertive guard/wing who plays with a nice motor and a quiet toughness to her. She doesn’t stop playing hard, and she never shies away from contact. She can attack the basket North/South, knock down an open rhythm jumper, and she can occasionally handle it and initiate the offense. I also like her effectiveness as a physical defender, plus she can take on guards, wings, and even an undersized ‘4’ once in a while.
Friday evening was my first opportunity to see Lauren in person, and she is certainly intriguing. She is extremely long, wiry, and fairly fluid/smooth. She has a quick lefty release, and she is constantly hunting jumpers anywhere inside of about 25-feet. She can handle it a little as well, and she does a nice job of shot-faking and attacking the basket when a defender closes out too aggressively. Lauren will need to focus on continued strength gain to absorb contact when attacking, because if she can become a consistent multilevel scorer, it will open up her jump-shot and allow her more time to get set on each catch.
Jessa is an extremely strong, physical, and aggressive guard. She has a reputation as a dangerous shooter, and she does that very well, but she has become a solid ball-handler who can manage an offense and find teammates, plus she’s doing a much better job of getting downhill and attacking the basket for scores. My only concern for her, really, is her lateral quickness defensively at her size. If she can prove to defend water-bug type of point guards, I think she can become more of a point guard herself positionally, because she does possess skill. Otherwise, she will be more of a scorer as a ‘2’ at the next level.
Highlights
Since I first saw Ava last Fall at a showcase event, I’ve liked her potential to be a really nice prospect. She was solid again in mid-March when I saw her, but this past weekend she looked even stronger, and she played much stronger and more aggressively. She has nice length, a wiry-strong frame, and she’s a fairly fluid athlete. She has some touch around the perimeter, but I liked seeing her battle for rebounds and attempting interior scores this weekend. She just looked more confident and assertive, and if she can become a more complete, multilevel scorer at 5’9, it can only benefit her recruiting.
Mallorie Rose Mallorie Rose 5'7" | SG Kankakee Valley | 2027 IN
Mallorie Rose Mallorie Rose 5'7" | SG Kankakee Valley | 2027 IN
Mallorie is another intriguing young prospect on this Region Force Elite team. She has an already strong frame, she plays with physicality, and she can play at all three levels against her peers. She is more of a North/South, downhill attacker right now, and I’m trying to figure out if she’ll be better as a ‘2’ or a ‘3’ in terms of recruiting. But she can handle it a little, she can knock down an open rhythm jumper, and she plays with a really nice motor. I also like how well she rebounds her position, and she is a versatile defender who can use her strength to defend undersized forwards inside.