Upside 2024 by HP Events: 2026 Prospects

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>There are very few girls basketball prospect events outside of the PGH sphere that I will personally endorse publically, promote, encourage registration, and sacrifice time to cover in person myself: Upside is among the few.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":998379,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2024/09/PXL_20240915_151708315.MP_-crop-3226x2118-1726512156.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-998379" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Director William Jones speaking with prospects at Upside</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Upside by Highest Platform</strong>&nbsp;is a unique experience for college-motivated basketball prospects to gain perspective, skills, testing measurables, instructive feedback, media coverage, and an evaluation graphic that will provide girls with the necessary feedback to reach their recruiting goals as college prospects. Those vital elements of Upside are exactly why I prioritized the event as a college coach for Lake Michigan College. As a college coach, I want to recruit girls who are dedicated to improving their fundamental skills, strength, speed, mental toughness, etc. to become more recruitable and successful at the college level. Seeing how the girls concentrate, communicate, and respond to adversity was very informative. Very few high school athletes are ready right now to immediately start or make a profound impact at any college level in every offensive/defensive category. That means, every high school prospect has improvements to make in some area of their game, which is why Upside has great value. Not every travel coach, high school coach, trainer, or parent knows what it takes to succeed at the college level: having an informed evaluator to provide that feedback is essential to reaching your goals of succeeding at the college level.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>At Upside, I greatly enjoyed having the opportunity to make an informed evaluation of all the athletes. The format gave every girl plenty of reps during the skill, physical testing, and competitive play segments to show their abilities and mindset on the court. The knowledge gained as a college coach attending Upside and the knowledge received by the prospects was extremely valuable. Coach Jones shared the simple truth that growth cannot happen inside the comfort zone, and I believe that embracing this mindset will lead to future success. I look forward to supporting and attending Upside again next year.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here are a few notes from my observations of 2026 prospects who attended Upside.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["908305"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":["override_image"],"_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_player_featured_image":998410,"_player_evaluations_0_player_featured_image":"field_62f141137ead9","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66e892283a48e"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Arisara was one of the most polished prospects at Upside and she stood out throughout the day. Arisara pushed herself hard with quick dribbles during the ball-handling segment and split defenders with a crossover move to score a floater off two during 5v5. Arisara knocked down a smooth wing 3 and had excellent footwork in the paint. She fired quick shots off the catch, drilling three triples during the spot-shooting segment. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["616579"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":["override_image"],"_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_player_featured_image":998419,"_player_evaluations_0_player_featured_image":"field_62f141137ead9","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66e892283a4fd"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Karissa is a guard who jumped out with her athleticism at Upside and has she flashed a ton of potential at the event. Karissa pushed herself hard with quick dribbles during the ball-handling segment and had an impressive broad jump. She split defenders off the dribble, pushed the ball with speed in transition, buried a 3-pointer up top off the catch, and added a step-back jumper from the foul line during 5v5. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["773852"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":["override_image"],"_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_player_featured_image":998461,"_player_evaluations_0_player_featured_image":"field_62f141137ead9","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66e892283a54c"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700"> Faith was feeling a little under the weather at Upside, but that didn't keep her from showing plenty of recruitable qualities on the court. She combined quickness with control of the ball during stationary ball-handling drills, scored a full-speed layup in 2v1, and added an emphatic block in the paint. Faith knocked down three triples during the Princeton drill, cut off the ball to score an and-one layup off two during 5v5, and drilled a straightaway 3 off the dribble.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["923880"],"_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":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66e892283a58b"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Savannah is a center prospect who towered over others at Upside and showed progress in her game since the winter season. Savannah made an accurate bounce pass assist during 2v1, blocked a shot in the paint during 5v5, and dribbled the ball full court into the paint for scoring looks. She scored two effective pivot turnaround floaters over defenders, used a high pick-up move on her drive, and scored a strong and-one layup off the dribble. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Upcoming Events (Registration Deadline September 19th)<br></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:image {"id":969797,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2024/08/PGHMI-ExpoBell2024.jpg?w=865" alt="" class="wp-image-969797" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><a href="https://events.prepgirlshoops.com/e/1255/register/the-expo-michigan">Registration for Expo</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">At the Buzzer</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Evan Bell</strong>&nbsp;is currently a scout for Prep Girls Hoops and Director of&nbsp;<a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/program/prepare-2-win-basketball/"><strong>&nbsp;</strong></a><strong><a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/program/prepare-2-win-basketball/"><strong>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</strong></a><a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/program/prepare-2-win-basketball/"><strong>&nbsp;</strong></a><a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/program/prepare-2-win-basketball/"><strong>&nbsp;</strong></a><a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/program/prepare-2-win-basketball/"><strong>&nbsp;</strong></a><a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/program/prepare-2-win-basketball/"><strong>&nbsp;</strong></a><a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/program/prepare-2-win-basketball/"><strong>&nbsp;</strong></a><a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/program/prepare-2-win-basketball/"><strong>&nbsp;</strong></a><a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/program/prepare-2-win-basketball/"><strong>&nbsp;</strong></a><a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/program/prepare-2-win-basketball/"><strong>&nbsp;</strong></a><a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/program/prepare-2-win-basketball/"><strong>&nbsp;</strong></a><a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/program/prepare-2-win-basketball/"><strong>&nbsp;</strong></a><a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/program/prepare-2-win-basketball/"><strong>[program_tooltip program_id='923712' first='Prepare' last='2 Win Basketball']</strong></a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</strong>&nbsp;. Our&nbsp;<a href="https://www.prepnetwork.com/frequently-asked-questions/">mission</a>&nbsp;at PGH is to cover as many athletes with D2, D3, NAIA, and JUCO potential in the state as possible. If you know a prospect off our radar, please DM Evan through Twitter @CoachEvanBell or email him at coachevanbell@gmail.com</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->