July Breakout Candidates (2028)

The featured image is of [player_tooltip player_id='928183' first='Jaycee' last='Archer'] (2028) from Linton-Stockton High School.   Now that the June "scholastic live period" is over, I wanted to circle back and consider who could be the breakout candidates for the next month during the two "live" periods for women's basketball. There is no exact, singular qualification for these, just who I think could have a big Summer or whose recruiting could really take off.   .    A lot of times recruiting comes down to timing, and July tends to be about the time a lot of schools wind down in their recruiting process of rising Seniors and begin establishing lists of rising Juniors. Jaycee is sure to draw a variety of interest because of her versatility. She is a strong wing prospect, she plays with physicality around the perimeter, and she has a good IQ for the game. She is a solid North/South attacker who can body defenders and draw fouls. She has touch from the perimeter, a solid enough handle to initiate the offense, plus she rebounds her position well.     Skylee is still young enough to be learning the game and building her skillset, but she stands out almost immediately because of her incredible length, her ability to run up and down the floor at 6-feet tall, plus her bounciness. She is a very active front-liner who is always moving. She is a versatile defender who can sit down and guard the ball on the perimeter at times, but she can also slide over from "help" side and block shots/rebound. Offensively, she relies a lot on the penetration and passing of others, plus rebound putbacks, but her mid-post game is steadily improving.     I felt like Carly played very well during the Spring when I was able to see her. She had a solid season off the bench for Class 3A State Runner-Up Roncalli, but next year she could step into the starting lineup and really show what she can do. As for July, when I have seen her playing "up" with this Pride Attack team, she has been the standout, and once coaches realize she's just a 2028 on the 17U squad, I think she'll start to see her recruiting expand quite a bit. In the meantime, she's a nice athlete, a capable scorer, but also a solid lead guard who gets others involved.     Zyah is a very intriguing prospect, and while she is still growing and developing her game, it's hard to not notice a 6-foot-4 athlete with tremendous length fluidly running up and down the floor. She has increased her strength a bit over the last couple of years, but she also seems to grow an inch a year. She plays like she has been taught some things, and she tries to execute what she's been taught, however, she just needs many more reps. At the same time, she is a capable rebounder, defender, and shot-blocker. Playing on a 17U grassroots team will surely help her visibility this July.     Haylee is on an intriguing grassroots team consisting of a few 2028s, but a lot of 2029 and 2030 big-time talents. She will be seen, without question, but she's one of those kids who is fitting a role, and she does it well. She is an excellent outside shooter, she has a quick release when she gets set, and she is able to hide away from everyone else and just knock down open shot after open shot. I think she fits a need for a lot of colleges, and it's just a matter of time before she makes 8 to 10 3-pointers in a game and her interest takes off. Look for her to have a breakout Winter, too!

The featured image is of Jaycee Archer Jaycee Archer 5'7" | SF/CG Linton-Stockton | 2028 IN (2028) from Linton-Stockton High School.