2nd Annual iKHONICS' Gym Middle School Showcase: Notable Leaders

Today was the 2nd Annual iKHONICS' Gym Middle School Showcase at iKHONICS Gym located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. This is a showcase that brought together some of the best 2032 and 2031's in the state to compete under one roof as they move into their next year of action. With the new rule being approved that 8th graders can compete at the Varsity level beginning this Winter, it changes up the game-plan for almost every program across this State so this event is a great way to be seen for some of the prospects who will be competing with Varsity this season.    Over the next few days we will be highlighting everyone who attended this event in one way or another but below we discuss five prospects that led other by their actions on both offense and defense. They demonstrated what it means to be a team player and they stood out because of that while making some plays here or there.   Thanks for tuning in and enjoy!    The Meyer family is going to be a group to know over the next few years as it pertains to high school and travel basketball in Iowa. They have Audra Meyer out of the 2030 Class, who will be in the discussion for being the best prospect out of that Class and then they follow that up with a twin pair of sisters out of the 2032 Class. The first one of these twins that we will highlight is Maebel. Maebel has the chance to be a really fun prospect to watch as a PG. Growing up their older sister Audra has always been a dominant Post player with the ability to spread the floor. Maebel is naturally a PG. She has good size for her position but she is in no way a Post player. Instead, she runs the offense with the ball in her hands and makes sure that all of her teammates are ready to go. Sometimes thats by motivating them vocally and sometimes thats by getting them set up in the correct spots in general so that they can run their action correctly. We saw some nice moves and overall solid play out of Maebel during this Showcase and I'm sure we are going to see that at the Varsity level over the next couple of years as well.     The youngest hooper at this event was [player_tooltip player_id='1899619' first='Avaya' last='Robertson'] of [program_tooltip program_id='712609' first='Lady' last='Martin Bros. Select'] AAU. Robertson is only going into the 5th grade but she is already someone that has a GREAT feel for the game for her age. Not just that, she is also fairly skilled as well. She has a tight handle with better than average vision down the floor. She understands that one of her best advantages is her speed, so whenever she can push the ball in transition, she will and it usually ends the possession in a finish by herself or an assist to an open teammate. The potential upside that Robertson possesses is impressive and that's only going to grow as she gets older. If she keeps competing up a few grade levels, that's going to push her to new levels of growth as she steps into high school and I can't wait to see what that looks like.     I still have a lot of questions about Ezra Creighton but after seeing her for her first time on Sunday I can tell that her potential is there. Ezra is more of a leader than anything else as a prospect right now. She can kinda do a little bit of everything. She is very good at exploding into her finishing ability at the rim of the attack. She is a solid rebounder, defender, and passer for her position, all while being a good decision maker. Another interesting part of her game is that she plays at her own pace and keeps the defense guessing. She isn't ever flustered and if things don't go her way, she stays positive and continues to make things happen in those moments for the good of the team. Progression will be key for Ezra as she moves into the high school ranks over the next few years and that's a good thing. She could be a respectable producer at the Variety level before you know it if she continues to work during her off-seasons.     [player_tooltip player_id='1899615' first='Jayda' last='Robertson'], older sister of Avaya, is a completely different position right now than her little sister. We highlighted Avaya as a PG. Well Jayda is more of a SF/CG. She has impressive length at 5'8 for her age group and she knows how to use that length. Offensively, Jayda can go to the block and kill anyone who is smaller/weaker by scoring over the top of them on either side of the hoop. She can also spread the floor by screening on the outside and shooting it from deep off the pick-and-pop. Defensively, her reach makes it tough for opponents to get clean looks near or far from the basket. She can rebound at a steady rate and she isn't afraid to dive into the stands or onto the floor for any loose ball opportunities that come her way. All in all, Jayda is still raw within the game but she could be very successful as she continues to grow. Literally and metaphorically.     The second Meyer twin, that everyone in the 1A Class should be aware of is Dolan Meyer. Dolan competes more as a PG/CG. She can move around the outside and handle the rock or she can move around the perimeter to play off of the ball. From what I saw out of her during this event, Dolan thrives and is at her best when she is off of the ball with someone else starting their offensive action. From there, she does solid work moving into open spacing, finding her spots behind the defense whenever they fall asleep. Don't get me wrong, she can handle it as well and make plays after she gets into the teeth of the defense but that's not her go-to action. Like I said above, watch out for North Linn and the Meyer family the next few years at the Varsity level throughout the state. At some point, because of their age separation, they will all be able to play Varsity together for two or three years and I can't wait to see what they can put together as a whole.

Today was the 2nd Annual iKHONICS' Gym Middle School Showcase at iKHONICS Gym located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. This is a showcase that brought together some of the best 2032 and 2031's in the state to compete under one roof as they move into their next year of action. With the new rule being approved that 8th graders can compete at the Varsity level beginning this Winter, it changes up the game-plan for almost every program across this State so this event is a great way to be seen for some of the prospects who will be competing with Varsity this season.