5 Players Who Popped: Team Saints

I watched many New Hampshire basketball courtesies of live stream throughout the winter and was so impressed by the level of talent, I had to take a ride up there and get courtside seats to the Team Saints AAU program. The Team Saints are home to many elite prospects ranging from 7th-12th grade, and they play a beautiful style of basketball reminiscent of the Utah Jazz. Coach Dave Constant puts a premium on quick ball movement and constant motion on offense. I also liked how no matter if the player is a guard or big, there was an emphasis on developing ball handling and isolation moves so the whole roster can be a threat with the ball in their hands. Here are 5 players who stood out: https://x.com/BashHoopsNE/status/1373041725598486531 Sydney Gerossie - Pinkerton Academy - 5’8’’ - PG - 2025 (pictured above) The class of 2025 has many highly talented and skilled point guards in the region, but none are as good as Gerossie. It is incredible how polished her offensive game is at her age, and she has the confidence of a senior varsity captain. That is how comfortable she is handling the ball and facilitating the team’s offense. Her size and length at the position create an automatic mismatch, and she is still growing. Gerossie gets into the paint at will and has a plethora of isolation moves in her arsenal she can rely on to create separation and get her shot off. With her ball-handling and playmaking ability being where it is, combined with the fact that she has a size or speed advantage depending on who defends her, the ceiling for Gerossie is limitless. This spring and summer, all eyes should be on this young floor general because she has the potential to be the iron of her class by years’ end. [player_tooltip player_id="263847" first="Avah" last="Ingalls"] - Pinkerton Academy - 5’9’’ - SG/PG - 2022 In my opinion, Ingalls is one of the top 20 players in the 2022 class. She is not the tallest player for her position, but when it comes to her skill, IQ, and compete level, I will take Ingalls at 5’9’’ to play shooting guard over many players who have more size. I can write a book on her offensive repertoire and how dominant she is when isolated on the wing, but what sticks out the most when watching Ingalls play is her off-hand. Ingalls is as efficient going to her left as she is her right, and when she gets into the lane, she is extremely dangerous scoring the basketball due to her dexterity. She is athletic and physical, allowing her to defend both guard positions effectively. One of the most complete athletes in the region yet vastly underrated, Ingalls should turn many heads this spring and summer with her activity on both sides of the ball.   https://x.com/BashHoopsNE/status/1373046403799396355   Hannah Smith - Windham - 5’6’’ - PG/SG - 2023 Smith stood out during the practice because she played with high energy all practice long and never cheated you with her effort. Her speed is off the charts, and she is one of the most conditioned athletes I’ve seen in person this year. When you see a player go full speed and never take plays off in practice, you can be sure that they will have that same mindset during the games. Outside of her athleticism, Smith is an excellent shooter and playmaker off the bounce. Another skilled ball-handler on Team Saints, Smith can penetrate the lane at will using her quickness and also is a threat off the ball. She is a terrific spot-up shooter who is a reliable kick-out option when the defense collapses on the ball handler’s lane penetration. Elizabeth Lavoie - Pinkerton Academy - 5’10’’ - SG/SF - 2024 Lavoie is a deadly three-level scorer who has the tools to be a consistent 20-point scorer potentially. Watching her go through drills, Lavoie was smooth and fluid when doing her full-court dribble moves. I paid attention to her footwork when she was executing these moves, and her movement was natural and not clunky. Her skill set is impressive for a freshman, and it is encouraging that she does not lean on her height and athleticism to score. It is an encouraging sign that if an opposing coach takes away one of her strengths on offense, she has the confidence in her game to read the defense, audible, and beat the opposition differently. Lavoie runs the floor well and is one of the numerous transition threats when she gets the ball in the open court. With the size and athleticism to be a pesky defender, Lovoie can open some eyes this spring and summer. Ava Winterburn - Goffstown - 6’2’’ - SG/SF/PF - 2023 Winterburn has the potential to be one of the best two-way players in her class. She is a physical force, and when she is going downhill, Winterburn becomes virtually unstoppable. At 6’2’’, Winterburn has a deadly pull-up that she can shoot over anyone confidently, and in transition, she is automatic, shooting mid to long-range jumpers trailing. She is so difficult to defend because of her skill set and offensive IQ. Winterburn is a scorer who doesn’t rely solely on her jump shot and can attack the paint or get easy buckets posting up on the block. Her length makes her extremely valuable on defense. She can protect the rim but also has the lateral quickness to wreak havoc on the perimeter. Winterburn’s ability to impact both sides of the ball at a high level makes her one of the Saints’ most valuable players.   <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2021/03/pedLxCQESOSBxCyLt9TQgQ-scaled-crop-2299x1510-1616687188.jpg"><img class=" wp-image-266122 aligncenter" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2021/03/pedLxCQESOSBxCyLt9TQgQ-scaled-crop-2299x1510-1616687188-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="429" height="282" /></a>