Chicago TOC Power 5 – The Weapons

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>The Weapons</em>: Players who gave their team the best chance at winning, impacting the game from multiple levels, and making their defenders think twice about guarding them. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We saw many players grab the attention from scouts/college coaches through their 5 game span, but only these 5 athletes established themselves as some major <em>threats</em> on the court <em>demanding</em> that their team be noticed. They were tenacious, smooth, exciting, and pen-grabbing good for their name to be written down by numerous coaches. They were the players to stop in every game, pulling skill after skill from their arsenal. Let's take a look at who couldn't be stopped at the Nike Tournament of Champions:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"id":"block_62e562fae184e","name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["371743"],"_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_0_evaluation":"u003cbu003e u003c/bu003eu003cspan style=u0022font-weight: 400;u0022u003eAn attacking guard who gets by their defender with ease. When Sollose gets going, u003cemu003eNOBODYu003c/emu003e is stopping her. She utilizes her cross well by making the defender think she's going one way, and then once she plants her foot, she explodes off of it to change direction and get to the rim. It's a simple move, but she has mastered it to the point where it's become dangerous. During her game against a tough New Heights team, she broke down her defender each time and got to the rim with multiple and 1's. She played really well for her team, keeping them in the game with her scoring ability, but also her defensive efforts and playmaking ability. Sollose is very smooth on her drives, either looking to scoop, shoot over, or dish in the lane depending on her defender and the weak side help. She has range to deep and can hit off the kick out. On her drive, she has good vision when the weak side help shifts over, as she is capable u003cemu003eandu003c/emu003e willing to dish to the open post or man for 3. Sollose is also a great defender who gets multiple steals just by picking off her player alone. She uses her angles well to cut them off, keeping active hands in the pocket and in the passing lanes. What I loved most about Sollose is how she rebounds on both ends of the floor, but most importantly how she can sometimes come out of u003cemu003enowhereu003c/emu003e for both the O and D boards. It's pretty fun to watch how she just comes up with the ball even when starting from outside the arc. Overall, Sollose is a weapon on both sides of the ball, creating disruption with whoever is guarding her, or whoever she is guarding. u003c/spanu003ernrnu003cblockquoteu003eu0022Cat is a tremendous athlete - who is a nightmare for opposing teams. Her first step is elite, and has been a great addition to the Starters family. She has great upside and has been a fun player to coach.u0022 -Brian Medeiros, CT Starters Coachu003c/blockquoteu003e","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["295875"],"_player_evaluations_1_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"A competitive strong post who can leak out to the wing. Eggleton had some fire under her when I watched her play. The way she got dirty in the post, not backing down from contact with multiple and 1s, and insisting she got her positioning was pretty fun to watch. When she was in the low post, she had a nice jumper that she utilized well to get over the defense when they were giving her space. What I liked most about Eggleton, though, is her ability to score from all three levels. I watched her knock down threes when she leaked out to the arc, and pull from the high post with a pretty smooth jumper. When at the high post, she mainly took the jumper instead of the drive since this is what the defense was giving her. On the defensive end, Eggleton shot the gap in the passing lanes multiple times when the guards got lazy. She used her strength and body well to keep her defender from getting any easy shots. Overall, Eggleton is a highly competitive strong post who could do damage at any level on the floor.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_player":["296751"],"_player_evaluations_2_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"u003cspan style=u0022font-weight: 400;u0022u003eA smooth combo guard who looks to attack first. Saluja is an athletic 2-way guard who can get crafty with her finishes. She is not afraid to readjust in the air and float by her defender. She will get to the basket with contact, or use her vision to dish off. On her drives, her ability to either score or dish comes in handy when faking out her defenders with a pass fake for either a finish or dish off. When I was watching Saluja, I saw her post smaller defenders in the low post where she used a nice turn-around jumper a few times, or just a straight power up and off the glass. Ultimately, Saluja will look to get in the lane first, but will take her shot behind screens or off a dribble move, which she can be streaky with. It has been fun watching her progress through high school after getting the opportunity to play with her during her freshman year. I'm excited to follow her progress at the next level, and can't wait to see her excel. u003c/spanu003e","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":3,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"align":"","mode":"edit"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"id":"block_62e55fede184c","name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations":"","_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"align":"","mode":"edit"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"id":"block_62e6ef979f1c4","name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["295872"],"_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_0_evaluation":"u003cspan style=u0022font-weight: 400;u0022u003eA shifty guard who has mastered her change of pace game. Zaccagnini uses her retreat dribble, jab step, and combo moves to effectively get by her defender and into the paint u003cemu003eevery timeu003c/emu003e she wants to. She does a nice job of distributing when help side D shifts over, or finishing with a nice soft touch at the basket either off the glass or floated. She finishes with contact consistently, or takes the PUJ if there is too much traffic in the paint. What I love about Zaccagnini is that she hustles back on D to disturb transition breaks, or stop them completely. Even more, I'm impressed with how when she crashes the D board, she is able to weave through the defense and get out in front for an easy bucket. She is also able to do this off of a steal by picking her player or getting into the passing lanes. Overall, Zaccagnini is a VERY good player who has committed to playing at the D1 level. She is well deserving and I am excited to see her dominate her senior season. u003c/spanu003e","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["270726"],"_player_evaluations_1_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"***A tough u003cemu003escary goodu003c/emu003e player that has taken over the word u003cemu003efire u003c/emu003eto now encapsulate u003cemu003eheru003c/emu003e game. When I went to see Orlando play for the first time, she was being denied, and rightfully so. Even with this, she found ways to impact the game by cutting backdoor, or, when she did get the ball, finding holes in the defense and using the over help to find her teammates. She is under control with a silky handle and smooth touch at the rim, but will push as hard as she can non-stop as if she's down 10 (u003cemu003eu003cstrongu003eThe Orlando Fireu003c/strongu003eu003c/emu003e). She's not afraid to shoot it well beyond the arc and can knock it down consistently. Orlando also has great vision, seeing where her teammate will be before they get there so she can deliver dimes both in transition and in the half-court. Unsurprisingly, her teammates look to get her the ball, and look for her on what offense they are going to run. She loves her retreat dribble or mini step-back for the 3, or her combo moves for the attack. She has mastered her behind-the-back dribble for either a change of pace, or to get by her defender. No matter what move she was making, it was always done with purpose, and with the u003cemu003eu003cstrongu003eOrlando Fireu003c/strongu003eu003c/emu003e she possesses. That being said, Orlando's energy and u003cemu003efireu003c/emu003e are what I loved most about her game. You can tell she wants to win on every possession, playing as if she is down 2 with 30 seconds to go. Overall, this kid was probably my favorite and most fun player to watch just solely on her drive and u003cemu003efireu003c/emu003e while playing the game. But add in her stock-rising talent, and you got a u003cstrongu003eD1u003c/strongu003e contender right there.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":2,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"align":"","mode":"edit"} /--> <!-- wp:separator --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Are you convinced yet?</em> If the answer is no, then you better make it a priority to see these athletes during their high school seasons before it's too late. These athletes deserve to be seen, and their hard work should not go unnoticed.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:separator --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:table {"className":"is-style-stripes"} --> <figure class="wp-block-table is-style-stripes"><table><tbody><tr><td>Athlete</td><td>Class Year</td><td>AAU Team | State</td></tr><tr><td>[player_tooltip player_id='371743' first='Catherine' last='Sollose']</td><td>2024</td><td>CT Starters | CT</td></tr><tr><td>[player_tooltip player_id='413602' first='Sydnee' last='Eggleton']</td><td>2023</td><td>Exodus NYC | CT</td></tr><tr><td>[player_tooltip player_id='296751' first='Norah' last='Saluja']</td><td>2023</td><td>D4S | CT</td></tr><tr><td>[player_tooltip player_id='295872' first='Mya' last='Zaccagnini']</td><td>2023</td><td>CT Starters | CT</td></tr><tr><td>[player_tooltip player_id='270726' first='Ava' last='Orlando']</td><td>2025</td><td>New England Crusaders | MA</td></tr></tbody></table><figcaption>Chicago TOC: The Weapons</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:table -->