Upside 2024 by HP Events: 2027 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 2027 prospects who attended Upside.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["663397"],"_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":998535,"_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-66e9a85397ffe"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Taylor is a guard who showed quickness during the full-court sprint test at Upside. She worked hard to defend her girl on defense and force missed shots. One of Taylor's best plays was when she used her voice to call for the ball after cutting by a defender, then scored the layup off two feet. Taylor keeps her eyes up when handling the ball and demonstrated her toughness to compete despite feeling under the weather. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["998233"],"_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":999641,"_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-66e9a85398084"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Mariah is a promising guard who made an impression with her crafty quickness and defensive pressure at Upside. She moved well laterally to cut off ball handlers, burst by defenders to score a layup, and made an effective bounce pass after pivoting. Mariah aggressively tied up the ball on defense, created a steal, and worked for an offensive rebound during 5v5. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["998234"],"_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":999658,"_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-66e9bcf8dc880"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Acelyn is a guard who had one of the best bursts during the shuttle drill at Upside and added a straightaway 3 during the 3v2 segment. Acelynn defended well, showed good vision to throw an accurate skip pass, then knocked down multiple wing 3s during the shooting spots segment. Acelynn moved well off the ball to get open for passes and used a nifty fake pass attack dribble to drive by her defender during 5v5. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["665472"],"_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":999661,"_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-66e9bcf8dc90c"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Sam is a versatile wing/guard who I was excited to see in a different competitive environment at Upside. She finished well off two with both hands during 2v1, drilled a straightaway 3 off the dribble during 5v5, and demonstrated good footwork in the paint. Sam shot the ball accurately, quickly, and with balance during the shooting segment. She had a great dribble drive to the basket where she scored a contested layup off two feet with a high finish off the glass. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["901094"],"_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":999666,"_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-66e9bcf8dc992"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">MaryGrace left a great first impression on me at SVSU Elite Camp and I was happy to see her again at Upside. She had strong zip on her passes, knocked down many free throws consecutively, and was one of the most aggressive rebounders on the court. MaryGrace had solid footwork in the paint, stripped the ball away on defense, and split defenders using her dribble to draw a foul. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["934643"],"_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":999670,"_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-66e9bcf8dca1a"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Addy is a guard I really enjoyed seeing for the first time during the summer at Michigan Team Camp and I was excited to see her again at Upside. She stood out with her fluidity and quickness during the shuttle test, worked hard to force missed shots on defense, and shot the ball very well during the Princeton offense segment. Addy swiped the ball away for a steal on defense during 5v5. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Upcoming Events (Registration Deadline September 19th)<br><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>&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;&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 -->