Top 10 2017 Prospects

Top 10 2017 Prospects

Losing Jeremiah Tilmon. Alonzo Verge Jr. and Joe St. Pierre to prep-school settings kind of zapped some potency from a once viewed highly touted class but there still some gems ready to demonstrate that they may be prepared play their first seasons on the collegiate level.

1.       Jordan Goodwin       6-5        G/F HM      Belleville Althoff – “Just saw him in Collinsville a couple of games; he is a stud, more importantly a winner, a Quinn Buckner, Sergio McClain clone, but Goodwin is a superb athlete as well.  Missouri.St. Louis.Illinois.DePaul.Oklahoma.Oklahoma State seems to in the hunt.”

2.       Da’Monte Williams             6-4 G          HM      Peoria Manual – “When this combo type is locked in, he is a terrific talent as he demonstrated at Pontiac with his 37 point outburst versus Joliet in the semi-finals.  Could be Kansas bound.”

3.       Charles Payton          6-7        WF HM      Bloomington – “The kangaroo kid can be a polarizing figure on the glass, Payton has enormous potential and DePaul and several others are on him hard.”

4.       Javon Pickett 6-4      WG        HM            Belleville East – “We watched him drop 34, then come back and get 25 points & 18 boards in Collinsville.  Pickett has superb length and he’s become a smooth scorer.  Some folks are comparing him to Providence Star Kris Dunn.”

5.       Nojel Eastern 6-4      WF        HM            Evanston – “Starting to regain his form after being injured most of the summer he has a slew of high majors including Northwestern and DePaul viewing his many moves.”

6.       Justin Smith   6-6      WF        HM            Stevenson – “After a subpar summer then blending with new mates at the start of the season, Justin is starting to round into form, he has such enormous potential if he continues to work on his craft.”

7.       Christian Negron    6-7          F    HM-MM+       Elgin-Larkin – “He seems to be in the process of figuring out how to utilize his talents consistently while we need to see his motor improve as well, his skills & confidence should be a point of focus for him.”

8.       Elijah Joiner   6-2    PG           HM-MM+ Chicago Curie – “This gamer isn’t far off from having the leadership intangibles to anchor his team to winning nightly, but tends to try to do too much at times.  I like where his journey may lead him he also possess high character traits.”

9.       Manny Patterson    6-7          SF  MM+   Chicago Kenwood – “A throw-back rebounding deluxe type he’s already a chiseled cut, plays hard and with passion but right now he is not an interior threat but as his game grows he’ll finish plays better at the rim.  I’m gonna put him in the clone with former Phillip’s High-School stand-out front-court players Larry Williams and Robert Bryd they both played for national championship teams at Louisville and Marquette respectively they also won a state championship at Phillips.”

10.   Cameron Krutig      6-7          SF  MM+-MM      Jacobs – “A baseline wonder the southpaw can score and he hits the glass with a vengeance rebounding the ball but due to his lack of athleticism he may need to look for a system and a league that fits his abilities where he can continue to have some success.  Based on his numbers he is regarded as a top 10 prospect with this group for now but he’s got work to do on his body.”