DEPAUL TEAM CAMP

SUNDAY, JUNE 24, 2018

Very good event streamed just in the middle of DePaul’s north-side campus. Some early morning match-ups captivated a spirited audience on-hand, Oak Park-Whitney Young match-up gave observers a look at Oak Parks talented group of Anthony Roberts, Chase Robinson, Charlie Hoehne, and promising youngsters Isiah Barnes & Justin Cross. Dashon Enoch didn’t play because of a hip injury suffered at the NIU camp on Saturday. Young countered with a cast of talented cagers of their own, Myles Baker, Tyler Beard, Grant Newell, and Keenan Jones. The state’s No. 1 junior D.J. Stewart rumored to be joining the Whitney Young Program soon, wasn’t on the premises. Orr’s Tujautae Williams looked like his game is ready to explode, this kid will likely propel his status in July. Don’t be baffled if Williams garners a few high-major offers.

Providence St. Mel zoomed in, played two early morning games and looked good before making the track back to Northern for a scheduled 1:00 tilt. Taeyon Neal, Jason Mason, Tim Ervin, Deion Jackson, and Tyriel Nelson all played well. Gary West-Side strolled in with six-foot eight in-coming freshman Jalen Washington. This kid is the best-looking prospect from Gary, Indiana since Glen “Big Dog” Robinson. Washington, can do everything right now, including play defense on the perimeter. He hoops with Darryl on Mean Streets 14-U squad. “This kid would stand-out in a 17-U game.” Thornton had 6-6 leaper Keeshawn Chambers on-hand currently squashing some thoughts he may be linked to Uplift soon. The Titans did perform well though, behind the maturing Markese Jacobs and steady guard Detalian Brown. Farragut had admirable performances from Aaron Strong & Reggie Strong. Neighboring school Lincoln Park showed off their newly arrived transfer Khaleb Rouse, a 6-2 guard with a rising floor game to go with his ability to score in a variety of ways. Chris Roberts, Romelle Howard, Michael Robinson, Tahir Thompson, Kyle Jackson, and sophomores Ismail Habib & Julio Montes were on-hand. Good times might be in store for the North-siders. Curie vs Leo mid-afternoon sparked some interest even though the condors ran away from Leo in the second half. DeJuan Gordon who arguably might be the best player in the Public League was his usual self. Juniors Ramean Hinton & Almond Williams looked good. Fenwick transfer Demari Nixon Top 50 in the 2019 Class was in the Curie line-up. Leo’s Fred Cleveland Jr. and Kendale Anderson shined; senior forward Dachawn Anderson played but wasn’t his usual self, he’s hampered by a leg injury. CVS and Carl Sandburg had several games where their players stood-out along with Prosser squad.

NORTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY

JUNE 23rd, 2018

&

JUNE 24th, 2018

Monty & his staff put together an excellent camp. Ideal for coverage. The NIU Camp ran two days, the tournament play began Sunday evening and wrapped-up with Bogan edging red-south rival Simeon in the title game. Landing offers from the camp were Bogan’s six-foot seven Rashaun Agee and Simeon sharp-shooter Antonio Reeves. Several other seniors performed well enough for the NIU staff to follow closely during the July evaluation period, a few of them certainly elevated their status during this competitive event. Peoria Richwood’s Cortez Mosley a six-foot four wing stood-out along with Chance Love a 6-5 wing from Rich-Central and son of former Chicago Bull great Bob Love. He was terrific in the outings we viewed him, both players stock-elevated into the Spot-Liter’s Top 25-30 rankings. Streamwood’s 6-7 wing Keenon Cole flashed some signs of what his potential could look like in a year or two. Yamani Shareef, a 6-2 guard from Plainfield East opened some eyes with his scoring ability. North Chicago’s trio of Achan Clinton 6-7 Sr, Quincy Gilmore 6-4 Sr, and promising 6-7 junior Ricky Irby were a pleasant surprise with their performances. Bloom, Oak Park, Peoria Richwoods, St. Joe’s, Providence St. Mel, Peoria Notre Dame, Rich-Central, Zion-Benton, and Homewood-Flossmoor – all shined…

TOP PERFORMANCES AT NIU

• Rashaun Agee 6-7 PF SR Bogan
• Jeremiah Washington 5-8 PG SR Bogan
• Antoine Bloxton 6-3 WG JR Bogan
• Antonio Reeves 6-4 WG SR Simeon
• Bryce Hall 6-3 WG JR Simeon
• Keenon Cole 6-7 WF SR Streamwood
• Chance Love 6-5 G/F SR Rich-Central
• Anthony Roberts 6-5 F SR Oak Park
• Taeyon Neal 6-10 C SR Providence St. Mel
• Cortez Mosley 6-4 WG SR Peoria Richwoods
• Martice Mitchell 6-10 F/C JR Bloom
• Keshawn Williams 6-2 G JR Bloom
• Collin Wood 6-4 WG JR Hamphire
• Frank Jakubicek 6-7 F JR Cary Grove
• Robert Hobbs 6-4 F JR Chicago Crane
• Jimarius Sneed 6-5 G/F JR Chicago Crane
• Quincy Gilmore 6-4 G SR North-Chicago
• Damontae Taylor 6-5 WF JR Zion-Benton
• Josh Redric 6-3 G SR Mount-Carmel
• Dashon Enoch 6-1 G SR Oak Park
• Maliq Anderson 6-5 G SR St. Joseph
• Jules Williamson 6-5 WG SR East Aurora
• Yamani Shareef 6-2 WG SR Plainfield East
• Achan Clinton 6-7 F SR North-Chicago
• Bryonte Washington 6-3 G SR Rich-Central

TOP UNDER-CLASSMEN AT NIU

• Ahmad Bynum 6-0 G SO Simeon
• Amar Aguillar 6-5 G SO Zion-Benton
• Isaiah Donnell 6-3 PG SO Peoria Richwoods
• A.J. Casey 6-8 WF FR Simeon
• Kendrick Wiley Jr. 5-11 PG FR Rich-Central
• Isiah Barnes 6-4 WG SO Oak-Park
• Noah Reynolds 6-1 G SO Peoria Notre Dame
• Chad Readey 6-5 PF SO Homewood-Flossmoor
• Jalen Drane 6-2 PG FR Simeon

TOP 100 PROSPECTS IN 2019 CLASS

After combing the area for several weeks now, while also relying on credible sources, I’m thinking I just may have the necessary cues now to have some accuracy with identifying the top prospects in this group. Off the availability board is the consensus No. 2 player Francis Okoro who committed to Oregon a few months ago. No. 5 prospect Markese Jacobs pledged to Kansas more than a year ago, and KU has not backed-out amid to reports. Under-the-radar post-man Alex Timmerman from Crystal Lake Central gave a verbal to Bucknell recently. We are going to go slow with judging this group collectively, we saw some kids recently that I feel may eventually blossom in the right setting, we’re hopeful…

NOTE: Personally, I have 3 or 4 favorites in this class, but they aren’t rated as a true indicator of that. Fred Cleveland & Jaheim Holden, both should use Eastern Illinois Cornell Johnston as a measuring reference to approach any Division One aspirations. Both youngsters are special players.

NAME HT POS RANK LEVEL HIGH-SCHOOL /CLUB TEAM

E.J. Liddle 6-7 F 1 HM Belleville West/Bradley Beal
Francis Okoro 6-10 C 2 HM Normal West/Bradley Beal
Chris Payton 6-7 PF 3 MM+ Bloomington/Mean Streets
Terrence Hargrove 6-7 WF 4 MM+ East St. Louis/Bradley Beal
Markese Jacobs 5-11 G 5 MM+ Chicago Uplift/Mac Irvin Fire
DaJuan Gordon 6-4 G 6 MM+-MM Chicago Curie/Team Rose
Tom Welch 6-7 F 7 MM+-MM Naperville North/Illinois Wolves
Raymond Dennis 6-2 PG 8 MM Oswego East/Team Rose
Lance Jones 6-2 G 9 MM Evanston/Mean Streets
Marquise Kennedy 6-1 G 10 MM Brother Rice/Illinois Wolves
KeJuan Clements 5-11 PG 11 MM Simeon/Team Rose?
Deonte Billups 6-3 WG 12 MM Moline/Quad Cities Elite
Trey Calvin 6-0 PG 13 MM St. Viator/Y&R
Tujautae Williams 6-6 G/F 14 MM Chicago Orr/Team Rose
Jeremiah Hernandez 6-4 WG 15 MM St. Viator/Y&R
Antonio Reeves 6-4 WG 16 MM Chicago Simeon/Get Buckets
Myles Baker 6-3 WG 17 MM Whitney Young/Team Rose
Cortez Mosley 6-4 WG 18 MM Peoria Richwoods/
Perry Cowan 6-4 WF 19 MM DePaul Prep/Illinois Wolves
Bryant Brown 6-5 WF 20 MM Waukegan/Illinois Wolves
Nate Ferguson 6-8 PF 21 MM Lemont/Lock-Down
Jermaine Hamlin 6-10 C 22 MM Lincoln IL/Quad Cities Elite
Terrion Murdix 5-11 PG 23 MM Springfield S.E./Mac Irvin Fire
C.J. Wilbourne 6-8 PF 24 MM Normal/Quad Cities Elite
Rashaun Agee 6-8 PF 25 MM Chicago Bogan/Mac Irvin Fire
Jeremiah Oden 6-7 F 26 MM St. Rita/RWA
Ciaran Braboy 6-9 C 27 MM New Trier/Illinois Wolves
Chance Love 6-5 G/F 28 MM Rich-Central/Next Level 24
Anthony Fairlee 6-5 F 29 MM Springfield S.E./Mac Irvin Fire
Anthony Roberts 6-5 F 30 MM Oak-Park/Made-Men
Taeyon Neal 6-10 C 31 MM            Providence St. Mel/Chicago Select
Jeremiah Washington 5-8 PG 32 MM-LM+ Chicago Bogan/Y&R
Marquise Walker 5-11 PG 33 MM-LM+ West Aurora/Mean Streets
Evan Taylor 6-6 G/F 34 MM-LM+ Glenbard West/Illinois Heat
Keenon Cole 6-7 WF 35 MM-LM+ Streamwood/Illinois Wolves
Alex Timmerman 6-7 F/C 36 MM-LM+   Crystal Lake Central/Fundamental U.
Joseph Yesfu 5-11 G 37 LM+-LM Bolingbrook/Mean Streets
Jaden Brown 6-2 G 38 LM+-LM Waukegan/
Keeshawn Chambers 6-6 PF 39 LM+-LM Thornton/Mean Streets
Lawrence Brazil 6-1 PG 40 LM+-LM Belleville West/Team Ramey
Chris White 6-6 F 41 LM+-LM Marion Catholic/
Yamani Shareef 6-2 WG 42 LM+-LM Plainfield East/Hoopers
Tyler Cochran 6-3 WG 43 LM+-LM Bolingbrook/Hoopers
Martin Macenis 6-4 G/F 44 LM+-LM Stagg/Buckeyes
Jaheim Holden 5-9 PG 45 LM Evanston/All In Athletics
Fred Cleveland Jr. 5-7 PG 46 LM Chicago Leo/RWA
Karl Wright 6-6 PF 47 LM Springfield Lanphier/Ill. Irish
Charlie Hoehne 6-6 WG 48 LM Oak-Park/Made Men
Chase Robinson 6-2 PG 49 LM Oak-Park/Made Men
Dachaun Anderson 6-6 PF 50 LM Chicago Leo/Y&R
Chris Roberts 5-10 G 51 LM Lincoln Park/Y&R
Artese Stapleton 6-1 PG 52 LM Chicago Kenwood/Y&R
Kevin Vance 6-6 F 53 LM Bloom/Team Rose
Aaron Strong 6-1 G 54 LM Chicago Farragut/Illinois Wolves
Detalian Brown 6-2 WG 55 LM Chicago Uplift/
Justin Eagins 6-1 G 56 LM Downers Grove S./Mercury Elite
Matas Masys 6-2 G 57 LM Willowbrook/
Dashon Enoch 6-1 G 58 LM Oak-Park/Made Men
Spencer Boehm 6-8 F 59 LM New Trier/Fundamental U.
Caleb Donaldson 6-5 PG 60 LM Bloomington/Illinois Stars
Deng Reng 6-7 F 61 LM Wheaton North/Buckeyes
Khaleb Rouse 6-1 G 62 LM Lincoln Park/All In Athletics
Latik Murphy 6-2 G 63 LM Morton/Morton Mustangs
Tyrese Shine 6-3 G/F 64 LM Lyon’s Twp./Illinois Heat
Alex Raiford 6-4 G/F 65 LM DeLaSalle/Y&R
Bryonte Washington 6-3 G 66 LM Rich-Central/
Jacquan Binion 5-8 PG 67 LM Kankakee/Old-Gold
Cameron Bartman 6-10 C 68 LM St. Rita/Buckeyes

NOTE: Our remaining listing we will un-ravel after the Morris shoot-out.

RANKING THE 2021 CLASS

NAME HT POS RANK HIGH-SCHOOL/CLUB TEAM

Brandon Weston 6-4 WG 1 Lake Forest Academy/PSA
Max Christie 6-4 G 2 Rolling Meadows/Ill. Wolves
Khaillieo Terry 6-5 F 3       Champaign Central/Speice Indy Heat

NOTE: CHICAGO ELITE CLUB TEAM FOLDED, SEVERAL WITH MAC IRVIN FIRE NOW

Kimarhi Wilson 6-0 PG 4 Carmel/Y&R
Anthony Sayles 6-0 PG 5 Niles Notre Dame/Ill. Wolves
Ahmad Bynum 6-0 G 6 Simeon/Mac Irvin Fire
Bennie Slater 6-4 WG 7      Springfield High Ill. Central/Predators
Chris Hodges 6-7 PF 8 Schaumburg/Illinois Wolves
Jaylin Gibson 6-3 PG 9 Evanston/Speice Indy Heat
Tevin Smith 6-3 G 10 Danville/Mean Streets
Scotty Ebube 6-8 F 11 Mundelein/Kessel Heat
Amar Aguillar 6-5 WG 12 Zion-Benton/Mean Streets
Jalen Butler 6-6 G/F 13 Niles North/Mac Irvin Fire
Trent Howland 6-2 G 14 Joliet West/Y&R
Blake Peters 6-2 WG 15 Evanston/Mean Streets
Ismail Habib 5-10 PG 16 Lincoln Park/Mac Irvin Fire
Isiah Barnes 6-4 G 17 Oak-Park/Ill. Wolves
Isaiah Donnell 6-1 PG 18 Peoria Richwoods/Bradley Beal
Marquis Irvin 5-9 PG 19 Hillcrest/Team Rose
Norvell Meadows 5-8 PG 20 Chicago Prosser/Chicago Grainers
Noah Reynolds 6-0 G 21 Peoria Norte Dame/Bradley Beal
Grant Newell 6-6 WF 22 Chicago Young/Mean Streets
Nathanael Hoskins 6-3 G 23 Danville/Mean Streets
Troy Pilon 6-5 PF 24 Niles Notre Dame/Mean Streets
Avery Davis 6-6 PF 25 Chicago Kenwood/Mean Streets
Isaiah Holden 5-7 PG 26 Evanston/Y&R
Elijah Bull 5-9 G 27 Niles North/Y&R
Brandon Hall 6-3 G 28 Thornton/Mean Streets
Darrion Jones 6-0 PG 29 Chicago Bogan/Chicago Huskies
Kevin Miller 5-8 PG 30 Morgan Park/Mac Irvin Fire
Bryce Hopkins 6-4 G/F 31 Fremd/Illinois Wolves
Kyonte Thomas 5-9 PG 32 Bolingbrook/Team Rose
Jolo Amoranto 5-9 PG 33 Andrews/Next Level 24
Chad Readey 6-5 PF 34 Homewood-Flossmoor/none
Julio Montes 5-9 PG 35 Lincoln Park/
Kenton Wright 5-9 PG 36 Hillcrest/Mean Streets
Kia Evans 6-1 WG 37 Montini Catholic/Team Rose
James Dent 6-2 WG 38 Springfield S.E./Mac Irvin Fire
Darius Duff 6-1 G 39 Lake Forest Academy/NLP
Connor Enright 5-11 PG 40 Mundelein/Kessel Heat
Derek Courtney 5-8 PG 41 Lincoln Park/Lock-Down
Jake Dimovski 5-9 PG 42 Downers Grove South/Buckeyes

TOP PROSPECTS IN 2021 CLASS

(OVER-ALL OBSERVATION & RANKING)

It’s early, but this is a highly anticipated crop of athletes we will be frequently zoomed in on over the next several months. Presently the crystal ball out-looker has the group projected to have a total of fifteen plus players that could be casted as high-major recruits. Now, most of us will lean back & allow the-process-to-take course. The player much-bally-hooed in the class, is slithery guard Max Christie, a wiry lad with quintessential floor game and a penchant for scoring. New York native Brandon Weston hoops at Lake Forest Academy, a ritzy North-Shore campus located in a wealthy North-Suburban sector of Chicago. Weston is regarded as the No. 1 player in the class if he stays in state. Simeon’s Ahmad Bynum has a pure jumper & a huge billing, most of us observers would enjoy seeing his all-around floor game develop & flourish like his uncle (former NBA guard & Crane H.S. stand-out Will Bynum). Champaign’s Khaillieo Terry at six-foot five is a human high-light-reel, explosive leaper whose skill-set should develop within framed expectancy. Anthony Sayles of Niles Notre Dame & Kimarhi Wilson at Carmel, both residing in the North Suburbs are already gifted ball-handlers & play-makers and possess early leadership qualities. Both should be pegged as high-major recruits. Another pair of touted North-Suburban prospects whom we’ve grown quite fond of, is Evanston’s Jaylin Gibson and Nile’s North versatile wing Jalen Butler. I have to pinch myself every-time I size-up these two youngsters, physically they both look so mature & both handle themselves much older than youngsters 15 years of age. Butler just turned fifteen last month. Mundelein’s Scotty Edube also looks like a stud physically, he projects to be a dynamite College player. Some “cats” from down-state measuring in as serious prospects on the brink of stardom is Bennie Slater (Springfield High) and Tevin Smith (Danville). Slater has been drilling defenders the whole month of June on the High-School camp circuit. His reputation is starting to evolve as a scorer. Smith is so talented, he and Zion’s Amar Aguillar could soar to the top of the group by 2020 with few climatic outings, the pair has good length & un-conscious ability to score in bunches. Smith has been rumored to transfer to LaLumiere Prep-School in Indiana (hope it’s just a rumor). The Peoria tandem of Isaiah Donnell (Richwoods) and Noah Reynolds (Peoria Notre Dame) have performed with poise, both should continue to blossom, they travel on the summer circuit with the Bradley Beal out-fit. Joliet West’s Trent Howland is a beast, some on-lookers swear he’s a P.J. Tucker clone, but a much better athlete. (I’m not riding-that-tide) but the kid has a wealth of talent & potential to rise as a Valley/A10/Conference type recruit. Schaumburg’s front-courter Chris Hodges has been quiet of late, never-the-less he is a promising lad with high-major potential. Knock-down shooter Blake Peters (Evanston) one of my favorites makes big shots & gathers every 50/50 ball in sight. He’s like an infielder. Ismail Habib (Lincoln Pk), Darrion Jones (Bogan), Isaiah Holden (Evanston), Elijah Bull (Niles North), Marquis Irvin (Hillcrest), Norvell Meadows (Prosser), Kenton Wright (Hillcrest), Kevin Miller (Morgan Pk) all play with a certain level of chippy and competitiveness, we are expecting them to steadfast in their growth & development under bright-light’s or even scrutiny. A couple of un-heralded players I’m eye-balling closely and keeping tabs on are, Danville’s Nathanael Hoskins & Andrew’s exciting general Jolo Amoranto, as well as Young’s potential swingman Grant Newell. There’s optimism here…

“We certainly have some traction”

FORTH-COMING

The 2020 Class in Illinois we once viewed as a highly touted group with 4 or 5-star potential has now taken some interesting hits. A winding road of twists & turns has occurred in the last fifteen months. The defection of several promising prospects has left the class with some dubious uncertainties. Duquoin’s Lamontay Daughtery moved to St. Louis in April and enrolled in Mehlville H.S. Daughtery was considered Top 5 prospect in the class, just recently another Top prospect in Southern Illinois transferred to a St. Louis area school, Marion’s Jackson Connor left for Chaminade College Prep. Year ago we lost Nimari Burnett and Shon Robinson, two talented youngsters who were widely recognized as Top 5 rated players in the class and prepped at Morgan Park, landed in California & Arizona schools. The 2021 had its No. 1 player leave the State for Wisconsin, Patrick Baldwin Jr. arguably one of the top prospects in the country, his situation was inevitable. Just something for all of us to catalog.

With July 1st approaching swiftly, the Chicago State Head-Coaching opening should be gaining some traction or perhaps making an announcement soon. Linked to be final candidates are veteran College Assistant Coach Lance Irvin, DePaul Assistant Billy Garrett Sr., Triton Junior College Head-Coach Steve Christiansen, former DePaul Assistant Rick Carter, and South-Suburban College Head-Man John Pigatti. Trickery will always be aligned with these slippery trustees at Chicago State. Stay tuned…

Illinois Mr. Basketball E.J. Liddle out of Belleville West has his top schools listed as Ohio State, Mizzou, Kansas St., Georgetown, Iowa, Illinois, & Louisville. Liddle is heavily guarded in his thoughts these days.

Antonio Maestranzi has taken over Helm at the Rockford Guilford Program. The former NIU point-guard will do a fine job of engineering respectability into a sagging Program. The rehabilitation process will start with six-foot three senior guard Jamil Jones and 6-5 junior forward Jack Holmstrom, both are players to watch.

Illinois trio drafted last week was a reflective moment for many of us. Jevon Carter (Proviso East) selected 32, Normal U-High’s Keith Bates-Diop drafted No. 48, and Stevenson’s Jalen Brunson went 33, all second rounders. Loyola’s Dante Ingram un-drafted was invited to play on the Chicago Bulls Summer League Squad, deservingly so. Brunson’s was the only 2015 grad, the others including Ingram emerged from our talented 2014 Class.

HERE’S A GLIMPSE AT THE TOP 6 PROSPECTS AT EACH POSITION IN THE 2020 CLASS

“This class has some talented cagers, guys we plan to follow closely the next five weeks. Geneva’s 6-7 wing Nate Santos made such a splash during the April evaluation period, I’m curious as to how he will respond when the closely viewed July period takes its course. Back-court players Keshawn Williams (Bloom) and Marcus Watson possess special talents; their challenges will come with transitioning over to the PG slot where both could develop into stand-outs. The pair reminds us of some dudes we used to produce regularly in Chicago years ago, after D.J. Steward and Adam Miller the class offers several under-the-radar types like Micah Schnyder (Chgo Christian) and Connor Kochera (Viator) while the Quad Cities area can brag about the development of Geneseo heart-throb Isiah Rivera, a six-foot 4 all-around performer whose floor game continues to draw rave reviews. Aurora Christian 6-6 wing Will Wolfe was impressive in the Spring. He possesses excellent length on the perimeter. Without many potential post players in our state at his moment, we do have a promising core of forwards with length and a good up-side. In our North-side circle, we are excited about the potential of Lincoln Park’s next stud Romelle Howard as he matures on & off the floor, he could possibly draw array of high-major interest soon. Colin Crothers, Nate Seputis, and Seryee Lewis could emerge as significant Mid-major recruits. Two dude’s who might be lauded as stand-outs one day could very well be 6-10 Martice Mitchell (Bloom) and 6-7 Joliet Central wing forward Kee Hargrove. We just got a close-up viewing of Mitchell at Loyola’s Team Camp. He was knocking down 3s while handling himself comfortably on the perimeter. He’s improved since the school season ended.

POINT GUARDS
NAME HT RANK LEVEL SCHOOL/CLUB

Keshawn Williams 6-3 7 HM Bloom/Y&R
Marcus Watson 5-9 9 MM+ Morgan Pk/Mac Irvin
Reggie Strong 5-11 13 MM Farragut/Y&R
Dante Maddox Jr. 6-2 14 MM Bloom/Mac Irvin
Ahron Ullis 6-2 22 MM Marian Catholic/Mean Streets
Josh Holmes 6-1 24 MM Jones College Prep/Y&R

SHOOTING GUARDS
NAME HT RANK LEVEL SCHOOL/CLUB

D.J. Stewart 6-3 1 HM Young/Mean Streets
Adam Miller 6-3 2 HM Morgan Park/Mac Irvin Fire
Tyler Beard 6-3 3 MM+ Whitney Young/Mean Streets
Isiah Rivera 6-4 6 MM+ Geneseo/Quad Cities Elite
Connor Kochera 6-4 29 MM St. Viator/Fundamental U
Micah Schnyder 6-4 25 MM Chgo Christian/Mac Irvin Fire

WING FORWARDS
NAME HT RANK LEVEL SCHOOL/CLUB

Nate Santos 6-7 11 MM+ Geneva/Chicago Elite
Lamontay Daughtery 6-5 4 MM+-MM Duquoin/Bradley Beal
Damonte Taylor 6-5 12 MM+-MM Zion-Benton/
Jimarius Sneed 6-5 23 MM+-MM Crane/Team Rose
Will Wolfe 6-6 18 MM+-MM Aurora Christian/Ill. Wolves
Destin Whitaker 6-6 16 MM+-MM Romeoville/Mean Streets

“This group seems to be inter-changeable, presently not many traditional post players. (Back to the basket types with a go to move).”

POWER FORWARDS
NAME HT RANK LEVEL SCHOOL/CLUB

Romelle Howard 6-8 7 MM+ Lincoln Park/Chgo Elite
Colin Crothers 6-7 17 MM Benet Academy/Mean Streets
Nate Seputis 6-9 20 MM Lincoln-Way East/RWA
Kendale Anderson 6-5 29 MM Chicago Leo/Y&R
Seryee Lewis 6-7 30 MM Chicago Kenwood/Y&R
Connor Linke 6-8 39 MM St. Charles North/Ill. Wolves
Martice Mitchell 6-10 35 MM Bloom/Mac Irvin Fire
Frank Jakubicek 6-7 51 ---- Cary Grove/Ill. Wolves
Tremear Fraley 6-8 50 MM Chicago Bogan/RWA
Brandon Lieb 6-9 65 ---- Deerfield/Ill. Wolves- “we need to see more of him”


On Wednesday June 13th Loyola-Chicago held its annual team camp at its north-side campus, the Ramblers coming off some significant steam from a remarkable Final Four run. Porter Moser & his staff assembled some pretty good teams and a fine cast of prospects they could size-up comfortably in cozy one day window.

The morning slate offered many us an opportunity to view the likes of Lemont’s slender six-foot seven Senior Nate Ferguson, who we cast at the I.S.L., ranked 21 over-all in the 2019 Class. Ferguson, capped-off the afternoon session with four 3-pointers wrapping up a fine day; Romeoville 2020 prospect Destin Whitaker (16) displayed some offensive ability. Niles Notre Dame trio of Anthony Sales, Troy Pilon, and guard Joey Tianen showed they have a bright future. Sayles is an elite prospect, recognized as a highly touted Top 10 player in our 2021 group. While Tianen (31), we think is vastly under-rated; Loyola Academy had the 2020 twins Bennett & Jordan Kwiecinski on set, we got a good look at their abilities, while highly regarded 2019 six-foot four swing-man Connor Barrett is still shelved with an injury, he’s expected back for the Morris shoot-out (June 27th & 28th). Ray J. Dennis and his Oswego East crew invaded the north-side campus with an exciting appeal. Dennis, flashed a slithery floor game to go along with some respectable out-side shooting. He validated why we consider him the top PG in the 2019 Class. 6-6 Senior Kamron Battle was intriguing & 2020 forward Sam Shultz (58) showed signs of someone with Division One potential.

Oak Park went un-defeated in their games, bolstering a talented core of Seniors in Anthony Roberts (18) Chase Robinson (43) Dashon Enoch (51) Charlie Hoehne (59) while adding promising 2021 prospect Isiah Barnes whose shown flashes of being a high-level recruit. The 6-4 wing has a top 20 ranking in the 2021 Class. Expectations will be heighten for the 2018-19 Huskies.

Chicago Leo was on-hand showcasing the talents of Fred Cleveland and Junior strong forward Kendale Anderson. Senior Dachaun Anderson was sattled by an injury and did not dress. Detroit-Loyola made the track from Michigan and had the presence of Myron Gardner alone. The six-foot six athletic beast demonstrated too many of us on-lookers why he’s such a coveted recruit. Gardner was able to slice & dice his way around defenders, throwing-down monstrous slams. “The kid has some mitts on him”, we see why the Ramblers are giddy about the prospect of landing him! Marian Catholic showed-up with intriguing cast of talented players; 6-5 Senior Chris White looked good, the lanky versatile cager displayed some athleticism and defensive ability, while coming off a stellar showing at the Rice University Elite Camp. 2020 prospect Ahron Ullis (22) sizzled, fellow 2020 prospect Elijah Jones gave us a glimpse at what his potential could be. Evanston, Whitney Young, Simeon, Bloom, Farragut, Lincoln Park, Curie, and DePaul Prep all rolled-in for the late after-noon session, so automatically you know a climate change was inevitable.

South-Suburban Bloom has a talent core of under-classmen, starting with a promising trio of back-court players: Keshawn Williams, Dante Maddox Jr., and Donovan Newby. Williams is an electric talent & has chance to be special player at the next level while Maddox and Newby possess Division One Mid-major potential. Junior forward Martice Mitchell is starting to develop into pivotal presence on the floor at 6-9. The sleeper on the squad happens to be Kevin Vance, a six-foot six explosive Senior with a huge up-side. Mid-majors will zoom in on this Senior swiftly and he’s a good student. Next season Bloom could be a poised & ready for the prime-time.

If Evanston lands a big man, look out. Their team has a steady guard corps of Lance Jones (thus far he’s been plagued by up & down outings), Jaheim Holden, Jaylin Gibson, and Isaiah Holden. Blake Peters continues to impress each time we view him; he and Gibson has opportunity to capture something really special before they’re high-school career ends. St. Viator performed well as usual, the Hernandez/Calvin & Kochera Co. seem to have that twinkle in their eye & as well as the certain strategic blend. Farragut’s back-court tandem of Senior Aaron Strong & Junior Reggie Strong went about productive business as usual. Simeon has taken a different shape this month auditioning a banner class of incoming Freshman as well as a returning crew of highly regarded under-classmen. 2020 prospects Bryce Hall, and sincere Callwood has been impressive all Spring, both we are now recognizing to be vastly over-looked. Second year talented guard Ahamed Bynum (4) is going to be one of the area’s elite, while 2022 Dandie’s A.J. Casey & Jaylen Drane continue to sparkle, the rapidly improving 6-7 Senior forward Jeremiah Stamps and fellow 2019 mate, sharp-shooter Antonio Reeves round-up a solid core. Stellar play-maker Kejuan Clements wasn’t even on-hand. Curie’s Dejune Gordon did not disappoint anyone either at this event. The six-foot four wing might be the best player in the Public League. Loyola had a well-orchestrated event… Kudos!

UIC’s event on campus the previous week-end was solid also. DE LaSalle brandished a cast of under-classmen we will follow through-out the Summer. Steve McClain and his staff always do a fine job with their team camp. It was also good to catch-up with Assistant Coaches Tony Harvey & Dee Brown. T. Harvey was always a favorite and one of the more colorful coaches in the industry. We are happy he’s here in the Windy City. Stay tuned for more results…

ROUTED

We are elated to report that former Peoria Central sharp shooter and Indiana standout A.J. Guyton was hired as an Assistant Coach at Loyola-Maryland. He will join forces with first year Head Coach Tavaras Hardy, who hails from Joliet and played collegiately at Northwestern. A.J. spent last season at Northwestern familiarizing himself with the day-to-day operational ritual of College hoops. He’s going to thrive well on the East-Coast while beating the recruiting trail in the highly competitive Patriot League.

Valparaiso Head Coach Matt Lottich just recently hired longtime pal Todd Townsend who took a break from coaching last season, while his previous stint was at UW Milwaukee. In addition to Townsend coming over, Rob Holloway will join Lottich’s staff as well. Holloway has spent the last two seasons at Eastern Illinois where he was often viewed as a rising Assistant. This tandem should form a potent presence around here in the heartland.

We’re starting to see some resemblance to change perhaps a re-birth of a new era in potency; witnessing a significant upgrade in our talent level around these parts. A surging 2020 Class has us hopeful, followed by our promising 2021 cast, and based on what we’ve already viewed in the 2022 Class head-lined by 6-4 phenom Amari Bailey (we are currently wishful he doesn’t break for some out-of-town prep situation), add to the mix 6-2 sharp shooter Kameron Kraft, six-foot seven A.J. Casey, heady play-maker Jaylen Drane, 6-3 athlete Xavier Amos, and steady general Jalen Brown, this gives us something special to follow, considering this particular 2022 group has our area in position to bolster three consecutive classes where we likely could have an abundance of high major recruits. “Now, the young talent need to be turned-over and developed.”

IDENTIFYING THE TOP 6 PROSPECTS AT EACH POSITION IN THE 2019 CLASS

POINT-GUARDS
Markese Jacobs Uplift 4
Raymond Dennis Oswego 11
Marquise Kennedy Bro-Rice 12
Tray Calvin St. Viator 13
Kejuan Clements Simeon 14
Terrion Murdix S.E. 26
Jeremiah Washington Bogan 24

SHOOTING GUARDS

Lance Jones Evanston 7

Deonte Billups Moline 8

Jerry Hernandez St. Viator 17

Antonio Reeves Simeon 15

Joseph Yesufu Bolingbrook 30

Tyler Cochran Bolingbrook 31

WING FORWARDS

Terrence Hargrove E.St.L. 5

 Dejuan Gordon Curie 6

Tom Welch Naper Nor. 9

Perry Cowen DePaul 10

Taujauae Williams Orr 19

 Jeremiah Oden St. Rita 25

INTERIOR FORWARDS

E.J. Liddle Bellev. W. 1

Chris Payton Bloomington 3

Anthony Roberts Oak Park 18

Rashawn Agee Bogan 23

Dachaun Anderson Leo 34

Keeshawn Chambers Thornton 35

CENTERS

Francis Okoro Normal W. 2

Ciaran Brayboy New Trier 25

Taeyon Neal Prov. St. Mel 29

Alex Timmerman Crystal Lake Central 37

Cameron Bartman St. Rita 89 – “his game is improving and so will his ranking soon”

London Denman T.F. South 86

NOTE: Prosser’s promising 6-10 big-man Treyon Johnson is a 2018 prospect, not 2019 as we’ve listed in recent postings. 

A VIEW UP-TOP

At the 16th Annual Riverside Brookfield summer shoot-out over the weekend, where 40 teams strapped-em-up for the opening June High-School session; St. Viator outlasted everyone in the field walloping Whitney Young in the final behind the trio of Jerry Hernandez, Trey Calvin, and impressive 2020 prospect Connor Kochera.

After 18 seasons as Head-Coach at Marist, Gene Nolan will leave the South-Side School for greener pastures. Naperville North will be his next destination. We can’t blame him either; Nolan is considered one of the area’s Top Coaches.

Former Public League guard Emmanuel Dildy is on the move again, he just replaced Armon Gates at Northwestern a few weeks ago. Dildy, has had stops at Eastern Illinois, Loyola-Chicago, Mizzou, and just recently Valpo. Kudos to him!

Morgan Park stand-out and Illinois signee, Ayo Dosunmu made the final cut for the U18 Men’s National Team. The USA team will strut their-stuff June 10-16th at the FIBA Championships St. Catharine’s, Ontario. “Our Chicago area Hoop Circle is pulling for Ayo to shine on the big stage.”

DePaul scored a huge coup recently, while also drawing admirers from their rival peers, when they landed a verbal from 2019 Top 35 nationally ranked forward Romeo Weems out of New Haven, MI. This serves notice the Blue Demons are destined to re-tool their roster & culture in the immediate future. North-Carolina A&T fifth-year post-grad, Femi Olujobi was just added to the 2018-19 squad. At six-foot nine, he will come along with new additions, Flynn Cameron (Australia) 6-3 PG from Hillcrest Christian College, George Maslennikov 6-9 forward out of Holy Spirit-Atlanta, Georgia, and 6-3 shooter John Diener from nearby Cedarburg, WI. “The Blue-Demons could have one more nugget to pull off in the 2018 Class.”

The recently crowned darlings of the city, Loyola added a significant addition to their roster, by signing Long-Island prepster Tykei Greene. The six-foot four scoring guard hails from Queens, NY.

Now the Huskies at Northern Illinois had a busy spring signing a quartet of prospects, starting with former Marian Catholic/Bloom stand-out Austin Richie, who wrapped-up his prep career at Don Bosco last season. He will provide some out-side shooting & future leadership capabilities, more importantly he’s a high-character person and recognizable feature from the area. Also coming aboard is Alize Travis out Los Angeles (Victorville) is a speedy 6-1 point-guard, then six-foot eight forward Justin Lee from Atlanta who used to suit-up for the Georgia Stars, will be part of the mix. The Huskies last signee resides from the Bronx, NY. By-the-way of Laramie Community College, Daire Mateen, an exciting six-foot one combo guard. “It’s going to be a new vibe around Dekalb, the campus life there could be a hip scene.”