High School Basketball Prospects

Jack Lambert

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Good finds, guys!! This is also one of my favorite threads, as you can see. This is one sport where things actually seem to be looking up (at least for top prospects) in the next few years from where we currently are. Great finds on Baker and McCorkle! You know they're good when they're getting high major offers this early. Keep posting guys! It's nice to see others looking for future prospects as well.

I've got one. He's a consensus Top 5 player for 2019, and that is 7'1 Serbian center Balso Koprivica. He's grown into his body really well, and has some great coordination already for a 7'1 16 year old. The game looks effortless to him at times. His highlight video is a must-watch. Koprivica can do everything, offense, defense, handle the ball at times, and he's got good vision. He'll be a force to get past in the paint for whomever picks him up!

http://247sports.com/Player/Balsa-Koprivica-87378

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Balsa Koprivica

 

Jack Lambert

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It's been a little while since I've posted, but I've managed to find a few more guys to look out for.

The first guy is literally a giant. At 7'3, Connor Vannover is a Class of 2018 product that has already gotten offers from schools such as Arkansas and Ole Miss, with interest from Kansas. I still think he's growing into his body a bit from his highlight tape, but he's got a ton of potential to be a great player. He can even step out from beyond the arc and bury threes. Once he gets his feet under him, he's got the potential to be a great player.

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Connor Vanover

http://247sports.com/Player/Connor-Vanover-85013


Another 2018 prospect is Tim Finke. The 6'6 shooting guard out of Illinois already has a great offensive game and is a great athlete. He's a player who's able to score from every level, and has some good vision as well. Schools like Illinois, Notre Dame, Butler, Northwestern, etc. are recruiting him. I think if he steps into the right situation, he'll make an impact right away.

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Tim Finke

http://247sports.com/Player/Tim-Finke-77093



The last guy for now is a 6'7 scoring wing from North Carolina. His name is Hunter Tyson, and he's a member of the Class of 2018. The teams recruiting him the hardest include Clemson and Tennessee, so you know he's gotta be good. He's got some hops as well as a knack for scoring.

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Hunter Tyson

 

The Hock

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5 star prospect that has already committed to UCLA. I wish I was making this up.

Well from this look I see no handle and a shot that looks like your average half court desperation heave. The good news is he does show quickness going after loose balls. The bad news is they're loose balls from his own near turnovers.

He looks comically bad but the vid does say this a lowlight reel of sorts.

I looked him up and the article says he verbally committed to UCLA when he was thirteen.
 
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Shadowlight

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You want the white prospects especially the athletic ones going to the bigger schools so with that I introduce Matthew Mayer a high flying 6-7 SF 2018 player out of Texas who has committed to play at Baylor!!!!
 

Jack Lambert

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Don't really know if I like Mayer going to Baylor though. Baylor is about as caste a school as you can get, and one of the most despicable athletic programs in the country. At least he'll be playing with Yale's Makai Mason for a year, though, as well as Jake Lindsey.
 

Shadowlight

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Perhaps after all their troubles Baylor is "changing their ways." I have seen signs in their football program too. And it is awfully odd that Makai Mason is going to transfer from Yale after this upcoming season. I have never heard of a player who plans to transfer to continue one more year at their current school. He is a possible NBA prospect and it was a shame he broke his foot before last season but if he does explode in 2017-2018 he may declare and won't ever suit up for Baylor. He is scheduled to land at Baylor for the 2018-2019 season as a grad student. I would like to see him and Mayer team up at Baylor though since both guys are special athletes. And then see him get drafted!
 
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Jack Lambert

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It's great to see Carmody making a good choice! I'm glad he went to ND - kind makes up a bit for Mayer choosing quite possibly my least favorite school in the country, and that's saying something.

Also, Butler coach Chris Holtman left to take Maata's job at Ohio State, and he took forward Kyle Young with him. With this, 2018 commits Justin Ahrens and Dane Goodwin both decommitted and are looking at other schools, with Goodwin looking at Villanova and Notre Dame.
 

Jack Lambert

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Great news: Dane Goodwin commits to Notre Dame! Him and Carmody will be awesome to watch together in the Irish backcourt. Besides Iowa and Wisconsin, the Irish are one of the few teams that have consistently recruited white players at a high level.

In other commitment news, Cormac Ryan (who I've mentioned in this thread) committed to Stanford.

It's been a while, so here are a couple of guys to keep an eye on in the future. This next guy also recently committed to Stanford. That would be 6'10 center Keenan Fitzmorris, out of Kansas. He's a bit skinny, but when he puts on some size and strength, he'll be a good one, as he already looks decently athletic. These guys should help make Stanford a team to root for the next few years.

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Keenan Fitzmorris




The next guy is 6'4 combo guard CJ Fredrick, from Kentucky. The 2018 product looks like he's got a great offensive skillset. He's got a variety of offers, from Xavier, Indiana, Nebraska, and more.

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CJ Fredrick

 

Jack Lambert

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I've got a little free time right now, so here's a few more guys who are going to be good at the college level.

The first one is forward Duncan DeMuth, a 6'8 2018 product out of Florida. I think he lacks some explosiveness, but he sure makes up for it with his skills. He's got great handles for a forward, and often brings the ball up the court in his highlight tape. He's got a nice jump shot, good footwork, can defend, and is crafty around the rim. Because he doesn't leap out of the gym, I'm sure DWFs won't like him too much. However, college coaches sure seem to. DeMuth has offers from Florida State and Iowa State, among others. Hopefully a more white-friendly team will offer him, so he's not wasted on the bench.

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Duncan DeMuth


The next guy is somebody who I've come across fairly recently, and that's 6'5 2019 guard Quinn Richey, who hails from Georgia. He's got a nice shot, and can shoot threes, a lot of them. It's a pretty short video, but Richey also flashes some nice passing skills. He's doing something right, considering he got offered from Mississippi State, a school where white players usually aren't allowed to play basketball. His offered list should only continue to get better.

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Quinn Richey


Forward Colin Castleton, a 6'9 member of the 2018 class out of Florida, is the next guy I'd like to mention. I think he'll blow up this year. He's already got offers from Georgia, Clemson, etc. He just had a great game in the AAU circuit going against the team of the No. 1 overall 2018 recruit, Zion Williamson. So that means he was seen by all of the big schools. Castleton went for 12 points, 8 boards, and an assist. Hopefully that will help his recruitment out big time. Looking at his highlight tape, the kid is going to be a force; he seems to do everything well.

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Colin Castleton


That's it for this post. I'll hopefully be able to post a few more later tonight.
 

Jack Lambert

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An update on a couple previous guys: Hunter Tyson's top three schools are now Michigan, Butler, and Clemson. Some better choices on that list than what he had. I'm really hoping he goes to one of the first two schools.

Guard Mac McClung (on the previous page, has now been offered by Georgetown(!!). I guess Patrick Ewing is already an upgrade over Thompson, who'd have never made an offer to a white guard.

Spencer Freedman committed to Harvard, a reversal of Tommy Amaker's recent recruiting trends - he also had a 2/3 white class for 2017!

Evan Cole, the forward in the 2017 class, committed to Georgia Tech awhile ago. Hopefully, him and Lammers will be great together next year!

And now, to a new prospect. The first is Taylor Currie, a forward/center who's just committed to Michigan in the 2019 class. At 6'8, he's a rugged forward who loves doing the dirty work under the basket, and can score against bigger defenders. As part of the "new breed" of forwards, he can also step out and shoot threes. He's got good footwork, and will likely thrive in Jon Beilien's system.

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Taylor Currie


 

Jack Lambert

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One more update: AJ Green has been offered by Virginia!! Given his current offers, I'd like to see him there or at Northern Iowa. A majority white mid-major getting a Top 100 recruit is always a good thing - it definitely helps with tournament runs.

Bear with me here: I've been looking out for new guys for awhile, but this is the first time I've been able to research posts for awhile, so there'll be a few of them here!

The first is North Carolina guard Kody Shubert. The 6'0 2018 product looks to be a great floor general at the next level. He's definitely worthy of a Division 1 scholarship, and has offers from mostly mid-majors to this point. Looking at his highlights, Shubert has some great vision to find his teammates anywhere on the floor. He's also a confident shooter. Of course, he's being overlooked for his size. Kentucky had no problem offering 5'9 Tyler Ulis, and other colleges don't mind offering smaller black players. Smaller stature is only an impediment if one is white. Hopefully, Kody will get some more offers coming in.

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Kody Shubert



The next player is Latvian 2017 PG Kristers Zoriks, who'll be playing for St. Mary's next year. Offensively at least, he looks to be a fine replacement for the departed Joe Rahon. He can drive to the lane, shoot the three, as well as find open teammates for high quality looks. I look forward to watching him next year.

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Kristers Zoriks



Another player who can be an impact wing at the next level is forward Brock Cunningham. Out of Texas, the 2018 product is considered an Oklahoma lean at the moment. He's got some hops, as well as a motor and a polished offensive game. He's 6'7 and has a good looking shot, allowing him to score from anywhere on the floor.

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Brock Cunningham


The last guy for tonight is 6'4 2018 two guard Erik Stevenson. The Washington product has recently committed to Wichita State, and fits the Shockers' guard profile of a guy who attacks the basket, but can also create for his teammates and hit threes. Think Ron Baker or Fred Van Vleet. Looking forward to seeing him in a Wichita State uniform!

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Erik Stevenson

 

Jack Lambert

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One more post on prospects I'd like to mention! Then I'll be getting into my college football write-ups later this week.

The first guy is someone who's been mentioned by Shadowlight and myself in a couple of different places on the forum: 2019 phenom Matthew Hurt. The kid is a consensus 5-star player and all has all of the blue bloods (except Kentucky; go figure) knocking on his door. Duke, North Carolina, Louisville, and Kansas headline his offers, with others like Marquette, Iowa, Wisconsin, Virginia, Arizona, and UCLA involved, out of a LOT of schools. Hurt will be able to play anywhere in the country in a couple of years, and it's easy to see why after watching his highlight tapes. The 6'8 small forward is simply a beast, and has done great in high school, AAU ball, as well as the various camps he attends. He's got some length on his frame, effortlessly glides to the rim, is a great athlete, and can also protect the rim. He can score from anywhere. Out of all of the 2019 kids we've got, my vote goes to Hurt as the biggest caste buster among them. He's so good, when ESPN mentions this freshman class, Hurt will be one of the names they'll talk about.

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Matthew Hurt


Hurt is a pretty tough act to follow, but I think this guy definitely can. He is 6'9 power forward Drew Timme. Out of Texas, Timme seems to have a great skill set for the next level: he gets to the basket, is a good athlete, can defend, and has good handles, bringing the ball up the court several times in his highlight video. He can also carve out the tough buckets in the paint. His offers range from Purdue to TCU to Oklahoma State, plus many more. The 2019 class is actually shaping up to be a great one for our guys, possibly the best in awhile.

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Drew Timme


 

Shadowlight

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Here's a great play of guard Mac McClung recently. As you can see, this kid has some hops!! He's got a lot of high majors on him now, like Gonzaga, Marquette, Iowa State, etc. Hell, even self-loathing Mick Cronin is apparently interested!

https://twitter.com/T_Mines5/status/886382743721922561
McClung would be an chart A exhibit if he was rated higher given his athletic explosion and hops. But the fact that he is getting bids from major colleges is a good sign. I have never seen his name anywhere near the top 100 for 2018 but it is worth pointing out that there seems to be a few more white PGs in 2018 than usual. Most if not all of the following have been mentioned here at caste.
One rating system has the 2018 PGs listed as such:
40-Mitch Listau--I understand he is from the Midwest and is a good player but I have no specifics.
38-Jordan McCabe--Much discussed here and recently just managed to make the top 100 of one recruiting service. He is not very big but has a great handle and is a passing wizard. Keep in mind scouting services are reluctant to mention speed and quickness when it comes to white guards but trying to sift through the fog it does appear McCabe has speed. West Virginia had a fancy highly rated white PG drop out of their school ( or was he kicked out?) not too long ago so lets hope the second time around is the charm.
33-Mac Mclung--Obviously a very important player. Hope he goes to a major college. His buzz is growing.
16- Foster Loyer--Michigan State recruit and much like McCabe I had to work but it seems he also is very quick and small like McCabe. Whereas McCabe is the better passer Loyer is the better shooter.
15--AJ Green-- Recent posts above have described his talents which might get him into the NBA some day.
 

Jack Lambert

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Great list, Shadowlight! Another 2018 white PG to watch is Spencer Freedman, who's committed to Harvard. I mentioned him earlier in the thread somewhere. Also, Listau just committed to Belmont. He should be a great player at that level for Rick Byrd. I think PG (along with athletic wings like Sam Dekker) is the most caste position on the basketball court, as PGs are often seen as "team leaders" and are often very quick, smart and shifty. You can't have too many white guys in that role, right? With wings, they are often the most athletic player on the court, and usually are focal points of the offense, able to do everything well. You can't have too many white guys doing that either, can you?

Another white PG in 2018 to watch out for is Alex Rivera, out of Massachusetts. I haven't found any high-major offers for him, but he's got offers from UMASS(!) and St. Louis, not exactly bastions of white players.

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Alex Rivera

Here's a guy whom I mentioned earlier, but forgot to post a highlight video of. That would be Dane Goodwin, who just committed to Notre Dame a couple weeks ago after decommitting from Ohio State. He's got a BRIGHT future ahead of him. I was watching a couple of his videos, and he's one of my favorite 2018 recruits. I could easily see him being the leader for Notre Dame his last two years at the school. Here's a highlight video from him. This is just one game. He's got a few videos like this one. Goodwin has a great skill set, has great vision, and is able to attack the basket as well as shoot threes, something both Steve Vasturia and Matt Farrell have brought to the Irish. He averaged 27 points and 10 rebounds during his junior season while shooting 54% from the field. Pretty impressive stuff. Goodwin looks like he'll be the next in the line of great Irish guards along with Robby Carmody.

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Dane Goodwin

 

Jack Lambert

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Buddy Boeheim, a 6'-5" guard with a sweet stroke. Made huge leap in development over the last year.

http://www.espn.com/mens-college-ba...oeheim-ready-welcome-son-buddy-boeheim-orange

Good find, Freethinker!! As you can see from the article, he's the son of Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim, and it's likely he'll be at Syracuse next year. I've read a couple of articles about him that have stated he's "good enough" to warrant a Syracuse offer. Given that Syracuse only offers 1-2 white guys every few years, that's a pretty good compliment, even if it is back-handed towards white athletes. Gonzaga's already offered him as well, and I wished he'd go there, but he's going to be a member of the Orange.
 

Jack Lambert

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It's been a little bit since I've posted on new prospects, so here are a couple more.

The first guy is a giant, head and shoulders above everybody else. Standing at 7'5, 2019 center Matt Van Komen is one of the tallest players in the country! Out of Utah, he's already garnering a lot of high major interest. Obviously, being 7'5, he's got to get used to and grow into his body, as well as adding strength, but watching his most recent highlight tape, it looks like he's already fairly comfortable, and is pretty coordinated for a guy that size. He's good around the basket, has nice touch on his shots, and obviously is a good shot blocker at that height. The other thing that struck me is he is actually able to move a little bit for being a big guy. He's got offers from Baylor and Gonzaga thus far, with Utah likely offering sometime soon. I suspect he'll be very highly sought after if he doesn't commit early.

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Matt Van Komen



The next guy is a 6'7 wing from Texas, Miller Kopp. The 2018 is simply put, an offensive weapon that can get looks from all over the floor. From what I've heard, he scores in bunches, and has a great jump shot and mid-range game. He's also a good athlete as well. Kopp's primary choices will be: Texas A&M, Butler, Vanderbilt, and Northwestern. I hope he goes to one of the latter three schools, as Texas A&M will never be a friend of white athletes.

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Miller Kopp

http://www.courtsidefilms.com/news_article/show/816312?referrer_id=

The last guy for now is forward Justin Ahrens. The 6'6 Ohio Class of 2018 member has reopened his recruitment from Ohio State after Chris Holtmann was named head coach there. He's the younger brother of Michigan State foward Kyle Ahrens. Since his recruitment reopened, he's gotten offers from the likes of Ohio State (again), Xavier, Purdue, Vanderbilt, Iowa State, and Texas A&M, among others. I think he's got more game than his older brother, and I hope he makes a better college choice where he's not on the bench playing 5 minutes per game the first three years of his college career. He's definitely got a nice offensive arsenal, from his highlight video.

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Justin Ahrens


 

Jack Lambert

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There's a LOT of talent out there the next few years. I just looked, and according to Scout, 7(!) of the Top 40 for 2019 are white guys. Now that may not sound like much, but consider this: The last 5-10 years have barely seen ANY white guys in the Top 20. For instance, 2017 had 1, 2018 has 2, and 2016 had 0. To have 7 in the Top 40 is almost unbelievable, like from Freethinkers old post mentioning how the 2012 class had 20 white guys in ESPN's Top 100. Despite a lot of way-too-black teams yet, I think basketball is staying relatively level, unlike college football, which continues to eliminate white players, as we've seen from the previews so far.

A few updates on offers:

Chris Herren Jr. has received an offer from Boston College! I really hope to see him explode and make a name for himself.

Forward Brock Cunningham has been offered by Stanford, Texas, and Gonzaga. I hope he goes to Stanford, Gonzaga, or Oklahoma, but it sounds like he was really wanting a Texas offer. That's bad news, considering Shaka's complete non-history of playing white players. He's only ever played Conner Lammert, and will have one in Dylan Osetkowski this year.

Speaking of offers, this next kid has gotten a TON of offers, and even caste pundits concede he's quite possibly the hottest player in the country right now. That would be New England forward Nate Laszewski. The 6'9 2018 forward has been lighting up the AAU circuit this summer. In the past five days, he's got offers from Notre Dame, Arizona, Wisconsin, and Indiana among others. That's in addition to the many offers he already has. Whenever I've seen his AAU stats, he's always seems to be first or second on the team in scoring. Unfortunately, this is the only highlight video of him I could find through a google search. I'm sure one will become available soon that's more in depth. You can't see much, but it's something. I think he'll be a great college player from everything I've heard about him. I sincerely hope he goes to Notre Dame or Wisconsin, two schools where you know he'll be used to his full potential.


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Nate Laszewski


Another guy who'll be playing in a high-major conference will be Hunter Erickson, out of Utah. The 2018 guard loves to attack the basket, and has some nice bounce to his game. His biggest offer is from Utah at the moment. Check out his dunk starting at 1:27 in the video!

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Hunter Erickson


Australia has long been a great source of basketball talent, and forward Sam Froling looks to be the next in line. He's 6'9 and in the 2018 class, and is one of the most sought after international recruits in this cycle. He looks to be a force in the paint, as well as able to shoot from range. I personally think he has some potential. Arizona, Wichita State, St. Mary's, and Indiana are the primary schools recruiting him right now. Any of the first three schools would be good landing spots for Sam. It's great to see Euros and Aussies continuing to filter into the college ranks at higher and higher levels. I feel international recruitment is the reason why college basketball has remained relatively stable in terms of white players.

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Sam Froling


The last guy is another 2018 product who's simply amazing. I feel like I've mentioned him somewhere, but I've been unable to find that post, so I'll include him here. That is Canadian scoring machine, small forward Ignas Brazdeikis. I was blown away by this kids highlight video. He's got it all: scoring at all three levels, he's a big time athlete, he's got good vision and court awareness for finding teammates, and can play defense. I'd put him among this classes top caste busters for sure. He's got a TON of offers from Michigan, Oklahoma, Vanderbilt, Oregon, Baylor, Florida, among others. It looks like Michigan, Vandy, Florida, and Oklahoma are his tentative leaders for right now. Obviously, Michigan would be the best choice for him, with Vandy and Oklahoma after that. Shadowlight will like this kid for sure!

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Ignas Brazdeikis


 

Shadowlight

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Changing gears and maybe I shouldn't list them under this thread. Also we should not misinterpret this and no the dam has not finally burst. And given that the WNBA seems more black than ever perhaps this bit of news will soften the blow. ESPN has not released their girls class of 2020 top 25 yet but Prospects Nation just released their list of top 20 and against all recent trends a whopping 9 out of the 20 players are white. I did not include Sasha Goforth who looks fairly white but my guess is she is mixed. Two of the girls not pictured, Westbeld and Campbell are white. Hell if we could get back to this ratio with the men then we could actually smile again. Below is the list. The top player Haily Van Lith is white and so are 4 out of the top 5. I LIKE IT. That's more like it.
https://prospectsnation.com/players/ranked/2020
 

Shadowlight

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