Future, Can't miss players:

bajaden

Hall of Famer
#1
This is a risky list, and will probably be a short one. At least by comparison to others. There is of course no guarantee when it comes to predicting a can't miss player. But there are players that just leap out at you, and those are the players I'll be covering here. This first one is for Bricky.


Nerlens Noel: Age 17, class of 2013. 6'11.5" in shoes, 215 pounds, 7'3" wingspan. Measurements from the Lebron James Skills Academy. Noel is an incredible shotblocker. Almost uncanny. Physically, in appearance he'll remind you of Bill Russell. He'll also remind you of Russell in results. This kid averaged over 10 blocked shots a game last year. He's a terrific athlete with great mobility and agility.

Its not often you find a kid with such terrific instincts and timing. He almost never leaves his feet until the opposing player has left his, and yet, he's explosive enough to still block just about any shot in the neighborhood. He'll front you and block your shot. He'll block you from behind when you think you have a clear lane. He'll block your jumper when you think your open near the perimiter.

He's such a presence under the basket, that he not only blocks, or changes a shot, he also causes players to double dribble, or walk with the ball. He is, without a doubt, the best defensive player in highschool, and would probably be the best defensive player in college, if he were in college.

Offensively, although he's still a work in progress, he's no slouch. He has a jump hook that he can shoot with either hand. He has a decent mid-range jumper, but it needs to become more consistent. He has very good hands and is excellent at running the floor and finishing at the basket. He's also a very good passer at this stage of his career. His ballhandling is average at best, and certainly needs work. He also needs to add strength and a little more weight. However, he's one of those players that you don't want to over do it and lose his explosiveness.

Barring injury, or an act of god, this kid has star written all over him. The sky's the limit if he stays on his current path. Here's a video of him.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qggE9Xaw6n8&feature=related
 

bajaden

Hall of Famer
#2
My next player, and I'm going out on a limb with him to some extent, is Julius Randle, but as I said, there are no guarantee's.

Julius Randle: Age 16, class of 2013. 6'9" in shoes, 243 pounds, with a 6'10" wingspan. Measurements taken from the Lebron James Skills Academy. The biggest question with Randle right now, is what position does he play. It appears to be his choice. There are some that think the Lefty could play in the NBA right now. While not perfect, there's also not much he can't do. He's almost a freak athlete with great leaping ability and footspeed. In contrast, he's also very strong and can be physcial around the basket. To be honest, at the highschool level, he's a man amongst boys. He's been compared to as a combination of Amare Stoudemire, Blake Griffin, and Caron Butler. A strange mix, I know! Its a little too early to project him that high, but he's certainly is off to a good start.

An area he really needs to work on is his post game. Right now he relies too much on his athletic ability to score in the post. Don't get me wrong, he has some skills in that area, but you can't help but look ahead at the possibilities. He has a very good jumpshot, and handles the ball well. And with his quickness, he could easily play the SF position. As I said, he's a strange combination of speed, quickness, leaping ability, and power, which enables him to play either the PF or SF position. Plus, at age 16, there's the possiblity of his adding an inch or so in height.

Another area that needs improvement is his right hand. He's extremely left handed, and at this level he can get away with it. But he has plenty of time to improve. Two other areas that should be mentioned, are his rebounding, which is good, but with his physical abilitites could be better, and his defense. His defense at his current level has been fine, but in general he's been playing against inferior players that don't really challenge him. Its not his fault, but it doesn't help in building a defensive foundation.

The kid has a great motor, and according to his coaches, a terrific work ethic. He wants to be great, and he says his role model is Kobe Bryant. I really like this kid, and think he's a can't miss player. Perhaps even a future all star. He's a player with unlimited potential. Here's a short video of him. And remember while watching, that he's only a sophmore and is 16 years old.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oEen0kyW8JE&feature=player_embedded#!
 
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#3
Baja, how do you get to watch these guys? Your descriptions are very detailed. Have you been watching these two for some time?

Noel sounds like a future stud big man. Hopefully he'll be on tv alot while he's in college.
 

bajaden

Hall of Famer
#4
Baja, how do you get to watch these guys? Your descriptions are very detailed. Have you been watching these two for some time?

Noel sounds like a future stud big man. Hopefully he'll be on tv alot while he's in college.
With highschool players its difficult. The CBSC channel has on highschool games from time to time, and for the most part they show the games of the best highschool programs in the nation. Luckily, the best players tend to go to those schools. These games aren't on in prime time, so you have to pay attention. ESPNU will also show some of these games, especially when it gets into the national highschool championships. There are also internet links that carry some of the games.

Aside from that, I subscribe to several highschool and college scouting services. So to some extent I rely on their expertise. If you follow some of these scouts for a while, you tend to know which one's know what their talking about and which one's don't. So it takes a fair amount of research. The younger the player, the more room for error.

To answer your first question. Yes, I do follow quite a few of these players from the time they're sophmores in highschool. You'd be amazed at the hype some of them get at that age. Some go on to be good or even great players, and some just flame out before even getting into college. We have to remember that these players aren't machines. They're subject to the same emotions that a garbage truck driver has. At age 15 or 16, its impossible to know what their motivations are? How much they really love the game? If you can have crazy postal workers, you can have crazy basketball players. God doesn't seem to discriminate by job description
 
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bajaden

Hall of Famer
#5
Aaron Gordon: 15 years old, 6'7", 210 pound, SF/PF. I'm going out on a limb with Gordon, but my gut tells me I'm right about him. He'll turn 16 the middle of Sept. He plays center on his highschool basketball team. He's fairly skilled for a soon to be 16 yr old. Somewhat remarkable because the norm for players as young as he is, and as athletic as he is, to just get by on their athleticism. Make no mistake, he scores most of his points on dunks. And boy, can he dunk the ball.

He has the quickness, and height to play SF. But when you watch him play, he reminds you somewhat of a young Blake Griffin. He has a nice frame, and if he grows another couple of inches, he could easily play the PF position. As it is, he plays taller than his 6'7" height. He was easily one of the best players at the Nike Global games. He has a terrific motor, and looks like he plays on coiled springs instead of legs. In the post he has very nice footwork. He obviously needs to learn more, but I was surprised how efficient he was. He also displayed a fairly consistent jumper, and showed range to beyond the arc. He scored easily in traffic, and seemed to relish the contact, with an almost, in your face attitude.

Defensively he's a terror. He blocked shots and appeared to come from just about everywhere. Of course he's not going against NBA players, but at the Nike Global, he was going against the best highschoolers in the nation and Canada. Obviously, he's a long way from the NBA time wise. But if he continues to improve, and as I said, grow a couple of inches, he could be very, very good. In interviews he seems very laid back, which belies his on court attitude. Its fun to watch a game to see one player, and come away amazed at another. Thats what happened with Gordon. As of yet, I don't believe he's commited to a college. I'm sure he'll get plenty of offers.. Here's a video of him...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T63WT3ujiGs&feature=related