City of Basketball Love

CoBL Staff (@hooplove215)
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Eighty high school junior and seniors took the courts at the University of the Sciences on Saturday for the first CoBL College Exposure Camp of the year.

Here are the players who most impressed the CoBL staff with their performances:

DeAireus Brown (2017/York Country Day)

Despite coming from a small single-A school about two hours from the city of Philadelphia, Brown made his name known quickly at Saturday’s camp, providing arguably the dunk of the afternoon during the second set of games. His ability to score off the dribble and his pure athleticism to create highlight-caliber finishes around the rim with a 6-foot-1 frame, combined with a consistent jump shot, should have many schools at least at the Division II level calling his name and could even get a level higher with a big summer. If he can help his team to another undefeated regular season, district title, and state tournament appearance like he did last year, that should change thanks to his impressively versatile skillset.

Myles Bunyon (2017/Valley Forge)

Bunyon had it working from the get-go, standing out in drills with his knockdown shooting ability and ball-handling skills, and kept it going throughout the games. One of the smaller guards at the camp, Bunyon (5-9, 140) was making plays every time he was on the court, whether it was forcing turnovers, knocking down shots or finding open teammates. His best scoring output came in his third game, when he knocked down four 3-points en route to 18 points. His size might keep him in the Division III range, but certainly plenty of programs will be inquiring about Bunyon after this weekend.

Khaleeq Campbell (2016/Chester)

Campbell displayed his shooting ability time and time again throughout the day, sinking threes from all over the court. At just 5-8, Campbell makes up for his lacking height with excellent court vision and quickness on the ball. The Chester guard showed just how dangerous he can be when he’s shooting well, scoring 18 points in the second half of one of game, and sinking four threes in another. After a torn ACL in December of his junior year, Campbell has worked hard to recover and prove to college coaches that he can be a valuable asset to their teams.

Tymir Cooper (2017/Parkway CC)

Though he may get overlooked at times because of his diminutive size, Cooper impressed during much of the afternoon, flashing his athleticism and ball handling ability. He looked exceptionally comfortable with the ball in his hands, while playing on a team with multiple similar point guards. He looked like a classic slashing Philly guard, breaking down defenses off the bounce while rarely turning the ball over. He was able to finish at the rim time and again after beating his man or delivering crisp passes to open teammates if the defense collapsed on him. He also showed a bit of range on his shot, connecting on a few three-pointers off the dribble. Defensively, he was active and communicative while guarding opposing players that were sometimes bigger than him.

Addison Howard (2017/Pennsbury)

It was hard for guards to match the pace of 5-8 Howard for the duration of camp drills. Howard’s quickness up and down the floor made him a nightmare in transition for defenders, also leading to many open shots and uncontested layups in the paint during 5-on-5 drills. His defensive prowess was a key to his game as well, closing out quickly on pick and rolls and keeping opponents off balance. His relentless pursuit of loose rebounds allowed for multiple second-chance attempts. Howard was hot shooting the ball at camp coming off of a 26-point eruption on Thursday, as Pennsbury defeated Harry S. Truman in a JTBL game, and that continued all throughout Saturday.

Alex Karras (2017/Central Bucks South)

Karras displayed all of the attributes that coaches should look for in a point guard.  He has impeccable vision and makes all of the right plays at the right times. Karras, at 5-10, works best as a facilitator, but defenders should not underestimate his mid-range jump shot nor his ability to finish in the lane with the left hand. Despite his team falling behind during some of Saturday’s games, Karras demonstrated that he is the type of player that will compete on both ends of the floor until the final whistle.

Elijah Kiah-El (2017/George Washington)

If we handed out a “motor” award it would go to this Public League big man, whose effort over the course of the day could only be described as “relentless.” A 6-7, 210-pound forward, Kiah-El was one of the most physical players at the camp, and very few players found a way to keep him from getting his hands on every rebound that came near him; many of his buckets were of the second and third-effort variety. Kiah-El was also a defensive presence, causing issues for attacking guards all camp long, and he showed he can put the ball on the floor and make good decisions on the offensive end when passing.

Joseph O’Brien (2017/Abington)

O’Brien had the type of body that was unmatched by most others at Saturday’s camp. The big man, listed at 6-8 and 245 pounds, was a force all day in the paint and proved to be a tireless worker on the offensive glass. During group drills, O’Brien consistently turned heads by finishing with thunderous dunks off a single spin or dribble. He understands his abilities and seems to play within himself. His guards were often able to get easy looks off of his screen-and-roll game.

Antonio Rizzuto (2018/Northeastern)

One of just a few rising juniors in attendance at USciences ended up being one of the camp’s shining stars. With a game mature beyond his years, Rizzuto never seemed to be sped up by the up-and-down nature of many of the day’s 5-on-5 games, imposing his will on the tempo of the game. Rizzuto is a very capable jump shooter, both off the bounce and spotting up, and knocked down three three-pointers in one of his team’s games. He also showed off impressive athleticism on an attempted putback and a designed alley-oop play that his coach drew up for him.

Trey Smith (2017/Wildwood Catholic)

One player who caught the eye of many of the coaches in attendance was the South Jersey native, who displayed his excellent all-around game during the games. Smith is both a talented long range shooter and finisher around the rim, scoring 19 points in two different games. The 6-1 combo guard is a smooth ball handler, who showed the ability to play both point guard and shooting guard, facilitating for many of his teammates on top of his scoring talents. If Smith wasn’t on the radars of coaches before, he most certainly is now after an excellent performance.

Daniel Weiss (2017/Marlboro)

One of the most-talked-about players was this 6-6 stretch forward. From his lanky frame to his great feel for the game, Weiss does a little bit of everything on the court; he runs the floor exceptionally well and demonstrated a consistent outside jumper. Weiss also did a fantastic job of getting his teammates involved, finding the open man for high percentage shots. Weiss also had no trouble creating his own shots, using a beautiful hesitation move and good pump fake to create space for himself. Certainly would be surprising if Weiss did not get any looks from any D-II schools in the near future if he keeps up his stellar play, but the elite-level student could end up at one of the elite Division III schools instead.

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Honorable Mention

Malik Archer (2017/Math Civics & Sciences), Ge’ani Bannerman (2016/Teaneck), Josh Brownstein (2017/Germantown Academy), Qadir Burgess (2017/Lankenau), Conor Bresnahan (2017/Cinnaminson), Danny Browne (2017/Bishop Shanahan), Mike Drumgo-Sharpe (2017/Newark), Chucky Drummond (2017/Spring-Ford), Timmy Edwards (2017/Trinity), Colin Flach (2017/Roman Catholic), Da’Quan Granberry (2018/Chichester), Christian Lane (2016/Bonner-Prendergast), Jared Latane (2018/Haddon Heights), Eric Marshall Jr. (2017/Newark), Tyriq Meredith (2016/Simon Gratz), Keith Otto (2017/Archbishop Wood), Nasair Powell (2017/Boys’ Latin), Liutauras Repsys (2016/Cardinal O’Hara), Kyle Sullivan (2017/Springfield), Auris Tverijonas (2016/St. Joseph’s-Hammonton), Khari Williams (2017/Archbishop Carroll)