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Team Final Scrimmage: Recruiting Notebook

04/16/2017, 12:00am EDT
By Josh Verlin & Tyler Sandora

CoBL Staff (@hooplove215)
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WEST BERLIN, N.J. -- The sixth annual Team Final scrimmages brought together five talented Nike Elite Youth Basketball League (EYBL) programs -- and a few others -- for a day of hoops at Peak Skills Basketball, as high school ballplayers around the country prepare for next weekend’s first live recruiting period of the offseason.

Here’s a recruiting notebook from the day:


Cameron Reddish (above) has a specific goal on his mind as the live recruiting periods approach. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Cameron Reddish (2018/Team Final)

The top Philly-area prospect in his class by a long shot, Reddish enters this offseason already with his pick of schools -- Duke, Kentucky, Villanova, Arizona, Kansas and Syracuse are among his multitude of offers.

So unlike many of his classmates, who are entering their final AAU season desperate to either rake in their first offers or just increase their stock, Reddish has a different goal in mind.

“I’m here to prove that I’m the best player in the country,” the 6-foot-8 wing said. “It’s as simple as that.”

It’s not a crazy goal. Reddish enters the summer ranked No. 4 in the country according to ESPN, 247Sports and Scout.com, No. 5 according to Rivals. He’s in a small group of five-star prospects and likely one-and-dones.

It won’t be easy for him to catch up with the No. 1 prospect -- do-everything Sierra Canyon (Cali.) 6-11 forward Marvin Bagley III, who’s had that spot on lockdown for about three years -- but anything’s possible.

There’s one way for Reddish to earn it: flat-out domination, starting next weekend.

“I’ve got to do everything,” Reddish said. “Become a lockdown defender, got to rebound more, everything else will fall in line.”

Reddish said a college decision could “possibly” come this fall, but for now, he’s enjoying the recruiting ride. Last month, he and his family received in-home visits from Kentucky’s John Calipari, Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski and Villanova’s Jay Wright (plus assistants for each) over the last month.

Having three of the nation’s best college coaches pitch the idea of being a one-and-done at their respective programs is something every young athlete in the country dreams of. Reddish gets to live it.

“It’s great, it’s fun, it’s a blessing,” he said. “Not many words that can describe how I can feel.”

The 2017 offseason will be Reddish’s second on the EYBL circuit, but it still brings something relatively new for the Westtown School junior -- playing with his own age group.

Ever since seventh grade, the blue-chip prospect has been playing up on the summer circuit, with players at least one year if not two years older than himself. Now he’s got to reacquaint himself with those his age with the EYBL’s start just one week away.

“I’m just trying to get back into the swing of things,” he said. “Just have to learn my teammates again, know what everybody can do.”

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State College native Drew Friberg (above) was making his debut with the Jersey Shore Warriors. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Drew Friberg (2018/Jersey Shore Warriors)

When you grow up in State College, Pa., there’s one college that tends to be something of a hometown favorite.

So Friberg isn’t denying that the Penn State offer he carries around doesn’t feel slightly heavier than it otherwise might if he lived pretty much anywhere else.

“Yeah, I’d say so…Penn State’s five minutes from my high school, the hometown team,” he admitted, but that doesn’t mean he’s automatically going to be a Nittany Lion.

Bucknell and Manhattan have also offered the 6-foot-6, 200-pound wing, who’s hearing from a list of schools that includes Princeton, St. Joe’s, Dartmouth, Rhode Island, Yale and more.

“I want to see how the summer plays out and I’ll make a decision in the fall,” he said.

His ultimate deciding factors in a school: “Definitely the playing style of the team, academics as well, just a family environment.”

Saturday was Friberg’s first appearance with the Jersey Shore Warriors, after spending the previous few years with Team Takeover (Md.). His shot wasn’t falling, but it was easy to see how the 6-6, 200-pound wing’s game fits in with a program known for unselfish attitude and bevy of shooters.

“It’s going well,” he said. “We’ve only practiced a couple of weeks here, so we’re still getting to know each other, but as we keep going, I think we’re going to get better and better."

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R.J. Blakeney (2019/Team Melo)

One of the best two-way players all day was this athletic 6-5 wing guard, who had numerous high-flying blocks in Team Melo’s two games, turning many of those into fast breaks for his teammates the other way.

“I’m a great transition player,” he said, then explained: “I’m a good helpside defender, so I try to use my defense as my offense. So that’s what I talk about transition -- defense, get some steals get out in transition, try to get some buckets.”

Blakeney was able to score it as well, though he didn’t attempt any shots from long range; his most impressive offensive maneuver was a turnaround baseline jumper that arced up and dropped smoothly through the net.

That’s the next step in the development of the St. Maria Goretti (Md.) sophomore, who’s already certainly solidly on the Division I radar.

“I try to get over 500 shots (up), not every day but I’m trying to work on that,” he said. “Trying to make it more consistent.”

So far, Blakeney has offers from St. Bonaventure and Towson, with interest from Delaware. If his offensive game continues to develop into a true perimeter player, his stock will rise well above that with his athleticism and motor.

There’s one school that he’s hoping to hear from: Maryland, where his mother (former Walbrook High star Dwuana “Dafne” Lee) played in the late 1980s and early 1990s, making four NCAA tournament trips in her time there.

“If it’s not a good fit, that’s the only reason I wouldn’t go,” he said.

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Khalif Battle (above) missed his sophomore season of high school with a back injury. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Khalif Battle (2019/Team Final)

The April live recruiting periods will be a fresh start for Battle, as the Trenton Catholic guard took the court with Team Final for the time after moving over from Sports U (N.J.).

It’s an especially welcome time, considering the younger brother of Syracuse’s Tyus Battle missed his entire sophomore season with back pains due to a growth spurt; he’s now up to 6-4 and 170 pounds, and ready to roll.

“By the time [I was healthy] it was like playoff time, it was too late,” he said. “I wish I could have helped my team this year but I’ll be back next year.”

His brother’s pedigree helped him pull in early offers from Rutgers and Iona, but ultimately it’s something of a new start for Battle’s recruitment as well.

The younger Battle looked ready to get back out in front of college coaches, dropping 19 points in a loss to Team Takeover in a 16U matchup; he hit four 3-pointers along the way, including several from near NBA range.

“I want to get better in all aspects but try to knock my shots down, get to the basket, be aggressive on defense and offense at all times,” he said.

Battle's certainly benefitted from having an older brother who was a five-star prospect in his own right, as the Syracuse sophomore and his younger brother used to duke it out in one-on-one battle after another.

“It was definitely a challenge, he beat up on me a lot, he made me better and tougher mentally," Khalif Battle said, but those on-court beatings came with valuable lessons as well: “[He taught me to] work hard, don’t ever take time off on the court, be a good student and have good character and everything else will take care of itself.”

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Zion Harmon (2021/Boo Williams)

For Zion Harmon, age isn’t a limitation.

The 5-10 guard from Bowling Green, Ky. starred on the 17U EYBL last summer for We All Can Go as a seventh grader, averaging 17 points per game in the most competitive AAU league in the country.

“I look at basketball as no matter who you’re going against, you have still got to score more points than the other team,” he said. “The age doesn’t mean anything.”

As an eighth grader this past high school season, Harmon led Bowling Green High School to a state championship. He is still unsure whether he will stay in the district or go elsewhere for his next four years.

“We had a lot of seniors and I know that they really wanted the title, and I wanted to win it as an eighth grader,” he said.

Even though he can’t obtain his driver’s permit for another year, Harmon already has six college offers, from the likes of Missouri, Jacksonville State, and New Mexico. He also claims interest from Kentucky, Kansas, and Tennessee.

Harmon showed off his passing and his ability to run the offense Saturday afternoon, finding teammates down low or on the wing for open jump shots.

“I can see the floor, I’m crafty off the dribble, and I can shoot and find my teammates,” he said.

This summer, Harmon will suit up for Boo Williams 17U, hoping to bring home a Peach Jam title. Joining him on Boo Williams is Keldon Johnson (2018/Huntington Prep), a 6-6 guard ranked No. 18 in the junior class by ESPN.

Quite an impressive résumé for a 15-year-old.

~~~


Brendan Adams (above) has gone from a mid-major target to reeling in high-major offers. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Quick Hits

-- The younger brother of St. Bonaventure star Jaylen Adams, Brendan Adams (2018/Calvert Hall, Md./Team Melo) is seeing his own recruiting stock rise from mid-major to high-major territory. A 6-4, 190-pound guard, Adams already had offers from the likes of Columbia, Siena, Towson, St. Bonaventure, Saint Joseph’s and more, but has seen Minnesota and Stanford jump on in February; Florida, Cincinnati, Miami (Fl.) and VCU have also been in touch. On Saturday, he showed off a nice scoring touch from all three levels. “It feels good, hard work’s paying off,” he said. “All the work over the years is coming together and [I’m] finally getting some recognition on a high-major level.”

-- Fresh off his first offer, from Lafayette just last month, Ryan Young (2018/Bethlehem Catholic, Pa./Jersey Shore Warriors) had an impressive showing in two games today. The 6-foot-9 post understands his role, crashing the glass relentlessly on both ends and facilitating the offense a bit from the low and mid post. Young has been to Lafayette and Lehigh on multiple occasions, and also visited American recently. A late-bloomer out in the middle part of the state, Young has also begun hearing from mid-majors Davidson, Drexel, and William & Mary, and could see his recruitment hit that level in the coming weeks.

-- A Philly native currently residing in Baltimore, Laquill Hardnett (2018/Perry Hall, Md./Team Melo) used his strong 6-9 frame to score in the paint, whether it was grabbing rebounds or attacking from the wing. Hardnett currently holds offers from Towson and East Carolina, among other small programs. Fresh off a state championship, Hardnett hopes to improve all the holes in his game and make a splash in his EYBL debut.

-- Xavier Mayo (2019/Hill School, Pa./Albany City Rocks) showed a much improved low post game on Saturday afternoon, scoring with both hands around the basket. The Beacon, NY native reclassified to the 2019 class and moved down to Pottstown previous to this past high school season. Mayo has worked on his IQ, ball handling and touch around the rim since the end of his sophomore season. He holds one offer from Binghamton, and hopes to pick up a few more this summer when he suits up for the Albany City Rocks 17U.

-- Virginia, Villanova, Maryland, Syracuse, and Arizona are all schools after Jalen Smith (2018/Mt. Saint Joseph, Md./Team Takeover). The 6-10 bouncy Baltimore native has been to two Villanova games this year and was on campus for a team camp. Expect to see Smith as an inside-out guy this summer on Team Takeover, dumping to a big man down low or even expanding his range out to the three-point line. Smith hopes to improve on his conditioning and strength before his final high school season.

-- Louis King (2018/Hudson Catholic, N.J./Team Final) made the transition from Sports U (Under Armour) over to Team Final (Nike) this summer, and he’s very excited to start playing with a talented backcourt for his final season of AAU. A 6-8 guard, King had a successful year with Hudson Catholic, making it all the way to the state tournament. Louisville, Oregon, Kansas, and Syracuse are all schools after the versatile wing scorer.

-- August Mahoney (2019/Albany Academy, N.Y./City Rocks) only holds one Division I offer entering April -- from Albany -- but if he plays like he did on Saturday a week from now, that won’t last long. The 6-3, 165-pound shooting guard was terrific in both of the City Rocks 16U’s wins, knocking down long-range shots but also proving he can get into the lane off the bounce and kick out to his numerous talented teammates. “[I’m working on] mainly my strength and ball-handling and quickness,” he said. “I’ve always been able to shoot the ball, but everybody knows that.” Davidson, Columbia, James Madison and Vermont are also in touch with Mahoney, the leading scorer on an Albany Academy squad that defended its Class A state championship this year.


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