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Zero Gravity XL Summit: Coverage Notebook (Pt. 1)

05/16/2021, 10:15pm EDT
By CoBL Staff

CoBL Staff (@hooplove215)
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MANHEIM, Pa. — The new Zero Gravity XL league made its first-ever appearance at Spooky Nook this weekend, with its affiliate group of travel hoops programs joined by an assortment of sneaker-sponsored programs and several other regional programs for a weekend-long tournament. 

CoBL had writers in attendance Saturday and Sunday, watching action in the 15U, 16U and 17U brackets. Here’s Pt. 1 of our weekend notebook, featuring a mix of recruiting and local coverage: 

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(More coverage: Part 2 | Part 3 | Standouts


Holden Symonds (above) paired an impressive game with a much-improved physical stature. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Holden Symonds (2023 | Middlesex Magic | Governor’s Academy, Mass.)

It’s not much of a stretch to say that this is a whole new Symonds.

Prior to his junior year at Governor’s Academy, Symonds was a skinny 6-5, 170-pound wing forward. That’s hard to believe when you look at him now, standing 6-7 with a muscular 225-pound frame. Chalk it up to a stress fracture suffered in his right foot during the winter, which gave him some extra time in the weight room.

“Over quarantine, when I hurt my foot, I started working out,” he said. “(The fracture) cost me some of my high school season but there wasn’t much of one anyway, so it worked out pretty well.”

Symonds’ new stature has markedly changed his approach to the game. He’s now able to bully his way inside, whether in post up situations or facing up from the perimeter, and the ball skills he had as a thinner player still shine through. He said he most notices the difference ““Down low, establishing myself on defense, just getting my shoulder into guys, finishing around the rim, it’s been very helpful.”

One thing he has had to relearn, though, is his outside shot: form and strength change quite a bit when you gain that much muscle.

“I’m trying to get used to it,” he said. “I’ve been getting in the gym every day, getting like 500 shots up trying to get my form back.”

So far, Symonds has two Division I offers, picked up last year, from Siena and Bryant. He said he’s hearing from high-academic types, including “Ivies, Boston College and Stanford,” but like many 2023s who didn’t get any exposure during their sophomore seasons, his recruitment will likely change significantly in June, when college coaches can go recruit in-person for the first time since last March.

Symonds’ shot looked solid Saturday afternoon, as he knocked in a smooth corner 3-pointer as part of a 16 point, eight-rebound, three-assist effort in a win over All In (N.J.). He spent equal time playing inside as he did out, flashing some skills as a playmaking ‘4’ man who can stretch the floor, and of course that above-the-rim athleticism. 

“I’m trying to get better at my shooting and dribbling...trying to transform more to wing forward than just a forward,” he said, “and I’ve been doing a good job of that.” — Josh Verlin

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Kodi Johnson (2024 | WeR1 | Bonner-Prendergast, Pa.)

Playing in the Philadelphia Catholic League is about as daunting a task as there is in Pa. high school basketball. A league that is robust with talent and experience offers so little kindness to new players. Still, the Bonner-Prendergast 2024 class may be one of the best as it stands right now with Johnson, Elijah Duval, Touri “Deuce” Ketner, Kyree Latimer and Jamal Hicks.

Johnson put his talents on display with WeR1’s 15U team, alongside fellow PCL player Hunter Johnson (Cardinal O’Hara). Kodi had eight points and Hunter (no relation) played the role of facilitator in an easy win over the South Jersey Titans 15U. 

This past season, Kodi Johnson was “swinging JV and varsity” but did not appear in a game during the shortened season for the Friars (3-4) due to the pandemic. He’s enjoyed what makes the league so heralded across the state and he feels he’s learning what it takes to be successful at Bonner-Prendergast.

“Coach Kevin [Funston] has shown me a lot,” Kodi said. “I’ve developed a lot as a basketball player on defense and getting into gaps.”

Hunter Johnson avg. 8.9 ppg this season and had 10 points in the season finale against the Friars. While Kodi is a 6-4, 185-pound wing who likes to post opposing players up and utilize his size to score, Hunter is a muscular, skilled guard who can score inside and out. WeR1 boasts two of the better promising 2024 guards in the league and their ability to play off of each other is becoming more evident. 

Kodi “likes the experience” that the league brings and “laying in this league and for this team is a great atmosphere,” as he put it. After players like Duval and Ketner saw action as freshmen, the Friars’ 2024 class should take a major step forward in year two with Kodi joining the fold. 

While he did want to give too much away in terms of what to look forward to from this 2024 class, he did mention one specific area that the Friars may be known for in 2021.

“Lob plays,” Kodi said. “Deuce, Elijah and I are working on our bounce. It’s going to get real scary. It’s exciting, and I can’t wait.” — Rich Flanagan

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(More coverage: Part 2 | Part 3 | Standouts) 

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David Luberoff (above) is just 16 years old as he prepares for his senior year of high school, and a prep year isn't out of the question. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

David Luberoff (2022 | NJ Beasts | Midland Park, N.J.)

It's no surprise that Luberoff is such a great basketball player and towers over his peers; it's in his blood. His father is 6-3 and his mother 6-1, but the basketball in his family goes back one more generation. Richie Long, Luberoff’s grandfather, played hoops for Seton Hall, averaging 10.9 points and 10.1 rebounds for his career.

Luberoff, who was around 6-4 during his freshman year at Don Bosco Prep in Bergen Co., N.J., now stands 6-9 and weighs 205 pounds entering his senior season at Midland Park High School, a public school he transferred to after his freshman year.

“It wasn’t really about basketball,” Luberoff said, “it was really just about the academics and for the amount I was paying to go there, I wasn't really as good as I was back then, obviously not as tall.”

The Panthers only played seven games in a shortened season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but Luberoff made them count. According to NJ.com, registered a double-double in each game and even flirted with a triple-double in his team’s second game, finishing with seven blocks. For the season, Luberoff averaged 23.3 points per game, 15.4 rebounds per game, and 3.4 blocks per game.

In his second season with the NJ Beasts now as a member of the 17U team, Luberoff has seen a big change in his game and his relationships with the squad since last season.

“Definitely a lot more confident in my game,” Luberoff said, “building relationships with the guys, more chemistry than we had last year, especially because last year was odd with COVID and everything, couldn’t really get anything rolling, but this year’s definitely a lot better.”

In NJ Beasts' 76-71 loss to Pitt Supreme, Luberoff had a solid outing, throwing down dunks, rebounding the ball, and even showing his range by knocking down a three.

“Rebounding and blocking shots, that’s my game right there, that’s what gets me my minutes,” he said. “Just hustling, boxing out, crashing the glass.”

Luberoff — who currently has a D-II offer from Georgian Court and a wide range of interest from Division I through D-III schools, including Ursinus, which he is visiting on Thursday — is trying to improve his handle and shooting to become more versatile on the offensive side of the ball, wanting to become a “big that can do guard things.” 

In addition to his game, Luberoff is working on his frame, trying to add 20 pounds before college. At just 16 years old, whether Luberoff will graduate in the class of 2022 or reclassify to 2023 is still to be determined.

“I’m not really sure what I’m going to do for high school this year, but right now I think I’m going to finish my senior year at Midland Park and then look to reclass,” he said. — Matthew Ryan

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Quick Hits
Rollie Castineyra’s recruitment hasn’t really gotten started yet, but if his outing Saturday afternoon against All In (N.J.) was any indication, his phone will be getting busy before long. The 6-2, 175-pound guard dropped 25 points, including six 3-pointers, showcasing his consistent, reliable form and the ability to knock it down off the catch as well as pulling up around screens, even from the mid-range. He said working on creating his own shot has been a key this offseason, along with improving his ball-handling and on-ball defensive pressure.

Castineyra is hoping a change in scenery will be a benefit, as well. In addition to joining the Magic — an independent travel program from Boston which has produced a consistent run of high-academic and high-level Division I players under director Michael Crotty Jr. — during the pandemic, he also is transferring from St. John’s (Mass.) to Phillips Exeter (N.H.), staying in the class of 2023 but looking forward to a step up in competition in the New England Prep School Athletic Council (NEPSAC).

“The Exeter opportunity is just incredible, we have some D-I guys on the team, and that’s the level I want to play at,” he said. “Those are the guys I want to be around, in practice every day, it’ll get me better, it’ll get all of us better.”

— One of the busiest players in the gym on Saturday had to be Anthony Nimani. The 6-2, 170-pound combo guard from Connecticut played five different games for the WeR1 program (all before 4 PM), suiting up and playing for the 15U, 16U and 17U teams over the course of the day. Playing for both the 15U and 16U team wasn’t new for Nimani, but this was his first experience playing at the 17U level.

“They asked, and I said yeah, I’m always down for more basketball,” he said. “It was a good learning experience, they play faster, more high-paced, so I’m just trying to get ready for that.”

Nimani acquitted himself well, knocking down several shots, but he looked especially comfortable at the 16U level, burying four or five 3-pointers during a Saturday afternoon win. That’s his natural age group, as he just finished his sophomore year at Platt (Conn.) High School, but Nimani said he’s going to reclassify as a member of the Class of 2024 and attend a to-be-determined prep school.

— After scoring 28 points against Mid-Atlantic Select and 26 points against Unity Legends Select, Devin Carney was turning heads. The 6-1 175-pound point guard made seven threes in both of his games on Saturday while leading PK Flash Black (Pa.) to a 1-1 record. Carney can score at an elite level — he averaged more than 30 points per game last season at Butler Senior High School — and is making a concerted effort to add on to other parts of his game, such as playmaking.

Against Unity Legends Select, Carney showed his ability to find the open man, driving to the basket and then kicking to an open teammate for three. He currently has a plethora of D-I offers, including Duquesne, Radford, and Robert Morris, his fathers alma mater, where he played four seasons from 1990-94.

Over the past week, Carney said he has been in contact with some Power Six schools, such as NC State, Stanford, Wake Forest, Penn State, and Washington State. With some more big games throughout the summer, some of those conversations Carney is having with Power Six schools could certainly turn into scholarship offers.

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(More coverage: Part 2 | Part 3 | Standouts


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Tag(s): Home  Recruiting  Josh Verlin  Rich Flanagan  Bonner-Prendergast  Matthew Ryan