City of Basketball Love

By Owen McCue (@Owen_McCue)
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PHILADELPHIA — Philly USA Basketball continued its busy week of showcase games on Wednesday at Imhotep Charter HS, hosting the Jr. All-City Classic to highlight some of the area’s top young talent before they get to the high school level (with the exception of a few who already played varsity as eighth graders).

Was there for both games for an entertaining night of hoops that showed the talent pool in the city isn’t drying up any time soon. Here’s a list of some of the standouts from Wednesday’s action:

Bryce Clark (2027 | Father Judge)
It looks like Father Judge will soon have another talented young guard in its backcourt. The 5-5 speedster left an impression as he totaled 16 points, four rebounds and four steals. His quickness was on display on both ends, poking the ball away from his man or sprinting into passing lanes. He’s got some range on the offensive end, knocking down a pair of threes. He’s certainly a consistent threat to blow by his man off the dribble and once he got into the lane, he showed off some special athleticism, hanging in the air a couple times for tough hoops or going up-and-under for a score.

Xavier Fauntroy (2027 | West Catholic)
Fauntroy let one fly from deep early that was off the mark, but his coaches continued to encourage him to shoot and he continued going back, back, back to almost near half court to test his range. The 6-foot lefty, who will play his high school ball at West Catholic, knocked down six threes as part of a 20-point performance in the first game, looking might comfortable pulling up or stepping back off the bounce. While Fauntroy’s shooting wowed, he also had a few impressive takes to the cup, finishing an and-one with his off hand and also penetrating and dishing to his big once or twice.

Korey Francis (2027 | Bonner-Prendergast)
Francis, from Talley Middle, didn’t really get going until the second half of the first game, but the future Bonner-Prendergast guard finished with 14 points and five rebounds. Francis (6-0) has a smoothness to his game really stood out as he glided around the floor. He has a tight handle, particularly for a young player his size and had soft touch, knocking down a floater. He was fluid pulling up and stepping back from three and certainly has good size for the guard spot on the defensive end if he stays at the 1 or 2.

Zion Green (2027 | Imhotep Charter)
The next two names on the list looked mighty comfortable on their future home court. Green is a 6-6 wing/forward who is ridiculously comfortable and coordinated in his frame for a middle schooler. He finished with 12 points, two assists, two rebounds and two steals in a productive outing. He’s got a silky smooth jumper he used to pull-up from deep and knock down a pair of threes. Obviously, a player with his size and length and ability to slide defensively is a big plus as well.

Munir Greig (2027 | Imhotep Charter)
The 6-5 wing is another youngster CoBL caught eyes on earlier this summer (NJ Scholars 15s) who impressed in another watching. The Green and Greig duo should be a fun one to keep tabs on during their careers with the Panthers. Greig put on a highlight reel during game two, tossing down an oop and stuffing home another transition slam during a 16-point outing that also included three assists. He’s really effective in transition but is also a good slasher in the half court. He can put the ball on the floor and attack as well — and the long athletic wing is a forceful attacker when he gets inside, making him really tough to stop.

Nick Harken (2027 | Malvern Prep)
Harken didn’t get the message that it was an all-star, piling up assists early and fighting for boards before starting to attack himself. A 6-3 guard/wing from the Perkiomen Valley school district, the future Friar finished with 12 points, four assists and four assists. All of his points came inside the arc as he showed off some ability to drive to the basket. He used a spin move inside to get one of his buckets. His feel for the game stood out as well as he and Silas Graham found each other on multiple cuts to the hoop.

Aasim Mitchell (2027 | La Salle)
The 5-8 guard from Holy Childs will head to La Salle College HS next year. Even without dominating the ball, he had 16 points in the first game of Wednesday’s action, also adding four rebounds, a steal and an assist. Most of his points came via open layups, whether that was sprinting down the floor and being rewarded in transition or cutting down the lane. He also finished a contested bucket plus the foul, used both hands around the rim and showed off there’s a little more to his game with a midrange pull-up.

Marvin Reed (2027 | Malvern Prep)
Saw Reed at the Battle of the Bell with NY Rens 14s team and he had another eye-catching performance, finishing with 17 points to earn MVP honors for his team. The 5-11 future Friar plays with energy on both sides. He’s a shifty guard who likes to get to the paint but he’s also comfortable pulling up with the ball. Reed looks like he can excel in a catch-and-shoot role as well, smoothly squaring up from deep a couple of times during Wednesday’s action.

Jake Scherzer (2027 | Abington Friends)
Scherzer is a 6-foot guard at Abington Friends. He scored a team-high 19 points in the first game of the night to earn MVP honors. Scherzer did a little bit of everything on the offensive end, stepping outside to knock down a pair of threes, while also driving his way into traffic. He got to the line three times, including a pair of and-ones. He worked well off the ball to cut to the basket or pop back out and reposition himself for an open look from three, also finding others for open looks (two assists). He didn’t shy away from the paint area on either end, tallying six rebounds and added a pair of steals as well in the standout effort.

Tyler Sutton (2027 | George School)
Sutton only scored six points but still found a way to steal the show in the second game of the night. His hops stick out in warm-ups and translate to the game as he tossed down a slam. The 5-10 guard headed to George School was a two-way force, racking up seven assists and five steals. On the defensive end, he’s got some strength as an eighth grader, but he’s also quick and fast, able to make steals on the ball and reading the floor off the ball. That court vision helped him find teammates as passer as well, which included dishing a highlight alley oop or two.

Honorable Mention

Kevin Benson (2027 | Imhotep Charter), Logan Chwastyk (2027 | TBD),  Gage Cunningham (2027 | Episcopal Academy), Kenjai Gatling (2027 | Bonner-Prendergast), Silas Graham (2027 | Haverford School), Jasir Henderson (2027 | Sankofa Freedom), Marquis Newson (2027 | Sanford),  Mekhi Robertson (2027 | Life Center), Nazir Tyler (2027 | Germantown Friends)