City of Basketball Love

CoBL Staff (@hooplove215)
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With the state playoffs starting this weekend, we wanted to take a look at some of the area stars who could be in for a couple big weeks ahead. 

Here are some local standouts in the boys’ 5A and 6A brackets who folks around the state might be reading about en route to Hershey:

Jalil Bethea (Sr. | G | Archbishop Wood)
The best pure scorer in the state, the Miami (Fl.)-bound Bethea is lethal with the ball in his hands, whether that’s hitting jumpers with Steph Curry range — not an exaggeration — or attacking the rim, where he’s become much more comfortable off the bounce over the years. A must-see, if you can, as his high school days wind down.

E.J. Campbell (Sr. | G | Spring-Ford)
The Rams’ 6-2 lead guard has really gone from a pure scorer to a confident combo, a strong passer who can make plays with the ball in his hands but also score at a high clip around the bucket and from deep. 

Jaden Colzie (Sr. | G | Plymouth Whitemarsh)
A speedy 6-0 combo guard, Colzie is a pull-up jumper maestro, loving to create his own shot from all over the court, and when he’s on — which is usually — he’ll make tough shots look easy. He’s improved as a passer and playmaker too, but putting the ball in the bucket is his best skill. 

Jake Cummiskey (Sr. | G | Central Bucks East)
Cummiskey is within striking range of the CB East scoring record, though it’ll take a few wins in states to get there The 6-3 left-hander has been a name to know since hitting back-to-back game-winners in districts as a freshman, and now he’s the leader for a veteran Patriots group that doesn’t plan on a first-round exit.

Connor Fleet (Sr. | G | West Chester Henderson)
The Warriors’ 6-0 point guard is a wizard with the ball in his hands; Fleet loves the mid-range pull-up and has a variety of moves to get to the bucket, where he can finish at odd angles with both hands. He’s also a crafty point guard who can be a one-man press break and find teammates for shots.

Adam Herrenkohl (Sr. | G | Lower Merion)
Herrenkohl had a breakout senior year for the Aces, the 6-2 wing guard a major reason why they’ve been the surprise story of District 1. He’s a knockdown shooter who doesn’t take bad shots, and he’s also strong when attacking the rim, not afraid to absorb contact or get to the foul line.

Shareef Jackson (Jr. | PF | Roman Catholic)
The Cahillites’ centerpiece literally and figuratively, Jackson is a hard-working, talented, physical forward and the son of former NBA big man Marc Jackson. He’s got an excellent post game with all sorts of moves and finesse around the bucket, and he showed with a few 3-pointers in the PCL championship game that he’s working on his shooting, too.

Dior Kennedy (Sr. | G | Coatesville)
Coatesville has a variety of weapons, but Kennedy has the ability to go off for big nights more often than any of them. The slashing 6-3 guard has an improved jumper but doesn’t mind getting a lot of his production at the line if that’s what it takes. 

John Mobley (Sr. | G | Lower Merion)
Another part of the high-level Aces’ backcourt, the 6-2 Mobley is a bouncy senior who turned himself from a wing into a guard over the last 18 months, with a much-improved handle and outside shot. He can make some electric plays 

Jacob Nguyen (Jr. | SG | Spring-Ford)
A 6-3 shooting guard with Division I offers, Nguyen’s a 3-point marksman who can light teams up from deep, and he’s got a lightning-quick trigger on his shot off the catch. He’s also become a better driver, with the ability to finish smoothly around the rim with both hands.

Nyle Ralph-Beyer (Sr. | G | West Chester Henderson)
The best shooter in District 1 this season is Ralph-Beyer, the Sacred Heart going off time and time again, with his lethal jump shot the main weapon. The 6-4 guard can pull up and hit shots at a high difficulty level from all over the place, even while guarded, and he won’t hesitate to rise and fire with an inch of space.

Josh Reed (Sr. | G | Archbishop Wood)
Reed has been a Swiss Army Knife type for the last three years, productive despite never being a high-level shooter, but even that part of his game’s starting to come around. The muscular 6-2 guard is an excellent passer, rebounder and defender, but this year he’s also averaging over 20 ppg, giving Wood opponents another problem to deal with alongside Bethea.

Jake Sniras (Jr. | G | Garnet Valley)
Sniras has already shown he can star on this stage, hitting a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to knock off Cumberland Valley in last year’s first round. The bouncy 6-3 guard has great range on his jumper and has really developed his playmaking and ball skills, helping the Jags’ offense click.

Dominic Toy (Sr. | F | Chester)
Chester’s multi-sport standout is in his last run of hoops, headed to UConn to play football this fall. A 6-5 hyper-athletic post, Toy is something of a combo ‘3’ and ‘4,’ though he gets most of his production done around the bucket, crashing the glass or using his combination of power and athleticism to get to the rim and finish.

5A

James Anderson (Sr. | G | Unionville)
The leader of the Unionville backcourt, Anderson has become the de facto point guard of the trio, and he’s flirted with several triple-doubles this season. An excellent passer who can also score in nifty ways, Anderson is a lead guard with good size (6-3) and shooting ability who can be a one-man press break.

Deuce Ketner (Sr. | F | Bonner-Prendergast)
Ketner is a versatile 6-7 forward who can play the ‘3’ through ‘5’ depending on matchups and which side of the court he’s on. He’s got long arms and can defend the rim at a good clip, but also has greatly improved his ball skills and shooting ability over the last couple years to the point where he can create his own shot offensively thanks to his size, and he can take advantage of mismatches.

Max Lebisky (Sr. | SF | Phoenixville)
An extremely unique talent who has drawn college interest from the Division I, II and III levels over the past six months. The 6-5 point forward is a terrific passer and playmaker who’s turned into a multi-level scorer this season, 

Ryan Mulroy (Jr. | G | Upper Dublin)
Upper Dublin’s star junior guard led the Cardinals to their best season in at least a couple decades. The athletic 6-3 slasher really likes to get to the rim or pull up in the mid-range, and can finish above the rim with emphasis. 

Ahmad Nowell (Sr. | G | Imhotep Charter)
The best lead guard in the state, Nowell is a 6-1 bulldog who does everything well: defends, attacks, distributes, leads, scores. The future UConn guard is a physical specimen unmatched in the state, but he takes advantage of the extra attention defenses are forced to pay him to put his teammates in great spots to score.

Ma’Kye Taylor (Sr. | PF | Imhotep Charter)
There’s probably 6-8 more Imhotep players we could feature, that’s how deep the Panthers are. But it’s worth mentioning Taylor, the versatile 6-7 forward and Albany commit who doesn’t need to score to make a big impact with his passing, defense, rebounding and overall versatility.

Thomas Sorber (Sr. | PF | Archbishop Ryan)
Over the last two years, we’ve watched Sorber go from a young, out-of-shape forward with an impressive offensive game into one of the best bigs not just locally but nationally. Now 6-10 and in the best shape of his life, Sorber is a defensive presence who’s seemingly everywhere on the floor at once, the Georgetown commit gobbling up rebounds and blocking shots, in addition to being a talented post scorer with an expanding face-up game. 

Darren Williams (Sr. | PG | Archbishop Ryan)
Sorber’s classmate and fellow D-I commit, the FGCU-bound Williams is Ryan’s primary threat with the ball in his hands. The 6-2 left-hander is their best 3-point shooter and won’t hesitate to pull up, but he’s a talented Philly guard who can get to the hoop and score as well.