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Philly Jr. All-City Classic Standouts

05/27/2015, 12:00am EDT
By Tom Reifsnyder
Mikeal Jones

Roman Catholic (Pa.) 2019 G/F Mikeal Jones. (Photo: Tom Reifsnyder)

Tom Reifsnyder (@tom_reifsnyder)
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Fifty of the top eighth graders from the greater Philadelphia area put their skills on display for Philly USA Basketball’s Jr. All-City Classic at Imhotep Charter High School on Tuesday night. The event featured two games, with 30 players participating in the first game and 20 in the second.

Here are a few thoughts on the event's top performers: 

Julius Phillips (St. Martin de Porres)
The lanky 6-foot-2 forward essentially out-toughed his opponents en route to his Co-MVP award tonight. Of his 13 points, the majority came on strong drives and put-back opportunities created by his own offensive rebounds. It remains to be seen what position he’ll play at the high school level when he arrives at Archbishop Wood this fall, but with his slender frame and athleticism, it’s likely he’ll find himself on the wing more often than the block until he bulks up a little bit.

Karam Cummings (Anna Blakiston Day School)
Before the game even started, Cummings made it abundantly clear during layup lines that he’s a heck of an athlete. The 6-foot-3 wing could use a little work on his ball handling, but there’s no doubting he can finish at the rim with the best of the 2019s. His elite athleticism and ability to run the floor with spacing in mind will make him a nice fit with head coach Andre Noble’s up-and-down style at Imhotep Charter.

Aaron Estrada (Woodbury Middle School)
The phrase is often overused, but this kid really does have the ball on a string. Estrada’s potential for tantalizing behind-the-back and through-the-legs crossovers had the crowd chattering every time the Co-MVP touched the ball. The 6-foot guard has a sort of bounce to him that makes him just as exciting as he is effective. Even with all his tricky maneuvers, Estrada doesn’t turn it over often and plays the role of floor general quite well. Estrada will be playing his high school ball with Woodbury High School (N.J.).

Nafis Smith (Morton McMichael)
Smith exhibited many of the necessary traits that make a wing player successful at the high school level. At 6-feet, he showed the ability to knock down an open three, intuitively cut to the basket, and willingly make the extra pass to an open shooter. It seems like there’s a lot of room for growth in his frame, and that obviously bodes well for him. He’s got a nice stroke from deep, but could use a little work at the free throw line.

Ameen Dandridge (E. Washington Rhodes)
Dandridge’s shot-blocking bonanza was good enough to earn him Defensive Player of the Game honors for the first game of the night. The 6-foot-4 forward would’ve made most high school coaches pretty darn happy with how hard he defended and crashed the glass in an all-star game atmosphere that often lends itself to a lot of sloppy one-on-one play. You won’t see too many back-down moves in the post from him, but offensive rebounds work just as well sometimes, as he showed tonight.

Eric Dixon (Abington Junior High)
Of all the players who played at tonight’s event, Dixon may have been the only true “big man” of the group. From the very first possession, he gave the opposing team fits on the low block, backing down and scoring on his defender with ease. At 6-foot-6 with a wide frame, there’s not many players Dixon’s age who can single-handedly move him off the block, and he showed that tonight with a game-high 18 points and Co-MVP honors. He’ll be a welcome addition to an Abington High School team that played a lot of guard-heavy lineups this past season.

Mikeal Jones (Discovery Charter)
If anyone from tonight’s event is ready for high school varsity minutes right this second, it’s probably Jones (pictured above). The 6-foot-6 forward already has a man’s body, and a man’s game to go with it. Although he had just 12 points in a very high-scoring game, many of his buckets came in crunch time. One, in particular, was a game-winning dunk that got the whole crowd on its feet. He can finish masterfully with both hands and rarely settles for jump shots. Jones will join the likes of Tony Carr and Nazeer Bostick at Roman Catholic this fall.

Khyree Temple (Chester Community Charter)
Temple’s 14 points were about as effortless as any tonight, but it had little to do with the defensive effort of the opposing team. The explosive 6-foot-4 wing knifed through the defense like hot butter on multiple occasions, likely leaving the opposing team wondering what they could do to stop him. But they couldn’t, and that was pretty clear. Only thing Temple didn’t show tonight was a jump shot, but he didn’t take many, so it’s hard to read that part of his game at this point. He earned Co-MVP honors along with Eric Dixon.

Fatayn Wesley (DePaul Catholic)
Wesley was the most impressive point guard at the event, hands down. Whether he was throwing flashy no-look assists or splashing contested threes in transition, the 5-foot-6 floor general made his sure his presence was felt every time he checked into the game. Defenders had a really tough time staying in front of Wesley, and it’s hard to blame them. His 18 points tied a game-high with co-MVP Eric Dixon.

Chereef Knox (2019/Holy Cross)
The Defensive Player of the Game also did a good bit of scoring with 14 points as he feasted on whatever rim-running opportunities he could get his hands on. The 6-foot-5 wing is a flat-out athlete with a soft touch around the rim, but he’s not quite as smooth from deep. His stroke doesn’t look too bad, though, and with some work could turn into a serviceable jump shot. Knox is choosing between Imhotep Charter and Neumann-Goretti for his high school destination.


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