City of Basketball Love

CoBL Staff (@hooplove215)
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Here’s a notebook from the opening day of the Elevate Hoops Showdown, focusing on the 16U action from Philadelphia University; for 17U coverage, click here:

Kyle Thompson (2018/Jersey Shore Warriors)
The AAU scene can often make teammates out of regular-season opponents.

And on the flip side, there’s the occasion when two teammates briefly become opponents.

So Thompson will have a little bit of bragging rights at St. Joe’s Prep practices this year, thanks to his getting the better of Prep teammate Darius Kinnel as his Warriors beat Kinnel’s Jersey Force during a 16U showcase game.

It was the first time the two had ever played each other on the AAU circuit.

Thompson had a strong game in the win, dropping 19 points to lead all scorers.

“During this week, I wasn’t shooting that well so I had to get back in the gym, work on my mechanics again,” he said. “I didn’t play well the last game yesterday, so later on that day I went back to the gym and got some shots up.”

Two hundred (or so) practice shots later, his shot seems to be back, as he dropped four 3-pointers in the win.

So far, Thompson is still waiting for a second school to join Binghamton in offering, but he’s got several schools on his tail. Lafayette head coach Fran O’Hanlon was watching the win, and Thompson visited the Patriot League school in June; another Patriot program, Colgate, will host him in August.

While his scoring was on display on Saturday morning, Thompson said he’s working on being a better floor general for the Hawks and for his future.

“Just being a pure point guard, because during the season last year, I played a lot of shooting guard and I wasn’t really working on my point guard skills, and that’s what I have to play at the next level,” he said. “So during the AAU season, I’m working on being a point guard for next year.”

When it comes to inspiration on the court, Thompson looks at another Philly guard who’s making waves as a professional ballplayer.

“I feel like I play a lot like Kyle Lowry, that’s who I try to model my game after,” he said. “His build, he’s got a strong build, he uses his power to get to the basket and I feel like I do the same. He also has a good jump shot, so I feel like me and him share those characteristics.

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Antonio Rizzuto (2018/York Ballers)
On Friday afternoon, Rizzuto received a call. On the other end was Albany assistant coach John Iati, who told the 6-2 junior that the Great Danes were offering him a scholarship.

“It felt nice,” he said on receiving his first offer. “It felt really cool. I got the call, and I was going really crazy. With all the hard work you’ve put in, it feels good to get that.”

Rizzuto noticed that Iati, who coincidentally also hails from York, was front-and-center for several of his games at Hoop Group’s Elite Camp during the week.

“He came to see me play at least three times. He talked to me [on the phone] after the last game and said he was really impressed with how I played.”

The guard from Northeastern High in York was continued his strong play on Saturday in the Summer Showdown, finishing with 23 points in a loss to Team Takeover Orange. He has shown the ability to score the basketball- whether it’s with a long-range shot, or as a slasher.

Other schools that have shown interest in him include Princeton, Lafayette and Boston University, and may be close to offering him as well.

He isn’t focused on taking any visiting right now, he did note that he will go to New York’s capital in August after the Live Periods end in order to take a tour of the America East school.

Though he is continuing to work hard on improving his ballhandling and defense, he is still happy about the progress he’s made throughout the spring and summer, which helped him earn that first offer.

“I’ve been getting in front of the right people, right tournaments and just starting to shine a bit,” he said.

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Nate Roberts (2018/Baltimore United)
When first looking at Roberts, the first thing people tend to notice are his size and length.

As a result, the 6-8 forward from John Carroll (Md.) has been particularly good on the defensive side of the ball, and strung together a couple of strong performances on Saturday.

With the help of his high motor, he blocked shots, sealed off passing lanes and played strong on-ball defense on both the perimeter and the post for Baltimore United.

“I think I played really well,” he said after a win over the NJ Roadrunners. “We played straight up solid defense throughout the second half. We let them get a couple easy ones, but we got the win, so we’re good.”

It’s easy to see why Roberts currently holds offers from UMass, Cincinnati, Towson and Clemson as he enters his junior season.

He has no leaders at the moment, and noted that all the schools that have offered are recruiting him hard. He plans to take visits to at least some of them in August.

In addition, he is hearing from a slew of big-time schools, including Maryland, Xavier, LSU, Virginia, Wichita State, among others.

He is keeping an open mind about schools, but still, he knows exactly what he wants when he eventually decides to pick one.

“Just overall, is it going to fit my style of play?,” he said. “Is it a strong academic school? Can I go in and play right away?  [Do they have] a good coach and player relationship?”

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Quick Hits
-- Fred Odhiambo (2018/Jersey Shore Warriors) had one of the most complete outings we’ve seen of him yet on the AAU circuit in the Warriors’ 16U win over Jersey Force. The Church Farm big man, a raw 6-10 post presence, had a big impact on both ends of the floor, blocking several shots and altering others while grabbing at least five or six boards. Though his offensive skill set is extremely raw -- he isn’t comfortable putting the ball on the floor more than once or twice -- he’s becoming much better at focusing on his strengths; that is, getting to the rim, finishing with both hands and being a defensive presence without fouling. As he gets stronger and the ball skills develop, those fundamentals and his defensive length will have high-majors all over him.

-- A developing big man from Nigeria, Qudus Wahab (2019/Uncommon Bulls), was strong on the boards and as a rim protector on Saturday. Though still fairly raw, particularly on the offensive end, the 6-11 sophomore from Virginia Academy was playing up with the 16’s at the Summer Showdown. He already has an offer from Clemson, and has received interest from Missouri and Temple, among others. When asked about his reaction to receiving his first offer, he offered a short response, saying, “It should make me want more and get better every day.”