Best Buy Summer Classic: Day Two
07.15.2010
By Bryan Kriss - bryankriss@hardwoodelite.com
The action continued Wednesday in Bloomington, Minnesota at the Best Buy Summer Classic. After pool play concluded Tuesday night, we took in our first bracket games. The basketball was cut short due to a power outage, but not before a number of players made their mark.
Shaquille Goodwin: In the Atlanta Celtics dismantling of California Pump N Run, it was hard to pick out one or two players that stood out the most. Goodwin was perhaps the most spectacular, catching three alley-oop dunks. The best one came in the second half as he sprinted down the floor to catch an off-the-backboard pass before throwing it down with authority. In all, Goodwin totaled 17 points, putting his athleticism on full display.
Jordan Price: While Goodwin was perhaps the most spectacular, Price was most likely the best player on the floor for the Atlanta Celtics. He went for 17 points in the Celtics win despite not playing much of the second half due to his team's huge lead. His shot is somewhat of a set-shot as he doesn't elevate much at all, but he has good form and is very accurate. He hit four 3s for the game and also showed plenty of ability off the bounce.
Adonis Thomas: Thomas looked like a top-5 player on day 2. He really played nearly flawless in his second game of the day. He had an and-1 poster dunk to show off his athleticism, several strong drives to show off his handle and even knocked down a couple jumpers. His best play of the day was a right to-left crossover that he used to shake a defender before swishing a 15-footer. Also impressive was his passing ability. He's a joy to watch in the open-floor, whether he's finishing with a highlight dunk or making a spectacular no-look pass. If he can consistently play like he did yesterday, Thomas could easily prove to be one of the elite players in the 2011 class.
Andre Hollins: Hollins was also very good for the Memphis Magic. While Adonis Thomas may have been a little more impressive, Hollins probably lead them in scoring. He's an outstanding athlete and a more than capable shooter from deep. In their afternoon game against Indiana Elite, Hollins went on his own personal 8-0 run to bring the Magic within one before ultimately falling short. Hollins' lateral quickness makes him an absolute nightmare on the defensive end when he puts his mind to it. He makes it very difficult for his man to get by him, and in the rare occasions when they did; Hollins often chased them down to make a impressive block.
Torian Graham: Playing up a level with the D.C. Assault 17s, Graham had no problem showing he belonged on day two. His main strength is obviously his leaping ability, but he's also a capable scorer. Along with his three highlight-reel dunks, Graham scored on a floater in the lane and a nice 15-foot jumper. Graham will be back playing with the 16s in Vegas next week, and we'll be interested to see how he performs against his own age group.
Jalen Jones: We first saw Jalen Jones back in June at the Pangos All-American camp where he exploded onto the scene due to his high energy- level and athleticism. He showed much of the same attributes Wednesday playing with Dallas Showtyme. Jones is a fun player to watch simply because he never takes a play off. His all-out effort can sometimes cause him to reach on defense or get out of control driving to the rim on offense, but there's still a lot to like. He finishes very well at the rim and when he gets his feet set, he is a very good shooter with nice form. If he can better harness that natural aggressiveness and improve his decision-making, he could very well end up in updated 2011 Top 100.
B.J. Young: Young was fantastic with the ball in his hands again Wednesday. Just like day one, he was getting to the rim at will, but he also hit numerous three-pointers and displayed a more well-rounded game. Young looked much more like a PG yesterday, creating easy buckets for teammates off of his penetration. He is very good coming off of the high ball screen and either taking it all the way to the rack or threading the needle to a teammate. He found his guy Dantiel Daniels on several occasions, including one that Daniels finished in memorable fashion (we'll put up the video soon).
DeMarquise Johnson: On day two, Johnson cemented himself in our next release of the 2012 Top 100. Day one saw Johnson putting on shooting clinic, but we weren't yet sure what else he could do. On Wednesday we saw him take the ball to the rim several times, either finishing with a dunk or taking the contact and still finding a way to lay it in. In Team Eleate's second game, Johnson started to force things late as he sensed the game was slipping, but this is something that can be corrected. He's got all the tools to go along with great size, and he will certainly be recruited heavily before it's all said and done.
