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Elite 75 Prep Showcase

By: Rob Taylor

Over the past three years, Ced Canty and Jacoby Davis have established their Elite 75 Prep High School Showcase as one of the must attend fall basketball events in the southeast. This year the event provided approximately 130 basketball players the opportunity to get one more quality run before the high school basketball season gets under way.

The two day event was held at Asheville high school in Gastonia, NC, and once again played host to a very talented group of players. Day one of the event kicked off with a warm-up before the first of nine sessions of games got started. Each team played at least three games on Saturday and one game on Sunday. Although the event included four classes of players (freshman through seniors), the teams were divided into two divisions. Sophomore, junior, and senior teams were combined, while the freshman had their own division.

Day two began with a slam dunk and 3-point shooting contest. In the dunk contest, six contestants stepped up to show off their stuff. The last two guys standing were Bishop Daniels, a 6'2 sophomore from Raleigh, NC and Ian Miller, a 6'1 junior from Charlotte, NC, both of whom were guards who displayed freakish athleticism. Daniel's combination of athleticism and creativity won him the contest, but Miller looked good on his way to a second place finish.

For the second consecutive year, Stevie Taylor, a 5'9 sophomore PG from Ohio, established himself as the top 3-point marksman at the camp by winning the three-point shooting contest and defending his title. Greg Lewis, a 6'0 PG from Mechanicsville, VA finished second in the contest.

Although there were a number of talented bigs and wings at this event, the most talented group of players were the point guards. The list of standout floor generals included: Ian Miller (2010), Luke Davis (2010), Marquise Rankin (2011), Stevie Taylor (2011), Bishop Daniels (2011), Brian Darden (2011), Jacoby Davis Jr. (2011), Madison Jones (2012), Isaiah Rogers (2012), and Nate Bucher (2012).

One of the key matchups of this event occured on Sunday when Marquise Rankin and Bishop Daniels went head-to-head. Both sophomore guards are athletic, possess almost unnatural bounce and can finish at the rim. On this day however, Rankin was top dog and almost scored at will, it was not even close in this one. If we are lucky, we may see a rematch in the ACC in a few years.

Below is a list of the top 20 players that competed in the upperclassmen division in alphabetical order.

Top Twenty performers - 2009/2010/2011

Antwon Burris (2009) 6'6 PF Greenville (NC) South Central

Chris Coleman (2011) 6'9 C Durham (NC) Mt. Zion

Josh Curry ((2010) 6'0 WG Gaffney (SC) Gaffney

Bishop Daniels (2011) 6'2 PG Raleigh (NC) Word of God

Brian Darden Jr. (2011) 6'1 PG Hampton (VA) Phoebus

Corey Davis (2010) 6'6 WF Greensboro (NC) Veritas

Jacoby Davis Jr. (2011) 6'1 PG Charlotte (NC) Vance

Luke Davis (2010) 6'0 PG Raleigh (NC) Ravenscroft

Jerrell Eddie (2010) 6'7 WF Concord (NC) Cannon

Michael Gbinije (2011) 6'5 WG Richmond (VA) Christ Church School

Levon Harper (2011) 6'9 C Farmville (VA) Fuqua School

Adam Hunt (2009) 6'3 WG Charlotte (NC) Olympic

Jay Jones (2009) 6'6 WF Charlotte (NC) Vance

Dondi McGowan Jr. (2010) 6'0 WG Cary (NC) Green Hope School

Ian Miller (2010) 6'1 PG Charlotte (NC) United Faith School

John Parham (2009) 6'3 WG Charlotte (NC) South Meck

Jervon Pressley (2011) 6'8 C Charlotte (NC) Waddell

Marquise Rankin (2011) 6'0 PG Charlotte (NC) Vance

Stevie Taylor (2011) 5'9 PG Gahann (OH) Lincoln

Hasaan Whiteside (2009) 6'10 C Charlotte (NC) Patterson School

Top Performer Notes

Hasaan Whiteside,a 6'11 C from Charlotte, has all the physical tools and talent he needs to play at the high major level. Because there was no one in the gym who could come close to challenging him, success came way too easy for this highly recruited post prospect. Although he needs to add some weight and strength, he has great length and close to a seven foot wingspan. When he wants to, Whiteside runs the floor well, can bury the open shot and dunks everything around the cup. Defensively, he blocked a boatload of shots.

Ian Miller, a 6'1 junior from Charlotte, is a highly skilled and athletic guard who possesses a scorers mentalily. Miller plays with a confident demeanor, but he has the ability to explode to the cup for a dunk or a lay up at the rim. He is not just explosive; he can shoot as well. Right now, Miller is paring down his list of high major programs.

Jerrell Eddie, a 6'7 Virginia Tech commit, was spectacular on day one. He basically did anything he wanted, from hitting midrange jumpers to exploding to the cup for the dunk. Although he cooled off a little on Sunday, his overall play was quite impressive.

John Parham, a 6'3 senior from Charlotte, had a solid showing over the weekend. Parham, a well built SG, was very agressive to the bucket and put up good numbers in the games we watched. Parham was very poised under pressure and he made good decisions more times than not. Since he was not flashy and did not posses eye-popping athleticism, he may have gotten less attention from evaluators than he deserved.

Luke Davis, a 6'0 junior from Raleigh, probably went unnoticed by a lot of fans, but anybody who was paying attention recognized this kid's talent. Davis is a highly skilled guard with a high basketball IQ and a good motor. He pushed the rock in transition, kept pressure on the defense, and delivered the ball to the right person, at the right time with precision. Although not physically imposing, Davis is a good looking guard prospect.

Michael Gbinije, a 6'5 sophomore from Richmond, VA, logged in a dominant performance at the event. Gbinije is a highly skilled wing who is always in attack mode as he tries to dunk everything he gets his hands on. Gbinije handles the ball well in the open court and will go coast-to-coast for a slam. He is not just a slasher, he can also knock down the open shot. Based on his package of physical gifts and skill set, Gbinije was arguably the top long-term prospect we saw all weekend.

Marquise Rankin, a 6'0 PG from Charlotte was spectacular. Although he missed the first day of the event to attend an unofficial visit at Wake Forest, on Sunday his game was on full display. Rankin is a super smooth and skilled guard who always seems in control of the situation. Rankin is deceptively explosive and can dunk with ease. Rankin's handle allows him to get anywhere on the court he wants, and his ability to rise up for the shot made him difficult to guard.

Bishop Daniels, a 6'2 sophomore from Raleigh, has freakish hops, as evident by his slam-dunk contest sucess. Daniels relentlessly attacked the cup all weekend and easily elevated over his defender. Also, Daniels has a knack for hanging in the air and finishing with contact. He has a tight handle and nice one-on-one moves as well. When he wanted to, Daniels did a good job of delivering the ball to the open man. Daniel's already has high major offers, and judging by his play in Asheville, more love is on the way.

Stevie Taylor, a 5'9 sophomore from Ohio, established himself as one of the top five point guards at the camp. Not only is Taylor one of the quickest guards in his class, he is highly skilled and possesses a high basketball IQ. In the first game of the showcase, Taylor showed he could score by dropping 20 plus points. In the 3 other games, Taylor concentrated on making his teammates better, as he made spectacular pass after pass. Taylor has the ball on a string, gets easy seperation from his defender and excels at penetrating and dishing.

Chris Coleman, a 6'8 sophomore from Durham, was easily the biggest player at the camp. Coleman tried to tear down the rim everytime he dunked. Despite his size, Coleman's footwork looked good as did his ability to get up and down the court. Look for Coleman at a high major program in a few years.

Brian Darden Jr., a 6'1 sophomore from Virginia, is a solidly built guard who loves getting physical with his defender. Super agressive and strong, Darden often bullies his way to the rim. Strength is not his only attribute however, he handles the rock well and he does a good job finding open teammates. One of the things we enjoy the most about his game is his defensive intensity and competiveness.

Top 10 Performers 2012 (alphabetical order)

Nate Bucher (2012) 5'10 PG Lawrenceville (GA) Lawrenceville

Darion Clark (2012) 6'5 PF Conyers (GA) Rockdale

Calvin Davis (2012) 6'0 PG Charlotte (NC) Berry School

Quentin Edwards (2012) 6'4 PF Waycross (GA) Ware County HS

Madison Jones (2012) 6'0 PG Raleigh (NC) Ravenscroft

Braxton Ogbueze (2012) 6'0 PG Charlotte (NC) Vance

Isaiah Rogers (2012) 5'6 PG Westerville (OH) Westerville South

Shaq Patterson (2012) 6'4 PF Martinsville (NC) Martinsville

Rodney Purvis (2012) 6'2 PG Raleigh (NC) Upper Christian

Waymond Wright (2012) 5'9 PG Raleigh (NC) Word of God

Top Performer Notes

Madison Jones, a 6'0 PG from Raleigh, was arguably the top point guard in his division. Jones' decision making was advanced, as was his skill set. Jones had good length and projects well at his position.

Nate Bucher, a 5'10 combo guard from Georgia, excelled on Saturday. The well-traveled Bucher is a multi-skilled player who routinely makes good decisions with the ball in his hands. When he's hot, Bucher can put up good numbers , if he's not, he often goes to plan B and sets up his teammates for easy buckets.

Rodney Purvis, a 6'2 WG from Raleigh, had a good weekend. He has a solid frame, is athletic, and has no trouble dunking the ball. Purvis plays hard and is very agressive on both the defensive and offensive end.

Isaiah Rogers, a 5'6 PG from Ohio, was one of the better pure PG's over the weekend. Rogers did a good job of pushing the rock and distributing the ball. With his solid handle and array of of attack moves. Rogers keeps pressure on the defense. If you leave him open, Rogers will bury the trey. In fact, in one game he knoced down four 3-pointers. On day two, Rogers talent was more evident as his production increased in the two games we observed.

Braxton Ogbueze, a 6'0 combo guard from Charlotte, was one of the best shooters in the division. Ogbueze was athletic and played hard in the games we watched.

We had a chance to watch Darion Clark, a 6'5 PF from Georgia, about 2 weeks ago at a similiar event in Atlanta. As he did last time we saw him, Clark was a force inside the paint in terms of his defense, scoring, and rebounding. Clark is strong and physical and he does a good job of finishing in traffic. As his skill level increases, his stock should rise.

Most observers did not know that Tadric Jackson, a 6'0 CG from GA, was only a 7th grader. Had they known, the buzz about this well built and explosive guard would have been much louder. Having watched Jackson blow up at an Atlanta showcase two weeks ago, we were not suprised when he elevated for an array of one and two handed dunks. Jackson was playing up in the freshman division and seemed to fit in with the other players, however, given his age, Jackson has a chance to do some big things over the next couple of years.

Other Players to Watch

Jorell Bennett (2010) 6'0 PG Durham (NC) C.E. Jordan

Tyrek Coger (2013) 6'6 PF Raleigh (NC) Upper Christian MS

C.J. Barksdale (2011) 6'7 PF Danville (VA) George Washington

Daniel Clark (2011) 6'8 PF Danville (VA) George Washington

Julius Hamilton (2012) 6'2 PG Charlotte (NC) West Charlotte

Troy Hill (2010) 6'8 PF Durham (NC) Mt. Zion

Matt Giorski (2011) 6'10 C Richmond (VA) Cosby

Shamus Goss (2013) 5'4 PG Lawrenceville (GA) Providence Christian

Tadric Jackson (2014) 6'0 PG Ashburn (GA) Turner County MS

Jason Lee (2011) 6'8 PF Raleigh (NC) Wakefield

Tre Lenard (2011) 6'8 C Raleigh (NC) Wakefield

Greg Lewis (2011) 6'0 PG Mechanicsville (VA) Hanover

Shelton Mitchell (2013) 5'8 PG Charlotte (NC) Marvin Ridge MS

Montez Singleton (2010) 6'0 PG Charlotte (NC) Vance

Zachary Sharp (2011) 6'6 WF Rock Hill (SC) York Tech

Kendall Wicks (2010) 6'2 WG Winston-Salem (NC) RJ Reynolds

As the high school hoops season inches even closer, there are still a few more fall showcase events scattered around the country. The next big event is Dinos Trigonis'All-South Freshman/Sophomore camp in Atlant in two weeks. HoopsReport will be there to cover the action and provide in depth report's for our readers.

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This article is associated with the following player(s):
Miller, Ian
Taylor, Stevie

POSTED: 9-30-2008

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