7th Grade Tip Sheet 2015 Summer Hoops Tour #PrimeTime

Jada Malone (Houston Skyrise Edmond)

The  Woodlands, TEXAS-The best thing about watching these kids over and over is that I get a sense on many of the can’t misses work ethic and that, at least to me shows in not only how hard they’re playing on the floor as well as how  hard they’ve been working on their games off the court. Skyrise Edmond’s Alexis Babineuax has star written all over her, I saw that last season at Prime Time Nationals on Fieldhouse Friday and she continues to add to her repertoire so I’m going to go ahead a lock her in as not just a next level player right now. Also special kudos to Kiersten Rich (Houston Premier) who continues to blow me away and since these two have made multiple Tip Sheets, I’m dropping some more from their teams  in fact several players caught my eye by doing a number of things in this age group and here are a few

Jada Malone ( Skyrise Edmond) she’s already over the magic number of six feet,  her speed and athleticism have improved as well as her ability to finish. She’s still learning and big things are ahead for this talented young lady who is also controlling the paint on both ends

R’Mani Taylor (Skyrise Edmond) she blew me away the first time I saw her, keep in mind that was shooting around in street clothes during halftime so what does that say.  She’s learning how to take over as well as getting players involved and what she will become is a terror in this town

Lane Rice (Houston Premier)

Lane Rice (Houston Premier) Rice continues to come into her own but what I enjoy seeing more than anything is her ability to make big plays and change the momentum. You don’t have to score to do that, she can but she’s learning other ways to do just that

Emma Slaughter (Houston Premier) from the start of the season,  loved the way Slaughter made the right play time after time but she’s added more offense from various angles and ways on the floor which will be huge for her down the road

Diane Hernandez (Franchize) she puts up numbers quickly and from various spots on the court, she also does a good job handling the ball under pressure. On top of all that, she defends as well as makes attempts to get teammates involved

Addison & Ashton Poth (Katy Rebels Poth) like another set of twins, Goss, from the Katy Rebel pipeline, these two caught my eye at a young age. I loved their game a year ago but now they’re stronger and showing they cannot only finish with contact but handle the ball under pressure and score outside

Rachel Maciejeski (Tomball Tigers) showed signs of becoming an instant offense player down the road because it seems like every time I looked up she was attacking from the wing for baskets or just poppin the short jumper. Throw in the fact that she can shoot the long ball and voila 

Gulf Coast Blue Chips all that and then some #PrimeTime

I already had heard stories about this squad and amazing players but then again I hear that over and over but some of my sources are always on point and it's like this, you have to have been out there to know where the bar has been set, not just around the area or state, but on a national level and after watching the Gulf Coast Blue Chips, they have several players with a shot a playing college ball, they already show that and many more with the potential providing they continue to work hard and progress. Jonesha Neal and Dalanna Carter blew me away and made the Tip Sheet read more

Asia Robinson can get to the rim and finish, she's ahead of the game as far as comprehension and has good size and she's on the top of the press. Love Jacei Delaney's athleticism and on top of that her ability to finish and the same can be said for Kyndall Hosea. Armani and Anyaih Robinson created problems on both ends and if Asia is their sister, this Robinson trio may be bigger than Crusoe, well in basketball. Plenty of energy from both Alana Trail and Abby Hart, both also showed they could shoot the three, while Kavish Campbell does a good job controlling the paint on both ends

4th/5th Grade Tip Sheet 2015 Summer Hoops Tour #PrimeTime

Jonesha Neal

I already mentioned that I read a tweet regarding no one can call a middle school player a D1 lock, well I'll take it a step further and say that not have I done that but I've also called several in elementary school including Brooke McCarty and my own daughter but for the most part, that statement does hold some validity as far as the masses but there have and always will be exceptions to the rule. Jonesha Neal and Dalanna Carter were are definitely going to play somewhere in that D1 group providing they grow and get stronger but the foundation is there, they only have to build on it. Many any players are on the right path, here's a few that stood out when I got a chance to see them

Jonesha Neal (GCBC) missed her on day one but she was everything II heard she was once she stepped on center stage. The first step is explosive but even more impressive is court vision and change of direction in traffic. To top that off, she's already finishing with contact

Dalanna Carter (GCBC& Lady Dragons) wrote about her last season and had forgotten I did but she's even better than she was when she blew me away a year ago. Poised beyond her years, she dominated at her age and did more than hold her own playing in the 6/7th grade division

Rezia Castillo 

Keely Cummings (HTX 2023) I didn't believe she was for real when she did a crossover in traffic but she did it again the next day so no mirage. She's a gamer, loves to defend and distribute and can score multiple ways

Janae Tucker (HTX 2023) already showing range at a young age, that's always a good thing but even better is the fact that she mixes it up. Does a good job creating shot, knows how to get to the basket and finish

Bella Woodhead (HTX 2022) did a good job creating her shot under pressure and also showed she could knock down the three, huge upside

Rezia Castillo (HTX 2023) first of all, she's a a 2025 which means she's only in the 2nd grade and watching her anticipate and create alone caught my eye. She already gets it, she can handle herself and plays with passion and fire. I can only imagine what this 8 year old will wind up doing in the open court in the upcoming years but she's one of the best at her age I've seen in my life

Skyrise Broughton continues to rise to the occasion #PrimeTime

I can't emphasize how much TRUE developing matters especially at the younger age so I wanted to do something special on Skyrise Broughton. Sure I have people coming up to me blowing smoke about doing this or doing that with the ready made product and that smoke sometimes seems like it's coming from California, Colorado or whatever state has legalized, well you know what I'm talking about. The head coach has ran the helm at the D1 level, I spoke Coach Broughton about the improvement and she praised the kids for buying into the system, aka listening and comprehending, and from where they were back in March to where they are now has been mind boggling

I tweeted over and over about Asia Broughton developing into a BEAST and keep in mind she's yet to play a MS game, she's at the magic number of six feet and she listens to mommy throughout the game and is going to be a D1 player, yeah I'm calling it now and with her frame, the sky is the limit. Talent just pops on this team, Malikiya "Ring My" Bell and Timberlan "Heart to" Hart will be featured on my Tip Sheet for this division but I had a host of players to choose from. Ashlyn Jones has already been featured before along with Broughton however Jones was nursing a minor injury this go round

Lauren Mayes, Peyton Overton and Winter George have all improved, Mayes and Overton continue to create problems on the defensive end when they're in the ball game while George is creating her shot and even better than before but she's also picking the right time to take them. I was going to put Taylor Howard on the Tip Sheet but I'll sneak her in on this one simply because I love her becoming more aggressive on both ends and she's working on her game in game situation. She tried a reverse lay-up earlier in one game that almost went in and the next time I saw her attempt it she made it but it's not the fact that she tried and and made it. that was coming anyway, it's the fact that she KNEW when to attempt it and that's huge down the road

Auto Awesome Monday opens Prime Time recap

I read on Twitter last week that no one can call a MS player or younger a D1 player, they're only college prospects and although I agree to an extent simply because everyone I've called a can't miss this century has actually done it so that rule probably doesn't apply to me yet they're are several strange posts on social media but that's another story for another time

This past weekend, I continued to see talented Texas players coming up and many will be broken down on the various Tip Sheets I'mm throwing at you. One of those players, 8 year old Rezia Castillo ( HTX)impressed me even more off the court than on it as I caught running around yesterday I asked if she was the 2nd grader playing the day before. She responded yes and I said you are just a baby and shot back quickly "I'm not a baby" with the biggest smile you could ask for and let me say this, she's one of the best 2nd graders I've seen  in my life, btw my daughter's in the WNBA so this kids upside is through the roof

I hadn't seen HTX all season, I already know about Gaston and Rodriguez, both have gooten even better but the player that truly impressed me the most in the whole tournament was '22 Ashlon Jackson who more than held her own in the HS division, remember it's not what you do it against so her status, well you can read about her later in fact I already wrote about her before the growth spurt read more

Speaking of wrote about before, this picture of Dalanna Carter may not be clear but trust me watching her fellow '23 Jonesha Neal has me saying hash tagging two things right now sow in case I'm no longer you can use the search bar and see #sizedontmatter and #D1 LOCKS so needless to say, those two will be on the 4th/5th grade Tip Sheet coming up I'll combine with the 6th/7th. The 7th and 8th grade will be another Tip Sheet and I'll close it out with one on the HS group but let's revisit last year's story on Carter read more

'21 ABA came all the way from Missouri and won the 6th/7th grade division with ease, I kind of said after seeing them for about a half of a half on opening day so that deserves a spot all to themselves. Stay tuned and if you don't follow me on Twitter, you may want to because many of the pics you don't see you will see as well as behind the scene stuff as well as in depth interviews, you just never know what I might throw at you just be ready to catch it because it's real

2020 Levings impressive at USA trials

Add 6'3 Katelyn Levings as yet another superstar in the making I caught my first glimpse of at Prime Time Nationals as the 2020 "can't miss" prospect showed many others what I already knew, she can play. Levings made it through the first cut and although she wasn't selected, she laid the foundation and it's only a matter of time

Lady Houston Phenoms win Consolation #IBC Gold

Nice mix with the 8th grade squad from TEAM PHENOM, the 2016 group I told you four years ago that "you better watch out" and like that other SC from the North, I'm sure many are pouting because they get in on some of those talented players earlier but one more time and "I'm telling you why" several of these younger Phenoms showed some potential. Keep in mind I only saw them briefly but you've been doing this for a minute and you actually know what you're looking at, well it's easy and many of these players have the tools to play at the  next level if they keep working

Ana Kassim and Bre'lyn Adams showed signs of being dominant inside, both have powerful bodies and rebounded well on both ends while Taelyn Londow showed she could get to the rim and finish, also showed a floater same with Chelsea Green who got there from the wing with ease, great athleticism and upside. Also liked Heaven Ming, she runs the one and does it having fun, well for her because she's feisty, can shoot the three and take defenders off the dribble and although she's small, #sizedontmatter and neither does the fact that she and Londow are in the 7th grade  playing up

Speaking of up, let's talk about upside and Krystal Doakes, Tiffany Moore and Brittany Stafford all definitely showed some ability on the court, Stafford simply can go off on the offensive end as well as bring heat defensively but the biggest upside of them all is probably the young lady that made the Tip Sheet, Talia Gourad

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Skyrise Hamilton win #IBC Gold

To say this is a talented young team filled with players that are going to make an impact in high school almost immediately would be an understatement and when we return back to some of the stories on players I've written about, all you have to do is use the search bar, you'll realize I was on to something but over the years, if you use that same search bar you'd already know that. Jessica Soders and Dyani Robinson were the two I picked for the Tip Sheet, Soders also made the All Tournament team but there were many others I could have chosen

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Markayla Johnson and Micayla Hamilton have star written all over them, Johnson blows by defenders from the wing, rebounds and plays the passing lane while Hamilton simply excites me with some of the things she can do in the open floor, I caught last season as she simply went off several times but the athleticism and energy both bring is going to do nothing but elevate their games and since I'm talking about elevating their games, Kyra Merdith is definitely a force to be reckoned with on the inside

Dylan Malone and Makala Patterson also sold me on their skills last season while both Jenneka Jackson and Brooke Cephus showed they could score under pressure over the weekend, Cephus and Robinson also had that long ball working. Mailyn Wilkerson is showing several different signs as she keeps getting better and one game in particular, she went completely off on both ends but the killing part is that she, along with Wilkerson, are only in the 7th grade and are more than holding their own playing up

Livingston Ladies bring more talented faces #IBC GOLD

Breanna Terral impressed me so much last season, first I didn't realize how old she was as she was doing damage playing up and even more her BB-IQ for her age was ahead of it's time read more
Nothing has changed as far as that, but she's taller and stronger and even more fluid than last season but she's plenty of time left to master her craft and believe me, from what I'm seeing, colleges will be beating at her door. This is a solid squad and Candace Ellis and Natalie Stewart joined Terral at putting work in the paint, Ellis also showed some long ball action

Dannah Martin shot the three quite well throughout the event while Gracie Day, Serenity Smith and Kate Thompson also added offensive firepower to this talented young group but the energy that came from several other players, Abigail Burns, Asia Garner, Natalie Stewart and Victoria Smith were all key reasons why they won 2nd place in the Gold Division. One of the biggest suprises of the tournament was 2020 Dijone Flowers, how good is she, I thought she was a sophomore when I first saw her but she made the Tip Sheet so

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Skyrise 2020 Howard win #IBC Silver

Let me sum it up like this, Kyndall Hunter is a Tip Sheet waiting to happen, she keeps adding things to her game but the most important parts are the ones you can't teach and since the game starts at the one, she's definitely handling the pressure of playing up. Skyrise 2020 Howard has a little bit of everything and when you look at the jump Rianne Burton has made and the jumps Jade Compton is making, that isn't presence simply wears opponents down.

Amada Turpin's outside shot is becoming more deadly or should I say deadlier, either way it's a killer but I'm seeing steady improvement from everywhere. Briana Parker and Sydney Rollins join Hunter in the small guard club but they also are in the the #sizedontmatter club and they keep coming at you. Zaria Johnson and Cy' Maya Colquitt, check and double check as well as new face Ja'nyah all are exciting but Cassidy Howard and Shadiya Thomas made the Tip Sheet this go round

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