Can't turn your back on San Antonio anymore

Deja Kelly

After watching San Antonio Johnson this season along with the pipeline of talented players coming from around the San Antonio area, it was safe to assume that the shift in power might be tightening up. Deja Kelly is one of many bright young stars I had a chance to see live and in living color and as you can see, she's watching whoever is watching her and you certainly don't want to turn your back on this young lady. More to come on Kelly, other San Antonio stars and even more "Young Guns" from the camp in Deosto

2020 class shows perfect vision

Deja "DK"Kelly

I tweeted Saturday that you may want to remember Deja Kelly's name after watching her for about a minute or two. When I settled into the "Young Guns Camp", there was no doubt that the 2020 group of players had a little something going for them. Asheri Morris was one of the young ladies that went through the speed dribbling drills with ease, while Grace Cantu, who is actually a 2021, showed the ability to hit big shots when it counted, evidently both have been watching their older sisters. All of the young ladies impressed me in one way or another and with hard work, bright futures are within their grasps. It was truly refreshing to watch this group mixed in with the older players during the games and not being scared once they hit the floor.

Grace Cantu (2021)

For their performances, they all have made the GPR 2020 Watch List and I'm looking forward to observing their progression over the upcoming years

Kalei Christensen Madelyn Moser Grace Cantu Nyah Wilson Makalah Robinson Ash'a Thompson Micah Cooper Destiny Terrell Deja Kelly Asheri Morris Emani Bell Shawndra Ezra

Deja Kelly makes #JLE6060 Tip Sheet

I love teasing Deja Kelly simply because and even though I c all her things like the Tip Sheet queen or "The Baby", I wanted to know how she felt about a comment I made to her mom about her prior to "The Combine". I said""I told your mom the only thing you were afraid of was taking a picture with a strand of hair out of place." She didn't crack a smile walked away and took it out on the boys. lol

Read more

Deja Kelly on Today Show

I've been writing about this young lady for what seems like forever and the more I saw her, the more I saw she continued to put in the work as she simply wouldn't settle for just being one of the best in her class. Check out the video on Deja Kelly

Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Early session Tip Sheet from Cy Fair Evaluation Camp

Deja Kelly and Sara Gwin

I love covering camps for two reasons, finding new talent and observing the progression from players I’ve seen before. Here’s a dozen from the early session, more coming on each group

2019

Elizabeth Scott- I tagged her “Great Scott” and she continues to show me she’ll live up to that name along with BCS. She’s around six feet and is not only facing the basket to score; she’s attacking it even more of the wing

Halle Jones-She has the right attitude and mentality to put up numbers and fall into those players that simply find ways to put the ball in the basket

Briuana Johnson-If ever there was a player I would call “ICE” it would be Johnson because nothing fazes her. She’s a pressure player on both ends

Sara Gwin- Sara just keeps getting better and her catch and shoot has taken a major jump. She’s also showing the ability to set-up defenders for better shots

Madison Lucas-She excelled in the drills and games, great body and strength at young age, showed she can score and defend and understands the simple things already

Aresa Gibson-Young long players that can hit the midrange consistently are at an advantage for the next level; Gibson’s shot was fluid on the money

Elizabeth "Great" Scott

2020

Deja Kelly-All bets are off; she excelled at both sessions and actually looked better against the older the high school girls. She just simple has “IT” which is something you just can’t teach. BCS LOCK!

Tae’lor Purvis-This young lady handled the ball very well in tight situations and showed she could get anywhere she wanted. She’s long and smooth on the floor

Blaise Blair-Stoker- Good body and strength, especially at her age. Knows how to finish and bang in the paint. Huge upside

2021

Aiken Semones-Vanessa Herrera and Raven Adams were almost clones and would fit into the “size don’t matter” category. At this age, simply watching them get after it was a joy but the most important thing they are doing at this age is handling the ball under pressure and finding ways to score

Aiken Semones

How bout them Hoyas #MemorialWeekendShowdown

I try and catch the South Texas Hoyas as much as possible because I know they have several talented players, I know they will always get after it and I know they will never give up and some of their games truly reminds me of playing chess, well watching people play chess because if they're in it down the, odds are they'll prevail. Some of the babies got a chance to play up this past weekend and although Miss Three Point Record Katlyn Ghavidel wasn't available, Jessica Paz Y Puente, Sara Gwin and Ta'Niya Jackson all did well with Hoyas Black while a couple of other bright young stars, Deja Kelly and Sophia Ramos made my MS playing up Tip Sheet, read more

Last time it Brittany Rodgers doing highlights that pput her on the tip sheet, well she added more highlights this weekend as she comntinues to defy thee law of gravity, but Emily Sandoval just blew me away so much I had to tweet about her. This is a solid team, well program, but I can't stress how much I enjoy watching them go after it. Anyssa Curtiss was lighting it up from deeeeep while Megan Valdez was, well just wait for her on the Tip Sheet

Hawthorne may have been cancelled on TNT but Bijan Webb-Hawthorne was doing some cancelling in the paint, scoring, rebounding and playing human eraser blocking shots. Good size from Victoria Hall allows her to do multiple things including scoring from mid-range against almost anyone and since Kelly and Ramos continue to blow me away, why not. Kelly and Sara Andrews are two of the best 6th graders I've seen in my life and I'm talking GBB life which dates back to the Nineties when my baby was in that category. Kelly is simply legit, no question, no discussion case is closed. Ramos improvement keeps her rising and if she grows a couple of  more inches, there's no telling what level of D1 she'll be playing. Got to close the pictures with "Miss Highlight"

Stars of the future on hand at Rice

South Texas Hoyas' Sara Lewis and Deja Kelly were just a couple of the close to 50 prospective HS recruits on hand to watch the Owls battle Southern Miss on Saturday. I didn't make it to the game however Jessica Kuster had yet another double double scoring 29 points and pulling down 12 rebounds.

Kuster, like Lewis and Kelly, is from San Antonio and has established herself in a huge way becoming the all time leading scorer and rebounder for the Owls. BTW, Kelly is a 2020 but she can play high school ball right now, trust me, use the search bar above, but for the road, watch Kuster drop the three that made her the all time leading scorer

South Texas Hoyas Gray and Blue show what's up at #TXSpringInv

Let's see, on the Gray team you have 2016 Janik Alexander Smith, simply operating like a fine tuned machine game after game, 2018 Katlyn Ghavidel who is going to set some three point records and 2020 Deja Kelly who is, well do some big things along the way, real big. I've seen the Hoyas probably more over the last few months than I have the previous years combined and both team have a little bit of everything. Sophia Ramos and Victoria Hall showed the could shoot the three, Zhazza Brown was knocking them down from everywhere and Patricia Patterson just elevated over opponents for buckets and rebound. Daeja Lewis  showed great athleticism on both ends and I knew when I saw Dominique DeHoyos attack, I had seen her recently and I did. She was on Poth's state semifinal team and she can get wherever she wants on the floor and finish

Don't fret, much of the same on the Blue team as well and when you talk about setting three point records, HS get ready for Megan Valdez next season. Valdez has added more to her game every time I watch and she and Jade Brady were hitting the long ball just every time I looked up. Arysia Porter and Ashia McCluarin both showed they could handle the ball and finish well, Porter also saw the floor well no to mention she came up with several huge steals. Skyla Reyna did some damage in paint and Brittany Rodgers just keeps improving in every aspect of the game and with her strength, she will be a force. Already a force is Claudia Curtis who has a nice pull up jumper which was consistent, no to mention she anticipated and rebounded extremely well

Kelly and Alexander Smith made Tip Sheets from both Full Court and GPR

KELLY

ALEXANDER-SMITH

Youngstas accept challenge at #MemorialWeekendShowdown

Sophia Ramos (Hoyas)

I enjoy doing this so much for a number of reasons and I'm glad I took the initiative to get the ball rolling a few years ago because in case you're not aware, no one was promoting Texas players on a national level like I did. I love watching the kids go at, I enjoy exciting basketball but smart basketball is something that truly keeps me going and when I see young ladies who are already there and keep bringing it, that too brings a smile to my face but not as much as watching players who strive to get there by simply working to achieve their goals. I picked MS players playing in the top two divisions to help take the guesswork out. Not only did they excel, they showed the best is yet to come

2018

Sophia Ramos (South Texas Hoyas) Ramos is one of those players that just keeps climbing and striving to be the best she can be. On day one, she came in and immediately made an impact on both ends and continues to show me she's someone that has the will to get it done

Monet Jones (Houstonians) She's already over six feet yet has guard skills and her agility and strength enable her to take smaller guards down low for easy baskets or just shoot over them. Good handles and range will have her on several "most wanted" lists

Tirae Hambrick (Swoosh)

Amaya Brown (SW Elite) I love watching players that I think are older than they actually are. Brown had one of the quickest first steps in the event and is simply electrifying in the open court. She's gong to definitely be a threat period because her range is unlimited

Mikayla McGuire (Lady Big Dogs) Her work ethic alone will get her in a D1 college because she's ruthless in the paint and I'm talking against bigger, stronger and older players. Truly a throwback player from te "good ole day" and her offensive weapons are becoming deadly

Tierae Hambrick ( Arlington Swoosh) Hambrick wasn't fazed by the age difference as she attacked almost at will and finished with contact. Nice quick release enabled her to get her shot off which went in more times that not

Sarah Andrews

2020

Sarah Andrews (Lady Big Dogs) Andrews blew me away last season and I see she's grown a little and gotten stronger. She has good elevation on her shot and is deceptively quick and once she gets defenders leaning forget about it or just watch her drain it from anywhere

Deja Kelly (South Texas Hoyas) Kelly simply has it, she dropped 17 in the semifinals against a team loaded with D1 locks, need I say more? Well she can score off the dribble with either hand and sometimes plays multiple positions, all effective


Let me also say this, Andrews and Kelly are two of the top 2020's I've seen in the country and the same for Brown in the 2018 class which means there is no telling how high they wind up

2020 prospect Kelly commits

If I could pick stocks the way I pick young talent, the SEC would be investigating SJC for insider trading and over the past couple of seasons, I've told you Deja Kelly was not only a "can't miss" and a BCS lock, well the talented young 7th grader decided that the University of Texas is where she will continue after middle and high school. 2020 is a super class across the country and believe me Kelly is one of the best wearing a cape

Hoyas repeat as John Lucas All Star Weekend champions

The South Texas Hoyas defeated Elevate New Orleans last night and they closed it out with a bang winning big. The more I see this young team, the more I'm impressed with these young ladies as I see progression which is what I love watching at this age. I've spoken so much about 2020 Deja Kelly who is going to be a huge star, no question about that and although Kelly went off throughout the event, championship Sunday others came up just a big

Khatlyn Ghavidel dropped nine threes on Championship Sunday, six in the semifinal game and continues to show the ability to put the ball on the floor and score attacking the basket which is going to be huge down the stretch to give her more next level options. She and Sophia Ramos are the lone 2018 players on the team and Ramos stepped up as well all tournament draining shots from everywhere, coming up with huge steals and rebounds plus creating some problems on defense.

Speaking of creating problems on defense, 2019 Ta' Niya Jackson was all over the place as she was grabbing steals and forcing turnovers galore and in the final game she helped get the team going scoring five of their first seven on her way to 18 for the game. This is what's so impressive about the young squad, several players can go off at any time. Jessica Paz Y Puente and Jackson's games are somewhat similar, both high energy players that score and defend, which make a perfect time to drop Sara Gwin's name in the mix. Gwin is one of the most improved players I've watched over the past two seasons and she was solid as well

Kayla Bogan is also showing a vast amount of improvement. She already has good size and athleticism plus her skills set just keeps getting better. Like Kelly, she's a 2020 and like every other player I saw during the event, she has time. Speaking of having time, Lexy Valdez who is known as "Big Baby" just keeps blowing me away at the little things I'm seeing from her as she's already around six feet. Her ability to go coast to coast with the ball and score facing the basket will be huge in the long run, did I mention she was a 2021

It's going to be a joy for me to watch this team grow over the years, the hardware is great for them but watching young players who truly comprehend the game and can play, well that's truly special as so are these Hoyas

From Young Guns to March Fest Kelly continues to rise

I called Deja Kelly young, smart and had tremendous upside a few months ago after watching the young 2020 star and after watching her play up, up and away this weekend for the South Texas Hoyas at the BigTyme March Fest, add a couple of more things to list and most importantly these are two things you can't teach, heart and desire

No matter how hard she was hit, no matter how many times she was knocked down, she shook it off and came back with a vengeance. She made a few mistakes yet she didn't make the same ones twice and if you didn't know she was many years younger than her opponents, you would have amazed even more. Let's revisit the earlier "Tip Sheet" so you'll have 2020 as well

READ MORE

Let It Snow day comes to a close from #HoopAHolicsCamp

Yeah I know I said was gonna do this today or gonna do that tomorrow but I wanted the babies to get some attention first, well none of them are babies on the court, especially Big Baby, go Lex!!!!!

Peep this pic as far as just a dab of the talented players among the, how many, over 130 at the Hoop-A-Holics Camp put on by @passthaball, not @girlzprepreport, and the lead trainer was @TylerRelph10

Deja Kelly, Liz "Great" Scott, Nyah "On The Scene" Green, Kennedy Tucker, Jaden Owens and Payton Hicks. Everyone is a 2019 with the exception of Kelly who's a 2020 and if you don't think these kids are among the top players in state, some in the country, I'm talking USA not the woods, archive this and we'll check back in a few years so I can pat myself on the back yet again

The outrageous part about it is several players could be interchanged, Sydney Hardeman grew four inches in a year, those DFW Elite girls were, how did I put it, Jeffersonized and as I close , yall know one thing, I wasn't LYIN about Addison Ryan and it's plenty more

I didn't even mention Charli Collier, who has already committed to Texas, sorry Charli, and she'll be playing TV like, well TV, S/O to my girl @tatumballin4_32, go Tatum!!!!!

Always remember to stay in front of someone credible,like me, and also remember I have no agenda, I cover everyone I see, not just who you play for, so make sure you're where I am because in Texas #talentiseverywhere

One more time from session one

2026 She's Ballin Showcase quick hitter

I always take pride in trying to evaluate as many players as possible, no matter what age because I know where the bar was set years ago, I saw Brooke McCarty, Sarah Andrews and Deja Kelly in the 5th grade and called all of them #D1Locks, McCarty played at Texas and in the WNBA for Dallas, Andrews (Baylor) and Kelly (North Carolina) are seniors in high school so this sort of tells you how I know what I'm talking about, in fact in 1989, I saw the nurse slap my daughter, Sydney Colson, and my daughter slapped her back and right then I knew she had quick hands that helped her lead Texas A&M to a National Championship and multiple in the WNBA but enough of my genius that goes over the heads of many, here are a few of the 6th graders that are ahead of the game but the main thing is to keep working, this can change and be sure to be where I can see your progression

Bella Flemings
Jaidyn Gunter
Jacy Abii
Delaney Arrendondo
Beya Chase
Janea Walls

Exam passes with 2020 at #HoopAHolicsCamp

Deja Kelly and Deyonna Gaston are BCS locks, they're both on the GPR Tip Sheet coming up from the Hoop-A-Holics Camp and are two of the top 2020 players in the country. I don't need to watch videos from across the USA or teleport anywhere to make this claim, they're just that good at what they do and with that being said, so am I at what I do. Here's the kicker, there several others on the verge of big things as well

Myra Gordon is smooth as silk, she knows the game handles pressure well ad can score. Tyler Jackson and Taylor Morgan did great in the skills session and showed court sense as well during the games along with hitting some big shots. Anika McGarthy attacked well from the perimeter, not to mention knew how to create her own shot. Aleesha Orange best ball is ahead of her as she's already at the magic number of 6'0, lot's of upside

Aja Holmes was more than impressive, didn't realize she was so young until I looked at the roster. Kayla Bogan's energy level stayed up from start to finish as she brought on both ends and what I liked more than anything about Ceyenne Mass was she had a knack to be around the ball. Like Kelly, these three are from the San Antonio area

Holmes was one of many of the YOUNGSTAS that made the  PTB highlights

Read more

These stories will disappear yet they won't. Utilize the search bar features on here and the website, even Google works most of the time but the 2020 group along with the ones younger showed promise and potential in many areas which will keep the Lone Star State's well of talent from running dry

YOUNGSTAS WATCH LIST

Elevate and Hoyas recap

Elevate New Orleans and South Texas Hoyas represented well at both the All Star Weekend and 60/60 Combine

Tip Sheet from ALL STAR WEEKEND features Dynah Jones and Deja Kelly while Kelly and "don't get shook" by Brooklyn Mitchell from  THE COMBINE

Sarah Gwin just keeps getting and she made the "I see ya" Tip Sheet because I see that she's continuing to work and get better, it's all about progression, read more  See how useful the search bar is, type in the name and observe the game

The young ladies from Elevate New Orleans just keep blowing me away  read more

While Rayven Patin just continues to be #AUTO AWESOME  read more

John Lucas All Star Weekend sets stage for Championship Sunday

When I don't have to refer back ,y notes n only look at pictures and certain things just seem yo pop back into my head, that in itself is not only refreshing but easy and with the talented young players on hand this weekend, several stars shined brightly. I'll bring you a Tip Sheet later this week along with something on each team however this morning will be a recap of what happened and will happen later today

In what turned out to be "saving the best for last", the South Texas Hoyas  defeated Elevate New Orleans 35-34 in pool play. After the Hoyas Sophia Ramos opened  it up with a three, Deja Kelly had back to back and ones and it appeared that the young squad from San Antonio was about to blow this one wide open, especially when Kelly dropped a 25 footer at the buzzer to give them a 28-13 lead at the half

I had a feeling the New Orleans team would regroup, I saw them earlier and like the Hoyas, there team is loaded with talent. Kourtney Walker went to work all game and after some acrobatic shots from Brooklyn Mitchell, slowly they chipped away and by the time it was over, they Hoyas escaped with a 35-34 victory

This sets the stage for later today as GTE Red Elite, like the Hoyas won their pool. GTE will play the HTX Fire vs Elevate New Orleans winner at 4:45 while the Hoyas play the Baton Rouge Lady Tigers vs Louisiana Blue Chips winner at the same time. The winners from each play at 7:30 for the championship, the 2 vs 3 match-ups begin at 2:30. Stay tuned for much, much more

Hoop-A-Holics Camp featuring #hoyaswhat stars

Deja Kelly is going to be, wait no pressure, she's only a 2020, but when you're going to the sixth grade and playing with and against high school players and holding your own or better, that tells you about pressure, yeah she's going too be applying it

Kelly is one of several bright stars from the South Texas Hoyas that will be rolling at the Hoop A Holics Camp and here are the others

2021 Lexy Valdez

2020 Kayla Bogan

2018 Sophia Ramos

2018 Katlyn Ghavidel

2019 Jessica Paz y Puente

2019 Sarah Gwin

2019 Ta'Niya Jackson

REGISTER

Remember EARLY BIRD registration ends FRIDAY

Oh yeah, check out the youngsta 

Any more questions?

'20 Kelly ain't no baby and is ore than ready for #40/40Combine

I made a comment about Deja Kelly being able to play major minutes on  every HS team in the area last season and I'm sure some scratched their heads in disbelief however always remember, when I give you a tip, well we all know how they turn out. Wait, I ain't got time to play with yall, check this out



You're welcome!!!!!

Coming up from #All Star Weekend

 Not know what all to expect when I rolled down I-10 to cover , one thing I did know is that two of the top 2020 players I've seen would be there, Deyonna Gaston and Deja Kelly and you don't 20/20 to see that, expect hearing that a lot because it ain't getting old

What's one of the things I always say? Talent is everywhere, I even hashtagged it so what does that tell you. I knew it was going to be some very talented players scattered around along with plenty of kids with upside and even more importantly players from teams I've already seen, like GTE Elite, HTX Fire and South Texas Hoyas, that players are showing me progression

Gaston and Kelly are Tip Sheet locks, that's coming up and always remember to keep working because somebody else is. Team profiles throughout the day, Tip Sheet tomorrow coinciding with area F4 match-ups, OUT!