My picks for “Best of the Best” at Nike BB Academy

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SANTA MONICA, Ca. – Even the most casual of basketball fans would immediately recognize the names of the “headliners” at the Nike Basketball Academy that wrapped up Monday night.

After all, I’m sure all of you have heard of fellows like LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant, James Harden, Anthony Davis, Paul George, DeMarcus Cousins and DeAndre Jordan, right?

The first three, of course, are three of the four preeminent “faces” of the Nike Basketball “brand” – the fourth, of course, being Michael Jordan, who has his Nike “brand” as those who worship at the Church of “Jordan Brand” will say a quick “amen!” to.

Jordan, now the president of the Charlotte Hornets, wasn’t in the Santa Monica Airport hangar that was converted into a four-court gymnasium for the three-day event.

But, at various times, James, Bryant, Durant, Harden, Davis, Cousins, George and DeAndre Jordan were in the hangar, and they were also joined by current (Scotty Pippen and Gary Payton) and future (and, perhaps, the best U.S. women’s player of this generation, Diana Taurasi) Naismith Hall of Fame members.

Will some of the current college and high school players who participated in daily drills, scrimmages and “games” – some of those, at various times, which included James, Harden, Davis, Cousins, George and DeAndre Jordan mixing it up with the lads – eventually reach “brand” status and wear their own model of Nike clothing and footwear?

I’ll hold off on those forecasts for now but will dive right into unveiling the names of the players – college and high school – that most impressed me over the weekend.

Until he was forced into becoming a spectator because of an inflamed left elbow late Sunday afternoon, Providence junior-to-be point guard Kris Dunn and soon-to-be LSU freshman forward Ben Simmons were the subject of a nifty little game of discussion among the NBA scouts and decision-makers (including team general managers, presidents and scouting directors) watching the action as well as the coaches who were working the camp:

“Who is the most impressive player in camp – Dunn or Simmons?”

The 6-foot-3 Dunn was hanging tough in those mini-debates – and might have been in front by a tick – prior to the elbow aggravation.

But the 6-9 Simmons is apt to immediately be the most versatile player in college as well as frontrunner for National Freshman of the Year honor in March.

Heck . . . he’s likely to garner a lot of John R. Wooden Award support by then, too.

And the Australian citizen (he enrolled at Florida’s Montverde Academy in January of 2013 and played the following two seasons for the school, bagging McDonald’s All-American and most of the Player of the Year nods as a senior) demonstrated succinctly over the weekend why that could be the scenario.

In drills and scrimmages alike the aforementioned NBA shot-callers, camp coaches and some of the current NBA players just watching were nodding and lifting eyebrows with his near-stunning display of ball-handling (he’s left-handed, for the record but ambidextrous in reality), passing, rebounding, jump shooting and resounding finishes in traffic.

A lot of things can change over the next 51 weeks, of course. But, for now, the most compelling question about the 2016 NBA Draft will center on trying to find a likely candidate to be selected second after Simmons’ shakes hands with Adam Silver.

Rounding out my “all-Nike Basketball Academy team” – college-style – are forward Kyle Wiltjer (Gonzaga), center Damian Jones (Vanderbilt) and guard Malcolm Brogdon (Virginia).

Wiltjer was the best jump shooter – at least from deep – among the 26 college players in attendance.

He seems to have perfected a nifty mid-range arsenal as well, flipping in a bunch of 8-to-10 footers after selling over-zealous defenders with hard ball- and head-fakes.

Brogdon is one of the reasons why the Virginia Cavaliers could win a third consecutive Atlantic Coast Conference title despite the loss of Justin Anderson to the NBA with a season of eligibility remaining.

Two of the very best “true centers” in college were in the camp and Jones got the edge for his weekend effort – by the slimmest of margins – over Jakob Poeltl of Utah.

A couple of college players currently short of “household names” status were terrific as well.

Forward James Webb (Boise State) jump shot as impressively as any college player at the event who isn’t named Kyle Wiltjer.

And, if the camp had been extended by another session or two, 6-6 DeAndre Bembry (who will be a junior at Saint Joseph’s this September) might have usurped a Top Five spot for himself.

The results of the Monday night playoffs – made up of the six camp teams – made selecting a Nike Basketball Academy “Most Outstanding High School Player” – the breeziest of breezes.

And 6-8, 260-pound (give or take . . . with more “giving” likely on the second figure) Omari Spellman was probably the legitimate choice even if he hadn’t helped the “Clippers” knock off the “Lakers”, 32-23, in the 16-minute championship “game”.

Spellman (who will be a senior at the MacDuffie School in Granby, MA, and plans to sign a letter of intent with Villanova in November) was pretty much “same ol’, same ol” in his team’s two playoff games after its first-round bye.

In his case, that meant doing what he had done the first 2 ½ days of camp drills and games – crushing foes in the low post with dunks and assorted other “power” (to the nth degree) moves, knocking in 15- to 18-footers and snatching ever rebound opportunity within a step of him at either end of the floor.

He isn’t the best “power forward” in the national class of 2016 – that would be Harry Giles (High Point, NC, Wesleyan Christian), who is playing for the U.S.’s 19-Under squad in Greece right now.

But, based upon assertive and productive performances at the Pangos All-American, NBPA Top 100 and Nike Basketball Academy events, the gap between he and Giles is steadily tightening.

The remainder of my “All-Camp” first team are guards De’Aaron Fox (Cypress, TX, Cypress Lakers) of the Clippers and Malik Monk (Bentonville, AR, Bentonville) of the Cavaliers; and forwards Jonathan Isaac (Bradenton, FL, IMG Academy) of the Pacers and Tyler Cook (St. Louis Chaminade Prep) of the Cavaliers.

Full disclaimer: I’m one of the individuals who helped “evaluate” the athletes for Nike’s grassroots wing during the competition.

But the aforementioned “all-camp selections” are my opinions alone and do not reflect any input from either Nike employees or others who attended the camp as spectators.