COLORADO SPRINGS – A likely sizeable chunk of 2020 McDonald’s All-American team was on display over the weekend at the USA Olympic Training Center during the USA Basketball
Twenty-one of the 84 players who showed up (some didn’t play, or were limited in activities, because of injury) are seniors.
Ten of those fellows did a nice job of convincing me that – barring injury or any other calamity – I’ll vote for when I cast McDonald’s All-American ballot
The first and foremost among thing, of course, is Evan Mobley (Rancho Christian in Temecula, CA).
Mobley (pictured) – close enough to be 84 inches in height to be called a 7-footer – did a bang-up job, over the three days, of demonstrating why he’s the consensus No. 1 player in the class.
Three other 2020 bigs who were outstanding, as well, were 6-8 Greg Brown III (Austin, TX, Vandergrift), 6-10 Day’Ron Sharpe (he’s from Greenville, NC, but attends Montverde Academy in Florida) and 6-10 Isaiah Todd (Raleigh, NC, Trinity Academy).
Brown (with Jalen Green) was one of the two most explosive jumpers at the camp. His dunk (over the top of sophomore Jaxon Kohler) Sunday morning was the most wicked of the weekend.
Sharpe showcased the best combination of size, strength and low-post offensive feel that was on display.
And Todd is the kid in the 2020 class with the size and skill (especially from the perimeter) that comes the closest to approximating Mobley.
Scottie Barnes (Montverde, FL, Academy) – who committed to Florida State the day after the camp concluded – is, at about 6-7 and 220 pounds – is an especially quality ball handler, passer and defender. The lack of a consistently on-target jump shot is his most glaring weakness right now.
And five guards from the class solidified – again, IMO – their McDonald’s AA aspirations over the three days of drills and scrimmaging.
Those were – in alpha listing – Josh Christopher (Lakewood, CA, Mayfair), Green (from Fresno but playing for Prolific Prep in Napa this season), Caleb Love (St. Louis Christian Brothers), Adam Miller (Chicago Morgan Park) and Bryce Thompson (Tulsa Booker T. Washington).
Christopher, among the more prolific scorers in the class, had a solid weekend as a defender and playmaker.
The range – and accuracy – on Green’s jumper continued trending in Colorado Springs. And, of course, he a nice assort of high-flying dunks in the mix.
No one jump shot with more consistent accuracy – from any range – than did the left-handed Miller, the No. 1 prospect from Illinois in the class.
Thompson may be the most “complete” shooting guard in the class although he doesn’t have the size and vertical pop that Christopher and Green possess.
And, the guard that most impressed me over the weekend was future UNC Tar Heel Love. He scored just about any way he wanted on each day.
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