For the second year I’ve had the privilege of scouting ECI Team Camp in Jacksonville, NC. This camp is always very competitive and well ran by Mr. Wells Gullage, teams from around the State come in to compete and there is always a good amount of sleeper prospects that can be found, in 2014 I was able to find Robert Colon, Jaylen McManus and quite a few others that have ” blown up” since, well this year was no different, here are a few of the players that stood out and that are players that coaches should keep an eye on.
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Bobby Grubbs, Jacksonville H.S, Class of 2016, 6’3, Wing- Bobby has been battling different injuries throughout the summer, and even during this event he was not even close to being 100% healthy but you would not be able to tell by the way he played. He’s a knock down shooter that knows how to get his shot of very quickly as well as using the shot fake to free himself for open looks. Although is still improving ball handling wise he does a pretty good job of getting from Point A to Point B with minimal dribbling. Bobby is also a very unselfish player that loves to make the extra pass to his teammates just as much as he likes to score the ball, he is definitely the type of player that you love to have running an offense set on your squad because he’s not going to look for his own offense before the teams. On the defensive end he works very hard and does a good job of crashing the boards after the shot goes up, he also battles inside with taller opponents and goes for every loose ball with the attitude that each ball belongs to him. Overall Bobby was very impressive at ECI and showed many attributes that coaches at the next level love to see in a player. |
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Carter Collins, East Chapel Hill H.S, Class of 2017, 6’2, Guard- If you don’t know who Carter is, then you need to get to know him ASAP! This young man is a smooth player that can fill up a score sheet in a blink of an eye. He understands how to use step backs, euro-steps, etc. to score with ease from the perimeter, midrange and inside, he’s not afraid to take it right into the chest of a bigger opponent even though he has a somewhat slender frame. Carter also showed very impressive ball handling skills that he has uses to keep defenders guessing, he understands that the more the defender has to guess what coming next, the more vulnerable they are. He also is a gifted passer that doesn’t try to overdo it when making plays, he has some flair to his game but not much, instead he make the fundamentally sound play to teammates to complete plays for buckets. One attribute that really stuck out to me about Carter was his ability to change speeds quickly, he brings the ball up the floor at a slow pace at times but once he sees an opportunity to make a play he switches gears quickly, which is something you love to see from a Guard. |
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Shaft Parker, Farmville Central H.S, Class of 2016, 6’2, Guard- Shaft was very impressive throughout camp, he can score the ball in multiple ways and is a knock down shooter that can pull from deep at any moment. Whether it be a floater, up and under move or stopping on the dime for a pull-up he is crafty when it comes to finishing plays. Clearly he is a very gifted scorer, but shaft also knows how to be a floor general and run a squad, he has excellent court vision and is a gifted passer which was on full display during camp. On numerous occasions he hit teammates with passes in stride so that they could score easily as well timely lobs to teammates over the defense. Although he doesn’t have jaw dropping athleticism he makes it up for with solid frame and his outstanding IQ for the game, he knows what to play to make at what time and where his teammates need to be for things to be successful. His overall performance was very impressive and I looking forward to watching him again throughout the next year. |
Zach Hobbs, Northside H.S (Jax), Class of 2017, 5’10, Guard- Zach is a natural scoring guard, he can knock down shots from the perimeter at a very high rate once he gets it going and has nice lift on his shot so shooting over opponents is not an issue for him. He knows to create enough separation from his defender with different jab moves and shot fakes as well as initiating contact when he sees the opportunity to draw a foul. Throughout the game I watched he’s seemed to have very good upper body strength and embraced contact well, he has a quick first step that allows him to get by defenders and into the paint where he finished plays at a pretty high rate. One of the things that I really lied about Zach during this game was the upper body strength and foot speed he has, he picked up his man and applied constant pressure while using his strength to make his opponent as uncomfortable as possible. Using these methods he was able to force his opponent into turnovers and bad passes, he had a very successful summer thus far and will be a major piece for his H.S squad next season.
Michael Taylor, Farmville Central H.S, Class of 2016, 6’5, Forward- Michael had a very solid showing in the games that I watched him play, he has a very long wingspan and sneaky athleticism that he used on both end of the court. Offensively he finished plays above the rim and knocked down the elbow and perimeter shot, on the defensive end he blocked and contested shots as well as rebounding the ball and getting it to the guards quickly to get his teammates into transition quickly. Although I would love to see him add a little more muscle to his frame, he was very productive for his team and is versatile enough to guard forwards as well as some guards on the perimeter. Michael is a player that seems as if you don’t have to run plays for, he gets offensive boards and put backs at a high rate so he creates his own offense, he is definitely a player that we will be keeping an eye on.
Although I was unable to attend all days of the ECI Team Camp we must give a S/O to Northside (Jax) 2016 Guard Robert Colon, according to multiple sources he put on a tremendous scoring exhibition on the third day of camp, scoring 35 Points off the bench against 2A Powerhouse Kinston H.S. Robert has been tearing it up all summer and definitely turning the heads of coaches at the division 1 level.