BasketballElite.com Fab40 2017

Some scouting notes from the 2017 BasketballElite.com Fab 40 Eastern NC Regional, which invites 40 of the top unsigned players from a region to compete in front of college coaches. With over 20 college coaches in attendance and multiple media outlets, the event once again allowed those players a chance to be seen by schools who are looking to add to their rosters. With that said, here are some of my scouting notes from the event. I wasn’t able to fully scout every player since I was also involved with the game broadcasts, so I’ve only included the players I was able to make notes on in person. Video replay of the games and full rosters are also below. All schools listed by players are located in North Carolina.

Jarvez Ellis (G/F, 6’4, 2017)Village Christian – solid perimeter player with size who showed an ability to handle the ball and pass in traffic. Also showed solid deep release and good first step, able to beat defenders to the basket off of the dribble.

Emmanuel Izunabor (F/C, 6’9, 2019) Fayetteville Academy – really like the prospects of Izunabor, who has great timing on rebounds, putbacks and blocked shots. Great length and plays above the rim, and is a 2019 player who will no doubt add strength over the next two years. Izunabor is definitely a college prospect, so I’d say the next step for him is strength in order to establish rebounding position on the blocks as well as continue to improve his back-to-the-basket arsenal.

Omari Wilson (SG, 6’3, 2017) Village Christian – athletic slashing guard with an ability to play above the rim and has good timing. High level, active athlete. Showed some ability to hit from deep today as well.

China Jones (SG/SF, 6’5, 2017) Bull City Prep – big time scorer, deep shooter with high, quick, fluid release on the move. Great timing and definitely has college athleticism. Can play the 2 or 3 but looks to me to be a perfect big 2 for a college roster. Can blister teams from deep.

Liam Caswell (G, 6’4, 2018) Ocracoke HS – shifty scorer who showed an ability to finish inside repeatedly. Ability to move without the ball a plus but has good size at the guard position.

Eric Fox (F, 6’7, 2017) Apex HS – Great hands and control from Fox, who was playing at the 4 spot with Izanabor playing in the middle. Fox has good timing and can score effectively, and really took advantage of playing with another big in the lineup. Moves really well without the ball. Today looked like a stretch 4 but with continued work could fill in at the 5 and some 3 at the college level.

John Michael Wright (G, 6′, 2019) Fayetteville Academy – Quick guard who disrupted the passing lanes and showed great lateral quickness. Was able to score in transition or the halfcourt, but has a balanced game.

Samson Strickland (F, 6’6, 2017) Fike HS – Listed as a PF/C, where he would be undersized at the college level, but showed an ability to play facing the basket and really looks like he’s got the potential to be a 3. Decent footwork in the post led to several second chance points and moves well without the ball.

William Obeyni (F, 6’5, 2019) Fayetteville Academy – while I saw several forwards who showed an understanding of how to move without the ball, perhaps Obeyni was the player who I noticed the most. He did a good job of paying attention to the guards and moving to the righ spot to make himself a target and it paid off multiple times, scoring on dump offs and being in the right spot. Good hands and can finish above the rim.

Trevon Spencer (G/F, 6’3, 2019) Word of God – Despite being listed at only 6’3, Spencer had perhaps the most impressive rebounding game I saw during his first game. Extremely good timing and at times seemed to be everywhere. Athletic and active, with some good upside.

Josh Raiford (F/C 6’7, 2017) Smithfield-Selma HS – runs the pick and roll well and plays through contact in the post. Good strength.

Jimmy Sanders III (PG, 5’10, 2018) Wayne Country Day – solid ballhandler running the point and ability to get to the rim and finish against taller defenders in the lane. Puts a lot of pressure on the defense with the dribble and good end-to-end speed.

Trevor Thomas (PG, 5’10, 2019) Gray’s Creek HS – true point guard who plays heads-up and runs the offense. Good ballhandler and passer with some definite upside.

Game One Replay:

Game One Rosters:

Above The Rim (Blue)

#67 AJ Baldwin
#14 Montre Cash
#104 Jarvez Ellis
#112 Nassyr Daniels
#51 Omari Wilson
#52 Rashad Royster
#74 Shaiquan Moore
#94 Tavarus Peterson
#116 Josh Raiford
#97 China Jones

Born 2 Win (White)

#8 Devonte Petaway
#75 Cole Humphrey
#60 Liam Caswell
# 81 Deronquez Wynn
#98 John Bowen
#10 Jimmy Sanders
#92 Reggie Raynor
#80 Don Pigford
#38 Jahiri Guthrie
#89 Samson Strickland

Game Two Replay:

Game Two Rosters:

They Got Game (Blue)

#58 Jeremiah Pope
#82 D.J. Suggs
#76 Jahmari Harvey
#102 Tyree Wiggins
#103 Zaire Williams
#50 Justin Wright
#85 Xavier Boyd
#70 Jordan McNeil
#49 Messiah Barnes
#113 Marcus Richardson

Blue Chips (White)

#72 John Michael Wright
#66 Darius Spragley
#34 Malik Brooks
#64 Demetrius Jones
#115 Emmanuel Izunabor
#114 William Obeyni
#93 Eric Fox
#28 Trevor Thomas
#87 Johnathan Pearsall
#101 Trevon Spencer

Shawn Walker Jr.

Name: Shawn Walker Jr
Class: Freshman “2019”
Height/Weight: 6’3” 150
High School: Northeastern High School (Elizabeth City, NC)
Position: Point Guard
AAU Team: Boo Williams
Projected Level of Play: Division 1
Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EPreZJ-exqg
Shawn Walker, Jr.

Shawn Walker Jr. has all of the makings of a potential big time prospect. Early signs show that he’s a winner. Only a freshman for his Northeastern High School team, he’s already making a huge impact while running the show for one of the deepest high school teams in NC averaging approximately 10 points, 5.5 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 2 steals. A lengthy 6’3” point guard, Walker has had some really solid games against some very strong competition, showing some serious poise and savvy. It’s extremely early to project exactly what level of Division 1 he will eventually play at, but do not be surprised down the line to see him become one of the most highly coveted players from the area in a long time. He has elite potential.

Strengths:

Poise – For a guard to be so young and poised is a promising sign. Doesn’t get sped up and shows a ton of patience with every movement. Due to this, he operates very well in a variety of offensive sets, whether it be a slowed down half-court offense, in transition or in an up-tempo offense. Much of the same bodes for him on the defensive end, as he shows a sound understanding of team defensive concepts and communication. Possesses a very high basketball IQ.

Skill – Although he’s just a freshman and has a few more years after this season to continue working on his game, most of the skill necessary to play at the next level is blatantly already there. He handles the ball very well with both hands, shows excellent footwork defensively and is seemingly getting stronger, faster and quicker each and every game. Shows a good repertoire of crossover moves, hesitations, spin moves, floaters, step-back jumpers and throws very good lob passes and entry passes to the post.

Size for Position – Standing at 6’3’ with long arms, he’s able to see over most defenses and make some great passes that most guards can’t pull off. He’s also able to cause some havoc defensively against opposing guards using his length and from being aggressive on defense. As said before, he’s only a freshman so he may not be done growing.

Areas for Improvement:

Free Throw Shooting – While he is not a bad free throw shooter, there is some room for improvement. As the seasons go by, he will start to get to the free-throw line more and more due to his ability to get in the lane and handle the ball. Becoming a better free throw shooter will make him so much tougher to guard, as teams will not want to risk putting him at the line.

Muscle – Being that he is extremely young and only a freshman, it’s only expected that he doesn’t have a ton of weight. As of right now, bigger and stronger guards can move him out of position and make his drives in the paint tougher by getting really physical with him. With some added muscle over the off-season, expect his recruitment to really heat up maybe even as early as this coming summer.

Photo Credits: DailyAdvance
Video Credit: MrSTDaGhost (YouTube)

A quick roundup of some of our BasketballElite.com scouts Tweets this week!

Charles Clark

Charles is the point man for the Fab 40 Eastern NC Regional, which is coming up March 26!

Ian Taylor

Tony Bruton

James Blackburn

Marcus Shockley