NEW LONDON, Conn. – The Super 16 Showcase started out as a one-day showcase near the end of the first live period in July. It was simply a couple of games for a number of teams in front of college coaches at that time. Now, it is held on Memorial Day weekend and is a tournament, with the oldest age groups playing in a bracketed format from start to finish. A trip to Connecticut College was in order on Saturday to check out some of the action.
Here is a look at some of the players we saw in action on Saturday.
Chris Braley (6’4″ Jr. SG, Newport (ME) Philips Exeter Academy) It wasn’t the best day for this well-built wing, who has had a nice spring. He got some shots off the bounce, but struggled to finish often on the day, and that included when he posted up a smaller guard.
Alec Brennan (6’8″ So. PF, Weston (MA) Milton Academy) In a losing effort, he showed nice progress with more assertive play inside. He’s often lacked aggressiveness, but here he rebounded very well and took a lot of contact inside, drawing fouls often and getting to the line. Simply put, he was tougher and more aggressive, two things he has lacked in the past, and that’s good to see as he already has a lot of other tools.
Khalil Dukes (5’11” Jr. PG-SG, Hartford (CT) Capital Prep) As has been the case before, he put up a number of questionable shots and at times struggled as a result. He’s really an undersized shooting guard, as he hunts his shot far more than he tries to create for others. In his team’s second game of the day, he shot better en route to 23 points, although the selection wasn’t much better, although he did make a nice pass in transition and showed that he could finish with the left hand.
Daniel Garvin (6’6″ Jr. SF-PF, Bethel (CT) High) Athletic forward was active at both ends of the floor and is an intriguing prospect. He got his share of stickbacks and showed some skills for the wing even though he often played inside, and was a nice complementary player for his team.
Levy Gillespie (6’2″ So. PG, Hartford (CT) Capital Prep) Not a flashy point guard, he’s effective at running the team despite not being loaded with physical gifts. He helped lead his team to two wins on the day by getting his teammates going and hitting a few shots in the flow of the offense, including from long range.
Juwan Gooding (6’0″ Fr. PG-SG, Milton (MA) High) Lefty guard has developed more of late but still has a ways to go physically. In his team’s second game, he went for 25 points with four three-pointers, and that followed a pattern of him shooting well on the day. He also defended well in the latter outing, something he’s capable of doing.
Mustapha Heron (6’3″ SG-SF, West Haven (CT) St. Joseph School) One of the best players on the floor on Saturday, this eighth grader has a good body for his age and was constantly in plays at both ends of the floor. The lefty was relentless, finishing with contact, getting a number of stickbacks and loose balls, and while he knocked down a shot from long range, that doesn’t appear to be his forte. A plus athlete, he went for 15 points in one game and 18 in the second.
Malik James (6’1″ So. PG, Dorchester (MA) Brighton HS) A quick and athletic guard, he’s playing a bit out of position on a team with several point guards and had some good moments here. He wasn’t very aggressive in his team’s first game, but he was better in the second one. While he showed he can pass, especially on the go, he also committed a dumb foul after a miss on one play and telegraphed a pass that led to a breakaway layup later.
Chris Lee (6’5″ Sr. PF, Lexington (MA) High) An undersized power forward with a mature body, he’s not the most athletic and could stand to get in better shape but was quite effective. He showed a touch from mid-range off the glass, finished with contact a couple of times and drew fouls often, fearlessly going to the basket. Next year, this scholarship-level forward will be a post-graduate at Brighton Academy.
Peter Miller (6’9″ Jr. PF, Winchester (MA) Northfield Mount Hermon) His evolution into a solid Division I prospect continued here, and as was the case before it didn’t mean big numbers. He demanded the ball, showed a quick baseline post move to score, mixed it up inside and did some good work facing up and passing. All in all, it’s a solid evolution and he has the look of someone playing with confidence.
Harry Rafferty (5’11” Sr. PG, Durham (NH) Berwick Academy) Lefty point guard has a mature body and a nice feel for the game. He’s capable of affecting the game without scoring, but he can also be deadly from long range and showed it with four three-pointers en route to 19 points in a losing effort. While he isn’t very quick, he drove effectively and even finished over a big man one time. Next year, he will do a post-graduate year at Philips Exeter Academy.
Shawn Strickland (5’10” Jr. PG, Middletown (CT) High) More of a scoring point guard, his jumper wasn’t going early in his team’s first game, but he got going a little later. He’s a capable shooter, hitting one off the bounce from mid-range and effectively driving later.
Jared Terrell (6’2″ So. SG, Weymouth (MA) New Hampton Prep) Although he took over his team’s second game of the day at times in the final minutes, this well-built and athletic guard coasted up to that point. That’s something he can’t do, as he’s not a great shooter and this time around was no different, and his shot selection is still most generously described as a work in progress.
Jared Wilson-Frame (6’4″ Fr. SG-SF, Windsor (CT) High) For a lot of Saturday, this talented and well-built wing struggled to score, especially with his jumper. When he got a dunk in his second game of the day, it seemed to get him going, and despite his struggles shooting he didn’t let it affect other parts of his game. In particular, he made a nice long inbounds pass for a buzzer-beating layup.
Other players who caught our attention:
Chris Baldwin (6’6″ Fr. SF, Marlborough (MA) Hillside School)
Paschal Chuckwu (7’0″ So. C, Westport (CT) Trinity Catholic HS)
Trevor Dow (6’7″ So. PF, Needham (MA) High)
Adrian LaFleur (So. SG, Providence (RI) LaSalle HS)
Will Joyce (Jr. SF-PF, Piscataway (NJ) Tech)
Josh Ortiz (So. PF, Manhattan (NY) Center HS)
Chris Robinson (6’2″ So. SG, Bronx (NY) Cardinal Hayes HS)
