By Brian Crownover

{mosImage}The DC Assault pulled off an upset against Boo Williams in the 17 & under championship game of the Southern Invitational. Here is a look at how some of their players performed as well as several other teams. 

DC Assault

Tyree Graham (2008, 6-1 165 PG)
Tyree was fantastic for the DC Assault. This talented guard is quick and tough. He runs the floor well and scored a number of transition baskets. Tyree was also aggressive in half court sets. He understands how to finish in traffic. Tyree is a quick ball handler who can drive in either direction. He is capable of driving and dishing, but typically looks to score first. He plays bigger than he is and showed that by battling for several offensive rebounds. I thought I was going to miss out on seeing more of him as he sat on the sidelines icing his injured ankle. Even that couldn’t slow him down though as he came back after halftime and continued to be effective. The only question mark might be his outside shot, as he didn’t have many attempts from the perimeter. Tyree was instrumental for the champions. 

Ron Anderson (2008, 6-8 PF/C)
Ron is a powerful interior player. He combines a big body with some nice post skills. He hit a beautiful jump hook in one game. He was also very tough to keep off the glass as he grabbed a number of offensive rebounds. With all of the talented guards and wing players on his team, Ron’s touches were limited. He did make the most of them though. 

James Stewart (2009, 6-0 PG/SG)
James is a talented young guard who looked good while playing up with the 17s. He can do a number of things with the ball in his hands. James has a very smooth perimeter stroke and range beyond the three point line. He also can beat defenders off the bounce. 

Kris Joseph (2008, 6-7 SF/PF) Committed to Syracuse
Kris was very aggressive in the semifinal round. He has a quick handle and loves to use spin moves to free himself in the lane. He does a good job of maintaining control with that move. Kris also showed off a very good mid range jumper. His size and skill make him a very good prospect.

Jamar Samuels (2008, 6-7 210 PF) Committed to Kansas St.
Much like Kris, the other talented DC Assault forward was on the attack. He was very aggressive going at the hole and had several nice transition finishes. The athletic forward can be a real matchup nightmare for the opposition. 

Carolina Raptors

DeMarquis "Dee" Bost (2008, 6-2 SG)
The Raptors are led by a talented guard trio. Dee is the biggest of that group. He has the range to hit his jumper from anywhere on the floor. His stroke is smooth and efficient. Dee made several nice plays when driving to the basket as well. He used a finger roll to score one of his conversions in traffic. 

Damier Pitts (2008, 6-0 PG)
Damier is a small, but quick penetrating guard. He loves to attack the basket off the dribble. He wreaked havoc early in the 2^nd half with his ability to get into the lane with a high frequency. Damier also showed he can hit from three, but he is clearly more comfortable going at the rim.

Darius Johnson-Odom (2008, 5-11 PG)
For awhile, it was tough to distinguish the trio of guards. Darius made one play that really helped him stand out though. He drove at the hoop from the left side and exploded with a monster right handed jam. That was quite an impressive move for such a small guard. Darius is very good at using either hand off the dribble. He actually loves to drive with his off hand and pull up for mid range jumpers. It does initially throw the opponent off guard, but he was also blocked once because it took him too long to transition the ball from his right to left hand. When he is able to create space, Darius has a very good mid range shot and he can hit from deeper as well. He also showed off more of his athletic as he blocked a shot in one contest. Darius looks to be a pretty good mid major prospect and possibly higher with his athleticism. His ability to setup teammates may determine what level he goes to. On this day, he didn’t show he was capable of doing so. 

Daquan Brown (2009, 6-9 210 PF/C)
Daquan is an athletic big man. He blocked several shots in this contest. He was also solid on the boards. With the talented guards on his team, Daquan’s offensive touches were limited. He did show some pretty quick ball handling skills for his size though.

Grand Strand's Finest

Lashad Stuckey (2008, 6-8 PF/C)
Lashad is an athletic forward who still looks like he is refining his skills. It seemed like he had a poor play for every good play he made.  Lashad had an impressive throw down, but also missed on a dunk attempt. He displayed a nice short hook shot, but threw up an airball when he attempted a mid range jumper. Lashad was active on the boards. His minutes were somewhat limited due to foul trouble. He is definitely a player with potential, but he also does need some work. 

Rashad Stuckey (2008, 6-8 PF/C)
Much like his brother, Rashad is an athletic forward. He has a very long body and threw down a nice dunk in this contest. He’s more of a prospect than a player right now.

Michael Myers (2008, 6-2 PG/SG)
Michael is a guard with a very quick handle. He loves to push the ball and use his speed to beat the defenders. In the half court offense, he showed a solid pull up jumper. At times, he was out of control and it caused him to make poor decisions or take bad shots. Slowing down some could help his game tremendously. 

Northeast Basketball Club

Ruben Balkum (2008, 6-4 SG)
Ruben can flat out score the ball. He had one of the high scoring games throughout the weekend. I only caught a few minutes of his game, but he sure left a lasting impression. He hit double figures quickly by scoring in a variety of ways. He’s very smooth and always seems under control. Ruben drained mid range jumper after mid range jumper. He buried several threes as well. The lefty can also distribute the ball. On one play, he dished off in mid air when he looked poised to shoot the rock. He doesn’t possess an explosive handle, but is very sound with the ball in his hands and understand how to get himself good looks. Ruben looks like he could be a very good mid major shooting guard. 

NOVA United Blue

AJ Price (2008, 6-4 SF)
AJ is an athletic and long-armed wing player. He can play inside and outside. He hit a difficult deep pull up jumper. He handles the ball well and can score in transition. AJ can also set up into the paint and score with his back to the basket.

Team NJ Elite

{mosImage}Quintrell Thomas (2008, 6-8 240 PF)
Quintrell is a fantastic post player. He opened with a quick turn around move and scored on several other moves throughout the contest. He has great hands, beautiful touch and swift feet. He also plays very physical and is active and aggressive on the boards. Quintrell is has the ability to absorb contact well. He’s an incredibly efficient scorer. He did hit a nice pull up jumper from the free throw line, but he doesn’t play away from the basket much. Quintrell doesn’t have the ideal size that high major programs look for at the center position and doesn’t seem like he plays away from the hoop as much as those type of programs typically like. However, he is getting a lot high major interest. Perhaps they are focusing in on his productively, particularly with the high level he’s played at in high school.  Next season, Quintrell will be the focal point of tradition rich St. Pat’s and should have an even great impacter than he already has made.

Dave Johnson (2008, 5-9 PG)
Dave is a very interesting player. If he were a few inches taller, he’d be a fantastic mid major prospect. The lefty is an active ball handler who can change directions quickly, often using a crossover move. He is also a heady player who can set up his teammates. Dave has a quick trigger on his pull up shot and that seems to be the favorite aspect of his game. On this day, he struggled with his jumper. He’ll have to be more consistent from the perimeter. Dave can get into the lane, but his size limits him as a finisher. He is very competitive though and will also get after it on defense.

Jameel Grace (2008, 5-9 PG)
Jameel continued to impress me with his ability to get into the lane. He has a good crossover move that he often uses to do so. 

Jahseer Bronson (2009, 5-10 PG)
Jahseer is a quick guard who can score. He can drive to the hoop using either hand. He can score in transition or step outside and bury the three.

Richmond Squires

Lenny Daniels (2008, 6-8 SF/PF)
This long, thin forward was one of the more impressive players of the weekend. He is a terrific transition player who uses his speed, length and leaping ability to score with ease. The face up forward is very active on the offensive end. When he is not blowing by defenders off the dribble, Lenny can be found battling inside for offensive rebounds. Because he always in constant motion, he has a knack for finding the ball. That also leads him to frequent trips to the free throw line. Lenny had one of the more explosive plays of the weekend with a drive and vicious throw down. He also showed he can play some with his back to the basket as he used a spin move to score in the post. Lenny is a fantastic player and no doubt a high major prospect.

James Tyler (2008, 7-2 C)
James is a massive player. He’s tough to keep off the boards or away from the basket. His size combined with solid hands and good touch around the basket makes him quite the prospect. James is somewhat slow and dominates more with power than speed. His conditioning could certainly use improvement and will likely go a long way towards determining how good he becomes.

James Mills (2008, 5-11 PG)
James is a quick, penetrating guard. He’s more of a scoring point that a distributor. He showed he’s capable of hitting the three point shot as well as a slashing to the hoop. 

Karron Johnson (2009, 6-8 SF)
Karron is a well built and very long forward. He plays on the wing a lot. He has the ability to knock down the three point shot. Karron also can beat his man off the dribble and finish in the lane. He’s a tough match-up because of his size and skill level.