Tyree Johnson

Many top Philadelphia high schools battled it out at La Salle's team camp over the weekend.  CAA Insider was on hand Sunday to take in the action.  Here is a look at some of the top players.

Penn Wood 

Tyree Johnson (2010, 5-8 PG)
It wasn’t the best we saw Tyree play, but he did get going after a slow start.  His jumper wasn’t falling in this one.  Therefore, he adjusted his game and did an excellent job of creating off the dribble.  He’s a superb ball handler who gets into the lane with ease.  He did a fine job of finishing. 

Tyree also found his teammates quite often after breaking down the defense.  He drew a number of fouls in addition to all of that.  Tyree was certainly the key to the Penn Wood victory.

Duane Johnson (2009, 6-4 SF)
This guard is also very good at working inside and taking advantage of Tyree Johnson’s ability to break down the defense. Duane had several lay-ins around the goal, including a nice reverse. He had a steal and lay-up as well. He pulled down quite a few boards too in the win.

Thomas White (2009, 6-8 PF)
Thomas benefited the most from Tyree’s passing. He did a good job positioning himself inside to get easy lay-ups. He did most of his damage around the rim. In addition to the lay-ups, he had several offensive rebound put backs. Thomas already has good size and moves fairly well. He also displayed decent hands and touch around the rim. He had a huge game on the boards too. This was definitely the best we’ve seen Thomas play.

Academy of the New Church

Shannon Givens (2009, 5-10 PG)
This lead guard had a good game. He was at his best distributing the ball. He had several nice drive and dish plays. Shannon mostly attacked off the dribble or scored in transition. He missed the lone outside shot that we watched him take. 

Warren Gillis (2010, 6-1 SG)
Warren played a solid game. The smooth handling lefty will be asked to step up this year for ANC. If Sunday is any indication, he looks poised to do so. He had several nice drive and dish plays. Warren has a smooth handle and can get into the lane off the bounce. He hit on a three pointer in the first game and knocked down two more in the second game as we were taking a peak over at the other court. 

Malcolm Gilbert (2010, 6-10 PF/C)
Right now, Malcolm is more of a prospect than a player. He possesses a huge wingspan. He’s at his best rebounding and blocking shots. He had trouble finishing inside consistently in this one. Malcolm did score off a couple nice feeds, including a dunk. He does need to learn how to play more physical and aggressive. He also could benefit by improving his lateral quickness on the defensive end. Malcolm is certainly full of potential though. 

George Harper (2010, 6-7 PF)
George scored early on the inside. He also converted on an old fashioned three point play around the rim. He put the ball on the floor and was fouled going to the hoop. George rebounded well in this game too. 

Archbishop Carroll

Juan’ya Green (2011, 6-3 SG)
Juan’ya did a fine job breaking down the defense off the dribble. The silky smooth guard can get into the lane with ease and change directions. He had a beautiful left handed finish and went left on several occasions. Juan’ya also displayed good vision by passing to open teammates when the defense collapsed on him. He hit a three pointer as well, although he didn’t shoot much from the outside.

DJ Irving (2010, 5-10 PG)
This little guard is an outstanding ball handler. He can go wherever he wants on the court. He possesses a super quick crossover move. He scored from the outside by knocking down several jumpers. The form on his shot isn’t the best, but he was still effective. While he showed quickness dribbling the ball around, he didn’t look to make too many plays at the basket. It was still a good first impression that DJ made on us though in this contest.

Monsignor Bonner 

Henry Smith (2009, 6-5 SF)
Henry opened with a short turn around post jumper. He also banked home another deep turn around jumper. From the perimeter Henry hit a three pointer, a step back jumper and another tough pull up jumper. He did miss on several other deep shots as well though. Henry had a short drive and was fouled. He would certainly benefit by becoming a more effective ball handler. He grabbed an offensive rebounded and converted with a reverse. Henry was solid in the close loss. 

Jamal Melvin (2010, 5-5 2010)
This diminutive guard made several plays. He hit on a three pointer from the outside. He found his teammates on several nice drive and dish plays as well. 

Prep Charter

Jesse Morgan (2009, 6-4 PG/SG)
Jesse had a solid outing. The big lead guard scored in several ways. He hit early with a floater in the lane. He followed that up with a three pointer and then buried a pull up shot from beyond the arc. He also had a nice scoop finish to the left and converted a runner for an old fashioned three point play. Jesse was a bit inconsistent from beyond the arc. He played well though. 

Tyree "Chuck" Harris (2009, 6-7 PF)
Chuck made a couple plays. After being injured early he came back into the action. He converted on a put back from an offensive rebound. He also knocked down a deep two pointer and had a nice drive to the bucket. 

South Philadelphia

Furnell Doster (2009, 6-5 SG/SF)
Furnell got going early with two three pointers. He showed the ability to handle the ball. He scored later on with a runner in the lane and then buried another three pointer. Furnell missed several other runners though as well as a couple from beyond the arc. He had a solid game though.

Shaquille Gaskins (2010, 5-11 SG/SF)
Shaquille worked well around the rim. He scored early on a put back attempt. He also tipped in another shot. He displayed the ability to put the ball on the floor and was fouled after a drive to the rim. Shaquille had a transition dunk late. He missed on a couple jumpers though.  He’ll have to get bigger as he moves forward.

Cherry Hill West

Chris Gebhart (2010, 6-7 PF)
Chris is a very interesting player. The big man already has a decent frame and moves quite well. He’s always in motion looking to free himself up. He showed a nice set of hands. He does have trouble finishing though. Nearly every pass his teammates threw to him was a high lob pass. While he caught these passes fine, he often rushed his shot and missed on the interior. It is good to have quick moves, but Chris’ moves in the post were really too quick. While it’s good to keep the ball high, there are also times that warrant putting the ball on the floor to make a move. Chris rarely did that. He did hit a nice short jumper on one play and occasionally finished around the rim. We don’t like the style that Chris played, but we were intrigued by the skills he possesses. 

Bartram

Tyrone Garland (2010, 5-11 PG)
We expected big things from Tyrone, but he was surprisingly quiet. He struggled to find his shot in this contest. He actually looked to distribute the ball more and made several fine passes to his teammates. Tyrone was even missing some runners in the lane. He did grab a couple steals defensively. He’s certainly had and will have better days.

Abington

CJ Aiken (2010, 6-8 PF)
We only took a peak over at CJ and his new team. He did make a few plays in the brief period of viewing. He grabbed several rebounds. His most impressive one was a one handed offensive rebound which he followed up with a dunk. Playing bigger around the rim would definitely take CJ’s game to another level.