BAY LAKE, Florida – Sandwiched between the second and third live periods in July, the Hoop Exchange hosted the Hoop Exchange/AAU Player Experience at ESPN’s Wide World Of Sports on Monday and Tuesday.
The two-day event featured coaches from TNT Elite Hoops putting players through NBA style combine testing, skill sessions, and half court three-on-three and four-on-four games as well as full court five-on-five games.
Rivals Contributing National Basketball Recruiting Reporter Russ Wood attended both days and here are a few players who caught his attention:
Redrick Hill, Jr: A lean 6-foot-5 rising sophomore at Florida Prep, Hill hit several three-pointers during drills and games. His showed good court awareness, finding the open man against double teams and immediately posting up a smaller defender.
Caleb McCarty: The Biloxi High School wing made an impression on Monday with his rebounding. At 6-foot-5 he is a long, thin and bouncy athlete who showed that he was willing to mix it up on the glass. Just a rising freshman, McCarty seemed a bit worn down by the final game on Tuesday. Nevertheless, we like the youngster’s upside.
Lorenzo Harrison: Another Florida Prep prospect, we liked how Harrison was able to get to the rim, score or draw contact. He showed pretty good decision making for a rising freshman as well as good quickness on defense. We definitely want to see more of the 6-foot-3 guard.
Ahmad Johnson: A rising 6-foot-3 junior at Charlotte (Punta Gorda, Fla.) HS, Johnson did a little of everything in games we watched. He utilized the mid range to score, made smart passes to get his teammates involved and he went after rebounds.
Makai Reaves: Like Johnson, Reaves is a 6-foot-3 rising junior at Charlotte (Punta Gorda, Fla.) HS. One of the things about Reaves that stands out right away is his defensive toughness. He looked comfortable at either guard position and hit some near NBA three-pointers. Reaves showed good ball handling skills.
Russ Wood is a contributing national basketball recruiting analyst for Rivals.com and InsideTheGators.com, RunningTheBulls.com and FlaVarsity.com on the Rivals Network. You may follow him on Twitter HERE
