What We Learned: Best of the Best FL
Apopka, Fla – The ‘Showcase Season’ for Florida high school basketball players jumped off Saturday with the fifth annual Best of the Best Florida at the CPS Sportsplex in Apopka. Due to hurricane Irma, and its aftermath, several prospects from South Florida were unable to attend. Still, there was plenty of talent in the building and so was FlaVarsity.com.
Here is who stood out to us:
His day: A long, slender and athletic forward Walker was an effective rebounder and defender. We really liked his motor and his work on the offensive glass. His ball handling under pressure is improving. Walker ran the floor with ease Saturday getting transition points and showing his considerable upside. He is currently ranked No. 85 in the 2019 Rivals150.
Recruitment: Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Florida State, Georgia Southern, Georgia Tech, Iowa State, Louisville, LSU, Memphis, Mississippi State, Oklahoma State, Pitt, Saint Louis, UCF, USF and Vanderbilt have offered.
His day: Anderson is always productive when he is on the floor, even when bothered by a sore ankle as he was Saturday. A nice combo forward with ball skills Anderson was an inside-outside threat Saturday. He can shoot it with range and if a defender tries to take that away Anderson can put it on the floor and score at the rim. Anderson debuted in the 2019 Rivals150 last month at No. 127, but he has the look of a Top 100 prospect.
Recruitment: Arkansas State, Dayton, Florida Gulf Coast, Florida International, Iowa State, Kansas State, North Florida, Old Dominion and USF have offered.
His day: Jones is quick and has some wiggle to his game and is a creative passer who can deliver the ball at the correct time. A good ball handler, who is ball tough, Jones can over dribble at times but didn’t make a habit out of it. We like how he makes use of his pull up in the mid-range. Jones is an intriguing prospect who left us wanting to see more of him.
Recruitment: Florida International, USF and Tennessee Tech have offered
Extra: Jones, wearing No. 7 in green, did have one of the more entertaining moments of the day.
His day: J.J., as he’s known, has a great first step and used straight line drives to get to the basket to score or get fouled and get to the free-throw line. As he becomes a more consistent jump shooter he will become more difficult to defend. Harris has enough lateral quickness on defense to keep opposing guards in front of him and keep them from penetrating to the rim.
Recruitment: Stetson has offered.
His day: Ball handling, court vision and passing skills are what stand out when you watch Niblack. He was the best ball handler we saw Saturday. He was able to get wherever he wanted to on the court either on the break or in half court situations. Niblack understands how to advance the ball quickly with two or three dribbles or one quick advance pass. He sees the floor well, setting teammates up for easy shots. If he has time and space he’ll knock down jump shots with range.
Recruitment: Holds offers from Florida Gulf Coast, Stetson and USF.
His day: Neal showed that he will not hesitate to launch an open jumper from beyond the arc and his accuracy is good enough to keep defenses honest. He has the speed and quickness to push the ball in transition and to get the ball deep into the paint. His ball handling is okay but he is reluctant to use his left hand against pressure.
Recruitment: Florida International James Madison and Stetson have offered.
His day: Rodman is a big-body power forward/center with a back-to-the-basket game. He is mobile and has soft hands. Rodman has good touch around the rim and is a good area rebounder. The further away he is from the basket, the less effective his game is at this point in time. Rodman needs to continue to improve his conditioning, he seemed to tire quickly. We like his upside and plan to see more of Rodman.
Recruitment: He holds no offers at this time.
Russ Wood is a contributing national basketball recruiting analyst for Rivals.com and FlaVarsity.com. You may click here to follow him on Twitter.