By: Ethan Reece
The travel season has come and gone, leaving us with a lot of impressions and thoughts on names to be excited to follow throughout the high school season. The 2026 class is next up to move into high school, and there are a lot of guys that will be making their impact felt sooner rather than later. It's early, but this is looking like a really deep class with a lot of talent that will be providing us with great basketball over the next four years. Let's take a look at the second installment of names to keep on your radar.
*Note: Our own Jeff Bendel already did two articles covering some 2026 names to watch, check them out through the links below:
Part 1: https://phenomhoopreport.com/immediate-impact-freshman-in-north-carolinas-class-of-2026/
Part 2: https://phenomhoopreport.com/immediate-impact-freshmen-in-north-carolinas-class-of-2026/
Noah Noch (Weddington)
It's an unsung hero kind of position that Noah plays. I don't think there's another guy more embracive to starring in their role and doing their job. He's a tough lead guard with the skills to direct an offense, finding looks within the framework of the offense while also unselfishly letting other guys operate and play off the ball. He's a high converting catch and shoot threat, smart ball handler with poise and grit under pressure, and is willingly adaptive to other methods to take care of his duties and makes things happen. He just cares about winning and is set on getting it no matter if he has big scoring game or not. It was also very clear that he put in a lot of work behind the scenes this season with better and better viewings enhancing his confidence and feel for the overall picture. With him heading into the successful system Weddington has been, the future looks bright for someone so coachable.
Nate Jones (Wake Christian)
I don't think anyone showed off more craft and creativity with their game this season than Nate. There are many people that say basketball is an art, and Nate certainly demonstrates a perfect example for this. The quick lefty has a full goody bag of tricks up his sleeve ready to deploy in a split second, guiding him to the basket for finishes all game where he shows his understanding of how to finish using different angles off the glass and going up fearlessly no matter who comes to contest. The good thing is that for someone who looks to drive so often, he doesn't stall the offense when the ball swings his way. He stays ready to attack with a smooth first step, assertive push-out dribble, and is able to split defenders easily with euros. A game like this doesn't go away, it wears a defense down throughout the course of a game and leaves him ready to make play after play against tired defenders.
Josh Hines (Myers Park)
While Myers Park certainly has more than enough firepower at their disposal this year with their big-name upperclassmen, they won't have to look too hard to find the next in line with Josh. He's a dynamic versatile leader that can go get you a basket at any time, but also doesn't even need to score to impact the game. His high motor, self-sacrificing will to put his body on the line throughout the course of a game for loose balls and charges, and unselfish nature to make guys better makes him the ultimate teammate and glue guy people will want to play with. His game is so adaptable to whatever the situation demands, and he has the athleticism to compete in the most physical environments. His game is best going downhill where he can see the floor and assert himself making decisions, the offense just seems to consistently have good possessions each time he gets a touch.
Jack Siegel (Providence)
In my opinion, I would say that Jack is the premier shooter in this class. His mechanics are pure from top to bottom, any clean look is almost automatic, and he has good positional size at this age to shoot over guys. What's great about him as well as that he's dangerous in any setting shooting the ball: naturally off the catch and shoot, comfortable off the bounce, and exceptional for his age coming off screens and moving off the ball getting set up before the catch with his feet for a smooth release. He has the complete mindset and arsenal from downtown, showing a high-level understanding of what a good shot is and how much space he needs to get a shot, which isn't much. And unlike most shooters at this age that fall in love with the three, he doesn't limit himself and actively looks to attack bad closeouts and create off the bounce as a consistent finisher.
Aidan Rousseau (Cary Academy)
The example is constantly being set nowadays for small ball with undersized versatile bigs. Well, Aidan is perfectly fit for the guard-centered small ball but also has the size to tower in the paint and dominate inside. Between his footwork and operating prowess on the block, and his sense for finding holes in the short corner and high post to knock down jumpers, he has the total package to build a team around. When one game is taken away, he can lean on the other. But there's always consistent production from both, as there wasn't a truly great matchup to shut him down this season. The success his team had is tribute towards all he can do and should speak for itself, as he helped lead a balanced squad to 3 championships at our events. While the production is always there and he can quietly have big games due to his calm manner, there's always room to grow and one would most likely look towards the weight room as he enters high school in this case to peak his strength aggression down low.
Tyler Brown (Cox Mill)
Tyler has shown to be a walking mismatch at times with a guard's setup in a big's body. He's typically the longest guy on the court and is very comfortable operating on the perimeter or out in transition. He has a quick steady handle with a coordinated step to blow by slower bigs in the open court or in the more condensed traffic of the lane in the half court. He has a steady and reliable inside game, finishing all around the lane, but is simply too good outside no to play to his strength that other guys can't yet compete with. He keeps his head up to read the floor, knowing when to give it up to get it back or be able to create looks for guys himself and deliver clean passes under pressure. It's certainly a different component to throw into an offensive scheme, and it will be intriguing to see how he develops over time, both in balancing the fine-tuning of his game and in hitting the weight room to put him over the edge at his position.
