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's 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 third installment of names to keep on your radar.
*Note: You can read the first two installments of names to watch through the links below:
Part 1: https://phenomhoopreport.com/2026-names-to-know-entering-high-school-north-carolina/
Part 2: https://phenomhoopreport.com/2026-names-to-know-entering-high-school-north-carolina-part-2/
Jossiah Johnson (Fayetteville Academy)
When looking at the entirety of the 2026 class, there's hardly anyone more prepared to make their presence felt immediately as a freshman than Jossiah. He's as brutally strong with a physically mature build as what you would expect from an upperclassman that is experienced in the weight room. It seems like every game he's in is extremely physical, which seems to be perfectly fine with him as he has the muscle and mindset to beat and bang with anyone. He crashes the glass consistently hard with an intent to punish turned heads, looks to dunk anything he can, and is just a natural-born athlete with crazy potential seeing as he has four more years to grow and develop his game before college. We should get to see him expand his game by stretching to the wing a bit this season at Fayetteville Academy, where he can put the raw athleticism and strength to work in motion action.
Cam Fowler (Northwood)
You can see it in certain guys when you know their setup to be special. Cam is a chippy lead guard with optimal size and length at the point to be a focal leader for a team impacting multiple levels of the game. He sets the tone for the unit with things starting on the defensive end where he can press up to fluster smaller guards, switch with the bigs down low, and secure his share of boards. Offensively, he's an opportunistic scorer that's best when working the offensive scheme and dictating the action from a distribution role. While Northwood is loaded up top with Drake Powell and the tower posts inside, I saw flashes in June of what Cam could provide in whatever minutes he finds the team needs. He's just a guy you'll want to go into battle with and know he's not going to back down no matter the opponent.
Chad Graves (Northwood)
Another prospect coming from Northwood, Chad is definitely among the top names in the class when considering the heights of certain players' ceilings. His overall offensive game is not as clearly defined to a primary role over another yet, but he showed us good signs of being a strong paint touch option as well as a versatile stretch piece. At 6'7, he handles the ball well particularly out in transition where he really pushes the ball and makes you step up or he'll punch it. He is willingly active on defense with a nose for jumping passing lanes or rotating over for blocks, which both come rather easy for him due to his insane length and surprising quickness. While his time will be limited due to the towering presences of Max Frazier and Kenan Parrish, he has a great opportunity to learn from two college-level posts before taking over the mantle.
Jaire Richburg (WS Christian)
I personally just got to see Jaire for the first time recently, but I have a feeling we'll be hearing his name a lot over the next four years. If you didn't know him, he's got the build to make you think he's a junior or senior. And typically, with guys like that at this age, they tend to lean more on the lines of athletically dominant with a skillset to develop. But Jaire has a finely tuned pallet of skills that give him a natural feel for the point guard position, which will make him a walking mismatch at a muscular 6'4 against the typical PG. He senses plays ahead of time, keeping his options ready to make the defense react to him as he gets downhill with an explosive first step. He just has a way of gliding on the way to the basket, and he keeps a high level of activity on both ends, making him a valuable cog in the mechanics of an offense and a primary lockdown presence you can assign to various matchups. He has all the makings to dominate his position with great long term upside.
Josiah Johnson-Freeman (Northside Christian)
It doesn't take long to notice how much of an impact Josiah can make on both ends. He has the size at this age when so many are still growing to pull a mismatch no matter the position he finds himself playing for any certain lineup. He can initiate an offense whether designed or in the flow of action, keeping big guys on their heels trying to cut him off or man-handling smaller guards. He's comfortable in excelling with any defensive assignment, can confidently get to a smooth mid-range pull-up stopping on a dime, and can lead primary role in scoring while keeping an unselfish manner. He knows what his game is and where the strengths lie, not trying to do too much and get away from the primary focus of winning. He'll be one to watch as someone who makes an offense run more effectively with his touches.