Final thoughts, take a ways and stock boosters

There is no event on a national level that kick starts the beginning of the high school basketball season than the Carmel Christian Tip Off Classic sponsored by Phenom Hoops. More importantly, we will take a closer look at our final thoughts, take a ways and overall stock booster from this star-studded event. 

Number One Point Guard Nationally in the 2022 Class

6'3 Jaden Bradley came into the event with lofty expectations and he didn't disappoint. We're talking about a point guard that has excellent size, advanced basketball instincts, high basketball IQ, and one of the most unselfish and talented lead guards we have seen for his age/grade for quite some time. In the exciting 72-69 win over Carmel Christian on their home guard, Bradley finished with 21 points going 9-16 from the floor, and 3-6 from the free throw line. In addition, Bradley collected nine rebounds, dished out five assists, and had four steals while only committing two turnovers. Simply put, Bradley just has an unbelievable presence on the court and in my eyes solidified his status at the number one player in the state for his class. Bradley has the ability to make his teammates better and his poise, maturity and overall feel for the game is as good as it comes. 

Major Stock Booster

6'8 junior Ben Burnham of Carmel Christian may have had the best individual performance of the entire event. The long, athletic and extremely bouncy face up four had the game of his life. Burnham finished with a game high 31 points going 12-17 from the floor, and 7-10 from the free throw line. In addition, Burnham had 20 rebounds, six block shots, dished out two assists and event had one steal. He single handedly kept Carmel in position to win the rival game over a very talented Cannon team. In addition, Burnham played with a high motor and made one hustle play after another, whether it was chasing down a transition fast break that led to a blocked shot or just being around each and every rebound and loose ball. With all the top-level talent in the gym, Burnham individual performance may go down as one of the best and that is saying a lot.'

The Best 3-point Shooter in the State

6'0 junior Kris Robinson used the Carmel Christian Tip Off Classic as his own personal playground and literally had the 'shooting weekend' of his life. In the upset win over nationally ranked Oak Hill, Robinson lit it up for a team high 24 points going an impressive 8-12 from the 3-point line. In the game against The Burlington School, Robinson went an efficient 3-4 for a two-day total of 11-15 for an unheard 69%. Big time shooters make big time shots in big time games and Robinson's 3-point shooting at the event was simply on another level. People can talk about who's the best shooter in the state, but this past weekend Kris Robinson showed it in the biggest game of his life and for Combine Academy. 

Greensboro Day 4-peat possibilities

In my humble opinion, coach Freddy Johnson should be in the conversation as one of the best high school basketball coaches of all time. Bold statement, yes and the proof is in the numbers. Coach Johnson is in his 43rd year coaching at Greensboro Day and has an impressive resume.

His teams have won countless state championships, has been nationally ranked, but most of all has done it the right way. His teams are always well coached, execute on both ends of the court and is as good a person as he is a coach and that is saying a lot. They have won three straight NCISAA championships and returns the ACC backcourt duo of Cam Hayes (NC State) and Carson McCorkle (Virginia) and you throw in newcomers like 5'11 Brock Williams and 6'4 frosh Jaydon Young.

Many pundits were asking how in the world can you get these four talented guards to play together. Well, that question was answered in their game versus Christ School on Saturday. In the impressive 87-55 win over Christ School, Greensboro Day finished with 19 assists for the game with only nine turnovers. It was an impactful effort by the entire team, but the four-guard backcourt combined for 14 assists to only five turnovers which is almost a 3:1 assist to turnover ratio, not to mention they created 29 Christ School turnovers while having 20 steals. With these types of numbers, they're going to be a very difficult team to beat and come tournament time, there is no one in the NCISAA can touch his coaching abilities. Look for the 4-peat to become reality come February because this team like all Freddy Johnson's team has truly bought in to the team first approach that produces championship teams year after year. 

Give Liberty Heights Their Due Credit

No one coach has endured more personal setbacks and adversity than Mike Wright of Liberty Heights. Coach Wright lost two players tragically (Mikey Maddox and James Hampton). Last year, he had a talented roster, but was hit with season ending injuries to key players. Nothing seemed to go right. In addition, on their way to the Phenom National HS Showcase, their van broke down forcing them to have a running clock forfeit. That being said, Coach Wright has kept the faith and has a deep engrained passion for helping young players. Yes, Liberty Heights is not your typical school, but his players do qualify and have the opportunity to play at the next level. That being said, Liberty Heights may just be the one of the better teams in the state no one is really talking about. In their game against a strong and talented Piedmont Classical team, they won impressively 76-60 win. This year's team has plenty of length, athleticism and the combination of 6'8 Tay Williams and 6'6 Kahari Rogers showcased their talents and proved they are vastly underrated in terms of their recruitment. They have the athleticism, talent and yes coaching to be in the conversation as one of the better teams in the state.

Moravian Prep vs. Combine Academy Showdown

There may not be a bigger showdown this season than the Moravian Prep and Combine Academy contest set for Friday, November 22nd at the Phenom Gate City Classic. Moravian Prep is absolutely loaded with talent and feature Five Star Josh Hall, Shakeel Moore, Darius Davis, Luke Davis and Jamarhi Harvey (All Seniors).  On the other hand, Combine has plenty of talent as well, but the majority of their players are all underclassmen. Jalen Hood Schifino (sophomore) along with freshman sensation Robert Dillingham form a formable backcourt.  Both teams rely on pressure defense and athleticism at every position and both are in the conversation as two of the top teams in the state and should be in the conversation as national level teams and should be nationally ranked. Moravian Prep's backcourt duo of Shakeel Moore and Darius Davis may just be the best defensive backcourt regionally and maybe the country. There will be plenty of storylines coming into this game and no matter who wins the game, it will be a 'win win' for basketball in the state of North Carolina