Phenom Hoops travelled to Concord, North Carolina to check out the Concord Spiders coached by Barrett Kruegar. Last season, Concord finished with an impressive 22-6 record with losses coming to Central Cabarrus (3-times), JM Robinson (NCHSAA 2A State Champion), Northwest Cabarrus (In overtime), and in the state playoffs to traditional power Ben L. Smith. Concord has a rich tradition and hopes to get back to the state playoffs once again. While they lose their leading scorer, Johnakin Franklin (16.1 PPG), to graduation along with Kayin Thompson (11.4 PPG), the Spiders return 56% of their scoring for the 2022-23 campaign.'
Concord, like many public schools across the state, has a majority of players playing multiple sports. With seven potential varsity players still on the gridiron, Concord won't get a jump on the season until the football season ends. That being said, Coach Kruegar will rely heavily on 6'3 senior Brayden Blue, who averaged 13.9 PPG last season and sports an admirable 3.0 GPA in the classroom. Blue is a scholarship-worthy prospect and look for Blue to have a big increase in overall production. Standing a strong and lengthy 6'3, Blue has superb athleticism and excels in going downhill along with a modest midrange game. Blue was an All-Conference player and should once again be one of the top players in his conference.'
Next up, we have 6'1 senior James Smith, who averaged 12.5 PPG and also made All-Conference. The southpaw will be the team's most reliable shooting threat from the perimeter and like Blue, should have a big year for Coach Kruegar. The senior duo should lead Concord to a second-place finish once again and advance to the state playoffs.'
Outlook
Concord should have another outstanding season. That being said, Coach Kruegar will need players like 6'5 junior Jeremiah Howard (6.0 PPG), 6'4 senior Justin Garland (5.0 PPG), and 6'1 senior Jerell Reddick (4.0 PPG) to make major contributions to help fill the void and loss of Johnakin Franklin and Kayin Thompson.