By: Kevin Moses
Will McCraryÂ
Twitter: @willmccrary_22
Height: 6’5 with a 6’10 wingspan, 200
Class of 2026
School: Jackson Co. High School, TN
McCrary is a dynamic big who is fast, crafty, and athletic. A dominating force with his back to the basket or off the bounce. He can destroy a defense with his size, length, and ability to score with either hand. Will is an explosive finisher around the rim and has a nasty mid-range game. Solid ball-handling skills make him a tough cover for anyone his size. Will also gobbles up boards like candy. Call him the Windex man. He can drop a nice dime but he is a ruthless defender who made a habit of throwing himself a block party. Reads passing lanes well which allows for a lot of steals. This stud is a beast on both sides of the ball that checks every box.
Last season as a freshman, Will played up with 24s and 25s with a team made up from the Upper Cumberland area in middle TN. Will finished with 430 points in AAU while averaging 17.9 points per game. The experience gained was a tremendous boost for Will heading into his sophomore year. The payoff, Will started every game and never came out. In that AAU session, they either won or came in second in every single tournament last year. In the sophomore school season, it was a learning one for this team. With only one senior and nine sophomores there was a ton of growth and development that had to happen through the fire and boy did this bunch deliver. They kept grinding every day as they figured it out, building strong chemistry and a tight bond of brotherhood every step of the way. They were 5-3 in District play and in that last week of the regular season, things really began to click. They ran their way to the District Championship and battled through region to that championship making it all the way to sub-state, with one senior! During this run, Will was a huge inspiration scoring 20+ points in nearly every postseason season game while averaging 15+ rebounds a game. Team boxouts aided in easy rebounds and believing in themselves, they knew they could be dangerous and it all came together at the right time. With guards that can light it up from outside it made Will’s job that much easier as they really opened things up for him inside. In this 23-24 season and postseason run Will scored 690 points, adding 391 rebounds, 65 blocks, 58 assists, and 48 steals. in 22-23 Will already was named District 5-2A All-Freshman Team and followed this up by earning the 23-24 District 5-2A MVP, District Tournament MVP, All-Region, Upper Cumberland Reporter All-2nd Team, the Upper Cumberland Reporter All-Defensive Team and according to Max Preps Will led the state in in 2A for double-doubles with 17 and in rebounding with 12.2 per game while finishing 4th in scoring averaging 22.1 points per game. Along the way, Will set a school record with 44 points versus 4A Ooltewah. His coach even nominated him for Mr. Basketball.Â
What sets Will apart from most bigs is his game is multifaceted, and deceiving. It is shocking seeing how fast Will is with quick feet and great footwork. He can kill defenders with a high jump shot, fast turnarounds, and explosive spin moves off the bounce. Throw in that deadly left-hand finisher, while being lethal from 15-16 feet (62% during the season). Tough for any other big man to match that. Will’s goals for this AAU session are to improve his 3-point shot, to keep improving his ball-handling skills, and to be more dangerous from every aspect on the court. Will could always do these things but hasn’t really had the chance to show these parts of the game a lot and with his dominant play style down low it’s understandable why he wouldn’t. Playing for Bailey Gilliam Basketball again he will be competing against nothing but juniors in more high-profile tournaments again. Will always pushes himself to continue to get better and feels like playing up always aids in that mission. Having to play against bigger, stronger guys pushes and challenges Will to the max, having to figure out exactly how to excel and thrive against them. It’s not about trophies or medals per se but that grind to improve. against older and better players, not his age. Will’s biggest drive will be to get stronger and better putting in the work needed to do just that. This is the plan that his trainers, coaches, and parents have put together for Will. This young star is a testament that hard work and consistency pay off. As far as the goals for the upcoming season are to repeat as District MVP, be a Mr. Basketball Finalist, be named The Cumberland Player of the Year, and get to that state tournament.