By: Ethan Reece
Throughout the season at Phenom Hoops, we have countless talented teams come through our events and catch the eyes of our scouts. I’ve personally had the pleasure of watching this Basketpoint 2025 group numerous times as they’ve been a feature team in our 15u division, making championship game appearances a routine. This group brings a tough, disciplined brand of basketball you don’t commonly see in travel ball. They work as a unit, compete on both ends with a common purpose and clear chemistry, and have shown to truly embrace the next-man-up mentality. As we take a look at their roster, know that there are several names here that you will start to hear more and more as they will be making a statement in the Triad area over the next years.
Kenny Miller (Southwest Guilford)
Starting out with a lead guard that I think will have a breakout year for the Cowboys, Kenny brings a high IQ that is compatible with his overall well-rounded game to lead a team from any of the guard spots. He’s a savvy playmaker with a natural feel to make decisions off the bounce, a comfortable pull-up threat, and a quality finisher who knows how to get his off script or within the offense. Having hit a sizable growth spurt in the last year, his length really makes him an intriguing matchup with his ability to rise over closeouts to knock down threes, really push the dribble out and have a wide range of control on the ball, as well as his ability to defend and reliably switch onto big guys and wall up. His production was a constant all season no matter the style and he shows a good understanding of how to impact the game.
Martin Giant (Southwest Guilford)
Moving onto another breakout candidate of mine for the Cowboys, Martin is a true x-factor when it comes to having a guy set the tone for a team. He brings versatility within his raw athletic frame, having proven he’s capable of switching 1-5 and handily locking down opponents with his length and on-ball pressure. His activity and motor are simply tough to match, combine that with his smart guard play and avid pressure to be on the constant attack, and he wears a team out. He’s a polished finisher with a developing jump shot, a poised competitor that habitually makes the right plays, and you better watch your head if you give him enough runway to take off and attack the basket. He’s shown to be fearless and doesn’t care who is on the other side of the ball: full-on dog mentality. Given how long his older brother Henry is, it should be scary for guys to think about Martin getting to be 6’6 with his skills and ruthlessness.
Byron Arant-Coleman (Southeast Guilford)
While many guys on this team embrace this role to a respectable degree, Byron is undoubtedly the swiss army knife on this roster. While being an inch or two shorter than Kenny and Martin, he gets down and does his work from inside and out. His sheer physicality allows him to outwork bigger guys in the post to the point of it being like clockwork. He has excellent finishing touch with footwork and moves, he isn’t afraid of any contact, and he times his jumps to snag boards away before guys have even made attempts at it. He brings the same approach on defense with the intent of making you back out of the post away from his brute force. He’s what makes a team that may be a big undersized work. His effortless approach on offense in finding the holes to expose a defense with open shots is uncanny, and he’s more than capable of excelling on the perimeter against anyone as well. But it’s his chippy edge and basketball mind to provide for the team in invaluable ways that makes him special.
Dalton Johnson (Piedmont Classical)
The Bobcats’ backcourt is much younger this year, and Dalton is comfortably suited at the helm with the full setup at his disposal to lead an offense. Out of all the interchangeable guards on this roster, he most truly suits the point guard M.O. He’s a heady game manager with a tight handle on the ball, a natural feel for all the moving pieces around him, and typically is at his best getting penetration into the heart of a defense and finding options for guys to have open looks. He has craft with his handle and passes without ever getting too flashy or making mistakes with turnovers, keeping a high AST:TO ratio and spreading the wealth. And while primarily playing the facilitation role, he has shown to be a capable scorer who can have big games and be called upon to create when needed.
Moving on down the roster, these next guys have all been impressive starring in their own roles this season and giving value as unsung heroes making contributions you won’t find in the scorebook. It’s guys like this that truly define how good a team can be, giving depth and staying at the ready no matter when they’re called upon.
Gavin Pearson (Northwest Guilford)
One of the great things about seeing teams multiple times over the stretch of the season is noting the strides players are making in their games. And Gavin is near the top of my list for most improved. He made his value clearer and his presence felt more and more with each viewing, displaying a smoother sense for everything around him and knowing what to do without hesitation. He operates primarily as an off-ball threat seeing as he’s probably the team’s most dangerous shooter with his quick release and constant at-the-ready position, but he also showed flashes at getting to floaters while also embracing the competitive tone of the overall unit.
Christian Johnson (Southwest Guilford)
Something about this 2025 class at Southwest, they’re extremely competitive with a tough edge to them. Christian embodies a fighter’s tone that you want to go into battle with. He has a frame to compete and play much bigger, finding himself holding down the post and excelling in fulfilling his small ball duties. He’s a reliable finisher, doesn’t look to force things outside of his game, and is a bruiser on the boards going after balls with two hands and being balanced on both feet. If you’re ever wondering how someone can get so many minutes without being a major scorer, watch Christian play and you’ll see how valuable his toughness is.
Javier Tinnin (Williams)
The key to having great depth is not only in the amount of talent you have on the bench, but also primarily lies in if you have a point guard to come in and lead the second unit. Javier comes in and does his job at the point. Another more true point guard like Dalton, he constantly looks to create looks for others and is reliable in making the proper reads with the ball in his hands. And much more importantly, like the others, he simply competes and looks to be very comfortable enjoying himself in intense games, whether on the court or as a loud voice from the bench.
Khaleb Satterfield (Williams) and Dylan Pruitt (Grimsley)
Concluding with the two true posts on this team, these two both find the means to stay involved and produce in various ways in a guard-oriented environment. Khaleb leans more on the versatile side of post play with deceiving quickness and a reliable handle to stretch the floor. He has square frame and makes sure to play with it, consistently finishing at the basket whether posting or driving and he’s confident in switching out onto the guards in handoff or pick-n-roll situations. Dylan, on the other hand, is the traditional post up option that completes the checklist for this roster. He finds good positioning and stays grounded, scoring off the glass and making an emphasis on controlling the glass. He’s also shown to be timely in hitting shots within the offense, particularly from the short corner. Nevertheless, both these guys stick out in the sense of playing their games and not buying into needing to be a guard like everyone else, something rarely found in bigs these days.
Needless to say, this team has impressed me this season, both as a unit and as individual prospects. You’d be hard pressed to find a group more disciplined, tough, and coachable. They start and end things with defense, regularly keeping opponents under 50 and showing schemes that take a great deal of practice to perform and run at the efficiency level they do. These guys will all be making big impacts on their school teams this upcoming season, and if this group stays together with the attention to detail and will to win that they’ve shown, college coaches will undoubtedly want to keep an eye out in the coming years.