Brandyn Talbot Toronto Showcase MVP Among Top 2019 and 2020 Prospects
Brandyn Talbot Steals The Show
Brandyn Talbot has become the first prospect to take home MVP awards as an underclassman and as an upperclassman on the NPH Showcase Circuit.
Talbot and top prospects such as Noah Wharton, Tre Edwards, Jordan Persad, Joshua Haughton, Treyvon Blake along with several others had big moments throughout the weekend.
As a 2020 point guard, Talbot has climbed the charts significantly. He went from the 50s to now sitting in the Top 20.
There’s been a set of eye balls on Talbot all spring and summer as he’s elevated his game. An increase in athleticism is the most obvious through more above the rim finishes. We saw him throw down a put back dunk in one of the controlled scrimmages at the Toronto Showcase that was eye popping (keep your eyes peeled for his player mixtape).
When it comes to footwork he’s got excellent change of speed and direction. He stutter to freeze defenders and then gets low to burst by.
While Talbot has a scorers mentality, he is a will and capable passer with terrific vision and feel. We project a bright future as a combo guard at a high level in the NCAA.
Tre Edwards Accumulating New NCAA Interest
Tre Edwards went for 19 points and 2 rebounds in the upperclassmen Top Prospect Game.
He’s recently attracted NCAA offers from New Mexico, Florida Atlantic and Buffalo.
Immediately after camp, NCAA coaches from different leagues and levels called in to see how he performed. New interest is generating as of now for Edwards.
Now that he’s expanded his game and becoming more versatile off the bounce, his value on the floor at the highest levels is increasing. Edwards was one of the final cuts made from the U18 National Team.
He would have been relied on as their go-to shooter from the perimeter as this is one of his best qualities.
At 6’6 and with good reach he brings a lot to the table.
Joshua Haughton High Above Traffic
Joshua Haugthon has been accumulating interest from some of the top academic institutions in the U. S and Canada.
NPH Showcase host, University of Toronto has made it clear that he would be a top target for them in their 2019 class of recruits.
Columbia of the NCAA’s IVY League is tracking Haughton’s progress to see how he continues developing his jump shot.
Everything else in Haughton’s game is there. His burst through the first step beats defenders regularly. His effortless vertical helps him flush it with or without traffic in the way. Haughton’s physical strength and physique is college ready right now as well.
When coaches make contact and learn about his detailed schedule for training they fall for his intangibles and continue recruiting.
With AJ Lawson reclassifying back to the 2018 class and moving on to college. GTA Prep is now led by Haughton. In this position, he could shape up to be one of the country’s leading scorers at the prep level.
Without getting into too much detail, Haughton brings it on defense as well and will be an excellent two way player that more and more coaches get involved with as the CNIT approaches July 20-22.
PG Match Up Noah Wharton & Jordan Persad
Noah Wharton and Jordan Persad are two cerebral PGs that the coaching staff enjoyed working with. In part the enjoyment comes from being able to tell a kid something one time and them having a full understanding to execute.
The other part of the enjoyment of watching these two in action is their creativity and ability to make something out of nothing in a play.
This year’s U18 Canadian squad had tough decisions to make having to cut Wharton as well as he was being considered up until the final day of training camp.
While he continues to improve his outside shooting and add explosiveness all of his current NCAA interest should ultimately turn to offers.
Wharton is another high academic prospect also being recruited at the highest levels in Canada at the USports level.
Persad on the other end is a year younger but with a similar frame and ability to set teammates up. He had guys turning their head every which way trying to decide how to stay in front of the ball.
The 2020 PG, Persad’s passing touch is a sweet one. There will be some video released on him in the near future to display what we’re seeing and for your entertainment.
His play with Key Hoops throughout the spring was strong on the EYBL circuit.
Looking into the 2020 class there aren’t many others that have as good of a play making feel as Persad.
Breakout Performer
Benjamin Li came into this camp looking to dominate on the glass and in the paint. That he did.
Li came in to make sure he walks away with an award and leaves an impression in the minds of coaches and scouts. That he did.
Li’s next steps would be developing his perimeter game and increasing his off the dribble capabilities.. That he is doing throughout the summer.
As his body stretched up, he’s leaned out.
This is the fastest and most agile we’ve seen Li in the past two seasons. Since the beginning of the high school season, finishing above the rim with one and two hand dunks is an addition.
At 6’6 playing the combo forward position, Ben Li is on pace to rake in some interest as he still has a lot of time on his hands as a 2020 prospect.
Best Available 2018s
Dominique Dennis and Tariq Hamad have several USports programs tracking them as they get set to make a decision on where they’ll end up in September.
Dennis at 6’4 can create his own offense and get his teammates shots through his penetration. He is an off-season away from looking the part and filling in his long frame to be college ready.
He comes from a basketball bloodline. Most of the time, this kind of DNA is a sure shot at picking up a good prospect. USports coaches in the middle of the pack should consider someone like Dennis.
Hamad had a strong season in the NPA this year and came out for a last hora to try and pick up some new looks before decision time.
When you get past his size at 5’10 and stick to his offensive efficiency, reliable three point shooting and play making, you’ll see value and lots of it.
He’s one of the hardest working kids in the gym at all times and let’s his game do the talking.
2019 New Comers
Treyvon Blake was a name that we had hear about through the basketball grape vine but had yet to thoroughly evaluate.
Blake was super attentive all camp and was able to maximizing on his exposure by directly implementing the instruction that was given whether in drill work, games or the Top Prospect Game.
Throughout the weekend he had some finishes above the rim that were a shocker.
At 6’3 and in the 2019 class, he is still deciding what position he will ultimately play but one thing that’s for sure is that he can defend multiple positions as a result of his strength and lateral quickness.
Jonathan Rivera was a new face that showed a lot of promise. The 6’8 forward will look to hit the weights this summer to help him finish through contact.
His length and mobility are what’s most intriguing about him. He had a few plays where he began at the perimeter and was able to carve around the defense and get to the rim.
He’s a kid to keep tabs on as he selects a prep situation for this year and goes through 2019.
Many others in 2019 and 2020 have entered NPH’s player database and will continue to be evaluated. The younger age groups, which my colleague Nik Zefi wrote on.
The discovery of top Canadian talent continues following Canada’s NCAA live period at the CNIT July 20-22.
Following that, the scouting team will head west, starting in Winnipeg, Manitoba and making our to the West Coast in Vancouver and Victoria.
