The underclassmen group from our fall showcase camp had a nice mix of creative guards and versatile frontcourt players. Here are the evaluations from the first group.

Aiden Henderson (5’10 PG, Brother Rice 2027)

Henderson was a difference maker in the P&R game with his quickness and patience. He let plays develop, kept his dribble alive, and made a number of impressive passes and finishes off of the dribble. The pace that he showed was among the best all day, including the older groups. If defenders went under on screens, he hit threes on a few occasions. When the went over, he maintained his advantage and made a number of floaters and downhill finishes. His defensive activity and use of his speed to turn ball handlers was nice to see as well. Henderson is next in line of impact Brother Rice guards.

AJ Enyia (6’6 SF/PF, Oak Park River Forest 2027)

During the drills, the combination of size and mobility for Enyia stood out. As a legitimate 6-foot-6 with long arms and ideal run-and-jump athleticism, he impressed as a finisher with soft touch during the on-air portions. As live play began, he had a big dunk off of a drive from the perimeter and showed comfort grabbing defensive rebounds and going coast to coast. His interior defense was probably what caught the most attention during scrimmages, swatting shots and quickly recovering to protect the paint. There is evident upside with Enyia.

Carter MacDonald (6’3 SF, Fremd 2027)

A versatile wing at Fremd, MacDonald slashed to the rim well throughout the day. He’s got some size at 6-foot-3 with length and ball skills to get to the paint with regularity. Once he got inside, he took contact and used his pivots well to score. He also hit some jumpers early on in drills. I liked how aggressive he was putting pressure on the rim in transition when defenders were on their heels. It wouldn’t be a surprise if he added a few more inches and continued to grow as a creator.

Cody Rader (5’5 PG, Geneva 2029)

One of two eight graders at the event, Rader’s ball-handling and passing ability are already on a high school level. Even during drills, the ball control to change directions and get to his spots efficiently was noteworthy. The lead guard is a knockdown perimeter shooter that gets good arc on his shot and was drilling open threes when he had looks during drills and scrimmages. On multiple occasions, he got defenders off balance with crossovers to either get his own shot or draw help before dumping off to teammates. The future is bright for Rader.

Cohen Ottaviano (6’1 SG, Stevenson 2027)

Throughout the day, Ottaviano did so many things well on both ends of the floor. His defensive energy was on point, using his physicality and IQ to knock balls loose and cut off other guards in open space. During the scrimmages, he probably led the group in steals while also staying solid with his defensive principles. Offensively, he was a big positive for his team making pinpoint passes to set up easy looks, hitting pull-ups and threes on the move, and attacking hard to his left hand to finish plays. Ottaviano provided a ton of energy on the glass as well to get his team extra possessions. So far this fall, I have been very impressed with the composure and maturity that Ottaviano shows as a sophomore.

Connor Crowley (6’0 PG, Downers Grove North 2028)

Crowley was one of the top shooters of the group, continuously knocking down jumpers off of the catch during scrimmages. His release is quick and he understands how to use jabs in the triple threat to create space for his shot. Whether he was coming off of screens or relocating off of post entries, he was finding openings and burying threes at a high clip. Crowley played the point guard spot well for stretches, probing off of the dribble and balancing his own scoring with setting up others. As the day progressed, his defensive intensity and competitiveness stood out with multiple extra effort plays and good instincts to shut down other guards. Crowley looks like a promising PG and has the makeup to be a solid multi-sport athlete at DGN.

Coy Workman (6’2 SF, Brother Rice 2027)

Workman has an edge to him that you like to see from a young forward. That complements an already solid perimeter skillset that was on display. He has good lift on his jump shot and uses his footwork well to get on balance before looking to score. Workman got to his spots off of two to three dribbles and made pull-ups and step through moves when defenders overplayed. While he drove, he shook off contact multiple times and battled for second chances in crowds. The Brother Rice wing also hit multiple threes when he was given space with sound mechanics off of the catch. Whether he was chasing down loose balls or going up for rebounds, Workman showed well with his energy. Another Brother Rice sophomore to buy stock in early.

Drake Cadle (5’10 PG, 2029)

Another talented eight grade guard, Cadle was very good during the live segments of the camp. Nothing ever seemed forced, but he was scoring at a high clip on catch-and-shoot jumpers and downhill drives. His form doesn’t waste any motion and he was catching it ready to shoot. When he was playing more on the ball, his point guard instincts showed with his ability to read coverages, attack switches, and deliver passes on time. While his offensive performance was solid, his tenacity guarding the ball defensively may have been even more noteworthy. Cadle was relentless applying ball pressure and made a number of plays as a help side defender as well. He’s got an old school, quiet confidence to him that is great to see.

Eli Phillips (6’1 SG, Providence Catholic 2027)

It was a rock-solid performance from Phillips, who has a nice combination of size and scoring ability. Initially, his comfort stepping into threes on kick outs was notable. He was knocking down corner threes and spacing the floor well for his team during scrimmages. With a solid frame to take hits, he also effectively scored off of straight-line drives and used the rim as protection once he got to the rim. Phillips looked like he will continue to add strength to amplify his ability to fill it up offensively.

Gavin Radmer (6’1 SG, Richmond Burton 2027)

Radmer came out of the gate firing from the perimeter. There may not have been a player who shot it as well during drills as the Richmond Burton sophomore, regularly getting his feet set and knocking down threes. As scrimmages got underway, it was more of the same with an array of long threes when defenders gave him air space. Any rushed closeouts were met with solid downhill drives. But there were a number of strong moments defensively as well where he showed a nose for the ball to get steals and use his length to keep guys in front of him. Radmer has the wiry frame that typically suggests additional growth as well.

Jayden Dozie (5’9 PG/SG, Maine East 2028)

Dozie has a chance to be really good. The creative and dynamic guard played on and off of the ball to generate quality looks for himself and his teammates. His pace in transition was ideal, constantly changing speeds and understanding the flow of the game situations. Dozie has a tight handle that helped him shake defenders to get space for stepbacks and pull-ups during live play. His form is compact and repeatable from the perimeter with good range past the three-point line that he showed. Some of the passes that he made while playing at high speeds were uncommon for a freshman, particularly when longer defenders came over to help. He’s got a serious chance to make an impact on varsity this year.

Keon Ash (5’7 PG/SG, Cary Grove 2027)

Ash played with energy and competed defensively for the majority of the day. Even at 5-foot-7, his quickness to stay in front of the ball and irritate other guards caught our attention. During drills, he showed comfort hitting open threes with time and space and knocked one down during the scrimmages. When he didn’t have quality looks, he kept the ball moving or drove to create an advantage. Ash’s activity stood out during the event.

Kyler Payne (6’5 SF/PF, Waubonsie Valley 2028)

Payne was probably the most dominant player from start to finish. With size, strength, and solid athleticism at 6-foot-5, he was a handful for the other two teams during the scrimmages. As the games progressed, he got deep position inside and was making hooks and contact layups in the post. Once the double teams started to come, he was quick to whip the ball out to open shooters who delivered. His ability to move and make plays from the outside really made it difficult for defenders, driving hard right off of faceups, getting dunks and tough finishes in transition, and hitting a few jumpers when he was left open. Payne was clearing out space and snatching rebounds on both ends all day as well. Payne is one of the better bigs that I’ve seen so far in the freshman class.

Landon Sutton (5’8 PG, Champaign Central 2028)

Sutton was another guard who was just a straight disruptor for opposing ball-handlers to deal with during scrimmages. He was picking up full court, making guys change directions, and forcing pickups with his pressure. Off of the ball, he was strategic with when he would go try to poke the ball loose. Sutton got inside multiple times with the ball and kicked out to shooters. He also connected on some threes when he had looks from the perimeter. Sutton’s constant intensity guarding the ball will translate well as he matures.

Leo Brinias (5’9 PG, Wauconda 2027)

It was great to see Brinias so aggressive as the day progressed. He was seemingly getting to the lane and hitting floaters and layups multiple times a game, both in transition and in the half court. Brinias shifted defenders on multiple occasions to create driving lanes and made slight bumps on his way to the rim that gave him better angles to complete plays. His vision showed with some timely drop off passes to cutters. Also a solid shooter, Brinias connected on some mid-range pull-ups and showed extended range from three. The Wauconda guard was very effective during the day.

Malik Mahmoud (5’11 PG/SG, Andrew 2027)

Mahmoud is a slick shooter who can get hot in a hurry. His shot-making showed up well during drills where he was regularly making threes on the move and in spot up situations. He made a few during the scrimmages as well, but did some damage getting into the lane and finishing well off of two feet. Mahmoud has a good handle to weave into the lane and lose defenders, which works well with his touch on push shots inside. Mahmoud is going to be a player to watch at Andrew as he continues to develop.

Mason Markman (6’1 SF, Glenbrook North 2028)

Markman’s physicality and strength for a freshman were impressive. He was able to play bully ball at times after making rip through moves on the perimeter and shedding contact to make layups. At 6-foot-1, he’s able to play a lot bigger due to the aggressive mentality and toughness that he has inside. Markman rebounded the ball well in traffic and also looked good cutting off of the ball. As a shooter, Markman made shots during drills and live play off of the catch and showed feel for his pull-up. There is promise in his form in catch-and-shoot situations when he has his feet set. I thought Markman had a nice showing overall.

Mikey Flynn (6’0 PG/SG, St. Rita 2027)

The lefty guard looked best as a spot-up shooter during the camp. His floor spacing ability was useful in drive-and-kick situations where he drifted to the corner well for open looks. When he was shooting on the move during drills, he had solid accuracy with a one-motion shot. Flynn provided some value for his team as a passer in the 5-on-5 sessions with quick ball reversals and extra passes. His perimeter shooting will be a real weapon going forward.

Nick Brzezniak (6’3 SF/PF, Lincoln Way West 2027)

Oftentimes battling with bigger players inside, Brzezniak was really good at using his long arms and athleticism to his advantage to make things difficult. A capable and agile perimeter defender, he hedged well on ball screens and got back to his man inside to contest shots. Brzezniak was one of the best rebounders at the camp, showing a tireless willingness to pursue misses off of the glass on both ends. His offensive versatility will develop well with time. Brzezniak has a clean three-point stroke with good range that he made early and often while being a solid screen outlet and DHO decision maker. I’d imagine he’s far from done growing but has a lot of sought-after traits for a forward.

Sean Souter (5’10 PG, Walter Payton 2028)

Souter is a very dynamic ball-handler who has the ball on a string as a playmaker. Many players with that ability use it to look for their own offense, but Souter was getting by his man, drawing help, and peppering passes all over the floor to teammates for open looks. When he did have clean shots, he knocked them down from three and got out to run in transition when other guards had the ball. Souter’s defense was tremendous for stretches, frustrating guards from baseline to baseline using his quickness and strength to be a presence at the point of attack. Souter should be a really good player down the line for Payton.