We continue our new Fall Player Rankings with our next release - the 2017 class fall player rankings for shooting guards. This position among the 2017 class is missing any true star power, and does not have many division-I prospects at the position. Rather, this position is filled with many division-II and division-III prospects for the class.
The top spot at this position is held by Shadow Mountain High School's athletically gifted 6-foot-3 junior guard Darion Spottsville. Spottsville is a strong and well-built young prospect that has a good body and a nice motor. He is a very good scorer in transition, and also is a nice slasher and finisher in the open court. In the half-court set, he can get into the lane and finish or make perimeter shots to set up his drives. He has good range on his shot, but is at his best attacking the basket with the ball on drives. Spottsville also plays well above the rim when he decides to attack the basket. He is able to finish dunks over defenders.
Spottsville is a talented guard prospect that is among the top overall 2017 prospects in the state, but has yet to still have a breakout season. Look for him to have a nice junior campaign while helping lead his Matadors back to for another Division-II state championship.
Desert Vista HS 6-foot-4 junior guard Noah Baumann still has a lot to prove for himself, but he looks primed to have a breakout junior season for himself. In a position that is not very loaded with proven prospects, Baumann is skilled and has excellent talent for the position. Look for Baumann prove himself this season as one of the elite guards at thsi position this season.
Basha High School's 6-foot-3 junior guard Terrell Brown (pictured) is coming off a strong spring and summer performance for himself, while traveling with a talented group of junior prospects with the D-1 Ambassadors. After helping lead his team to consecutive 16U tournament titles this spring, Brown emerged as one of the top guard prospects in the class. Brown is an athletic and versatile guard prospect with good body control and a nice ability to score the basketball. Brown is able to score the basketball from almost everywhere on the floor - handling the basketball amidst traffic and creating for his teammates.
Brown will see good minutes this season for a very talented Basha HS team, that will compete all season to stay among the top teams in the Division-I class.
The remainder of the rankings are wide open, as there are numerous other guard prospects that could see a rise in their ranking position in the spring. Such prospects as 6-foot-2 junior guard 6-foot-2 junior guard Elloheim Clark (Apollo HS), 6-foot junior guard Jeff Perez (Apollo HS), Jake Lieppert (Saguaro HS), 6-foot-4 junior guard Bryce Fowler (Agua Fria HS) and 6-foot-2 junior guard Cole Gerken (Ironwood Ridge HS).
Here are our new Fall Player Rankings for the shooting guard position in Arizona’s 2017 class. While we have not seen everyone at the position in the state, these individuals have proven to be the best at the position at this point in time.
Arizona Preps 2017 Class Fall Player Rankings – Shooting Guards (In Ranking Order)
1. Darion Spottsville 6-3 JR SG Shadow Mountain HS (Phoenix, AZ)
2. Noah Baumann 6-4 JR SG Desert Vista HS (Phoenix, AZ)
3. Terrell Brown 6-2 JR SG Basha HS (Chandler, AZ)
4 Elloheim Clark 6-2 JR SG Apollo HS (Glendale, AZ)
5. Jeff Perez 6-0 JR SG Apollo HS (Glendale, AZ)
6. Jake Lieppert 6-2 JR SG Saguaro HS (Scottsdale, AZ)
7. Bryce Fowler 6-4 JR SG Agua Fria HS (Avondale, AZ)
8. Cole Gerken 6-2 JR SG Ironwood Ridge HS (Tucson, AZ)
9. Adam Wright 6-2 JR SG McClintock HS (Tempe, AZ)
10. JT Thoman 6-1 JR SG Chaparral HS (Scottsdale, AZ)
Fall Player Ranking Notes: Our player rankings have been determined by a body of work from each student-athlete. Each player’s body of work consisted of performances throughout the high school season, and also performances throughout the spring, summer and fall seasons. A top performance throughout the high school season impacts a player’s ranking a great deal. A student-athlete’s performance throughout the fall, spring and summer will have an even bigger impact, since our staff is able to observe Arizona players in competition against much better local, regional and national competition. The complete body of work has been taken into consideration for each of our player rankings. Player rankings are based on a particular student-athlete’s ability to play the game of basketball – not academic performance, although a player can help him or herself if he/she is an excellent student. Rankings are done to help aid college coaches in their ability to identify the top student-athletes by position and class in the state. These rankings are forwarded to college coaches at every level throughout the country. Rankings will be updated throughout the year.
