One of the top prospects in Arizona's talented 2019 class is Apollo High School's 6-foot-5 long and rangy sophomore forward Emmanuel Taban. Taban emerged this club season as a talented and budding young prospect for the future. Here is my take on one of the state's top rising recruiting targets for the future.
Taban is one prospect that I have identified in the state of Arizona that college coaches will soon be identifying as a nice college prospect for them to take a hard look at. Such attention in the future should soon lead to numerous scholarship offers for Taban over the next two years, but he still has a lot of development as a player to go through.
This young man has tremendous potential for the future, as he has exceptional upside as a basketball prospect. Possessing a long but very thin frame physically, Taban is the kind of young prospect scouts and media enjoy seeing - long wing prospect with very good overall versatility and a slashing mindset. While a very athletic wing performer with a nice ability to slash and finish plays at the rim and in the painted area, Taban has also really developed his ability to shoot the basketball as of late. He has improved his ability to shoot the basketball with range on his shot, which has really opened up his game as of late - allowing him to now set up his defender with a pump fake or jab step, and make plays off the dribble. As Taban improves the consistency and range on his shot, he should really blossom over time - making him much more difficult to guard for opposing players. Taban is a good scorer and should be throughout his career over time. He will never be thought of as a shooter, but over time his ability to keep defenses honest will suit him nicely.
Taban's best offensive asset is his ability to slash and score in the lane or in the open floor, where he thrives and enjoys getting out on the break. His ability to make plays in the open floor and when slashing to the basket are valuable qualities as a player - attributes that will make him a very attractive recruiting target over time.
His best overall asset is his ability to defend. He uses his length and athleticism to defend passing lanes and get steals, while also being able to deflect passes. He is also a very good shotblocker as a result of his length and timing as a shotblocker - something that makes him a very attractive prospect over time.
Last season as a mere freshman, Taban played good minutes for an Apollo HS team that had a very good season - finishing with a 25-4 overall record on the season. Taban averaged 3.4 points and 3.2 rebounds per/game last season in his first season of varsity level basketball. I expect him to raise these averages considerably this season, after coming off a very good showing this spring and summer on the aau/club circuit. Taban was a major contributor this club season for an Arizona Power-Factory 16U team that had major success throughout the spring and summer, including a tournament title at this summer's Pangos Sweet 16.
I will be keeping a very close eye on Taban over time, and expect this young man to develop nicely in to a serious recruiting target for many division-I programs to take a hard look at.
