College recruiting is beginning younger and younger these days, so it is now never too early to talk about the best basketball prospects in middle school or even earlier, especially when these younger prospects are as good and as dominant as rising 8th grader Mason Magee. A very young rising 8th grader and a member of the 2026 Class, Magee is still a mere 12 years of age, and actually should be entering the 7th grade. Either way, Magee has made a tremendous case very early on as a youngster, and is one of the state's most impressive young talents overall - regardless of position or classification.
I have had a first-hand experience over the past year of Magee's tremendous young talent and exploits as a young middle school prospect. While smaller and still growing in stature, Mason is the son of an experienced coach and player from New Jersey, Ray Magee, and has shown an exemplary skillset very early in the process.
"Honestly, I put a lot of time in with him," said Ray Magee. He goes to Paul (Suber) too, but that's about it. God-given ability, with hard work," said Ray Magee, when asked how his son has become so advanced as a player, so young in the development process. "He's really a 6th grader, but has always played up. Rarely has he ever played his age or grade."
Magee participated in the Arizona Preps Diamond Discovery event in November (2020) , and was one of the elite overall prospects in the event. He also was terrific recently in the Big Baller Brand Regional Middle School Camp as well - ranking as one of the elite overall prospects in the event, and was the top overall 2026 prospect, alongside Brayden Barrett.
Magee is a sure-fire high-major division-I talent over time, as he is well beyond his years as a player, mentally and physically. This young man is almost unguardable already for defenders in his age group, so playing with much older competition is what is needed to challenge him and bring out his best as a player. Very tough mentally, the young Magee is an alpha-male and a leader as a very young performer.
Magee is a scoring point guard, that, over time, as he matures physically and grows over time, will be able to play both guard positions. He enjoys having the basketball in his hands, so he can make a play almost at will, for himself or a teammate. He enjoys setting up his teammates for scoring opportunities, but is an excellent scorer that is an excellent creator off the dribble and makes plays at a high level. An excellent finisher already. Magee does not mind the physical contact, even for such a young performer. He gets into the lane quite easily and has an really strong mid-range game for a guard prospect. He has a nice shooting stroke with extended range on his shot. He makes shots from the stand-still position or while on the move or while being defended or challenged on his shot.
Magee is a strong defender also that plays passing lanes quite well, with very quick hands and feet. A lock-down defender over time, which is a very nice attribute for him. Also a very good rebounder for his size that competes hard and at a high level. Magee simply loves the game and it is his passion, and it shows in his consistent top performances.
"We train at 5:30AM four times a week," said Ray Magee. "Although he's young - he's won championships at every level, and won MVP awards in an out of state."
The future looks extremely bright for Magee - one of the elite young prospects in the state - regardless of class. I look forward to watching this young man grow up over time, and plan to be covering him for many years.
