Valley Christian High School is known for high-level basketball consistently in my (28) years of covering Arizona high school basketball, and today is no different as the program is coming off winning another 3A State Championship last season, after coming up just short the previous two seasons. Under the strong leadership of terrific Head Coach Greg Haagsma, the program has also produced many good players for college programs around the country. 6-foot-2 rising senior guard Luke Shaw is the next in line. Shaw has had a very good high school career for himself thus far, and is coming off an amazing junior season. Shaw will look to lead Valley Christian to back-to-back state titles next season, and is an excellent guard prospect for college program's to take a very hard look at.
Shaw is a complete guard prospect that is fundamentally sound and is capable of playing both guard positions on the court. He is an excellent shooter of the basketball with nice range on his shot, and is able to get his shot off quite nicely under defensive pressure, as he only needs a little space from his defender to get one off. He is also a good overall scorer of the basketball, as he is able to create for himself off the dribble and finish in the paint over defenders with a crafty skillset. Shaw is a versatile guard prospect, as he can be a playmaker, as needed, or slide off the ball and become a pure scorer - making him difficult for opposing guard to defend. He is a strong ball handler and passer that sees the floor with excellent court vision, and has a high basketball IQ. Shaw also works hard as a defender and keeps his man in front of him, and is able to understand angles on the floor. He is also a good rebounder from the guard position.
Shaw plays with superior confidence on the court, as a result of being around the game all of his life, and also simply being a winner. He figures out how to win ball games, simply from playing with a purpose. Shaw is also the son of current Grand Canyon University assistant coach Casey Shaw.
Shaw is coming off a junior season, where he was one of the state's top individual scorers last season - averaging eye-popping scoring numbers, 25.7 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2 steals per/game. Shaw is set to have another amazing season as a senior, which makes him a very attractive prospect for college programs to consider.
It will be very interesting to see where Shaw ultimately lands at for college, as he has the ability to play at the Division-I or II levels, for sure. Playing at a smaller high school program does not always generate a higher level of college recruitment, but Shaw has the skillset and ability to play, although his overall role in college could be determined by the level he lands at. The higher the level of college, the more he could become a specialist as a shooter. At a smaller college program, Shaw would be able to do what he does best - have the ball in his hands and make plays.
I caught up with Shaw last weekend in Vegas, while watching him help lead The Factory 17U team to a nice win in the Las Vegas Summer Championships, and he advised me that he is currently hearing from college programs at many different levels, and that he is still very wide open in his college recruitment. It could take some time for Shaw's college recruitment to fully take shape during the high school season - maybe next spring during the late signing period.
I will continue to follow Shaw's college recruitment closely the remainder of this summer and next high school season, and bring you any recruiting updates as they continue to develop for him.
