One of the elite young prospects in the state of Arizona is Desert Vista High School's talented 6-foot-7 sophomore wing Walter Talley. A native of New York where he moved to the state of Arizona just a year ago, Talley is a big time prospect for the future and is coming off a big spring and summer peformance where he led his Powerhouse Hoops 16U squad to a nice performance on the club circuit.
Walter Talley has many basketball enthusiasts in the state excited about his tremendous potential for the future. After an up-and-down high school season while playing for former Desert Vista HS head coach Tony Darden, Talley dominated on the AAU/club circuit this spring and summer, while playing at the 16U level for the Arizona Powerhouse Hoops' program. While just coming off a freshman season, Talley would play up and the 16U level and perform at a high level against players a year older.
This spring Talley received a big scholarship offer from a PAC-12 program, as Washington State University and assistant coach Silvey Dominguez extended an offer to Talley for the future, still only a mere 2019 prospect.
Talley was on a mission after the spring evaluation period, as he worked hard on training with his personal trainer Marcus Matthews. Matthews' really improved his ability to play the overall game of basketball, adding a better overall pace of play on the offensive end for Talley, combined with better dribbling and counter moves. Talley went into the summer with an advanced skillset, which he utilized to play at a high level this summer against such top-rated national prospects as Kamaka Hepa. Agsinst Hepa in a head-to-head match-up, Talley went forclose to 30 points. Hepa has an offer from the University of Arizona already.
Talley has developed his ability to play through sheer hard work and dedication to his craft. Talley is a nice looking prospect for the future as a result of his size and offensive skillset, which allows him to play inside and out. Still possessing three more years of high school basketball, Talley is a potential Top 30 national prospect over time.
Talley also really developed a great deal in the last year, so it is really exciting to see just how good he can get. Staff writer Chris Buchanan already compares Talley to former University of Kansas star player Wayne Selden.
Talley should only continue to receive many more scholarship offers over time, so it will be fun to watch him develop over the next several years.
I will continue to follow his progress and recruitment as a player closely over time, and bring you any updates as they continue to develop.
Arizona Hoop Review Scouting Report: Talley is not your typical younger prospect. He has excellent size that you normally do not see in a prospect his age. While Talley is a little older for his class, it will suit him nicely over time as he grows older. Talley already possesses good physical strength on his frame and also good overall physical size. He has the potential to really develop over the next three years into something special, since he also has a very good offensive skillset that he picked up on the East Coast as a youngster. Talley is a small forward prospect currently that likes to play inside and out. He is able to score effectively around the paint, and also has a nice ability to step outside and shoot the basketball as well with a good shooting stroke. He has very good versatility as a player - allowing him to play multiple positions on the floor, although he is at his best currently as a post player. As he matures, he should be able to do much more on the perimeter. Talley has a very good handle of the basketball, so he is capable of playing in the open floor, but his best asset is his physical toughness and ability to rebound and finish around the basket. He has a very good mid-range game, which allows him to score effectively around the paint and from the perimeter. Talley is quicker than most power forwards on the perimeter, and he has the size to overpower most smaller players - taking them into the post as needed. Talley has quickly become one of the elite underclassman prospects in the state, and looks to have a very bright future ahead of him.
