Here are my thoughts on the Meanstreets vs. Spiece Indy Heat game:
Tyger Campbell: Heady floor general, but a little overrated. He's small, not excessively athletic, and has trouble finishing in traffic. Good looking shot, great feel for the game, but I think he'll be an average starter at the P5 level. I've seen him play numerous times, so I don't feel like I'm rushing to any conclusions.
Jaren Jackson: Going to be good, but not there yet. Disappears for stretches, doesn't like to bang. Really intriguing length and athleticism. Likes to play as a stretch-4, but needs to improve his consistency from the perimeter.
Tugs Bowen: Pure beast. High-motor, long, bouncy athlete with improving skills. Tremendous ceiling: you watch him and feel like he's just scratching the surface, even though he's already one of the most productive players in the country.
Evan Gilyard: I find everything about his game hilarious. He runs around like he's been shot out of a cannon. He fouls a ton, plays out of control, and is a big time ball hog. BUT, he plays with a lot of heart and has a knack for scoring and getting steals. He's the kind of kid who will average 17 pts, 5 reb, 5 ast, and 2 stl in the Horizon as an upperclassman and everyone will go, "man, we missed on Gilyard!" I was cracking up every time he should have obviously reversed the ball, but looked at Eastern or Verge, shook his head, dribbled for another 10 seconds and then smashed wildly into the teeth of the defense.
Nojel Eastern: Little bit of a rough game for Eastern, but he was more impressive than his stat line. He took a couple of awful shots, but otherwise looked good. Part of the problem is he's running with Gilyard, Verge, and Bowen, who are all ball-dominant players. Eastern, by contrast, is an extremely willing passer and consistently tries to set his teammates up for easy looks. The thing that stood out most is that he has developed into an electric athlete. He is really fast and twitchy, which wasn't the case early in his career. I think he's going to be a very good second or third option for a P5 team as a probable 3-year starter (soph - sr).
Alonzo Verge: Wicked crossovers, step-back threes, coast-to-coast layups, hustle plays galore...and unconscionable turnovers, ill-advised shots, and unnecessary showboating. He's a blast to watch. Still can't figure out how much of an impact he'll make at the college level, even after watching 6 of his full games between high school and AAU. If a coach gives him the keys and turns him loose, he'll put up numbers, no question. The problem is a lot of coaches won't put up with all negative/wild plays. Could he help Illinois? Yeah, I think so - probably as a scorer off the bench. I'm guessing he'll end up outside the B1G, though.
