by Alex Schwartz of Northstar Basketball

The Hoop Group Junior Elite Camp got underway on Sunday with tryouts and the draft, but it was Monday that the real action started. Although there are no Division I college coaches allowed to work camp this year, per new NCAA regulations, the coaching staff still includes some quality instructors, such as Lawrence Academy (MA) Assistant Coach Kevin Sullivan. Last year, players such as Matt Banas ’12 and Jaylen Beckham ’12 used Junior Elite Camp as springboards to becoming high-major recruits, while others such as Britton Lee ’13, Brandon Austin ’14, and Mikey Dixon ’15—the second two listed are back in 09—gave us a glimpse into the future. Who will excel at camp this year?

The ballers are split into an NBA division with eight teams and an NCAA division with 14 teams. On Monday I was able to catch all eight NBA teams play, and actually saw two play twice. In addition, I checked out two of the NCAA squads. The list of standout performers—the players with stars are those in the NCAA—are as follows:

6’4 Brandon Austin ’14, Carnell (PA)
5’3 Wade Baldwin ’14, Montgomery (NJ)
5’4 Nassir Barrino ’14, Hawthorne Ave School (NJ)
6’4 Josh Blagrove ’13, South Shore (NY)
6’4 Reggie Cameron ’13, Paterson Catholic (NJ)
5’7 Carlton Carter ’13, Brooke Point (VA)
5’7 Naz Chew ’14, Trenton Catholic (NJ)
6’1 Kyle Cook ’13, Harrisburg (PA)
6’1 Evan Gordinier ’14, Monmouth Beach Elementary (NJ)
6’0 Lavar Harewood ’14, IS 302 (NY)
5’8 Kyle Jeffery ’14, Oak Hill Academy (NJ)*
5’1 Isiah Jennings ’15, Swain (PA)*
6’1 Shawn Jerry ’13, Harrisburg (PA)
6’1 Sterlin Johnson ’13, Tatnall School (DE)
5’3 Kendrick Jolin ’15, St. Thomas (CAN)*
5’11 Rasheed Jordan ’13, Imhotep Charter (PA)
5’11 Rashann London ’14, Holy Cross (PA)
6’2 Josh Marquez ’13, DePaul Catholic (NJ)
6’2 Kamar McKnight ’15, Portage (CAN)
5’4 Cheyenne Nettleton ’15, IS 227 (NY)
5’10 Brandon Poole ’14, Middle Rivers (MD)*
6’1 Ian Rohde ’13, Ryerson (NJ)
6’2 Terrence Samuel ’13, Meyer Levin IS 285 (NY)
5’5 Devon Shelton ’14, Levitt (NJ)*
6’2 Shamier Sheppard ’13, South Shore (NY)
5’5 Austin Shirley ’14, Treffedryn Eastown (PA)*
5’3 Louie Soscia ’14, All Saints School (NJ)*
5’11 Dave Stevens ’14, Lehigh Valley Christian (PA)
5’11 Kavon Stewart ’13, Paterson Catholic (NJ)
6’3 Geno Thorpe ’13, Shady Side Academy (PA)
6’3 Anontio Toplyn ’14, Glenn Landing (PA)
5’6 John Vassar ’13, Hillside School (MA)
6’3 Wade Walker ’13, Northstar (PA)
5’7 Scott Weatherwax ’14, Columbia Central (MI)*
5’0 Keenan Williams ’14, Paulsboro (NJ)*
6’7 Mike Young ’13, Shady Side Academy (PA)
5’8 Austin Zak ’13, Indian Hills (NJ)
5’8 Reed Zak ’13, Indian Hills (NJ)

Out of these players, a few of the stars shined the brightest. In the NBA division it was three guards, a wing, and a big man that made the biggest impression on day two. Kavon Stewart ’13 has already been on the scene for awhile and is one of the players here who has already begun to make a name for himself. His performance on Monday showed why he has been getting that recognition. At 5’11, Stewart has great size for a freshman point guard. He is quick, distributes the ball well, is a true floor general, and can score the rock too. John Vassar ’13 is undersized at 5’6, but his speed and quickness make up for it in some ways. The young guard has a great handle, plays very good defense, pass well, and can score a bit too. Wade Baldwin ’13 showed that he is not just a shooter on this day, as he also scored by getting to the cup. A quality offensive player, Baldwin was making a lot of noise with his game. Geno Thorpe ’13 scored the ball like it was his job here at Albright College. The freshman wing continuously put the ball in the hoop, as he got to the cup with ease, using his great athleticism. Another player who scored a lot was Antonio Toplyn ’14, who is already 6’3 and is going into just eighth grade. The post player uses stellar athletic ability to get off shots in the paint, and he also rebounds well. The prime standout in the NCAA was Austin Shirley ’14. The young guard’s size—he is just 5’5—did not hold him back, as he got the ball to teammates, scored off the bounce, and also knocked in some shots. Shirley helped his team fight back from a 22-2 deficit through one quarter of play to get a 48-42 victory. Said Shirley of how the team was able to climb back and get the win, “We pulled together [as a] team. . . . There’s no ‘I’ in team. We came together, passed the ball, got shots, and played good D.” Team basketball, now that’s a great concept!

Throughout the course of the day I had a chance to chat with some of the standout players. Almost all of these kids have not yet started to receive any college attention, so instead I asked them about other things.

5’11 Kavon Stewart ’13, Paterson Catholic (NJ)
Dream School: Florida
Strongest Point: “Attacking the basket.”
Weakest point: “Using different fundamentals, like . . . pass faking [and] post moves.”

6’3 Geno Thorpe ’13, Shady Side Academy (PA)
Dream School: Pitt
Strongest Point: “The way I attack the basket, . . . but it can only take me so far.”
Weakest point: “Probably my shot. That’s something I’ve got to work on and get better at.”

5’6 John Vassar ’13, Hillside School (MA)
Dream Schools: North Carolina, UCLA, Kansas, and Memphis
Strongest Point: “[Either] me being able to get to the hole or my pull-up jumper.”
Weakest Point: “I’ve just got to work on my three-point shooting. It’s okay now, but I want to get it to where I . . . just don’t miss that much.”

6’3 Wade Walker ’13, Northstar (PA)
Dream School: West Virginia
Strongest Point: “Hustle.”
Weakest Point: “My dribbling.”

Wade Baldwin ’14, Montgomery MS (NJ)
Dream School: Virginia Tech
Strongest Point: “Shooting.”
Weakest Point : “I need to work on my ball handling, and also leadership.”

5’5 Austin Shirley ’14, Tredeffryn Eastown (PA)
Dream School: None
Strongest Point: “Probably my shot.”
Weakest Point: “Probably my ball handling. . . . I can keep working on that.”

6’3 Antonio Toplyn ’14, Glen Landing (NJ)
Dream School: Temple
Strongest Point: “Being on the box”
Weakest Point: “My right hand.”

5’4 Cheyenne Nettleton ’15, IS 227 (NY)
Dream School: UConn
Strongest Point: “My dribbling and my attacking.”
Weakest Point: “Going right and my jumpshot.”

The 2009 Hoop Group Junior Elite Camp is halfway done, but there is still a lot more basketball to be played. To follow the action as it happens you can use Twitter and follow TheHoopGroup and NorthstarBball.

For more from The Hoop Group, the leader in grassroots basketball events, check out http://hoopgroup.com/hoopgroup/index.php.