Travis Durham:
Future150 South & Midwest Regional Analyst. Covering high and middle school basketball. KY, IN, TN, & AR.
Houston, TX (Future150) -- Contributions to this report were made by Andrew Force.
The Future150 Main Event Houston 17u division featured 20 teams. The Houston Nets, Franchize All Stars, Faction Basketball Academy, Basketball University 16u Black, Team Texas Houston Blue, and Team Texas Houston Red played flawless pool play hoops.
By event's close on Sunday three champions stood tallest: Franchize All Stars (Gold), Alabama Magic (Silver), and TBT Sports (Bronze).
Great individual performances were supplied by the following players:
Jaron Dennis, 2015 SF, GroundBreakaZ: Dennis is a 6’5 forward with great instincts and court awareness. Jaron scored 12 points and had 10 rebs and 4 blocks in a single game. Dennis has good handle and touch in the mid range and has a very athletic, long body style. It allows him great versatility on both ends.
John Brown, 2016 C, Texas Snipers: Brown was the tallest listed player in the tourney, standing 6’10". He actually has pretty good body control and soft hands, which make him a factor in each and every possession. Brown has good touch and was very active given his size and frame. As John gets stronger, and more explosive...he has a major chance to become a special player.
Jarren Campbell, 2016 PF, Texas Snipers: Jarren is 6’6" and plays like he is 6’9". He is an absolute beast both on the boards and creating space on offense. Campbell can guard bigger players and use his body well. He seems as if he can get a double-double almost any time he wants. His best game of the weekend was 10 and 12.
Prince Moss, 2017 SG, Alabama Magic: At 6'4" the thin Moss climbed above the defense on his springy legs. He attacked the rim hungrily and helped the Magic capture the 17U Silver Championship. Coach Emmanuel Abercrombie liked to get Moss out on the break, where the spry wing capitalized on odd man rushes.
Damion Johnson, 2015 SF, GroundBreakaZ: At 6’3 with a 6’6 wingspan Johnson has a great athletic body and uses his length and quickness very well. He elevates and can shoot over top many guards as he has a high release and is a great slasher as well. At times he was the best player on the court and was very much a matchup nightmare for most teams.
Scott Bolen, 2016 SF, Clear Lake Hoyas: A true pit bull. Bolen plays excellent team defense. With a quick mind he dashes around the floor, intercepting passes. Offensively, he has a flat, left-handed jumper. The Hoyas needed his hustle and savvy to win the games they did. He wins every loose ball. Bolen played with the Bay Area Blazers last AAU season.
Cory McKendree, 2015 PF, Clear Lake Hoyas: McKendree has verbally committed to St. Edward’s (D2). He will sign April 15th. His 6’7” body is surprisingly flexible. He has clean hips. This weekend McKendree scored around the basket, but he also has enough skills from the wing to mature into a college small forward.
Darius Curry, 2016 PF, Alabama Magic: A 6’4” power forward, Curry is a worker bee. The work rate for Curry is very high. Though he doesn’t get many offensive touches his defensive effort rarely dips.
Paul Brown, 2016 PG, Alabama Magic: Gregarious by nature, Paul Brown is a team leader. With a great I.Q. Brown keeps the players loose yet intense through long, draining AAU weekends. Brown is both physically strong and owns strong hands. The steals column gets filled up with Brown plays. He goes for steals without fouling. A true competitor. Paul is silky smooth and has great elevation as well as a great pull up game. He defends multiple positions and is very poised with the ball or off the ball either one. He is a naturally efficient scorer.
Jirian Spells, 2017 SG, Basketball University 16u Black: Jirian is “Spellsbinding” on defense. By using choppy steps he keeps an aspiring penetrator frustrated. Getting around Spells is very difficult and most often his mark swings the ball, conceding the challenge to the invested Spells.
Erie Olonabe, 2016 PG, Basketball University 17u Black: Exceedingly quick, Olonabe can be a handful. He is very quick in the halfcourt. Olonabe is a dual-threat attacker because he is able to blow by or facilitate.
Claude Newell, 2016 SF, Alabama Magic: Claude is a pure shooter and has great Basketball IQ. Newell struggles at times on the defensive, but can really light up the offensive end in a hurry. At one point, Coach Abercrombie ran four straight sets for Paul coming off screens. Newell buried four contested three-point jumpshots.
Eric Wilson, 2016 SF, TBT Sports: The Bronze semis provided the stage for Wilson's greatest game. In a quick 77-71 win Wilson rained in 27 points. An astounding 20 of those points came in the second half. Wilson does not rely on the outside shot. He rarely settles. His goal appears to be...get to the basket.
Jordan Collins, 2016 PG, Franchize All Stars: Gold Champions Franchize All Stars thankfully had the scoring prowess of Jordan Collins to guide them. Collins has impressive quickness with the dribble. He was joined by Jordan Gilliam in the scoring column. Gilliam competes for Woodlands College Park High, while Collins is over at Cypress Ridge.
Fred Cooper, 2016 PG, Houston Nets: Fred was playing up. Fred has a linebacker body but absolutely jumps out of the gym. He can dunk in traffic and rebounds very well from the PG spot. He has great vision and simply doesn’t turn the ball over. Lots of upside in this guys future.
Treylan Matthews, 2015 SG, Houston Nets: Trey packs as much strength, athleticism, and explosiveness that could possibly fit into his 5'10" frame. He is lightning quick and can get in the lane at will. Matthews also hit a few outside jumpshots, making him almost unstoppable at times and a nightmare to defend for teams.
Mason Hamilton, 2015 PF, Houston Nets: Hamilton has an “old school” type of game. Very crafty and uses his body well to score the basketball. Hamilton had double digits in virtually every game. Also, at 6’4" was also the teams leading rebounder.
Michael Woods, 2018 PG, Texas Snipers: Woods was the defined floor leader for the Snipers this weekend. Woods had 17 points and led his team in scoring. He was probably their best defender as well. Woods is quick and explosive in the open floor and has great handle.
Miles Battle, 2016 G, Elevations Red: Two nice performances earned Battle an acknowledgement. Facing TBT Sports, Miles record 23 points in the loss. Elevation Red had a good Sunday. They advanced to the Bronze Championship before falling to TBT Sports. Miles gave 8 points to the cause early Sunday against Clear Lake Hoyas.
Dondrick Collins, 2017 C, Basketball University 16u Black: Basketball University entered two teams in the 17u division. The younger entrants, BU 16u Black, were very competitive. After sweeping pool play they advanced all the way to the Gold Championship. Collins was instrumental. He averaged 11.0 ppg with quick strikes around the rim. His free throw shooting could improve. Those will instantly raise his production.
Jacoby Morrison, 2016 PF, Team Texas Houston Red: The best game for Morrison came against Imperial Hoops Elite. The 6'4" power forward pumped in 13 points. In the other battles Morrison essentially gave his team an energy guy. He hit the glass.
JR Adams, 2016 SG, Team Texas Houston Blue: Sunday was a dissapointment for the Houston Blue faction of Team Texas. Despite coasting through pool play, they dropped an early, early game Sunday morning in the Gold bracket. JR Adams was a steady contributor. Adams gifted his team 16 points in the frustrating bracket loss.
Cameron Smith, 2016 SG, Franchize 2016: Another team playing up was Franchize 2016. Smith helped them compete. Every game he recorded double figures. Smith's best scoring game was the Silver Bracket semifinals where he managed 13 points. In truth, Franchize 2016 had a balanced scoring attack.
Josh Campbell, 2016 SF, Texas Jazz Elite: A former Future150 All-American, Campbell was amongst the best 17u player present. Capmbell scored 37 points against Faction Basketball Academy. That enormous outburst yanked his scoring average up to 24.7 ppg for Future150 Houston Main Event.
Juwan Ard, 2015 PG, FYN All-Stars Gray: Though FYN dropped all three games, Ard was heroic in defeat. Team Texas Houston Blue yielded 20 points to Ard. He was able to get to the free throw line the entire game. Unlike most young scorers, Ard made those opportunities count (10-12 FT's).
Anthony Ross, 2016 C, Faith Lions: Points were hard to come by for the Lions 17u. Ross was leaned on for points in the paint. The 6'3" pivot was able to score with his back to the basket. Most of the Faith Lions competed for Woodlawn High School in Baton Rouge, Louisiana during the high school season.
Jabril Stevens, 2016 PG, Imperial Hoops Elite: From the Missouri City area of Texas, Imperial Hoops Elite brought several tough guards. Stevens registered 17 points in a loss to the Clear Lake Hoyas. As a dual-threat point guard he can either score or distribute.
Michael Carlson, 2018 PG, OTCYBC Show Stoppers: Perhaps the strongest freshman competing in the 17u division, Carlson was playing up with his brother, Charles. Michael is a 5'9" point guard who sees the floor well. He works the ball from side to side in the halfcourt setting.
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