New York AAB Showcase Report

* Any college coach seeking additional information on any players, including projected collegiate level, may make an inquiry at necorridorhoops@gmail.com

Dartmouth vs Cornell

Luke Michalski 6’5 Power Forward 2023 (Goshen Central HS/Camp Team-Dartmouth): Michalski can put the ball on the floor, taking opposing forwards off the dribble from the perimeter to finish effectively at the rim. Had a nice play attacking a closeout to finish an inside hand layup, in addition to scoring a reverse layup on a straight line drive. He makes sharp cuts to the rim for high percentage layups. Made a quick cut to the basket after a teammate pulled down an offensive rebound, finishing an and-1 layup. He runs the floor hard on the break, creating easy layup opportunities for himself, scoring two layups when sprinting the floor after a teammate secured a rebound. Finished the game with 15 points. Michalski also showed some shooting and playmaking upside. He drained a smooth fifteen foot jumper on a drive and kick from a teammate, along with having a pair of assists. These included when he pushed the ball on the break after corralling a rebound, finding a teammate around the hoop for a layup, as well as hitting a teammate spotting up for a trey after catching the ball in the short roll on a ball screen. Defensively, Michalski is a solid rim protector. Had two blocks in the contest, rejecting an opponent when they tried to score on him at the rim off a drive, in addition to coming over from the help side to swat an opponent’s shot at the rim after they drove by a teammate.

Kwame Opoku 6’6 Power Forward 2022 (Eagle Academy/Camp Team-Cornell): Opoku does a nice job putting pressure on the defense rolling off ball screens. Took one dribble when rolling off a pick and roll to finish a layup through contact, in addition to drawing a shooting foul at the basket when rolling off another screen. He finds open spots around the rim well, giving teammates a good target around the basket when they get dribble penetration. Opoku drew a pair of shooting fouls on layups at the rim when teammates found him open after penetrating on the baseline and in the lane. He is also skilled when catching the ball with his back to the basket in the paint. Got good position on an opponent to take one dribble for a layup off the glass, along with using two dribbles off a nice drop-step move on the block to finish a bucket around the rim. Had 10 points in the contest. Defensively, Opoku does a commendable job forcing opponents into lower percentage shots at the rim with his size and length. Also is a solid rebounder, using his strong body to get advantageous position on opponents when boxing out. Finished the game with five rebounds.

Stanford vs Yale

Matt Murphy 6’7 Power Forward 2022 (Phillips Andover Academy/Camp Team-Stanford): Murphy is a modern day stretch four, preferring to play facing up and making three-pointers at a good rate when spotting up. Drained a trey on a drive and kick from a teammate, in addition to hitting another trifecta when the ball was swung his way and an opponent gave him too much space. Murphy is also effective rolling out of ball screens, creating high percentage scoring opportunities for himself around the hoop. Scored on a pair of buckets when rolling off ball screens, finishing a reverse layup and jump hook from five feet. He showed a nice creation flash, using a smooth crossover move on an opponent to hit a 10 foot jumper in the lane. Finished the game with 16 points. Makes an impact on the offensive glass, showing nice instincts being around the ball when it comes off the rim. Had four offensive boards in the contest, including two off his own misses. Defensively, Murphy is active challenging opponents’ shots around the rim. Had two rejections in the contest, coming from behind on a baseline out of bounds play to block an opponent’s layup, as well as moving quickly to the help side, swatting another opponent’s layup off the backboard. He creates steals at a good rate for his position. Had three thefts in game, including stealing a lazy post entry feed to his matchup, in addition to coming from behind to pluck the ball away from an opponent before they could hit an open teammate spotting up for three.

Tyseer Rahman 5’10 Point Guard 2023 (Bishop Loughlin Memorial HS/Camp Team-Yale): Rahman is a savvy playmaker who finds teammates well on ball screens rolling to the bucket, drive and kicks for open three-pointers, and in transition for high percentage layups. Had a nice pocket pass to a teammate rolling off a screen for a layup, as well as when penetrating, finding an open teammate spotting up from beyond the arc for a trey. Also made the right play on the break, giving the ball right back to a teammate after they passed him the ball for an easy finish at the rim. Had four helpers in the contest. He can also space the floor well from long range, making threes effectively off the dribble or when spotting up. Nailed a shot from beyond the arc when pushing the ball up the floor after an opponent’s make, as well as hitting a spot up trey when the ball was swung his way and an opponent closed out too late. Rahman has a soft floater in his scoring arsenal. Finished a tier drop in transition when pushing the ball after securing a rebound, in addition to hitting another one from five feet in the halfcourt after getting a bigger opponent up in the air with a shot fake. Finished the game with 10 points. Defensively, Rahman does a good job generating steals with his quick hands and movements. Had a nice play plucking the ball away from an opponent when they were weak with their handle, along with jumping into a passing lane after an opponent tried to hit a teammate for a layup when driving baseline.

Princeton vs Harvard

Cody McKiernan 6’5 Wing 2021 (Xavier HS/Camp Team-Princeton): McKiernan has a smooth stroke from beyond the arc, making three-pointers at a very good rate when spotting up. Drained a trey when an opponent gave him too much space after the ball was swung his way. He complements his potent shooting with the ability to get to the rim off the dribble both in transition and the halfcourt. Had a pair of nice transition plays, pushing the ball after corralling a rebound to take it the other way for a contested finger roll layup, as well as blowing by an opponent to score a left hand layup after getting an outlet pass from a teammate, McKiernan also had a strong drive from the perimeter, coming off a screen to finish a layup. He is aggressive on the offensive glass, doing a good job creating second chance opportunities for his team. Pulled down four offensive boards in the contest, including two that were putback for layups. Finished the contest with 13 points. McKiernan impacts the defensive glass as well, having a nose for the ball when it comes off the rim. Corralled six defensive boards, giving him a total of 10 rebounds for the game and a double-double.

Stephen Benard 5’11 Point Guard 2023 (Uncommon Prep/Camp Team-Princeton): Benard is a good playmaker, finding teammates effectively on ball screens, in transition, and on extra passes. Had four assists in the contest. Had a pair of assists in the pick roll, hitting a teammate rolling to the hoop for a turnaround jumper from five feet, along with finding another teammate for a pick and pop three-pointer. Also made good decisions hitting a teammate in stride for a layup from an on target ¾ court push ahead pass, in addition to making an unselfish extra pass to a teammate spotting up for a trey. Benard has soft touch on his floater, along with having good body control on his layups. Had a nice play splitting two defenders for a tier drop in the lane, as well as finishing a layup in transition using his body to shield off a bigger defender from blocking his shot. Finished the game with eight points. Defensively, Benard moves his feet well laterally, making it difficult for opposing point guards to get dribble penetration on him. Also makes a solid impact on the glass for his position, showing good instincts when positioning himself after a shot goes up. Corralled five boards in the contest.

Brown vs Columbia

Aaron Talbert 6’0 Point Guard 2022 (The Knox School/Camp Team-Brown): Talbert can space the floor from long range, making three-pointers at a solid rate spotting up and off the dribble. Drained a long ball in transition, spotting up on the wing after a teammate blocked an opponent’s shot. While he did not hit any treys off the bounce in this particular game, he has shown throughout the spring an ability to do this productively. He has good burst off the dribble, creativity with his ball handling, and explosiveness when attempting shots around the rim. This allows him to get to his spots and score in the mid-range effectively with pull-ups and floaters, in addition to generating scoring opportunities close to the hoop well for a player his size. Used a nice through the legs move getting penetration on an opponent to score a step back jumper, as well as finishing a soft floater on a strong drive from the perimeter. Had a pair of other good plays, using a sharp in and out crossover to get by an opponent and finish at the rim with his left hand, along with blowing by an opponent on a straight line drive to draw a shooting foul at the basket. Finished the game with 15 points. Talbert is a solid facilitator, finding teammates effectively on drive and kicks for open threes, as well as rewarding teammates running the floor hard in transition for high percentage layups. Had a pair of assists in the contest, including hitting a cutting teammate running the floor hard on the break for a two hand slam. Defensively, Talbert makes opposing point guards have to work hard getting by him with his strong body and lateral quickness. Also does a nice job forcing steals, using active hands when recognizing his matchup is not tight with their handle.

Noah Toussaint 6’0 Point Guard 2023 (Long Island Lutheran/Camp Team-Columbia): Toussaint has compact form on his jump shot, making three-pointers at a good rate when spotting up. Hit a spot up trey after the ball was kicked out to him when a teammate got an offensive rebound. He is a crafty finisher around the rim, using solid body control and touch with both hands to score well in this area at his stature. Toussaint had a pair of nice drives and finishes at the rim, using his body to shield off an opponent and finish with his left hand, as well as using his inside hand to avoid his shot being blocked. Had seven points in the contest. He is a good passer, finding teammates well on drive and kicks for open threes, in addition to in transition for high percentage layups. Had a pair of assists in the game, finding a teammate coming off a screen for three when penetrating, along with threading the needle on a bounce pass to a teammate running the break for a layup. Toussaint easily could have had a few more assists had the good looks he created gone down. Some of these included, making a good extra pass to a teammate for an open trey, in addition to finding an open teammate spotting up for three after getting by an opponent with a sharp through the legs move.

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