Adidas Gauntlet Finale: Williamson receiving a lot of attention

The Adidas Gauntlet Finale tipped off on Thursday in Spartanburg, S.C. with the top Adidas-sponsored teams looking to make their move towards the 2016 championship. Along the way there were some standout performances from prospects you’re probably familiar with, and some that might be more off the radar.

June 15 is always an important day on the recruiting calendar for college basketball coaches. It’s the first day they are allowed to contact prospects in the rising junior class, which is the 2018 class this year.

If you have been around Zion Williamson, the No. 3 player in the 2018 Rivals rankings, since June 15 and his phone has rang, there is a good chance it’s a college coach shooting him a text or giving him a call.

“Florida, Arkansas, Baylor, Clemson, South Carolina… those are the schools that text me every day,” Williamson said. “The other schools tell me they want to text me every day too, but they don’t want to think they are bothering me.”

Kentucky, Duke, North Carolina, Alabama, Georgia, Georgia Tech and Virginia have also been in regular contact with the five-star forward out of South Carolina. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that he’s such a highly recruited prospect. He’s an explosive athlete at 6-foot-7 and has the type of versatility and strong build that might remind some of Julius Randle at the same age.

Thursday morning against the Louisville Magic wasn’t his best performance, but he still did enough to show why he’s considered among the best players in his class.

Jordan Usher’s rise in the 2017 class began back in April at the first Adidas session in Dallas when coaches started buzzing about him, and that’s when he began to start receiving offers. He’s continued to progress as a player since then and came out firing on all cylinders on the first day of the Adidas Gauntlet Finale as he averaged 27 points in his two games.

A 6-foot-7 forward who will be transferring from Sequoyah High School to Georgia powerhouse Wheeler High School for his senior year, Usher is a versatile player who is very productive. He’s not going to be a primary ball handler, but he’s a capable ball handler and has very good court vision. He shoots it well off the dribble and uses pace and angles more than athleticism to get by defenders.

USC offered today and they join a list that already includes Kansas State, Texas, Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Yale and Arizona State. He visited Texas in June and plans to see Mississippi State and USC next month. He made a strong case to be considered for the next update of the 2017 Rivals150.

In the most recent Rivals rankings for the 2018 class, Emmanuel Akot came in at No. 54 overall, and that may not be high enough. Despite an overtime loss for Exum Elite to Texas Pro to close out the night, Akot brought his A game.

A 6-foot-6 small forward, Akot is the rare prospect that can legitimately be labeled as a “point forward” due to his ball handling ability and more importantly his passing ability, particularly in pick and roll situations. He’s not super confident in his jump shot from deep, but did hit some jumpers off pull-ups in the mid-range.

Utah, NC State, Utah State, Oregon and Virginia Tech are the early offers for Akot. Head coaches from Baylor, California, Kansas State, Houston, Auburn, BYU, St. Mary’s and Boise State watched him along with assistants from Utah and Stanford.

Head coaches from Auburn, Cincinnati, Florida, Georgia and Xavier watched Game Elite take on the Louisville Magic in the afternoon session. All of those schools are involved with four-star wing Elias Harden.

Jordan Usher led the way for the Atlanta Celtics, but five-star 2018 forward EJ Montgomery was impressive as well. Montgomery is going to fit nicely into the new era of basketball where power forwards need to have the ability to play on the perimeter, put the ball on the floor and hit jumpers. The Florida native also possesses the basic moves on the block.

Jay Wright of the national champion Villanova Wildcats was in Spartanburg checking on the New England Playaz, presumably to check out 2018 forward Nate Laszewki. The 6-foot-8 forward showed off a nice perimeter stroke in a Thursday afternoon win.

Jamal Johnson had one of his better games of the travel season for Team Carroll on Thursday night. The 6-foot-4 combo guard scored in a variety of ways and made some really nice passes. He’s also one of the better rebounding guards around. He’s still hearing regularly from Alabama, Georgia, Ole Miss, Wake Forest, UAB and a few others.

Alex Reese didn’t have a great overall game, but he showed glimpses of why college coaches are so intrigued by him. He hit two contested three-pointers and battles just enough inside to keep them interested.

Trevin Knell, a 6-foot-5 wing from Exum Elite, is somebody high-majors out west might want to monitor. He’s a knock-down shooter from three-point range and has a really good feel for the game. He’s not afraid to mix it up in the paint on the boards and is a crafty finisher.

TCU commit Kendric Davis was the difference down the stretch in Texas Pro’s win over Exum Elite. The 6-foot lead guard in the 2018 class nailed a tough corner three to start over time and then made a really nice drive to the basket to finish it off. Jamie Dixon has a good one coming down the tracks in a couple years.