McDonald's AA Game: Zion gets going; more takeaways

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ATLANTA - Five-star forward Zion Williamson backed up his Monday night dunk contest win with a loud Tuesday morning practice at the McDonald's All-American Game festivities.

In addition to a morning practice, the players when through media day and held a "closed" - yet nationally televised - scrimmage in Phillips Arena. National Analyst Eric Bossi has his takeaways from the day's action.

RELATED: Takeaways from Monday's practice

Maybe Zion Williamson's win in Monday night's dunk contest got his juices flowing a little bit. Whatever the reason, Williamson showed up with a much more aggressive mindset on Tuesday and I rather enjoyed watching him punish teammates in one on one drills and playing in the post.

The more I think about it, the more I think we have all spent a little too much time trying to figure out who to compare Williamson too and how his game can be tinkered with. In essence, we're trying too hard. It's pretty simple really, post him up, create matchup problems and let him go to work where he's at his best.

He will likely play a lot of four at Duke and if the Blue Devils land E.J. Montgomery - who likes to play from the outside in - Williamson could become a really intriguing option to use as a new world center

My thought process remains the same in thinking that future Duke teammates R.J. Barrett and Cameron Reddish are battling it out for the No. 1 spot in the class of 2018. Through three practices and a scrimmage neither has really asserted himself as the top dog. Then again, nobody else has taken it from either of them too.

Anyway, the No. 1 question I keep getting asked by NBA guys here is; "Is there somebody not here that should be?"

At least from an NBA perspective the class of 2018 lacks some pop and they want to know what it is that makes Barrett and Reddish the two that most seem to have pegged at the top of the class.

Both Barrett and Reddish started to get things going a little bit Tuesday morning and then there were times in the scrimmage where they got a bit physical and talkative while squaring off with each other. A lot of eyes are going to be on them Wednesday night and they are hopefully warming up to the moment.

I continue to be impressed with Keldon Johnson and there's no doubt in my mind he's validated his standing as one of the top 10-15 players in the class of 2018.

It is easy to figure out which guys have been working and which haven't and it's pretty clear that Johnson keeps working on his game as he prepares to head to Kentucky. He's a natural scorer with versatility to his game and he's just sneaky explosive enough to play some mind games with defenders before blowing by them.

Through multiple practice sessions and a scrimmage, Johnson has been reliable and efficient and he should be able to continue those ways next year in Lexington.

Romeo Langford has to be one of the most secretly explosive players that I have ever scouted. Or another way of describing his sudden bursts of athleticism is that he makes things look so easy that when he really turns it on it is almost jarring how quick and explosive he can be.

A byproduct of that is constant questioning whether the top ranked player on the board is playing hard or lacks toughness. Having seen him play so many times over the year, there's no doubt in my mind that he's plenty tough and plays plenty hard.

Whether it be Indiana, Kansas or Vanderbilt that lands him, they are getting a guy that will cause defenders fits because of that ability to put them to sleep and then explode on them. I also feel like there's another big step ahead Langford can take with his development when he's getting constant reps with college coaches.

- If we are talking point guards, Darius Garland played the best of any of them that I watched on Tuesday. Garland had a little extra bounce in his step, seemed capable of getting anywhere he wanted to go and there's no question he's taking over as soon as he gets on campus at Vanderbilt.

- It hasn't always resulted in success for him, but in my opinion UCLA-bound 7-footer Moses Brown has played with as much consistent effort as anybody here at McDonald's. He's been active on the glass, he has played hard on defense and he has taken pride in what he's doing. Those are all great signs for somebody whose motor has been questioned in the past. The biggest thing for Brown is that he lacks strength, but once he gets that he could really blossom.

- By nature, Kansas-bound Quentin Grimes isn't the type who is going to take things over in a setting like McDonald's practices. But, he was quietly solid on Tuesday. I like his strength and approach to the game and he's got a mental toughness to him that I find to be underrated. The tools to be a knockdown shooter are there too.

- E.J. Montgomery likes to play the game from outside in because he has some face-up game and skill. I think he's got things a little backwards and would like to see what happens once he is expected - presumably by whichever college coach lands him - to operate on the low block first and then take his game to the outside. Montgomery has some serious feel in the post and it would be to his benefit to use it to his advantage a little bit more.

- LSU-bound Nazreon Reid is a trip. The five-star big man is massive and takes up as much space as anybody in attendance. He's also at times unmotivated and content to chill and watch what's happening. Then all of the sudden he will make up his mind to to go get things done and it's pretty alarming how quick and athletic he can be. If he dedicates himself to the weight room and playing hard, his stay in Baton Rouge won't have to be very long. It's totally up to him.