Cassidy Awards: MADE Hoops Midwest Mania

WESTFIELD, Ind. – MADE Hoops Midwest Mania attracted some of the top AAU teams in America and Canada to the Indianapolis suburbs over the weekend. Rivals.com was on hand from start to finish and saw a number of familiar and new major prospects.

Below, Rivals.com’s Rob Cassidy notes some of the event’s most important individual performances with hypothetical awards.

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Cassidy's Takeaways: No. 1 and No. 2 face-off at Midwest Mania

2021 Rankings: Rivals150 | Team | Position

2022 Rankings: Rivals150 | Team | Position

2023 Rankings: Top 30

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Emoni Bates arrived at Midwestmania as the No. 1 prospect in the 2022 class. And while he didn’t have a great weekend from an efficiency standpoint, he managed to show flashes of the reasons he sits atop the Rivals150.

Bates scored 30 points on Saturday night and did so through a sudden and smooth pull-up jumper. He also showed off a quick spin move that he relies on to help him get to the rack. The five-star wing is an elite prospect that manages to impact games in a major way even when he’s not shooting the ball particularly well, which was the case over the weekend.

Where he might land: Bates is committed to Michigan State, but some expect him to forgo college and elect to play professionally. No official announcement on that front has been made.

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Jalen Duren, on the other hand, is making his own case for the top spot. On Saturday night, he led his Team Final squad to a comfortable victory over Bates’ squad. And while Duren didn’t score at the clip Bates did, he was an absolute animal in the paint and on the glass. The five-star big is a walking double-double and possesses a rare blend of physicality and touch around the rim.

Where he might land: As is the case with Bates, most think Duren will end up skipping college to play professionally. He does, however, seem particularly high on Kentucky, Villanova and Michigan.

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Sharpe backed up his five-star ranking from the moment he first took the court on Friday night and stayed consistently effective through the weekend event. One of the best pure athletes in the class of 2022, Sharpe’s incredible vertical and highlight reel dunks are complemented by the fact that he’s also an incredibly consistent shooter from distance. He’s also an active defender and a willing rebounder.

Already a top-25 prospect, he could climb a few more spots when the rankings refresh next month. Nobody had a better weekend than Sharpe, who made a massive mark on every game he played with the U-Play Canada Grassroots program.

Where he might land: Sharpe has offers from programs such as Kansas, Alabama, Illinois, Kentucky and Oregon. On Saturday, he declined to discuss his recruitment, saying that he’s focused on the AAU season. If he continues on his trajectory, he’ll be one of the most coveted recruits in America.

Mitchell has long been known as an elite athlete with impressive length and incredible bounce. He moved up significantly in the last rankings update and will likely do so again, as the Florida-based star wowed everyone with his defense at Midwestmania. Mitchell frustrated top overall prospect Emoni Bates on Saturday afternoon, holding him under 20 points and forcing him into a number of bad shots.

The four-star forward followed that up by holding five-star Brandon Miller in check in the next game. Mitchell, who runs with Florida’s Each 1 Teach 1 grassroots program, is seeing his stock skyrocket.

Where he might land: Florida and Florida State are major players here, but it seems likely that there are more offers in store for Mitchell. Georgia, Auburn and Ole Miss are also involved.

Yates, who plays for the Houston Hoops organization, put on one of the more impressive shooting surges in recent memory, when he knocked down eight 3-pointers, including two from Steph Curry-range in the first half of the Midwestmania 16U championship game.

Yates finished the contest with 33 points in a losing effort but managed to make a statement about what kind of shooter he’s become. He also boasts a strong upper body that he uses to get to the basket against smaller defenders.

Where he might land: Illinois, Oklahoma State and TCU have all offered Yates. It’s too early to wager a guess as to where he might land because more offers will arrive this summer.

Currently unranked in the class of 2023, Malik Presley will find himself in the rankings when they expand. The 6-foot-5 wing scored 21 points in the 16u championship game but his defense and a pair of hyper-athletic chase-down blocks are what grabbed everyone’s attention.

Presley is a true three-level scorer and has a quick first step to go along with a pretty consistent jumper. His performance in the title game loss was as well-rounded as anyone could have hoped.

Where he might land: Oklahoma State, Tulsa and Houston have offered Presley and his list of options seems poised to grow exponentially in the months ahead.

The weekend's most exciting game saw Johns help his Team Final squad claw back from a 30-point first-half deficit to win the championship. The 6-foot-4 guard scored 20 second-half points on his way to 22 for the game.

Johns gets to the basket with a quick first step and decent ball handling. His upside is certainly intriguing because of tenacity and length. If he becomes a more consistent shooter, his recruitment will likely take off.

Where he might land: Miami, Ole Miss and Texas A&M have offered Johns.

A class of 2024 shooting guard, Johnson gets to the rack as effortlessly as any prospect in his class. And while he impressed onlookers with a 22-point performance that also saw him grab a number of tough rebounds, most of the college interest that surrounds the 6-foot-3 prospect is as a football player.

According to Johnson, who plays for the Indy Heat program, football staffs at Notre Dame, Indiana and Purdue have all reached out to inquire. Still, he certainly has a future on the hardwood if he chooses to pursue it. If he develops a consistent jumper to go along with his ball-handling, rebounding and quick first step, he could garner a number of high-major looks down the road.

Where he might land: Johnson, who is just a freshman, says he has not decided if he will pursue basketball or football as his primary sport in college.

Lively plays in a Team Final frontcourt with No. 2 overall prospect Jalen Duren, so he’s sometimes left out of the headlines. That didn’t stop the 7-foot-2 star from being remarkable at Midwestmania over the weekend, however.

Lively is incredibly fluid and agile for a player of his size and is making a habit of pulling off athletic put-back dunks and catching lobs. He also seems to be embracing his role as a rim-protector, as he blocked a number of shots and changed countless others on Saturday. He’s still scratching the surface of his potential, as he’s slowly developing the skill to go along with his size and athleticism.

Where he might land: North Carolina, Ohio State and Pitt are heavily involved with the athletic center. Lively is also in close contact with Kentucky. Expect the Wildcats to be in the thick of the race until the end should they offer.

An Indiana commit, Gunn righted a slow start over the weekend and seemed to improve his jumper and cut down on turnovers with each game he played. By Sunday afternoon, he was firing on all cylinders.

When Gunn is at his best, he is able to maintain a breakneck pace without seeming out of control. On Sunday, he saw the court well and impressed with his passing in addition to pouring in 15 points from all three levels.

Where he might land: Gunn is committed to the Hoosiers.

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