Trey Simpson, DME Academy–The 6-foot-7 Murray State commit is the classic case of a high wired act.
He’s a highly proficient, highly efficient scoring threat who knows how to finish lobs and attack the seams. With a knack for getting off the ground quickly and turning in thunderous dunks from 3-4 feet away from the basket, Simpson bolsters DME with his explosiveness.
He’s become an inside/outside presence with his delicate touch and ability to stick shots from 15-18 feet and out to the 3-point line.
With his workmanlike game, Simpson has been a consistent boards snatcher. He is coming off a performance of 16 points, eight boards, and a block during DME’s thorough 73-51 trouncing of Iowa United.
The lefty is an arduous mismatch for his ability to put the ball on the deck and create his shot off the bounce.
His versatility enables him to guard multiple positions. He’s developed into a sturdy defensive backstop with his tenacious shot blocking and ability to manipulate and change the trajectory of his shots. Expect Simpson to emerge as one of the top performers during a traditionally powerful City of Palms Classic rife with elite talent.
Willie Burnett, West Oaks Academy–A blossoming catch-and-stick presence with spurt-ability and a proclivity for sticking shots on the move, Burnett has steadily evolved into one of the top-tier scoring guards in the Class of 2026. He possesses a nose for the rim and an adeptness for using the angles and circumventing defenders in his thorough surges to the rim.
Burnett, who has been rendered hard-to-guard when he explodes into traffic and finishes with his off-hand, has routinely broken games open with his seizing of the hot hand. He scored a game-best 37 points on a scalding 13-for-21 shooting during a recent win over The Academy of Central Florida.
Naturally wired to score, Burnett brings significant size and length at 6-foot-5. You also can’t pigeonhole him as strictly a bucket getter. Beyond his prolific scoring, Burnett is able to impact the game in a variety of ways and leave his fingerprints on nearly every connotation of the stat sheet.
He recently turned in a performance of 22 points, five rebounds, and five steals during a victory over SEPA back on Dec. 11. Burnett’s ability to swiftly change directions, stick tape measure 3-pointers, and prosper with his manipulative one on one game have been notable components of his ascension. His penchant for evading defenders with his hop step, fakes, and creativity in through traffic finishes are what make him such a unique challenge to defend.
Dwayne Williams, Academy of Central Florida–The 6-foot-6 wing is a high octane presence who is in constant full throttle mode. Williams is able to kick-start the break fresh off a defensive rebound. He has blossomed with his ability to gobble up defensive rebounds and his downhill game. He’s a crafty, ambidextrous finisher who knows how to permeate the teeth of the rim protectors and score.
Beyond his exquisite downhill game, the Baltimore native has shown a dependable outside touch as part of his balanced offensive repertoire. He was one of the best shooters on the floor during the prestigious National Prep Championship Series, as he stuck four 3-pointers and wound up scoring a game-best 24 points to with eight rebounds.
Andre Ngomabie, Victory Rock Christian Academy–The 6-foot-10, 210-pound post player has been a defensive stonewall for the SIAA-FL program, steering off the driving lanes and using his long reach and tenaciousness to swat, change, and manipulate shots inside. With the athleticism and college ready build and physicality he possesses, Ngomabie could surely guard at the college level right away. He’s been the watermark for efficiency in the post, turning in powerful finishes and developing into a steady catch and dunk presence.
Ngomabie has been a consistent double double threat. He’s also been the stabilizing influence for Victory Rock’s last line of defense. His hands and footwork have steadily evolved as he continues to pose a threat defenders as a back to the rim scorer. adding 15 pounds of muscle to his frame during that critical summer session will help him prepare for the rigors of the collegiate experience, as he should be ready for meaningful minutes from the very start.
Florida International appears to be angling themselves for front runner positions in the high upside Ngomabie’s recruitment. Wyoming, which continues to express interest, will be in this week to see him.
Max Ortega, Pines Charter–The 6-foot-2 shot maker is buoyed by his IQ, two-way grit, and ability to fire in darts with either hand. He has a cerebral, patient, and poised quality to himself in his ability to dissect a defense.
The Wofford-commit is able to get into the nooks and crannies of defenses with his powerful handle.
Ortega has significant elevation on his mid range jumper. He’s an offensive engineer who finds teammates at the opportune time to score. In his cutting and on the drive finishing, the well-built guard is a difficult matchup.
Carlos Rodriguez, Academy of Central Florida–After being shelved and relegated to the role of spectator while dealing with a nagging shoulder injury, the Class of 2025 6-foot-3 guard has returned to form.
Rodriguez, a 1000+ point scorer who shouldered the onus of big shot-maker while at Scarsdale HS in Section 1 (NY), recently turned in a 20-point performance during a victory over SEPA. He’s developed into a traditional, dish first caliber point guard, relishing his new role as table-setting facilitator.
As a bigger built guard similar to Chauncey Billups, Rodriguez has made conditioning and adding strength a livelihood. He’s been a staple in the breakneck, running game that the program is known for. Being more of a heady guard has allowed his game to grow.
A well rounded performance during the team’s pulsating, at the buzzer victory over the Junior NBA Latin American team, during Academy of Central Florida’s own Holiday tournament, is indicative of this. Rodriguez finished with 15 points, six rebounds and six assists.
The game went down to the wire and was won with a wild, step through one handed three-pointer at the buzzer. After helping bring Scarsdale to an unprecedented level during his memorable three years there, Rodriguez has transformed him game as a dual threat with unique positional versatility on both ends of the floor.
Patrick Rowe, IMG Academy–The 6-foot-7 IMG post-grad has been a floor spreader, shooting it at a 52 percent clip from 3-point range with over 30 shot attempts.
A high rising wing, Rowe re-wrote the record books at Chisago Lakes HS in Minnesota. He averaged 30 points (third in the state) per game to go with 10 boards during an illustrious career in which he led the program to a conference title following a 19-year drought.
Rowe’s high level athleticism enables him to infuse IMG’s lineup with dazzling finishes. He’s had several dunks where he’s levitated from 3-4 feet away from the rim. As a shooter, he’s similar to many in the college game with his unique blend of size, range, and ability to stick shots on the move and in transition.
Being multi-positional defensively and being able to front bigs in the post while simultaneously using his length to guard the ball and close up passing lanes has paid dividends for Rowe.With his blackout work ethic and the high wired athleticism that aligns with today’s Division-I game, Rowe has all of the integral ingredients to be a late bloomer on the recruiting market.
Elijah Duval, SEPA–The Class of 2025 point guard is a heady game manager with an innate vision, an attribute that enables him to turn in heads up plays and deliver those fireball assists to a jarringly open teammate. Duval brings high level athleticism and a vertically explosive style that enables him to get into the teeth of the defense and finish.
He boasts significant elevation on his shot and with a quickened shot release, he’s able to stick from beyond the arc and rattle off points in a hurry. Duval’s shiftiness and knack for snaking his way into the lane in hitting difficult, acrobatic shots into tight spaces has been evident this season.
Duval has good concepts of the game and sets a loud tone defensively with his confrontational one on one defense and relentlessness in pressing and locking up on every possession, throughout all 94 feet of real estate.
Latrell Almond, John Marshall–The at the rim and above the rim killer has been a veritable walking double double this season. With a fighter’s build at 6-foot-9, Almond has blossomed as an efficient scorer and shot-blocking, shot influencing presence capable of keeping the net shut. Almond has a traditional 1990s NBA Center mentality to him, a facet that bolsters his game.
With his IQ and refined skill set, he’s able to distribute and kick it out to shooters and also capitalize on timely reads inside.
Almond’s motor is arguably his most translatable, most appealing attribute. He’s able to soar in for offensive rebounds, keep possessions alive, and provide second chance buckets.
He has the ingredients and polish to be a formidable piece in high low action at the next level, especially when paired with a similar big man of his type.
Tennessee, Rutgers, Oklahoma State, and Georgetown are among the many programs vying for the services of the Class of 2026 Almond.
Cole Cloer, Caldwell Academy (NC)–A 6-foot-7 wing who embodies versatility with his concepts of dribble, pass, and shoot, Cloer has budding athleticism and an ability to levitate above the rim and finish with relative ease.
He’s a hounding defender with his ability to get steals and interrupt passing lanes. He also defends the rim and uses his timing and instinctive style to make point blank rejections.
The North Carolina native keeps defenders giving chase with his fall-away jumper, 3-point shot making, and ability to knife into the last line of defense and finish through contact. If there is one way to accurately depict his game, the word is so glaringly obvious it nearly falls off the page: smooth.
Cloer of course was offered by North Carolina, a program that has a lot of goods and seductive recruiting tools to woo him with. Georgetown was early on Cloer, who also has offers from South Carolina, Oklahoma State, Louisville, Miami, NC State, Georgetown, Iowa, Tennessee, Wake Forest, and a variety of others.
Dylan Mann, S4G Academy (NC):
With a game previously cloaked in obscurity in the Home School leagues, the 6-foot-9 Class of 2025 Mann is an embodiment of a late bloomer. He devours mismatches in the low post, dunking with authority and also scoring with his back to the rim like an old-school center. Of course, given the position-less basketball concept embedded in today’s game, Mann fits the next level with his long-range game.
He’s able to catch, seize a bird’s-eye view of the rim, and fire in from downtown with consistency.
While shouldering a high-order commitment to making the game a livelihood, especially during high-intensity workouts at S4G Academy under longtime head coach Kyle Solomon, Mann is beginning to play possessed.
He has a guard-like fluidity with his mobility and ability to put it on the deck and engineer the transition game fresh off a defensive board. He’s developed a mid-post game, cashing in elbow jumpers and bringing bigs outside of the paint with a feathery touch.
Justin Caldwell, Berean Baptist (NC)–The 6-foot-9, 240-pound Class of 2026 forward has become a high wired act with a proclivity for dunking everything. Caldwell has rapidly evolved into a back to the rim threat with a feathery baby hook. At the same time, Caldwell was able to register his presence as a rim runner who is prone to thunderous finishes.
He’s an active ingredient on the defensive glass, helping spur the breakneck attack fresh off a defensive board. Offensively, he’s able to keep possessions alive and swoop in for stickback dunks and putbacks.The Class of 2026 Caldwell’s stock heightened as he rapidly morphed into an imposing, space-eating double double threat.
He averaged 18 points and 10 rebounds for Team Loaded VA during the opening stages of the AAU season. With his constant full throttle mode, Caldwell has earned plaudits for his killer instinct and ability to play with sustainable relentlessness through two halves and four quarters.
There never seems to be any stretches of the game where he disappears or seems disinterested, regardless of who the opponent is.Caldwell has also developed a patient back to the rim game.
He’s able to exploit smaller players with a deceptive post arsenal. In the half court set, he’s become a better passer than credited for
