Agile Bigs Primed For A Big Senior Season and Big Recruiting Pick Up
The bigs were certainly a great feature of the Phenom Summer Jam. On our rosters had players such as 6'10' Jay Huff (Voyager Academy), 6'9' Patrick Tape (Queens Grant), 6'10' Mac Brydon (Carmel Christian), 6'8' DJ Burns (York Prep), and 7'1' Raekwon Long (Lincoln Charter). However, maybe the two most talked about bigs in the event were not really ones that many were talking about heading into the event.
Welcome to the spotlight Keyon Wesley (6'8'/Rocky River HS) and 6'8 Malik Brevard (6'8'/Olympic HS). Both of these guys displayed big time skill sets, natural skill sets that is easy to like. It's hard to watch two players of this caliber play, and wonder how they fell under the radar, but once you dig a little deeper it a bit easier to understand.
6'8' 2016 Keyon Wesley of Rocky River High School, finished last year averaging around 14 points per game. Rocky River HS is located in Mint Hill, North Carolina. Mint Hill is a city of 24,000 and Rocky River is a 4A High School playing in the Southwestern Conference. The Southwestern Conference was quirky last year, Rocky River finished with a 12-13 record. However, in the conference Rocky River HS finished with a 9-2 record.
A large part of the success was with 6'8' Keyon Wesley, however due to the location and conference many of his 14 points per game went unseen. Last summer Wesley played with Team United's third (3rd) team on the 16U level. So he was not in a very visible area, which has been established. But also, when you would look at Wesley last year, he stood 6'7' and weight 170 pounds. He was spindly, to say the least.
This Summer Wesley has switched programs and is playing a bit role on the Team Loaded North Carolina 16U team. Fast forward to team camp with Rocky River, you get a full view of what Wesley is now. Growing an inch to 6'8', putting on some weight to 185 pounds, Wesley is not a mis-match force. He scored at three (3) levels, showing range beyond the arc. He was also attacking the basket from the wing, and finishing at the rim. With all the bigs and competition, Wesley averaged over twenty (20) points per game and making three (3) three's per contest.
6'8' 2016 Malik Brevard of Olympic High School (Charlotte), played last year at East Mecklenburg High School. This is a West Mecklenburg team that finished 9-14 overall and only 3-11 in the Conference. Last Summer he played a solid role with the Team Charlotte 16U program. However, last year (and last Summer) Brevard played as a 6'6' power forward.
This Summer, like Wesley, Brevard moved over to Team Loaded North Carolina. He is playing a good role with the team, however, when the team plays all eyes are on Top 5 National prospects Dennis Smith and Edrice Adebayo. To say that Brevard plays a role, may be an understatement.
Fast forward to Saturday and you see a full picture of what Brevard can do. The lefty, has grown two inches from last year. He still carries his face up ability and touch that spans beyond the three point arc. Brevard is a high flying athlete, which finishes well at the rim and is great (borderline breathtaking) in transition.
During the dead period Wesley picked up and offer from Robert Morris (Northeast Conference). Brevard currently has two (2) offers from UT Chattanooga (Southern Conference) and Radford (Big South Conference).
Look for these offer lists to continue to grow. There is a lot to like about 6'8' who can run, who can jump, and who can shoot with range.