Over the last five days, Phenom Hoops was stationed in Fort Mill, South Carolina for our annual Summer Havoc Live. There were two sessions, both loaded with talent and noteworthy matchups, which made for a highly entertaining week of basketball. College coaches were constantly filtering throughout the multiple venues, and numerous offers were extended to players. The sheer number of standouts makes forming a list quite difficult, but this article will take a closer look at a handful of personal favorites from the event…
6’4 ’23 Tyrese Melo (Run The Citi)
Although there were a ton of impressive prospects on display, Tyrese Melo was the breakout prospect of the event. The entire Run The Citi roster is worthy of attention from all types of scholarship-level coaches. However, it’s impossible to look past Melo’s pure dominance across the week. He’s a long, wiry guard with an excellent blend of IQ, skill, leadership traits, and physical tools. Melo comfortably dictates the offensive action with the ball in his hands, constantly breaking down opponents, touching the paint, and generating scoring chances for himself and others. He’s a crafty, unselfish playmaker with the necessary vision and feel to consistently make the right play. Melo scores the ball at a healthy yet efficient rate from all three levels, and mixes it up enough to keep opponents in limbo. He utilized his blend of quickness, quality handle, and sharp change of direction to get wherever he wanted on the floor. Additionally, Melo is a lockdown defender with terrific instincts, activity level, and the ability to toggle between multiple positions. He rebounds his position well and does a great job of pushing the break in transition. Melo was a genuine terror for seemingly every opponent in his path, so his recruitment is somewhat perplexing. Regardless, Division I coaches should be in heavy pursuit of the two-way guard.
6’4 ’23 Anthony Breland (Team Eat)
If the previous name was the top breakout performer, then Anthony Breland must be mentioned in the same breath. For starters, the crafty, polished guard has always been extremely talented. That being said, it looks like Breland is beginning to showcase his special abilities again. While he has posted massive numbers over the last few seasons, he’s clearly worked on defining his body and getting into peak condition over the recent months. In turn, Breland is more dynamic than ever before. He was utterly unstoppable during the first session of play, getting literally whatever and wherever he wanted on offense, scoring the ball in a variety of different ways, and showing the ability to set up others at a nice rate. Breland is a legitimate offensive weapon with the blend of feel, ball-handling, body control, and smooth perimeter shooting to dominate a game. Though he’s shown the full scoring arsenal, he can still easily run a team as the primary playmaker. Breland is a useful rebounder who understands how to cause problems with his transition presence. He’s a capable defender with the necessary instincts to force turnovers at a quality volume. Given everything Breland showcased, various types of scholarship-level coaches should be extending offers.
6’10 ’24 Jarin Stevenson (Team United)
Often times, “special” can be an over-utilized buzzword to represent a sense of intrigue, but certain players, like Jarin Stevenson, truly fit the notion. It’s probably low-hanging fruit to refer to a nationally regarded prospect with countless offers in this manner, but he’s still only scratching the surface of his long-term greatness. At 6-foot-10, Stevenson is a gifted prospect with a unique blend of size, skill, fluidity, and advanced feel. He’s long, polished, and incredibly unselfish with the ability to effortlessly control the offensive action with or without the ball in his hands. Stevenson is arguably the only player in the state who can dominate a game in several different ways offensively. He’s an exceptional post-up option with unbelievable patience, touch, footwork, vision, and craftiness as a scorer. However, Stevenson is skilled enough to (again, at 6-foot-10) comfortably create shots for himself and others off the dribble. He shoots the ball at a very high percentage from all levels, but also clearly understands how to take what the defense gives him and consistently make the right play. Stevenson rebounds the ball really well on both ends of the floor. His length and instincts already make him a reliable rim-protector who should only get better as his strength develops. He truly has no real weaknesses. Essentially every program in the country should be laying groundwork with Stevenson, as his ceiling is seemingly unlimited.
5’11 ’23 Micah Jones (Strong Center)
There were so many memorable performers worth noting, and Micah Jones subtly stood out as one of the very best. Earning an offer is typically a strong indicator of who played well, and Jones netting a Mount Olive scholarship should speak volumes. The Strong Center roster is a well-oiled machine, and he is such a major cog within their overall scheme. His abilities as an extremely quick, heady, intelligent floor general allow him to reliably set the tone on both ends of the floor. Jones is quite patient and doesn’t force the action, but utilizes his blinding first step to blow past defenders, touch the paint, and make correct reads with unwavering consistency. He sees the floor extremely well and knows how to get his teammates the ball in favorable spots, but can also assert himself as a scorer in numerous ways. Jones finishes strong, especially for his size, and can hit jumpers at a respectable percentage from the perimeter. He’s a really pesky defender with the ability to mirror opponents at the point of attack and force turnovers at a quality rate. Jones always seems to make great decisions with the ball in his hands. He simply knows how to run a team and set the tone on both ends of the floor. Expect Jones to continue generating buzz and warranting attention from scholarship-level coaches over the coming months.
6’4 ’23 Cole Callaway (Carolina Riptide)
Given our number of viewings throughout the years, it’s fair to say that Cole Callaway has worked tirelessly to further his game—and has done so. While a healthy bulk of his long-term value still lies within his abilities as a three-point shooter, it would be impossible to deny his overall leadership qualities (in all facets of the game) from the last five days of play. Make no mistake, Callaway still shot the ball at a high percentage and burdened the Riptide’s offense in majority of their showings. However, his presence as a defender and rebounder were certainly worth noting. Callaway made a clear point to battle on the glass, and seemingly doubled his rebounding numbers in less than two weeks. He also locked-in defensively, showing a definite fire and streak of toughness in multiple notable matchups. Callaway also displayed the ability to create for himself and others within a few dribbles. He highlighted patience and smart shot-selection throughout the event. Callaway earned an offer from Connecticut College during the event, and should only continue to see an uptick in his recruitment going forward.