Phenom Hoops traveled to Concord, aka “Hoop City” to cover open gym at Jay M. Robinson, Concord, and Cox Mill. We finished the evening in Huntersville to watch North Mecklenburg. The talent level at each school is completely off the charts and today we will focus our attention on three players; 2017 Lavar Batts Jr., 2018 Rechon Black, and 2019 Wendell Moore.
All three players are ranked number one in North Carolina in their perspective class and all are high major prospects and will be in the national conversation as the best at their position. Yes, they are that good! That being said, as good as they are on the basketball court, they are even better young men off the court. They are excellent students and high character young men. Now, let’s take a closer look at each player.
6’3 ’17 Lavar Batts (Jay M. Robinson)
Lavar has a special gear and his elite level speed is as good as it gets in the 2017 class nationally. When you first watch Batts, you would think he is a lefty. He goes left which is “off hand,” better than player in the country regardless of class. His high motor approach is quite appealing. The knock on Batts coming into the 2015-16 season has been his jump shot. He had a low release and his elbow had a tendency to bow out. However, he has worked extremely hard and showcased a more improved jumper. He had a higher release point and his technique was more on point. He had a great backspin and rotation and was knocking down jumpers with high efficiency during workouts.
In speaking with his father and high school coach Lavar Batts, his son currently has offers from Tennessee, Yale, ODU, ECU, and Charlotte. Georgia was on hand to watch workouts and it was took a matter of minutes for them to join the fray. They immediately offered. Look for his recruitment to explode with other national high major schools.
Batts currently sports a 3.1 GPA and is a high character young man. He is very polite and well mannered.
6’6 ’18 Rechon Black (Concord HS)
We have described Rechon Black as a younger version of Brandon Ingram. Black is a lengthy 6’6 and sports an impressive 6’9 wingspan. The baby faced Black is far from growing. That being said, his skill set and upside is ridiculous.
He already sports offers from Wake Forest, Tennessee, Virginia Tech, Clemson and Charlotte. UNC was in attendance for work outs and don’t be surprised before all the other high majors from the ACC make a trek down to Concord.
What separates Black from his peers is his upside and potential. While he has amazing length, his skill set is crazy good. You won’t find many 6’6 point guards at any level and he has tremendous ball handling skills and court vision. Black has a solid jump shot although he will need to develop a quicker release moving forward. That being said, he does have good extension and follow through.
Black sports a 3.2 GPA and is a soft-spoken young man off the court. He is well grounded and is focused on the big picture.
6’5 ’19 Wendell Moore (Cox Mill)
Wendell Moore already sports a physically mature frame and an advanced skill set. His skill set and maturity are simply beyond his years. He has one college offer from Charlotte, but that will quickly change although he is just a freshman. Moore sports a perfect 4.0 GPA coming into high school and his success in the classroom is just as important as his success on the basketball court. When watching Moore on the court, it is his overall poise that grabs your attention. He plays like a season veteran. We were impressed with his ball handling skills but more importantly is his ability to create scoring opportunities for his teammates. He can score from all levels on the court and will be a mismatch with his ability to post up smaller defenders but has the ability to blow by bigger and taller defenders.
Moore has a tendency to be too unselfish at times and will be the perfect compliment to any team.
The biggest impression
Lavar Batts Jr., Rechon Black, and Wendell Moore will be in the national conversation as the best at their position. That being said, it is refreshing to see such quality young men. They are well grounded in their approach to life. They are highly focused and simply “get it” when it comes to the big picture. Last, we want to give special thanks to coach Lavar Batts (Jay M. Robinson), Jason Stowe (Concord), and Jody Barbee (Cox Mill). We greatly appreciate the wonderful hospitality that was extended to Phenom Hoops from each coach.