You probably haven’t heard much about 6’6” rising junior Brandon Lamberth on the recruiting circuit, but we have a feeling that is about to change. We’ve been watching Brandon over the past three years and now, it is all starting to come together for this high academic player. Although he is in the 2017 class and will be attending Dudley High School, Brandon has already completed his high school courses, finishing with an impressive 4.4 GPA. He is taking part in the NC A&T STEM Early College program and has been a full time college student since 2015.
Brandon first came to out attention when he attended the NC Phenom 150 camp as a high school freshman, when we wrote the following, “Brandon is a promising young freshman. He demonstrated an excellent attitude and work ethic. He has a good feel for the game with his poise. He does a lot of little things well and is the perfect glue guy on a team.”
A year later, we watched Brandon once again at our NC Phenom 150 camp. We stated,
Brandon is a strong and physical undersized power forward that will battle you tooth and nail for position and rebounds. He makes positive things happen. He’s an aggressive rebounder and has excellent anticipation in securing 50/50 balls. The next step for Brandon is to expand his range offensively and be more effective as a face-up shooter from 10-15 feet from the basket. If he can do just that, his stock will climb quickly.
As we have stated many times, it’s not where you start, it’s where you
finish, and this statement could not be more accurate about describing the route taken for Brandon. Each year, there has been a gradual and steady improvement in his game. At our NC Phenom 150 camp last October (2015), the improvement was once again evident. We wrote, “Two things immediately jumped out when observing Brandon, first he has a relentless motor and two, he flat gets after it on the defensive end of the court. Currently, he is more advanced defensively than offensively, which is rarely the case.”
Fast forward to this summer, when we got another chance to watch Brandon play, this time for the Upward Stars Raleigh squad at the Phenom Summer Havoc. Brandon still made his mark on the defensive end of the court and was the ultimate team player. He defended, rebounded and hustled on every possession. However, we also noticed the improvement in his midrange game, which was starting to show strides. He was an offensive threat and was becoming a better all around player.
We have always been impressed with Brandon’s work ethic and determination,
two of his strongest attributes as a player. That continues to hold true today and what you see is still not the finished product, which is important for college coaches. A lengthy 6’6”, Brandon has shown a willingness to work and get better. He’s an outstanding student and is one of the most polite and friendly young prospects you will meet. More importantly, Brandon hasn’t gotten caught up in the “me game.” While not being on any statewide ranking list, he has continued to work hard on his game. This hard work is starting to pay dividends and don’t be surprised to see his name on our next ranking list. For Brandon Lamberth, it’s about putting it all together and he is certainly a player to monitor at the D1 level.