They’re not really late bloomers from a physical standpoint, but they are late bloomers from a notoriety standpoint. Looking back at the season, 6’7” Brandon Johnson of Rolesville High and 6’7” Devin Brown of Eastern Wayne High had two of the most productive seasons, for bigs in North Carolina, this year.
Let’s start with Johnson, a 6’7”, 215 pound big man who has a lot of innate traits you look for. The former football player has toughness on the defensive end and the boards. He is also an excellent outlet passer, as well as a decision-maker in the half-court. On the season Johnson averaged 17.6 points on 58% shooting from the field. He added 12.8 rebounds, 2 assists and 1.5 blocks to his stat line. Johnson can line up on the block, in the dunk spots or from the high post. You can run the offense through him or have him finish plays. Johnson has only been playing basketball full time for two seasons, as we said before he was a football player prior. Should be a full scholarship level player with numerous schools coming after him.
Brown, is someone we say play in the playoffs and become and was an unstoppable force. The 6’7”, 245-pound post player is just that, a post player. He plays with his back to the basket and finishes with jump hooks and dunks. He is a very good rebounder, two hands and high. He sets great screens and plays with toughness, a mean nature, when around the basket. On the year, Brown averaged 17.7 points on 61% shooting from the field. He added 12.8 rebounds and 2 blocks per game. Physically Brown is thick with very long arms and excellent timing. He has soft, passer friendly hands and he works hard to seal hard with his back to the basket. Brown has only been playing basketball for a couple of years, with a huge upside ahead of him.
Both Johnson and Brown have some schools meddling around with them, however, they should be a priority for schools with full scholarship monies to give. They both had ultra-productive years in 3A (Brown) and 4A (Johnson) North Carolina basketball and both have upside to go as they are still relatively new to the game.
Good luck coaches, make them a priority and reap the rewards once you get them on campus.