At Vance high school, the program had a ton of talent with a great mixture of young and experienced players taking the floor. One senior though that flew a little under the radar was 2020 6’6 Jheison Saunds.
Watching him at the start of the season and throughout, Saunds provided a solid piece in his team’s success. He is a do-it-all type prospect that plays hard, has a motor, and plays with a physical presence to him, especially with his frame. He is able to match up with multiple opponents as well as bring that competitive nature on the floor, doing the dirty work that teams need.
He competed at the NC Top 80 back in 2019 and we had this to say about him.
“He’s a strong-bodied forward prospect with great physical tools and the ability to attack the basket at a quality rate. Saunds doesn’t have many glaring holes within his skillset, which allows him to easily coexist with various different types of players and make an impact. He displayed a nice back-to-basket arsenal and scored numerous times when slotted near the low-post. Saunds has decent quickness for his size and was able to draw out bigger defenders and beat them off the dribble. Coach Johnson on Saunds: “Jheison is a strong kid that can penetrate and finish, but can improve on his shot-selection and take better care of the ball.”
This season he was a key player off the bench, playing in 27 games and bringing productive when he was called upon by head coach Brian Frasier. Coach Frasier had this to say about his senior:
“Jhesion is a young man that provides strength, toughness, and physicality. He has a nice touch around the rim, soft hands, and can be a natural bully. He is agile enough to move around defenders and guard 1-5 on defensive switches. Jhesion also can make the 15-footers along with three’s in the secondary.
Check out his highlights here: https://www.hudl.com/video/3/10361959/5e5e60ec688e3b099c7f74cb