HOOP SCOOP Associate Editor Patrick Stanwood was at the Elite 75 Junior High School Camp at Ashbrook High School in Gastonia, NC over the weekend and he tells us that he thinks 6'4 8th Grader Justin Anderson from Spotsylvania, VA has emerged as one of the top five players nationally in the Class of 2012. "He's as gifted as they come physically," says Stanwood. "After seeing him the last three weekends at the Elite 75 High School Camp and the Pangos All-South, this scout can vouch for the fact that he's an exceptional talent. Defenders beware, Anderson is a big time athlete, he's terrific in transition, and he will dunk in your face. His most notable flaws are standing straight-up on defense and, at times, settling for perimeter jump shots (streaky). But that's just nitpicking." When matched up against Anderson, 6'2 8th Grader Julius Hamilton from Charlotte, NC, who was the second best player in camp, was not afraid of a challenge and more than held his own. Stanwood also liked 5'11 8th Grader Rodney Purvis from Raleigh, NC, because "few guards get this kind of penetration. He has to be a top 50-ranked player nationally in his class with his strong body, and lock down defense. The only downside is that we didn't see him attempt an shot outside." And rounding out the top five players in the 8th Grade Division were 5'9 8th Grader Nate Bucher from Lawrenceville, GA, who is a smooth combo guard with the ability to pass and score both inside and outside, and 6'2 8th Grader James Ford from Richmond, VA, who is a long athletic wing that converts with strong regularity. From there Stanwood's list of the top 8th Graders in camp ranked in order includes 5'11 8th Grader Willie Mangum from Richmond, VA, 6'0 8th Grader Jarri Williams from Charlotte, NC, 8th Grader Terry Henderson from Raleigh, NC, 5'11 8th Grader Gavin Wilson from Raleigh, NC, 6'2 8th Grader Jasen Eddie from Concord, NC, 5'11 8th Grader Keysheen Hinton from Raleigh, NC, 6'2 8th Grader T.J. Warren from Raleigh, NC, 6'1 8th Grader Travis Morgan from Charlotte, NC, 6'1 8th Grader Quan King from Charlotte, NC, 6'2 8th Grader Brandon Hooks from Raleigh, NC, 5'8 8th Grader Kwan Moore from Raleigh, NC, 5'5 8th Grader Brandon Bibbs from Newport News, VA, 6'2 8th Grader Brandon Tripp from Raleigh, NC, 5'10 8th Grader Devontai Foye from Winston Salem, NC, 5'10 8th Grader Calvin Davis from Charlotte, NC, 5'11 8th Grader from Lincoln Davis from Pittsburgh, PA, 5'10 8th Grader L.C. Cooks from Charlotte, NC, 5'9 8th Grader Waymond Wright from Raleigh, NC, 6'2 8th Grader Malik Ragland from Raleigh, NC, 5'10 8th Grader Jan Jones from Raleigh, NC, 5'4 8th Grader Joshua Newkirk from Raleigh, NC, 5'4 8th Grader Justin Dobbs from Pittsburgh, PA, 5'2 8th Grader Marvin Wilson from Raleigh, NC, 6'1 8th Grader Jonathan Jones from Raleigh, NC, 5'0 8th Grader Tyree Bailey from Charlotte, NC, 5'11 8th Grader Myles Dillard from Raleigh, NC, 5'7 8th Grader David Davis from Raleigh, NC, 6'0 8th Grader Dakota Joungblood from Ameila, VA, 5'10 8th Grader Chris Forest from Charlotte, NC, 5'10 8th Grader Trevor West from Raleigh, NC, 5'7 8th Grader Shaun Stewart from Monroe, NC, 5'9 8th Grader Ahmad Abdillah from Raleigh, NC, 5'3, 8th Grader Spencer Bishop from Burnsville, NC, 5'7 8th Grader Jalen White from Charlotte, NC, 5'1 8th Grader Khalil Lattimore from Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA, 5'6 8th Grader Aaron Luster White from Pittsburgh, PA, 5'3 8th Grader Spencer Bishop from Burnsville, NC, and 6'1 8th Grader Alex Biggerstaff from Burnsville, NC. The best player in the 6th & 7th Grade Division was 6'2 7th Grader Gregory McClinton from Winston Salem, NC, who impressed Stanwood with his aggressiveness, strong body, and ability to score at will. "He's a legit top 10 player nationally his class," says Stanwood. "And so is 6'1 7th Grade Donte Simmons from Charlotte, NC, who is very aggressive, has a strong, body, and scored at will." Also ranked among the top six in camp in this age group by Stanwood were 5'3 7th Grader Shai Shai Matthews from Stanton, VA, who sees the floor, shoot it at an above average clip, and defends better than you might think; 5'7 7th Grader Honore Dean from Charlestown, WV, who is an elite slasher; and 5'7 7th Grader Derrick Brewer from Charlotte, NC, who handles it well in traffic, can hit the pull-up jumper, and uses his athleticism to get to the cup. From there Stanwood's list of the players ranked in order in this age group includes 6'0 7th Grader Eric Fimbo from Charlotte, NC, 5'6 7th Grader Darius Hubbard from Baltimore, MD, 5'6 7th Grader Isiah Tripp from Baltimore, MD, 5'10 7th Grader Jaelen Peterkin from Raleigh, NC, 5'6 7th Grader Daquan Yarborough from Charletown, WV, 5'8 6th Grader Teo Pison from Greensboro, NC, 5'9 6th Grader Raphael Montgomery from Charlotte, NC, 4'10 7th Grader Donald Niang from New York, NY, 5'6 7th Grader Eric Johnson from Raleigh, NC, 5'6 7th Grader Anton Gill from Raleigh, NC, 5'5 7th Grader Carl McCray from Raleigh, NC, 5'5 7th Grader George Belcher from Charleston, WV, 5'7 7th Grader Austin Teal from Raleigh, NC, 5'2 7th Grader Chris James from Florence, SC, 5'6 6th Grader Bobby Phills from Charlotte, NC, 5'3 5th Grader Austin Burnett from Raleigh, NC, 5'8 7th Grader Khhmari Bobbitt from Garner, NC, 4'6 7th Grader Junior Bowen from Charlotte, NC, 4'9 6th Grader Jonah Hood from Charlotte, NC, 5'0 7th Grader Terrence James from Florence, SC, 5'2 7th Grader Darren Black from Concord, NC, and 5'8 7th Grader Trevond Reid from Charleston, WV.
