Jr. Brick League Week 2 Standouts

Brandon Roddy

Alex Campanelli

Aaron Foster

Andreas Gordon

Denzel Osange

Michael Daniels

On Sunday we had the opportunity to run by the Columbus Jr. Brick League where we were treated to a couple of real good games and was introduced to several talented young ballers. We got our first real look at Brandon Roddy (5’9”/PG/2025/Columbus), who was as good as advertised. What impressed the most had nothing to do with his size, frame, and skill set, but rather the way in which he approached the game.  Ordinarily, a guy with his stature around the state would feel compelled to take over a game offensively and try to do too much.  Nope, he was very unselfish with the rock, made plays for his teammates and just allowed the game to come to him.  With that said, he did drop a game-high 17 points! Also, he seemed to be a good kid who has risen above the hype so far.  He could be really good going forward.

Of course we had heard his name on numerous occasions, and had him ranked relatively high in our player rankings, but we could not have been more impressed with the play of Alex Campanelli (5’2”/PG/2026/Columbus). Campanelli is a highly skilled floor general that has total command of the game at all times.  He plays with great pace and is equally adept at scoring or making plays. He’s a 3-level scorer with a consistent jumper, midrange game and ability to get to the cup and finish.  He keeps his head up wile surveying the court, and maintains his dribble until a play develops. Finally, he changes speed and direction at an elite level for his age and is already capable of working the pick and roll.  It’s important to note that Campanelli exploded for a game-high 18 points in the win. Expect Campanelli to make a move up our rankings!

One of the best Jr. Brick League games we’ve seen to date went down on Sunday, and required double overtime and sudden death to settle.  In that game were several good looking prospects. The best of them was Aaron Foster (5’7”/PG/2025/Dublin), who really impressed us with his skill level and competitiveness.  Foster is athletic, has solid ball skills and can create his shot off the bounce.  He’s also effective at getting to and finishing below the rim. He is also clutch, as he hit a big shot to send the game into one of the 3 overtimes.  We look for Foster to be an early contributor to his high school team in a few years.  We were also impressed with his teammate, Denzel Osang (6’1”/PF/2025/Pickerington), who has a solid frame, good size and strength, and was a force in the paint defensively. Although Osang was tough to score on, he has the ability to score himself closer to the basket.  Continued growth and development will determine Osang’s ceiling.

The “Clutch Award” has to go to Andreas Gordon (5’8”/SG/2025/Grove City), who actually hit the game winning shot in the aforementioned game. Gordon has a solid skill set which includes a tight handle.  With good length, additional strength will make Gordon more of a problem down the road. We saw some real good things out of Michael Daniels (4’8”/PG/2027/Grove City).  He’s diminutive, but an impressive skill set and high basketball IQ makes him more than effective.  What was most impressive about Daniels’ production on Sunday was the fact he was the second leading scorer (11 points) in a win over 7^th and 8^th graders.  Although he aggressive to the cup at his size, If you leave Daniels unguarded he’ll knock down the shot.  Additional strength and growth will be key to Daniels’ long-term success.He’s still a little raw at this point, but Gerold Blankson (6’0”/C/2025/Worthington) could be a problem in a few years with continued growth and development.  Already, his size and athleticism is a problem for his opponents.  More defensively developed at this point, Blankson is still able to score near the cup. But from what we saw on Sunday, Blankson impacts the game significantly. Preston DeVito (5’9”/WF/2025/Heath) and Quentin Page (5’2”/WF/2026/Columbus) round out our coverage in week three.  Both guys did enough to warrant a mention in the piece.  We really hope to catch the ladies and young kids in action of the course of the next couple of weeks.  Stay tuned!