Last Saturday we traveled south to Elizabeth, Kentucky to cover the Inaugural Created Player National Showcase.  Although this was a first-year event, the organizers did a great job of attracting talented players from several ares around the country.  Approximately 160 players in grades 3rd-8th descended on the Bluegrass Sportsplex and were treated to skills and drill station work and three 5-on-5 games. Through our evaluations we highlighted over 30 players; however, there were several players who really separated themselves from the masses.  One such player was Kameron Mercer (5’6″/WF/2028/Springdale, Oh), who we’ve seen on numerous occasions.  When Mercer was a 2027 kid he was a standout; now that he’s a 6th grader, he’s a problem!  Possessing good size and an excellent skill set, Mercer is a walking bucket.  He absolutely dominated the competition at this event.  Running with Mercer on the same team was Joshua Huggins (6’1″/PF/2028/Nashville, TN), who was a load in the paint. Huggins is big, strong, physical, and possesses great footwork and a soft touch around the rim. He moved well, ran the floor like a guard and displayed great ball skills for his size and position.

We were really impressed with the guard play at this event.  Arguably the best guard we saw all day was Eric Mack (4’11″/PG/2028/Louisville, KY). He may not have been the biggest,  quickest or most flashy, but Mack was supper efficient, made great decisions with the rock, and let the game come to him.  Of course he could score the ball, but he also demonstrated excellent court vision and the ability to find open teammates. Any discussion of elite PGs has to include Askia Holloway (4’8″/PG/2020/Dayton, OH), who proved to be one of the most dynamic guards at the event. He has deep range on his jump shot, he’s highly skilled, and he excels and making plays for others.  For his efforts, Holloway was named MVP.  Absolutely fun to watch!  We also really liked Malachi Pain (5’5″/PG/2026/Louisville, KY), Le’Shawn Hill (5’0″/PG/2027/Cincinnati, OH), Logan Redditt (4’7″/CG/2029/Chicago, IL), Danny Johnson (4’11″/CG/2029/Austin, TX), Tony Sheffield (4’10″/PG/2029/Louisville, KY) and Rajon Villamor (4’8″/PG/2029/Owingsmills, MD).  All in all it, was a solid event with plenty of room to grow going forward.  Congratulations to the staff for creating another platform for these kids!

Askia Holloway-MVP

Kameron Mercer

Danny Johnson

Eric Mack

Malachi Pain

Le’Shawn Hill

Joshua Huggins

Logan Redditt

Reginald Hinton

Acey Strictland

Amil Wimzie

Joshua Anthony

Tony Sheffield

Rajon Vallmor

Carlos Lopez

Harper Baker-Lands

Dajuan Tharp

Malachi Bennett

Name Hgt/Pos Class City Evaluation Notes
Askia Holloway 4’8″/PG 2030 Dayton, OH Small but dynamic PG w/elite ball skills & ability to shoot from deep, a 3-level scorer who plays w/good pace & poise, changes speed & direction well, creates his own shot & can also make plays
Kameron Mercer 5’9″/WF 2028 Springdale, OH Good length, athletic, smooth, can guard multiple positions, good motor, has good body control, makes good decisions w/ rock in his hands, excellent court vision & passing ability, finishes w/both hands, 3-level scorer, prospect
Joshua Huggins 6’1″/PF 2028 Nashville, TN Good size, strong frame, athletic, excellent footwork, nimble, solid handle for position, soft touch around the rim, finishes at a high rate, outlets the ball well, can handle the rock 94 feet, physical
Malachi Pain 5’5″/PG 2026 Louisville, KY Excellent ball skills, changes speed & direction well, creates his own shots, can both score & make plays for teammates, physical, solid court vision
Le’Shawn Hill 5’0″/PG 2027 Cincinnati, OH Diminutive PG w/excellent skill set, extremely aggressive, always probing, 3-level scorer, changes speed & direction well, can create his own offense, or find teammates for easy buckets, tough, competitor, fun to watch
Eric Mack 4’11″/PG 2028 Louisville, OH Excellent ball skills, quick, 3-level scorer, changes speed & direction well, crafty, creates space, high IQ, plays w/good pace & poise, lefty, solid shooter, uses body well, the best PG we saw all day!
Danny Johnson 4’11″/CG 2029 Austin, TX Goes strong to cup, aggressive, strong, physical, skilled, finishes drives well, good court vision, solid passing skills, motor, tough, has a nice euro step
Tony Sheffield 4’10″/PG 2029 Louisville, KY Plays w/good pace & poise, highly skilled, floor general, gets out on the break, good size for position, good feel for game, makes good decisions w/the rock
Logan Redditt 4’7″/CG 2029 Chicago, IL Can hit the 3-ball, highly skilled, can create his own offense, crafty, has a nice step back shot, excels in the pick & roll, changes speed & direction well, plays w/swag, fun to watch
Rajon Villamor 4’8″/PG 2029 Owingsmills, MD Highly skilled PG with high IQ,  plays w/ good pace & poise, good court visions, good decision maker, efficient, makes few turnovers, floor general
Tony Sheffield 4’10″/PG 2029 Louisville, KY Good size for position, plays w/ good pace & poise, solid court vision & passing ability, can score or make plays
Joshua Anthony 5’0″/PG 2031 Louisville, KY Good length for position, athletic, solid ball skills, defends well, can knock down treys off the bounce, confident
Amil Wimzie 4’9″/PG 2030 Covington, KY Good length, attacks cup, finishes w/ both hands, good court vision and ball skills for his size, finds open teammates
Noah McDowell 5’2″/CG 2030 Zachery, LA Good size, passes well, makes good decisions w/ the ball, unselfish, nice mid-range jumpier, finishes well
Julian Edmondson 5’5″/PG 2030 Louisville, Ky Although she is a girl, she more than competed w/ the boys, great length for her age, rebounds well, finishes at a high rate, runs the floor, can shoot it
Kane Ladegast 4’9″/CG 2029 Louisville, KY Knocked down multiple catch & shoot treys
Chayse Hunter 5’4″/CG 2028 Indianapolis, IN Good size for position, solid skill set, good court vision & passing skills, gets to the cup & finishes, consistent performer
AJ Slaughter 5’6″/CG 2028 Lexington, KY Skilled, athletic, always in attack mode, smooth, gets to the basket, solid court vision & passing skills, changes speed & direction well, can create his own shot
Carlos Lopez 5’3″/PG 2028 Camby, IN Solid ball skills, good court vision & feel for the game, crafty, has a good nose for the ball, can go get a bucket, consistent performer
Malakye Bowen 4’11″/PG 2028 Fort Knox, KY 3-level scorer, good court vision & passing ability, can score, finds teammates off drives
Dajuan Tharp 4’11″/PG 2028 Louisville, KY Lefty, ball skills, nice mid-range jumper, quick
Lester Caruthers 4’6″/PG 2030 Louisville, KY Quick & aggressive PG w/ solid handle, defends well. motor
Reginald Hinton 5’9″/PG 2026 Gary, IN Athletic, motor, finishes well through contact, bouncy, hit treys off the bounce, plays physical, gets down hill
Acey Strictland 6’1″/SG 2026 Mayfield, KY Finishes well at the rim, has a good nose for the ball, sneaky athletic, can score
Mickeis Johnson 6’1″/WF 2026 Plainfield, OH Explosive athlete, dunking, aggressive, goes strong to the cup

Chayse Hunter

Noah McDowell

Julian Edmondson

Lester Caruthers

Malakye Bowen

Braxton Keathley

Kameron Bowers

Bryon Faulkner

Chief Cameron

Kamari Roberts

Darian Shy

Rashad High

Rashad High

Dammani Oliver-MVP

Keiji Clifton-MVP

Kane Ladegast

Romell Salone

AJ Slaughter

Name Hgt/Pos Class City Evaluation Notes
Harper Baker-Lands 6’1″/CG 2027 Indianapolis, IN Good size for position, solid skill set, hit pull up treys off the bounce, good court vision, finishes w/ both hands, plays w/ good pace and poise
Braxton Keathley 5’9″/PG 2027 Pikeville, KY Plays hard, has a good nose for the ball, tough, scored on put-backs, a “lunch pale” kid of guy, efficient
Bryon Faulkner 5’11″/WF 2026 Louisville, KY Good length, athletic, finishes well, sees the floor well, runs the floor well, motor, bouncy
Darian Shy 5’5″/CG 2027 Louisville, KY Super quick, playmaker, lefty, solid court vision, has good range on jump shot, has a nasty spin move in the lane, pushed rock in transition
Chief Cameron 5’6″/PG 2026 Louisville, KY Pass-first PG, solid handle, unselfish, nice drive & dish game, he let game come to him,
Kameron Bowers 5’7″/PG 2026 Clarksville, TN Over all solid play, good ball skills
Kamari Roberts 5’7″/CG 2027 Louisville, KY Shot the ball well from beyond the arc, solid ball skills, athletic, got to the basket
Malachi Bennett 4’9″/PG 2031 Louisville, KY Solid handle, defends well, active on both ends of the court
Romel Salone 4’10″/WF 2030 Cincinnati, OH Good in transition, finished well, motor, good defender
Rashad High 5’10″/WF 2027 Louisville, KY Over all standout peformer
Dammani Oliver 4’9″/PG 2029 Detroit, MI Although we did not see him, he played well enough to be selected as MVP
Keiji Clifton 6’3″/WF 2026 Louisville, KY Although we did not see him, he played well enough to be selected as MVP