2019 Adidas Gauntlet Summer Championship Report

This report will cover the 2019 Adidas Gauntlet Summer Championship. Stats are from Adidas Gauntlet website. This was my first time seeing the Gauntlet this season and I came away with some surprises. There were several players that caught my eye that I didn’t know about and some teams really impressed me. The biggest take-away was they deep level of talent at this event. Just about every team was 8 or 10 deep and it wasn’t much of a fall off from 1 to 10. Adidas always does a great job and is top of the line when putting on and running events. Any Gauntlet event is a must see event every summer.

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Adidas Gauntlet

July 11-14, 2019

Finley Center

Hoover, AL

17U

Atlanta Celtics (GA) 8-0

The Celtics dominated the division for the championship. Caleb Murphy (6-4 ’20 PG Norcross) really caught my eye with his strong guard play.

’20’s

Dwon Odom 6-2 PG Saint Francis 17 ppg 53-86 fg 5 3’s 3 rpg 2 apg 2 spg

Deivon Smith 6-0 PG Grayson 14 ppg 37-67 fg 20-27 ft 5 rpg 4 apg 1 spg

Bayron Matos 6-9 PF Hamilton Heights (TN) 6 ppg 16-26 fg 5 rpg

Toneari Lane 6-5 SF Shiloh 9 ppg 10 3’s 7-7 ft 4 rpg 1 apg 1 spg

Caleb Murphy 6-4 PG Norcross 12 ppg 33-62 fg 3 3’s 3 rpg 2 apg 1 spg

Andersson Garcia 6-7 SF Hamilton Heights (TN) 4 ppg 4 rpg 1 apg 1 bpg 1 spg

Compton Magic Elite (CA) 4-2

Yassine Gharram (6-2 ’20 PG Foothills Christian 6 ppg 4 rpg 2 apg 1 spg) was an impressive point for the Magic who was playing without the number one player in the country, Evan Mobley (7-0 ’20 PF Rancho Christian).

D1 Minnesota (MN) 5-2

D1 Minnesota is a very fundamental and fun team to watch. They shoot the ball very well and are a deep ball club.

Dream Vision (CA) 4-2

I’m glad a had a chance to catch Kyree Walker (6-5 ’20 PG Hillcrest 14 ppg 2 3’s 3 rpg 4 apg) and Makur Maker (7-0 ’20 F Orange Lutheran 12 ppg 20-39 fg 3 3’s 9 rpg 1 apg) play again. It’s been a few years since I’ve seen them and they have both progressed very well. Isaiah Cottrell (6-10 ’20 F/C Bishop Gorman (NV) 8 ppg 14-24 fg 3 3’s 4 rpg 1 apg 1 bpg 1 spg) was a new see for me. He runs the floor and plays with such a high motor. Kyree runs the team at a high level. Makur is so skilled for a big. He has good handles to go along with his long frame.

EAB Tennessee (TN) 3-3

’20’s

Damontre Carlton 5-11 PG Centennial 5 ppg 2 3’s 11-12 ft 2 rpg 3 apg 1 spg

Luke Burnett 6-2 PG Webb School of Knoxville 8 ppg 10 3’s 1 rpg 1 apg

Jalen Page 6-3 SG Blackman 6 ppg 13-23 fg 7 3’s 5-5 ft 3 rpg 2 apg

Keon Johnson 6-5 SG The Webb School 24 ppg 56-84 fg 9 3’s 4 rpg 1 apg 1 bpg 1 spg

Daniel Saylor 6-10 C Sycamore 5 ppg 15-18 fg 3 rpg 3 bpg

Garner Road Basketball Club (NC) 6-2

Garner Road started the tournament off with a loss to the Atlanta Celtics and ended it with a loss to the Celtics. Day’ron Sharpe (6-10 ’20 PF South Central 17 ppg 40-63 fg 7 rpg 3 apg 2 bpg 1 spg) was the best player I saw this weekend. It was my first time seeing him and he really caught me by surprise. He is big and strong with a motor. Not only does he look beastly but he is also skilled. He is a really good passer and has some good mobility to his game. Keep this in mind. I said the same thing about Jaxson Hayes a few years ago and was kinda smirked at. How is that looking now?

Hoop City Elite (TN) 2-3

’20’s

Jalen “Bo” Montgomery 6-5 PG Lausanne Collegiate 12 ppg 22-33 fg 16-20 ft 3 rpg 1 apg

Deovaunta Williams 6-2 PG Raleigh-Egypt 12 ppg 22-36 fg 3 3’s 2 rpg 2 apg 1 spg

Marcellus Brigham Jr 6-6 ’21 SF Briarcrest Christian 11 ppg 20-28 fg 2 3’s 1 rpg 1 apg

Kevon Looney Elite (IL) 4-3

Another player that got my attention was Martice Mitchell (6-10 ’20 PF Bloom Trail 10 ppg 4 3’s 5 rpg 1 apg). He’s long and wiry with a high motor. He’s really bouncy with a touch of guard skills. He has really high potential.

Louisiana Future (LA) 2-3

’19’s

Wesley Bongiorni 6-5 SG LSU Lab School 7 ppg 2 3’s 4 rpg 1 spg

’20’s

Darian Ward 6-5 SF Zachary 8 ppg 2 rpg 1 apg 1 spg

’22’s

Tawasky Johnson 6-0 PG Port Allen 11 ppg 4 3’s 3 rpg 3 apg 2 spg

Mass Rivals (MA) 5-1

Mass Rivals only lost by one point in the only loss at the event. This was my first time seeing Dallion Johnson (6-2 ’20 PG Phillips Academy Andover 13 ppg 25-41 fg 17-31 3’s 8-8 ft 1 rpg 2 apg) after hearing a lot about him. He’s smooth and efficient with the ball. He can really shoot too.

Millbrook Elite (AL) 0-4

’20’s

DeMorris Oliver 6-3 SF Hillcrest 8 ppg 13-16 fg 3 3’s 2-2 ft 1 rpg 1 apg

Harvey Bell 5-7 G East Memorial Christian Academy 7 ppg 10-17 fg 1 3’s 5-6 ft 1 rpg 1 apg 1 spg

NOLA23 (LA) 2-4

’20’s

Taireon Joseph 6-3 SG Scotlandville Magnet 21 ppg 38-74 fg 19 3’s 12-14 ft 4 rpg 1 apg 1 spg

Salle Wilson 6-5 SG Dunham 9 ppg 4 3’s 9-11 ft 3 rpg 2 apg 1 spg

Reggie Gause 6-3 Covington 7 ppg 6 3’s 6-6 ft 3 rpg

Jay Moore 6-7 G/F McComb 5 ppg 4 3’s 2 rpg 1 apg

’21’s

Devon Lizana 6-0 PG Salmen 6 ppg 3 3’s 4-4 ft 3 rpg 2 apg

OFW Stars (AL) 1-3

’20’s

Anthony Copeland 5-10 ’20 PG Hewit-Trussville 12 ppg 12-20 fg 2 3’s 2 rpg

Kobe Simmons 6-5 SF Talladega 16 ppg 7 rpg 2 apg

OSAG One Shot at Greatness (MS) 1-3

’20’s

TreVoin Bass 6-3 SF Forest Hill 10 ppg 16-17 fg 6-7 3’s

’21’s

Rashad Bolden 5-11 PG St. Andrew’s Episcopal 16 ppg 25-35 fg 5 3’s 8-8 ft 1 rpg

Team Carroll Premier (AL) 2-3

’20’s

Jalen Myers 6-8 SG Bob Jones 18 ppg 21-39 fg 5 3’s 6-8 fg 6 rpg 2 apg 1 bpg 2 spg

Robert Bonham III 6-0 PG UMS-Wright 6 ppg 5-6 ft 6 rpg 6 apg 2 spg

Israel Momodu 6-8 SF Eagles Landing Christian Academy 3 ppg 5 rpg 1 apg 1 bpg 1 spg

Tony Toney 6-2 G Mae Jemison 17 ppg 6 3’s 3 rpg 1 apg 1 spg

’22’s

Zocko Littleton Jr 6-2 PG South Cobb 11 ppg 3-4 ft 7 3’s 3 rpg 1 apg 1 spg

Team Carroll Premier Jones (AL) 0-4

’20’s

Durell Russell 6-0 SG Thompson 9 ppg 11-14 fg 4 3’s 2 rpg 1 apg

Trey Jones III 5-11 PG Thompson 9 ppg 9-16 fg 1 3’s 7-8 ft 3 rpg 2 apg 1 spg

Chaney Johnson 6-3 SF Thompson 18 ppg 21-34 fg 4 3’s 9-12 ft 7 rpg 2 apg

Laparris Whatley Jr 5-10 SF Calera 5 ppg 6-8 fg 1 3’s 5 rpg 1 apg 1 spg

Caleb Brown 6-2 PG Sacred Heart Catholic 6 ppg 5 3’s 3 rpg 1 spg

We All We Got (LA) 2-2

’19’s

La’Vell Scott 6-0 G Oak Forest Academy 15 ppg 24-46 fg 5 3’s 8-10 ft 3 rpg 1 spg

Keith Jones 6-1 PF Bonnabel 16 ppg 22-34 fg 9-17 3’s 4 rpg 1 apg 1 spg

’20’s

Traysion Wilburn 6-7 SF Crescent City Christian 5 ppg 4 3’s 3 rpg 2 apg 1 bpg

17U Stat Leaders

Points per game: Devin Carter 6-4 ’20 SG Doral Academy Prep/Florida Knights 26.5 ppg

Rebounds per game: Makur Maker 7-0 ’20 F Orange Lutheran/Dream Vision 9.4 rpg

Assists per game: Andre Curbelo 6-1 ’20 PG Long Island Lutheran/NY Jayhawks 6.2 apg

Steals per game: Dwon Odom 6-2 ’20 PG Saint Francis/Atlanta Celtics 2.3 spg

Blocks per game: Logan Washington 6-7 ’20 SF Life Christian/Team Loaded DC 2.8 bpg

16U

Arkansas Hawks (AR) 4-1

I had the chance to catch a couple quarters of the Hawks. Camren Hunter (6-2 ’21 PG Bryant), Jordan Maxwell (6-6 ’21 SF Jacksonville) and Tamaury Releford (6-7 ’21 C Fayetteville) looked really good for the Bill Ingram squad.

Atlanta Celtics (GA) 8-0

The Celtics showed up and dominated winning their second championship of the weekend. Jabari Smith (6-9 ’21 PF Sandy Creek) had a 23 point performance including 3 3’s and 4 of 5 from the free-throw line in the championship game.

Exum Elite (UT) 4-1

Exum Elite was a team that I found to be intriguing. They have a chance to be one of the better teams on the Gauntlet next year. Jackson Schumann (6-10 ’21 PF Sky View), Ethan Potter (6-7 ’21 PF Layton), Lawson Lovering (6-11 ’21 C Central) and Joseph Grant (6-7 ’21 SF Cedar) were some players I thought looked really good.

Hoop City Elite (TN) 4-3

Hoops City 16U is slowing becoming one of my favorite AAU teams to watch. Mr. Ernie has really put together a unit that will make some noise next year on the circuit. It all starts with the Houston trio of Zander Yates (6-8 ’21 PF Houston), TJ Madlock (6-2 ’21 PG Houston) and Mason Miller (6-9 ’21 SG Houston). Madlock, a former Oxford resident, is perfect for running the team. He is so smooth with the ball. Miller is the finesse shooter while Yates is the big banger. Reese McMullen (6-3 ’21 PG Christian Brothers) is another hard playing guard. Mason Hanback (6-10 ’22 C Southside) is playing up a level and provides bang and a soft touch. An up-and-coming MAIS prospect, Chase Rose (6-3 ’21 SG Kirk Academy) provides a spark off the bench.