Western North Carolina is always an area of the state that doesn't get a lot of recognition on the hardwood. With players that have came from the area recently including Caleb Mills (Florida State), Deante Green (#2 recruit in North Carolina) and Rakease Passmore (#1 recruit in 2024 in North Carolina) all hailing from WNC, its time to look at the top-5 returning players in the area.
Justin Byerly has spent the past 15 years covering North Carolina prep and grassroots basketball. He has previously worked with The Recruit Scoop and Rivals.com. In addition to that he has contributed to The USA Today, Charlotte Observer, The Asheville Citizen-Times and The Sun News. He has held The Justin Byerly Upstate/WNC Showcase the past two years and has helped student-athletes from North Carolina and South Carolina receive college scholarships. He owns The Byerly Report scouting service that has over 100 college subscriptions. Justin resides in Asheville, North Carolina with his wife Danielle and four children.
