LOUISVILLE, KY — Saturday at the Grassroots Showcase can be overwhelming. It was 12 hours of basketball as far as the eye can see in every direction. 

The good thing for people like me is that that means there’s plenty to talk about, plenty of notes to take, plenty to keep me crunching away at my keyboard. 

Let’s get into the details from a loaded slate. 

Related: Friday Grassroots Showcase Notes 

I’m buying stock in…

After two weekends in a row of watching these guys, I’m very in on 1 of 1 Elite’s Sebastian Akins and Mississauga Monarchs’ Nicolas Niare, and their performances on Saturday have only strengthened their cases. 

Starting with Akins, he’s a no-brainer D1 point guard in my book. His recruitment should take off after portal madness subsides. He’s the straw that stirs the drink for 1 of 1. Akins gets his guys organized and in the best position to use their athleticism to their advantage. He plays with good pace and keeps the ship steady. Akins can also take on plenty of the scoring load when needed as well. 

While Akins is known in North Carolina and other parts of the south, Niare feels like a much more under-the-radar prospect. 

Niare is part of the 2025 group of Monarchs playing up in 17U, so his recruitment might not pop for another year or so, but he’s tracking to be a name that should be on D1 radars as well. He’s a long 6-foot-5 guard/wing from Canada. He’s athletic, tough, and he can hit shots from all over the floor. He’s been a consistent player over the last two weekends, and he’s gone up against a variety of players and teams over that stretch. 

 

 

Atlanta Allstars round into form 

The Atlanta Allstars have progressively gotten better this weekend, and they played their best ball to close out a 2-0 Saturday. 

Brett Wright got them going early on Saturday with a 21-point performance. The 6-foot-7 wing can put points on the board quickly. He can heat up from the perimeter and he did that for the Allstars to start their day. 

The night slate saw Jax Abernathy take center stage. He’s a guard that has earned his fans among the HoopSeen team over the years. He had his moments all weekend, but his best game saw him score at a consistent clip from all levels. Abernathy has always brought poise and composure to the guard spot, and he’s always had a knack for hitting tough shots. We saw more of that from him on Saturday. 

Another guy that started to play closer to his best was David Clark he’s one of the most high-upside guys in attendance. His overall versatility was on display for the Allstars. He stepped out and hit threes and made plays around the basket on both ends of the floor. 

Kymel Williams is another guard to look out for on this squad. He made plays when he played on the ball. Williams was able to get to the rim and hit shots. 

Per usual, this program has legitimate prospects for a variety of next-level programs. 

 

Sam Mead breaks out for the younger AllStars

Sam Mead had himself a morning for the Atlanta Allstars 16U squad. The 6-foot-4 guard played as confidently as I’ve ever seen him play before. 

He was assertive on offense for a good reason. Mead is a talented scorer, and it showed via his 19-point outing. Mead had his jumper working from beyond the arc. He dropped in four 3-pointers. 

 

Jajuan Nicholls tests the rims

When 1 of 1 takes the floor, someone should stand on the base of their stanchion because Jajuan Nicholls is going to try to topple the whole thing. 

He’s a beast, an athletic, powerful forward who goes at the rim like it owes him money. I caught bits and pieces of this group throughout the day, and it felt like Nicholls was trying to go viral for dismantling the backboard with a thunderous dunk.

 

 

Saulsby starts hot

Bad Boys Basketball started Saturday off on a strong note, and James Saulsby led the way for them with 22 points. 

He must have found the good coffee around Louisville because at 8 a.m, Saulsby was on fire from the 3-point line. While most were weary eyed, the 6-foot-2 guard drained six perimeter shots. 

We’ve known this program to be at their best when attacking the basket—Romae Brown and Matthew Curprew-Elsy did plenty of that—so having a guy like Saulsby knocking down shots just opens the floor for everyone else to do their thing. 

 

 

Jarvis Wright has the green light

Known for his shooting around the Peach State, South Georgia Elite's 2025 guard Jarvis Wright lived up to his reputation when he torched nets in their first game of the day. On a day in which I saw outstanding shooting consistently, Wright put on one of the best displays. 

He hit six from deep and they were barely touching net. There aren't many things more fun than to watch Wright go on a heater from the perimeter. Luckily, I've seen it happen plenty of times. 

 

Alex Springs is a worker

Alex Springs from TNBA South Kings (2025) is tough. He’s not the biggest guy, but he fights for rebounds and makes hustle plays. There’s a hardhat out there with his name on it because he’s a worker. 

He already recorded a 25 point game this weekend and added 14 more on Saturday afternoon. 

Springs is the kind of player that every team needs because he’s low maintenance. He got most of his production via effort. 

In a conversation with a coach earlier in the weekend, he said that good things happen to players that play hard, and that’s what I saw out of Springs. 

 

 

Florida Pro 2025s led by backcourt on Saturday

Florida Pro 16U guards led the way on Saturday afternoon. Christian Maxon is a known sharpshooter from down in South Florida, and he lived up to his reputation with five threes and finished with 22 points. 

Joining him in the backcourt, AJ Ambrose was able to get wherever he wanted with the ball in his hands. Whether he was looking to score or distribute, Ambrose had a surgical approach in this game that earned him 12 points and several assists. 

More quick hitters

More from the TNBA universe, there was a period of time when it felt like every court had a TNBA team on it, so after I watched the TNBA South Kings team, I flipped around and caught TNBA South Santana (2024) pick up a decisive win. It was Derek Lopez that shined early on. He scored all 17 of his points in the first half. Kallel Jones added 12 in the win. 

Alex Young had another standout performance for Norcross Heat. 21 points with four-made 3-pointers. He also impressed in the rebounding department. From the guard spot, he’s productive on the boards. His defensive awareness was on display again with a few more blocks to his collection. 

Julian Ormond closed the night with a bang. OTP didn’t get the result they wanted but Julian Ormond played his best game of the weekend. He was particularly good from beyond the arc.

2026 wing Jamarcus Harrison has announced himself for Norcross Heat. In a Saturday morning win, he etched his name in my notebook as a prospect to keep tabs on. He’s a 6-foot-4 wing that can hit shots from the perimeter. He helped get his team a big lead from deep. In other parts of the game, Harrison used his length to disrupt on defense and did his part on the glass. 

Kai Wood continued to emerge as a prospect in the 2025 class. The 6-foot-6, lefty wing has put on some performances this spring that have created genuine intrigue in regard to his next-level hopes. He can shoot it and use his athleticism and length to his advantage on both ends of the floor.