2023 Best of the South: 15U Standouts
ATLANTA, Ga.—The 15U division of Best of the South has seen some high-level talent over the years. We’re talking about household names, top-100 national names.
Time will tell whether that will be the case this year, but we know that we had fun watching some of the younger guys throughout our four days in downtown Atlanta.
Here are some of the standouts from the weekend.
The very first game I watched this weekend featured one of the best point guard performances I saw regardless of age group. 2026 PG Tony LoPresti gets it. He has a good feel for the game on both sides of the ball. Offensively, he showed his ability to score on all levels, but his mid-range game was particularly on point when I saw him. He had a 29-point game to open the weekend. LoPresti’s defensive awareness is noteworthy as well. It’s as simple as that he knows when to pick and choose his spots on that end of the floor. - Josh Tec
I’m not in the business of hyping up 15U players, but when warranted, I’ll give a young gun their deserved praise, and TNBA’s Rylan Kelly is proving himself again and again. An athletic, productive wing, the game comes naturally to him because of his advanced physical tools. He’s shown plenty in the skill department as well. His ability to hit shots and play multiple perimeter shots make him a tough matchup. Kelly had one of the highest ceilings in any of the underclass divisions. - Josh Tec
We have seen Puckett a lot on our HoopSeen stage and he continues to show flashes of what guys his age look like when it’s time to get recruited. He has the frame and the skills that we want to see rising seniors have and he has it as a 2026 prospect. He has long arms and a solidly built frame to go along with being able to score it at a high-rate. When I see him play, I immediately think of former South Carolina prep and grassroots standout Jazian Gortman who recently signed a two-way contract in the NBA. First of all, he looks like Gortman with his frame and length, additionally he scores it the same way that Gortman did as a rising sophomore in high school. Add all of this up with being coached by former Clemson standout Shawan Robinson at Panther Creek High School outside of Raleigh and we have the makings of a guy that is going to be recruited at a higher level. - Justin Byerly
Jamarcus Harrison has stacked good performances this year with Norcross Heat. His ability to hit shots has been apparent whenever I’ve stopped by to check in on this group. Harrison the size at this level to shoot over smaller defenders. In time, he could be one of the next up out of the Norcross Heat program. - Josh Tec
Team Scoot made plenty of noise from top to bottom at Best of the South. Their 2026 bunch was in the conversation as the best in the division, and their undefeated record can attest to that. King Jones was a consistent standout for them. At this level, he’s a bit of a positional tweener, but that made him a difficult matchup. I suppose power guard or power wing would describe him well. He has a more physical frame and used it to finish everything around the basket. It was a simple attack from him, but it was effective time and time again. Jones was a strong rebounder as well. - Josh Tec
YKE had quite the weekend at Best of the South. They went undefeated, and Gideon Kamuleyu was all over the floor in their wins. The 6-foot-5 forward did plenty of the dirty work around the basket on both ends. He can out-physical guys and provide a toughness factor. Kamuleyu and the team in general announced themselves in a serious way over the weekend.
