ATLANTA—The beauty of Best of the South is that it pits teams a players from all over the country against each other. It provides stylistic clashes and opportunities for top players from their respective regions to play against likely-touted foes. Let’s be honest here, the midwest was the region of the weekend. We spend a lot of our time in the deep south, but we love getting to see hoopers from outside of our region. Here are some of those guys that stood out to us from Best of the South. 

Tashun Pender, Movement Hoops – I’ll be honest, I couldn’t stop watching the 6-foot-5 forward play. His bounce and explosion is next level and he used it well throughout the event. Pender plays much bigger than his size. The way he explodes off the floor allows him to get rebounds that even players with five inches on him don’t go after and get. A high school class of 2022 grad, Pender will spend the next year at a post-grad program. Keep a close watch on him. He could be on the cusp of a continued trajectory as a prospect. Pender gets off the floor in a manner that makes you wonder how much better he can be as a defender, lob catcher and rebounder. - Justin Young

David Meriwether, George Hill All Indy – The big fella for George Hill All-Indy was the perfect counterweight to the versatility of Xavier Booker. The 6-foot-11 big man finished around the cup, was hard to push off the block with his size and strength under the rim and he emptied the tank on the big stage. Meriwhether has been impressive this season from start and near towards the end of the season. The big man has been one of the best at his position in The Grassroots Basketball Association this season and his recruitment has taken on all shapes and sizes. His game is worthy of a deeper dive and could see a number of schools jump in late once they get more eyes on him. Don’t be surprised if his recruitment grows more legs after the summer is over.- Justin Young 

Preston Roberts, Kyle Guy Elite - Big wings with a mixture of rim-attacking, creation and shot-making will never go out of style. Roberts showed off his positional versatility at the Best of the South. His motor was attractive and his team was competitive throughout the action. Roberts showed that he can be a go-to guy in an offense. He got to the free throw line, where he converted with ease. - Justin Young 

Sekou Konneh, Team Haliburton: Since seeing him for the first time last year, I’ve been intrigued by Konneh’s upside. After seeing him operate in downtown Atlanta at the 2022 Best of the South, I’m even higher on him as a prospect than I was a year ago. The 2024 wing has all of the physical tools of a top-100, nationally-touted prospect. He’s 6-foot-8 with the length to go with it. At Best of the South, he showed flashes of all of his tools while impacting the game in all facets. He can be a switchable defensive stopper who also helps out on the boards. Konneh’s athleticism and ever-developing playmaking ability make him a bonafide threat on offense, but he has plenty of room to grow there, which is scary because that means he’s going to be even better than he already is. If we’re discussing him as a top-100 guy this time next year, I won’t be surprised. - Josh Tec

Kingston Flemings, S.A. Futures: As a 2025 playing up two divisions in the 17U group, Flemings stood out as a point guard with tremendous vision and passing ability. At 6-foot-2, Flemings already has solid positional size, and I get the sense that there could be more growing in his future. He delivers on-the-money passes through tight windows. As he progresses throughout the remainder of his high school career, he could be a name we hear plenty more from. - Josh Tec