For the past 8 years, I’ve put on the IE JRAAC in Memphis the second weekend in June. Originally aimed at bringing together unknown and previously unseen middle schoolers and ninth graders, the event has grown and grown and we now bring together almost 300 kids….High Schoolers on Saturday and Middle School and younger players on Sunday.
This year we took 120 HS kids on Saturday and 180 MS kids on Sunday split into 2 training sessions but one big game play session. At the end of each day we capped the event off with an All-Star Game.
Out of the 300 players, most should, if they stay on their current trajectory, eventually be college level players with a large percentage going D-1 in the future, particularly from the MS segment.
Here’s a look at my standouts from the event with some short notes on what I liked about each of them. This is in no way the top players in order or anything like that….there’s some major players I have left out who have well established names. They need my help a lot less than the kids I’m mentioning. Here we go….
High School –
Amari Whiting – 5’10 2023 SG/W – Whoa!! This long, strong, athletic wing came all the way from Idaho with a chip on her shoulder….she was an absolute dog all day. Was the undisputed camp MVP, pretty sure everyone in attendance would agree. Shot it well, finished very well, locked up darn near everyone defensively and just had an all around super motor. She’s easily a P5 talent and has all the intangibles to go with it.
Taylor Barner – 5’8 2024 PG/CG – a long athletic lead guard from North Carolina, Taylor does so much well, but she’s particularly smooth around the basket. Not super flashy, Taylor is a producer and gets things done efficiently.
Kennedy Claybrooks – 5’6 2022 PG – The best playmaker at camp….Kennedy is another kid who I absolutely love her motor. She was physical and fast with the ball, a powerful dribbler. Her decision making was strong and she had some of the best passes of the day. Her ability to see the pass and then look away as she delivers a perfect dime was second to none. Good on ball defender, sweet personality off the court and a dog on it. Should be a college coach’s dream.
Becca Ledford – 5’6 2022 CG – Physically had the most in shape and tone frame of any player in attendance. Her “cuts” on her arms and legs stood out as someone who clearly cares and puts a ton of time into being in optimal shape. Her performance reflected her physique. She was sharp and strong on the court enabling her to be a dominating force. Would not pass the eye test in street clothes, but the talent is there!
Jaida Redwine – 5’8 2023 PG – One of the more shifty players with the ball in her hands. Jaida may have forced it a bit at times but that’s the nature of these types of events anyway. Overall I thought she was smooth with the ball in her hands, she did in fact make some very nice plays for others and was a capable scorer. Certainly opened some eyes of people from the east coast who have never seen her before including me.
Raven Sims – 5’9 2023 PG – Raven is a very strong, very athletic lead guard who is capable of setting up others with ease. She’s a great lead guard with size, explosiveness and strength. She was having fun playing in her hometown and it showed. Has some nice upside, would love to see her really develop a sweet touch from beyond the arc. Not saying she can’t shoot, just didn’t see that in this setting. Could be a P5 caliber player and may already have offers at that level.
Middle School –
Marcayla Johnson – 5’10 2025 PG/CG – Big time athlete with a strong athletic frame, not entirely fluid just yet but getting there. I thought she was one of the most dominating MS kids there and would have been fine in the HS division. Her body is already there, size and strength wise….and her basketball skills are far along for a player her age. Still learning to be more of a playmaker since scoring is so easy for her. I think she’s a P5 player no question.
Amelia Basit – 6’2 2025 PF/Post – I think Amelia is already an established player but maybe that’s just to me since I’ve been around FBC quite a bit since COVID started. That said for those unfamiliar with Amelia, I was definitely impressed with her progression. I thought last summer / fall she was very timid, just a big young kid, but her game is progressing by leaps and bounds. Sometimes you just have to go out there, do these types of events and keep playing and things eventually start coming together. I think for Amelia, things are starting to shape up nicely.
Maya Makalusky – 6’2 2025 W – There are some kids who are just so easy to see where they are headed and Maya definitely fits that category, she’s long, athletic, can really shoot it and has tremendous upside. I think from a potential talent perspective she was easily a top 5-6 player at the event either day. By the time she gets to college she may be at the “biggest” school of any player from this particular event.
Caitlin Hall – 6’3 2025 Post – Caitlin only looks like a player from the standpoint that she’s tall and filled out. Her upside is off the charts though. Mom is actually taller than Caitlin and Dad isn’t short either. She has a nice touch around the basket and is developing some perimeter skills as well, moves well for her size and frame. Very bright future here.
Kennedy Hall – 6’3 2025 PF/Post – Already an elite player with legit name recognition, it was truly my first time watching Kennedy and she didn’t disappoint. She’s VERY long and athletic, can handle it some in transition, I remember seeing her take one coast to coast on a D board and is going to be a P5 post recruit in her class without any doubt. Still has some filling out to do, but skies the limit.
Miciah Fusilier – 6’3 2027 PF/W – I’m not sure if there’s another player in 2027 better than Miciah (pronounced Ma-ki-ah), she’s already super legit, with unbelievable size for her age and in a perfect lean athletic frame. She’s got some guard skills and there was nothing I saw that I didn’t like. Literally every major D1 in the country should already be on her….and if she stays on pace will likely be the #1 player in 2027 nationally.
Natayla Hodge – 5’4 2026 PG – I don’t think there was a bigger dog during the MS portion than Natalya, she just absolutely got after it on the defensive side, especially on the ball and in the passing lanes. She had a ton of steals and easy lays. She’s more than an adept scorer in the half court setting as well and was just a blurr all day.
Dasia Scott – 6’1 2027 F/Post – Dasia’s size and strength were obvious and she’s definitely used to being one of the top performers because her confidence level allowed her to just go out there and perform. Not sure how much bigger she’ll get and she needs to tone up some, but it’s clear that the physical ability and talent is there for her to be considered one of the top players in the country in this class.
Nation Williams – 6’1 2027 F/Post – Another big strong player in the 2027 class Nation has a huge upside and is probably just scratching the surface where she can be. Like the other young bigs, she had the ability particularly in transition to put the ball on the floor and push it in transition, but she also fought for rebounds and scored on the inside with some consistency.
Faye Williams – 6’1 2026 W/F – Long and lean is going to be a similar player to her sister Lanetta Williams currently at University of Memphis. She dominated her team in the camp games and already has a solid skill set for a player her age. Like Nation Williams has the pedigree to be considered a legit P5 caliber player.
Aubrey Stevenson – 5’7 2025 PG/CG – I tweeted during the event about Aubrey who was arguably my favorite player to watch just because she was so bouncy but maintained excellent body control. She just operated with such fluidity, if that’s even a word. She was a smooth operator, fast but under control. Going to be an elite guard who was definitely under the radar to us and I’m sure many others as well.