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Is it December yet!? (preseason teams rankings)

EducatedEye

D1A Prospect
Jan 22, 2004
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1. Dover: The Defending State Champions. Graduation hit them heavily when you consider two 1st team all staters are off to college hoops. The downfall is greatly overstated, the Senators hoops cupboard is far from bare. They may have 2 more 1st team all staters in waiting when you think of JayVion Denis and Chase Little. Both stand at 6'5" (or better) with guard skills and A+ athleticism along with the desire to stop their man (these dudes defend). Loaded on the wing but that's not all, it's going to tough to find a better interior than what they possess too. Tarrance Williams and Istavan Norwood are big guys, both standing at 6'6" (or better) and well built. Not only are these guys big guys, but they also run and jump with the best of'm. It's going to be a block party at all the Dover games. The previous named are likely their marquee players but there's more: Kameron Jackson-Dixon is the straw that stirs the drink, the point guard that will run the show. Kareem King waited patiently last season. This year he will have his explosive athleticism on display. Taishaun Allen returns via the transfer portal, Alexander Doughty arrives via the transfer portal and the babies, Braylon Williams and Joseph Taylor are in high school now.... And if the rumors are true and they'll add another via the transfer portal, oh my! He's a game changer!
*(Over the weekend (10/26/24) it seems as though the rumors are true)

2. Salesianum: State Runner's Up Last Season. The Big 3 is gone now, graduation hit no one as hard as it hit the Sals. But just like the previous mentioned, the Sals hoops cupboard is far from bare. Robbie "RJ" Johnson returns but expect a better version, if this past Spring and Summer is any indication, a Championship is just one of the awards he aspires to attain. Dom Downs will have a larger role, the 6'4" sharpshooter is chomping at the bit and now is his time to shine. Mark Brown 6'8" (the last of the Brown brothers) is ready now, he too has been waiting patiently and is ready to display his freak athleticism on a more regular basis. Those three would pretty much be a coaches delight but there's more! Nasir Logan the lightning quick point guard will have a larger role, Brady McBride has a laser arm (QB1) that all but helps his accurate and confident outside shooting. George Nelson the ball hawking defender that can go on a scoring outburst at any given moment is ready for those moments. No transfer rumors at the Sals. It's a known fact the transfer portal was friendly. Latrell Wright (formerly of Conrad), Kevin Coleman (formerly of Tower Hill) and Kabali Kajubi (formerly of Elkton, MD) are all on Broom St now. Latrell is arguably the best point guard prospect in the state, Kevin is a lock defender with some freak athleticism of his own and Kabali is a do it all forward with breakout potential. They have freshmen too, Kai "Big Kai" Abplanalp will be a good one and Benjamin "Benji" Thomas looks to be a lock in the rotation after flourishing in the fall.

3. Sanford: Last year their only losses were to teams that made the Final 4. Two key players are no longer with them. One via graduation, one via the dreaded transfer portal. There will be no pity for the mighty warriors though, they possess the #1 rated player in the State and he's returning bigger and better. Jayden Taylor 6'8" with some new muscles and plenty of D1 offers. Jayden is tremendous, more so defensively than offensively but don't be mistaken, there will be plenty games he surpasses 20pts. His interior roommate will be the big fella 6'6" Stephen Conway who controls the boards and can get his own basket via posting up. Their backcourt is underrated but absolutely one of the best. Their 3-man group is led by SR Khareem Hart who is a tough and gritty guard that can light the score board up. SR Nico McNeil is the table setter, a pass first point guard that can knock down the 3. Then there's the future, Soph PG A'zir Ellegood, he' a joy to watch. Shoots the 3 at a high rate along with a high percentage, can get by most and finish in the lane, he's an A1 on ball defender too. We mentioned earlier the dreaded transfer portal, but the transfer portal isn't all bad, Trevor Webster returns.... He'll be a welcomed addition!

4. Howard: The Wildcat cubs are now full grown; their class of 2026 players have seen it all and are more than ready for their time to run to show. A heart breaking QF lost to Howard has to have the players and coaches pumped up and ready to grab their elusive state title. Over the recent years they've been oh so close. JR PG Nicholas Baysah is the captain of the ship, explosively athletic with an improved outside shot. A willing passer that can also hurt the opponent in the pick and roll/pick and pop. JR G Bryson Lane is the big knife in the drawer, can pretty much use him anything, scoring, ball handling, and/or defending the opponents top player. JR G Kaden Brown may be one of the most improved players statewide. He too gets things done in multiple ways. JR F Dominic Awahmukalah is the wild card of the group, he's 6'6" and can get way above the rim, can shoot the shoot the 3 very well for a tall man and protects the rim with best of'm, but can he do these things consistently is the (?). JR G Ronald Handy III looks to be ready while being taller, wiser and full of confidence. He was once a high scoring floor general at his previous school, that confidence is what we're referring to. SR F Jeremiah Riley has a new body and will be a force to be reckoned with, especially in the previous mentioned pick and roll situations. Standing at 6'6", he too will be protecting the rim and initiating the Wildcats transition offense.

5. Middletown: Accustomed to veteran leadership over the recent years, The Cavaliers will now rely heavily on youth. No other team has a comparable class of 2027. Leading the youth movement will be incoming transfer 2027 PG Bashir Holmes JR looks to be the floor general for this group. At his previous school he was phenomenal, garnering 1st team all-conference and eye-popping statistics. 2027 G Jaelen Murphy is their utility knife, a bundle of energy that can do a little of everything. Look for him to be guarding his man full court, scoring from all 3 levels and occasionally playing above the rim. 2027 F King Savior is a year older and a little taller now standing 6'6". He's more of a rim protector presently than perimeter defender but his above average 3pt shooting indicates that he'll be a wing offensively and defensively in the near future. Coach Ali has an abundance of youth but possesses a gutsy vet too. SR G Kaleb Ra'Ifa is considered by most to be one of the best in state. Kaleb Ra'Ifa is an electric scoring guard, scores in bunches and normally does it pretty efficiently. He's known as a lock down defender as well
 
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6. Appoquinimink: A gut-wrenching Round 2 playoffs loss in double overtime is fresh on the mind of the Jaguar returners. One last chance remains for the Appo Big 3: Daniel Harvey, Riley Buzby and Jace Thompson. This tandem of seniors will be the determining factors on how this season will go for Appo. Daniel Harvey is the prototypical point guard, gets his teammates involved, is a pest on defense and scores it from each of the 3 levels. Jace Thompson over the Summer and Fall months has shown to be much improved. Scoring the ball from long and mid-range and taking on some of the ball handling duties. Riley Buzby will likely be their unsung hero. Doesn't light up the score board like the other two but does all the little things. If he accumulates a triple double this season, it will not come as a surprise. One thing for sure about Riley though, HE CAN SHOOT IT, there may not be a more lethal 3point shooter statewide than he. The one question mark about Appo, do they have the interior to get over hump? Rebounding costed them in that playoff loss last year, we'll see if the young big fellas can step up and fill that void. Appo too was hit hard by the transfer portal, losing Kaleb Ra'Ifa and Amere Rhoades.

7. Odessa: The Ducks may have counted their ducklings before the eggs hatched (last season) because they were riding high in the first half of the season. Second half of the season was a rough one and an early exit out the playoffs was the end result. This year the hopes are high once again.... SR G Jaylen Bernikow is coming off an extremely impressive Summer and some are mentioning him as a POY candidate. Jaylen is pure excitement, during the course of a game you're likely to see him do some sensational things whether it be long range 3-point shooting, shifty dribble moves, driving through the lane dunking or the always crowd-pleasing alley-oop dunk. The Ducks are no one man show though! SR G Henry Nyasagare is a big scoring threat that can get very hot from 3point range. He too will get up and over the rim for crowd pleasing slam dunks. SR F Tyshawn Wilborn will give a little of everything. He'll be counted on rebound, defend and take some of the scoring load. JR G Jaire Stewart is another threat from long range that also using his athleticism to an above average on ball defender. Then we have the transfer portal... Odessa faired pretty well. Incoming 2027 wing Zion Redic has a chance to be really really good.

8. St. Elizabeth: The Vikings are coming off one of the most successful seasons in school history. Started the year 18-0, Undefeated talk was all throughout the hoops circles. Game 19 was the loss some say they needed. They did advance to State Semi Finals but lost once again.... The returning Seniors ought to be hungry to make it back to the big stage and advance a couple steps further! Graduation hit the Vikings hard too but there's still a lot there! SR F Kenny Hunter JR will carry the load that Aiden Tobiason did oh so well.... Expect similar things from Hunter: Big scoring nights that'll include pull up 2's from mid-range, trips to the ft line, post ups and long-range 3's are things he'll exhibit. SR G Steven Nixon showed sporadically his "takeover the game" abilities last season. This year he'll be counted on to show those traits more regularly. The 3pointer is something he's capable of but will do most of his damage from 2pt range, free throws and aggressive defense. SR G Caden Harris gets his long-awaited opportunity to be a team leader. Similar to Nixon, he'll do most of his damage from 2pt range, he's a lil shiftier of a ball handler but also stout on defense. 2027 PG Kiyen Alexander is bigger, better and back with a year of game experience under his belt. Expect accurate long-range shooting, facilitating and ball hawking ball pressure. 2027 G Masen Price is bigger and better as well. Standing nearly 6'4" armed with accurate long-range shooting and a new found desire to seek contact and attack the rim. Everyone remembers the little 8th grader on varsity, he's back too. 2028 PG Da'Shaun Holden is still small but he plays big and will be hard to contain when driving and dishing. He too can and will knock down the 3 ball whether it's catch and shoot or solely on his own with skilled ballhandling.

9. William Penn: If the Summer is any indication to what the Colonials plans are, it appears as though a youth movement is in order. Returning just one player with varsity experience (a good player we might add). SR F Andy Webb has been turning heads all Summer. Standing at 6'5" and possessing an undying motor, Andy will be a stat sheet stuffer reminiscent of a recent graduate. Now to the youth.... Normally what we're about to say is a recipe for low expectations but not this time! "Dub P" will start at least three incoming freshmen on this year's varsity team. Arguably three of the top five 8th graders that played middle school hoops statewide last year and they have positional size. 2028 G Kyndal Riley-Garlick is already being mentioned as one of the top players in the state regardless of class. 6'1" play making guard but does it differently. Gets the majority of his baskets from 2pt range and plays with a physicality that many just can't match. A stat sheet stuffer too: points, rebounds, assists, and steals are all things he'll be racking up. 2028 PG Elijah Coates stands at 5'7" and will be running the show alongside Riley-Garlick. Believe it or not, Coates has already gone viral multiple times via social media due to his pretty much unbelievable leaping ability. His in-game dunks and pregame dunks are mind blowing for someone his height. Not a one trick pony though, he uses that athleticism to his advantage during game play as well. Quick is an understatement, tough to contain and then he turns around and plays stellar on ball defense too. 2028 G Aaron Whitaker is the lesser known of the trio but not for long. His outside shooting and scoring prowess will be talked about for years, KID CAN SHOOT IT! 2027 6'5" F Mu'adh Ibn Jaabir-Johnson is in the development stages but looks promising. He'll help to protect to rim defensively and finish plays near the rim offensively. The transfer portal was good to WP too. Breaking news indicates that 2024 state leading scorer 2025 G Zyaire Gibson is on board.

10. Seaford: We haven't been able to lay eyes on Seaford, but we do know they added some new pieces via the now famed transfer portal that can only help their case as one of the best teams in state. They already had a dynamic backcourt with the likes of JR G Vincent Evans III and SR G Jordan Smith. The transfer portal additions of uber athletic 6'5" Soph G Az'juan "Mikey" Matthews and his brother 6'6" SR F Aizyon Matthews can only mean that Seaford will be a force to be reckoned with. Viral (social media) sensation 2028 G Uriah Taylor-Brown could/should be ready to make an immediate impact as well.


Ten more teams to be on the lookout for: Cape Henlopen, Smyrna, St. Mark's, Sussex Central, St. George's, St. Andrew's, Lake Forest, Conrad, Milford, Mckean
Cape Henlopen
key players: 2027 6'3" G Jameson Tingle, 2027 6" G Geordan Downing, 2025 5'11" PG Jayden Dukes
Smryna key players: 2026 Marice Kilgoe, 2026 G Chase Sullivan, 2026 G Logan Shaw
St. Mark's key players: 2025 6'2" G Khalil Kemp, 2025 6" G Mike Friend, 2027 6'2" G Tariq Warner
Sussex Central key players: 2025 6'2" G David Maker, 2025 6'2 G Brandon Spencer
St. George's key players: 2026 6'7" F Josh Obiora, 2025 6" G Emory Womack, 2027 6'5" F Jayden Reid
St. Andrew's key players: 2025 6'10" C Darnell Lloyd, 2025 6'7" F Elijah Proctor-Moore, 2025 6'2" G Joshua Ho
Lake Forest key players: 2025 6'2" G Darius Miller, 2025 5'10" G Seth Young
Conrad key players: 2026 5'11" PG Vincent Starr, 2026 6'2" G Marcel Ramirez, 2027 G 6'2" Shane Lopez
Milford key players: 2026 6'6" F Elijah Farrington, 2026 6'3" G Taj'Mir Handy
Mckean key player: 2025 6'2" G Lenar Anderson, 2026 6'4" F Fatah Paige
 
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lots have changed since August regarding transfers so we updated the info (left the rankings relatively the same)....
 
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