News

9 Breakout Players

Most Indiana AAU teams kick off their season this weekend. College coaches are allowed to be at games this April for the first time in a few years. College coaches will be allowed to evaluate players April 20-22 and 27-29. With that in mind, we have 9 players that are poised to have a big April and have their recruitment status change drastically by the start of May.

{iACL type=!userid 1,62,91,110,187,64,171,166,122,802,391,162,475,1084,1207,171,1293,1307,167,92,169,362,157,63, 64,65,66,67,68,69,70,71,72,73,76,77,79,80,82,86,87,88,89,90,91,92,93,94,96,97,98,99,1383,1384,163,1410,1411,1414,1415,1416,1417,1418,1419,1420,1421,1422,1423,1424,1425,1426,1427,1428,1429,1430,1431,1432,1433,1434,1435,1436,1437,1438,1439,1440,1441,1442,1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2023, 2024, 2025}You must be a subscriber to read the rest of the article...click here to sign-up {/iACL} {iACL type=userid 1,62,91,110,187,64,171,166,122,802,391,162,475,1084,1207,171,1293,1307,167,92,169,362,157,63, 64,65,66,67,68,69,70,71,72,73,76,77,79,80,82,86,87,88,89,90,91,92,93,94,96,97,98,99,1383,1384,163,1410,1411,1414,1415,1416,1417,1418,1419,1420,1421,1422,1423,1424,1425,1426,1427,1428,1429,1430,1431,1432,1433,1434,1435,1436,1437,1438,1439,1440,1441,1442,1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2023, 2024, 2025}

2013

Alex Etherington 6’6” SF Hamilton Heights (AAU: Indiana Elite-South)

IPFW is still Etherington’s only offer with a lot of mid-majors in the picture. I expect him to have a huge spring playing with Dan Dakich’s Indiana Elite-South team. He is strong and athletic at 6-6 which will be on full display during AAU.

Mike Crawford 6’5” SF Tipton (AAU: Indiana Elite-Black)

Crawford made a lot of people take notice of him when he scored 40 points on Bowman Academy in the regional. He impressed us last AAU with his athleticism and shooting ability from the outside. Like Etherington, Crawford enters the spring with only 1 offer (Stetson) which is absurd under-recruitment for a player of his skills.

 

2014

Jacob Johnson 6’6” SF Mooresville (AAU: Eric Gordon All-Stars 2014)

Johnson is a player that can really go from a relative unknown to a player on everyone’s radar. He will likely catch everyone’s eye with his athleticism and then keep their attention with his skills. He’s a good shooter from the outside and can do a bit of everything.

Keaton Hendricks 6’5” SF Bloomington South (AAU: Indiana Elite-Team Indiana 2014)

Hendricks has drawn interest from a lot of in-state programs, but has not received his first offer yet. He’ll have the chance to open even more eyes this spring. He is another 6-5 player that is a very good shooter from the outside, but also quick enough to get to the basket.

Sean Sellers 6’5” SF Greensburg (AAU: Eric Gordon All-Stars 2014)

Sellers is another prospect that has drawn a lot of interest, but has not received his first offer yet. He is drawing his most serious interest from Butler, Dayton, and Michigan. He is an inside-outside threat that shot 90% from the line this high school season. Sellers will also finish above the rim frequently.

Bryant McIntosh 6’3” SG Greensburg (AAU: Eric Gordon All-Stars 2014)

McIntosh was really impressive in the workout that I saw recently. He’s grown to a legit 6-3 right now and might have another inch or two in him. He is an explosive leaper and has good overall quickness. McIntosh’s greatest strength is his shooting ability along with a great floater game in the lane, which is extremely rare for a sophomore in high school.  If he consistently plays like he did in the workout, he could collect multiple mid-major offers this spring and possibly a high-major.

Mack Mercer 6’8” C Plymouth (AAU: MBA Select)

Mercer is one of the few bigs in the 2014 class in Indiana. He is a decent athlete that will dunk off a stand-still catch, but he isn’t jumping out of the gym. He has a nice touch around the basket and can also step out and hit a 15-footer. Mercer is still a bit on the thin side which leads to problems at time, but he has improved greatly from this time last season.

 

2015

Bronson Kessinger 6’7” SF Corydon Central (AAU: Spiece Indy Heat 2015)

It is sort of weird to list freshmen as breakout players, but Kessinger is a special talent. He is extremely skilled for a freshman and he happens to be 6-7 to go along with those skills. He moves well and can defend on the perimeter. High-major programs have been in southern Indiana to see him, but I expect him to start picking up offers during the April evaluation period.

Josh Spiedel 6’7” PF Columbus North (AAU: Indiana Elite-Orange)

Spiedel is similar to Kessinger in the fact that he is a big, but has the skills to play on the perimeter and inside. Spiedel is more of a stretch power forward and I would label Kessinger as a true small forward. Spiedel can handle the ball a bit and knock down shots from the outside consistently. He also jumps well, but isn’t extremely quick laterally. Spiedel should leave the April evaluation period with a few offers. {/iACL}