I have been involved with basketball and coaching for most of my life. I was on a team through most of my college years. I began coaching as a senior in college and continued until there was a break of a few years until my kids were old enough to play, and I have coached their youth teams for the last 10+ years…until this winter. This being the first year that I have not had many of my weeknights consumed with basketball, I have been free to attend games around the metro as a fan. And it has been a blast.
I have been to an MIAC game to watch my alma mater, I attended North Dakota at St. Thomas a couple of weeks to check out their new facilities and a buddy was interested in watching Eli King for the Fighting Hawks. But I have also made it a point to check out some of the elite high school teams and players in the area.
It should come as no surprise that Minnesota has a bevy of elite high school talent. We are mostly familiar with the names at the top of the list who are either going to high-major programs or are already playing for high-major programs. I took the time to compile a list of the entire Big Ten players, where they are from and their stats. When I looked at players who have played in at least 10 games this season and are averaging at least 12 minutes per game, it turns out that the state of Minnesota has the third most players represented in the Big Ten.
- Illinois – 12 players
- Indiana – 11
- Minnesota 7
- New York/New Jersey/Massachusetts/Georgia – 6
NOTE: International players collectively account for 23 players.
Those seven players from Minnesota (again, who are playing at least 12 min per game and have played in 10 games or more…to get down to just players who are contributing).
- Isaac Asuma – Minnesota
- Grasyon Grove – Minnesota
- Will Tschetter – Michigan
- Pharrel Payne – Maryland
- Nolan Winter – Wisconsin
- Jack Janicki – Wisconsin
- Braeden Carrington – Wisconsin
The point is that Minnesota routinely produces a number of high-end basketball talent. And it has been my mission this season to watch more of these high school kids. Having been to a handful of games so far, here are my thoughts on some of the higher-end local prospects.
Nolan Anderson – Wayzata
I’ll start with the Gophers’ highest-rated incoming recruit. Anderson, Christian Wiggins and the rest of the Trojans were visiting Maple Grove, another top-ranked team in 4A with multiple D1 athletes, so I made it a point to get to this one.
Anderson was fairly quiet in this game, especially early. I don’t know that he scored in the first five minutes of the game. But then he came around a baseline screen to the wing, took the pass, elevated and drained the three. It may have just been a three from the wing, but it absolutely showed his athleticism and how he was at a different level than most of the players on the floor.
He had a very strong game. I do not recall his points, but he was in the 16-22 range. Never really dominating and Wayzata fell to Maple Grove in a close one.
Overall, I feel like Anderson’s game has a lot of similarities to Cade Tyson. He’s not nearly as strong, but he is obviously younger, and he is probably a better shooter. But I would imagine that he will eventually be playing the same role that we are seeing Tyson play this season.
Christian Wiggins – Wayzata
Wiggins is headed to play for Iowa State next year and he is an athletic and strong kid. He was mostly matched up with Baboucarr Ann, which was the highlight of the evening.
I came away from this singular game rather unimpressed with Wiggins. He plays great defense and he also got his 16-20 points, but I really don’t love his jumpshot for the next level. With that said, he did explode and have a monster night when Wayzata took down Hopkins. I was not at that game, but was told that he was elite that night. So it is fair that from game-to-game, these kids can look very different.
As mentioned, I don’t love his jump shot. But he should fit in at Iowa State where T.J. Otzelberger is going to love his defense and ability to slash into the lane.
Baboucarr Ann – Maple Grove
As mentioned, Ann was mostly matched up with Wiggins this particular night. And I’ve actually seen Maple Grove play twice (the Wayzata game and their loss to Hopkins at home). Ann is a junior, one of the top players in the country and I have been thoroughly impressed. He was great on both ends of the floor in their Wayzata win, he hit 30 in their loss to Hopkins where he was the best player on the floor, and he set the Maple Grove single-game scoring record with 47 in a win over Eden Prairie.
He’s an elite defender, he is a very good shooter, he is impressive with his vision and passing. I cannot say enough how impressive I have found Ann to be. I did not have access to a box score in the Hopkins game, but I would not at all be surprised if he had a 30/10 game.
Ann is a 6’5” wing, currently ranked as the 64th best high school junior in the country. Minnesota has offered and is actively recruiting him. He took an official visit to Wisconsin recently, where Maple Grove alumn, Brad Davison is on staff. I would be absolutely thrilled if Niko Medved is able to land Ann in his 2027 class. Currently, Wisconsin and Iowa State appear to be the stiffest competition to Minnesota, but a strong summer and the blue-bloods will be in the mix.
Jayden Moore – Hopkins
It looks like Moore, a 5’10” point guard, is more likely to be playing wide receiver next year. He has football offers from the likes of Baylor, Minnesota, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas State, etc. I am not familiar with why he has not committed anywhere at this point, but today we are looking at Moore the point guard.
Another kid that I found to be impressive on the hardwood. Moore can shoot, he can score, he is an elite defender but what was most impressive was his leadership and demeanor on the floor.
Nothing phased Moore. His expression and demeanor when things went poorly was exactly the same as when they made great plays. He sees the floor, directs the offense and was always in charge out there.
He is just 5’10”, which likely has held him back in recruiting for both sports. If Moore were 6’, I’d be begging Medved to convince Moore to be the next Gopher point guard. His game reminds me very much of Al Nolen.
Ahmed Nur – Hopkins
Currently ranked as the top junior in the state of Minnesota, Nur is a 6’8” power forward who can shoot and block shots. Very athletic and I was probably most impressed with this three-point shooting ability. Feels very much like Nur is more of a perimeter big than he would be a guy who can bang in the paint in the Big Ten.
He has offers from West Virginia and Arizona State. With his size and perimeter ability, he will likely garner many more.
Max Iverson – Maple Grove
Iverson is a senior committed to North Dakota State. In the Crimson win over Wayzata, he was unstoppable and completely took over that game. When I saw him against Hopkins, he was largely ineffective. Again…not uncommon for high school kids, especially against other top-notch talent. Very good shooter, he is slimy getting by guys and to the basket, and he seems to be a tough kid.
It will be interesting to see how he assimilates at NDSU and if Iverson eventually transfers to a bigger school later in his career.
Tre Moore – Hopkins
The 6’3” sophomore brother to Jayden, the younger Moore is going to be an elite basketball player in a couple of years. Also, like his brother, he is also a dynamic football player and he may be good enough at both to have his pick.
What stood out most for Tre was his defensive ability. Very strong, especially for a sophomore, and he used that strength to play physical defense. I was surprised he wasn’t called for more fouls as his physicality devolved into a lot of grabbing, but the ability and toughness were evident. A good shooter, elite defender and if he has the same maturity and demeanor as his brother, he is going to be an outstanding basketball player at the next level.
Jack Thelen – Maple Grove
I’ll end with Thelen, the 7’ junior center for the Crimson. I’ve seen him play twice and in each game you see times when Maple Grove is actively trying to get him involved and take advantage of his ability near the rim. And then at times he is completely invisible. In both games, the Crimson ran a designed play for Thelen on their first possession of the game.
He has excellent body control in posting up, he is a very good rebounder and shows some toughness on the court. Currently, he has an offer from Murray State, but I expect that as he improves through the summer, his offer list will grow.
GAMES TO CHECK OUT
I was bummed that I wasn’t able to make it this week to watch Wayzata at East Ridge to get a glimpse of Cedric Tomes. But there are more elite games in the last couple of weeks before the playoffs begin.
- Maple Grove at Buffalo (2/12) – The Crimson are one of the top teams in the state and have at least three D1 athletes. Buffalo is one of the surprise teams of Class 4A and are being led by a couple of sophomore guards, each averaging around 20 points per game.
- Cretin Derham Hall at East Ridge (2/13) – A chance to see Tomes and another top-10 team in 4A
- Totino Grace at Champlin Park (2/17) – The Rebels are not a strong team this year but they do have Gavin Walter, a junior with a Northern Iowa offer, and Moussa Dukuly, a dynamic sophomore. Totino has an elite team led by Tian Chatman and Malachi Hill.
- Wayzata at Hopkins (2/17) – This game would be awesome and another with multiple scholarship athletes on the floor.
- Eden Prairie at Maple Grove (2/20) – Hamze Yusef of Eden Prairie up against the Crimson juggernaut in this battle of top 10 teams.
- Alexandria at Tartan (2/21) – The Cardinals making the trip to the Twin Cities to face currently undefeated Tartan (#1 in class 3A). This should be a good one. Mason Witt of Alexandria is a dynamic scorer and Tartan sports two sophomore guards that can light it up.
Once the playoffs begin, keep a close eye on Sections 4 and 6 in Class 4A. Section 4 will have #1 Tartan, #7 Cretin-Derham Hall and #9 East Ridge. Section 6 will produce a state tournament team from among #2 Wayzata, #5 Buffalo or #8 Hopkins. I will be at that Section 6 championship game, if at all possible.
Enjoy the rest of your winter with some elite high school hoops before March Madness begins. Hopefully some of the names mentioned above end up in maroon & gold and lead the Gophers back into the NCAA Tournament.
