While roles do change for many players as they progress through high school, success and production doesn’t always follow. However, we are always given a nice sample size in the summer to see how it just might translate.
Here are many of the expected top teams for next season and the player, based on their summer play, who is rising and set to thrive in bigger roles.
There is plenty of talent back at Benet. But the rise of Pauliukonis, both as a prospect and as a productive player, is undeniable.
Watch the highly skilled 6-9 forward, who can shoot the three pretty effortlessly and put the ball on the floor, significantly surpass his junior year numbers of 8.3 points a game. He has the late-blooming look of a player set to emerge as a true offensive conductor, which is even more impressive for a player at his size.
More importantly, he will be a player opposing teams must account for each game, allowing others around him to shine.
Super sophomore Davion Thompson is still the eye candy and 6-7 senior JT Pettigrew is a constant inside presence with his double-double capability. But Brost, a junior guard with starting experience as a sophomore, is set to take on a much bigger role and run with it.
Brost is tough, heady, can knock down shots and has really put together an outstanding, but under-the-radar off season.
The transfer from Young stepped into a similar situation at DePaul as he had at his former school –– playing in a heavyweight basketball program where he is surrounded by a talented group of guards. But a year older and wiser, the 6-0 junior is set to be an instrumental piece after an impactful June with the defending state champs.
Woo is a pesky and disruptive defender with a skill set and shooting capability to be an offensive threat in the backcourt.
Last season Stephen Brown, one of the top prospects in the Class of 2026, grew as a player and senior Darshan Thomas emerged as the East Suburban Catholic Conference Player of the Year. Meanwhile, Vance played his role perfectly off the bench.
Vance was an energetic force on the glass and did some dirty work while showcasing the type of impact he’s capable of in the regional title win last season. He scored 23 points and pulled down 14 rebounds in the win over Joliet Central.
As arguably one of the best bench players in the entire Chicago area, the athletic 6-5 Vance brought the same type of intensity this past June in a starting role for the RedHawks.
It’s not as if Gawron didn’t make an impact last season as a junior. Ask any opposing coach the nuisance he caused with his athleticism, running the floor, blocking a shot, finishing with dunks and his work on the boards. But the attention typically drifts to the high-scoring backcourt of Yaris Irby and Reid Olson when talking about Vikings basketball.
No one should underestimate the impact of the 6-6 Gawron and what he can become this season. After averaging 17 points and seven rebounds a game a year ago, he’s simply been one of the more underrated players in the state. But his game is more polished than a year ago and he’s set for a huge senior year for one of the better teams in the state.
The offensive game continues to expand for the 6-2 junior who forms quite the trio with superstar sophomore Jaxson Davis and often overlooked senior Javerion Banks.
Walker was a key player in last season’s return to relevancy for Warren basketball. While he fit in well doing all the little things as a sophomore, Walker showed this offseason what’s to come with an offensive arsenal that includes scoring at all three levels.
The Warriors’ record-breaking start last year –– they began the season 23-0 –– opened eyes. The breakthrough season included star Tyreek Coleman’s continued rise and the arrival of a complete unknown, 6-5 Moses Wilson.
But after the summer he put together, the bouncy and active Wilson will go from the fringes of the unknown to start his junior year to borderline mission critical as a senior. Wilson flies around the floor, slashes to the basket and is disruptive defensively with his length which results in deflections and steals.
The numbers (9.0 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 2.2 apg, 2.1 spg) were very solid but modest a year ago. But they are only going to get better and show he is influencing the game in too many ways to count.
There is some star power at Young with senior Antonio Munoz, junior Marquis Clark and sophomore Howard Williams all ranked among the top prospects in the state in their respective classes. But Irvin, a hybrid forward with versatility, showed signs this June of the potential he can bring this season as a sophomore for the Dolphins.
Pushing close to 6-5, Irvin offers impressive physical attributes while showing an improved overall game. He navigates well in the paint while also showing an ability to step away from the basket and be a threat from the three-point line.
