ATL-Metro Guys Asserting in GHSA Playoffs Pt 2
By: Keith Agran
Xavier Shegog | F | Mount Vernon | 2024 (pictured at top)
Just a junior and the adjustment to both the transfer and the rugged Atlanta basketball scene has been noteworthy. A sterling athlete who can provide the spectacular, you have to be impressed with the way he’s unveiled a more all-around scoring game with a soft J to go with his finesse/power combo for a team playing its best basketball of the season right now on its quest for the A-D1 title.
Amari Brown | G | Sandy Creek | 2024
Much more of a pick-your-poison type season for the Pats even though they returned a ton of production from a year ago, everyone’s a year older and playing balanced team ball on O, adding the typical tremendous SC team defense around Brown. But here’s that guy Brown again nightly showing off why he’s clearly one of the fastest risers in the 2024 backcourt slate of guys. The short to it, checks a ton of boxes for a lead guard in today’s game.
Brandon Rechsteiner | G | Etowah | 2023
Big-time players making big-time shots, could it have been more fitting that it was B-Roc knocking down the clinching FT’s in their stirring Elite 8 road win over St Pius? And now here’s the Virginia Tech-signee alongside his 2023 brothers and more on this roster staring at the chance to take home a 6A banner. There hasn’t been a harder worker to get to where he is I can detect along the trail over the last 3+ years.
Samuel Thacker | G | Providence Christian | 2024
What a story Thacker’s season has become as he has burst onto the scene with some monster scoring performances and has continued his consistently deadly play in this 2A Final Four run for the Storm. There’s superb balance with this group with a new guy standing out for each W, but the X-factor seems to be Thackler’s uncanny ability to knock down the deep ball (sometimes in massive droves) and absolutely bury an opponent’s psyche.
Kyle Greene Jr | G | Pace Academy | 2024
Having not seen all the stat lines for the Knights as they’ve rolled to the 4A Final Four with more terrific team play and more specifically team defense, it isn’t hard to imagine Greene has been a game-changing force. Still just a junior but already such a poised and confident presence, he leads another balanced Pace group and it’s been easy to see from the day he arrived at West Paces why he’s so highly touted by the next level.
Osmar Garcia | G | Lanier | 2023
Big “O” has had some huge moments on a Longhorn team that is on a serious roll having won 22 straight after their Elite 8 win over defending 6A champ Grovetown. In that game Garcia showed the kind of classic hybrid G/F game he has brought to the A from south Florida. He has the size to rebound, the ballhandling to head up the offense, and the slick and entertaining offensive variety to turn the tide in any game.
Keith Agran has lived in Georgia since 2011 and joined OTR as a National Evaluator in 2021. He previously scouted for Prep Hoops dating back to 2019, and also spent 3 years as a sports writer at two newspapers in New Jersey. After a championship-coaching background on the HS-level also in NJ, he accepted the Girl’s Basketball Head Coaching position in May 2022 at Mt Bethel Christian Academy and now balances scouting and coaching still with a keen eye on talent around the region. You can reach him at keithagran1@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @BracketSage.
