OTR Hoops: The Opening Standouts Part II – March 19, 2024
MARIETTA, Georgia, – On the Radar Hoops hosted The Opening last weekend. More than 100 teams packed into four locations which made for an exciting kickoff to the spring travel season. Our evaluators and staff covered as many teams and players as possible. Here is a second edition of standouts from the weekend.
By: Jonathan Hemingway
Nasir Anderson – J Smoove Celtics – 2027 (Pictured Above)
Anderson displayed a complete skill set on Sunday morning. The lefty is equipped with a strong frame and shoulders. He uses his body to shield the ball from reaching defenders. Or he can turn on the jets to blast past them to the lane. He displayed some springs with his legs as well. He punched a dunk off an alley-oop pass in transition at one point in a win over the Atlanta Playmakers. The freshman is poised to become one of the top guards in the city.
Nikolas Avaliani – Georgia Legacy – 2025
Avaliani is a confident shooter with size. We caught up with him and his Legacy teammates on Sunday morning. Although the game did not turn out as planned for his team, he showed plenty of promise individually. He hit the perimeter jumper and showed the agility needed to find room around the arc. Although his specialty is canning 3-pointers, he has the strength and size to mix it up in traffic as well.
Jacob Bryant – Hype Hawks – 2024
Bryant ended The Opening on a high note by scoring 15 points in a win for the Hawks AD. The unsigned senior is a natural combo guard who can handle the ball as a back court director of traffic. Or he can become a wing slasher who hunts buckets when his number is called. His poise and experience showed on the court this weekend.
Kyle Jefferson – Devin Butts Elite – 2025
With so many players looking to float to the perimeter and show off their guard skills, we become ever-more impressed with the players who are willing to knock shoulders in the lane. Jefferson fits the latter category. He is a 6-foot-5 forward who is willing to run the court and vacuum up all the rebounds and loose balls in traffic. He finished a productive weekend in a no-frills fashion. He is the type of player you need on your roster to get things done on both ends of the floor.
Gideon Kamuelyu – Georgia Canes – 2025
Kamuelyu had one of the biggest moments of the weekend when he scored a game-winning bucket at the buzzer to knock off Sewer South on Saturday evening. The 6-6 forward showed promise beyond just that single moment. He is a ruggedly built front line player who can take a bump and dish out plenty in return. He has solid footwork and demonstrates agility needed to defend perimeter ball screens as well. Kamuelyu is not a finished product either. Look for him to add more dimensions to his game and become a top frontline target in the Southeast.
Jacobi Robinson – EYA Sports – 2025
Robinson had one of the better weekends of anyone in the building last weekend. It was as if every time an evaluator turned around, Robinson was delivering yet another double-digit scoring performance. In one game he connected on seven 3-pointers for the EYA Sports squad. But he is more than just a standstill shooter. He proved he can put the ball on the deck and score in the lane too. His name is highlighted as a must-track prospect for the rest of the spring.
Xavier Tiller – Atlanta Kings – 2026
Tiller delivered one of the best games by a forward we saw all weekend long. In a win over Redline 16U, he dominated the middle of the court with dunks, rebounds, and finishes off the dribble from the elbow. He is a well-built 6-5 athlete who doubles as Tight End for Langston Hughes during the fall. His blend of footwork, strength, and leaping ability make him an intriguing athlete in the Metro Atlanta area.
Jonathan Hemingway has been a National Evaluator for On the Radar Hoops since 2013. He has been involved in the basketball community since 1995 as a coach, camp director and evaluator. You can reach him at JLHemingway@gmail.com and follow him on twitter @JL_Hemingway.
