#OTRBattleground Session 1 – 2028 Frontcourt Standouts

MARIETTA, GA – We open our content coverage of this past weekend’s OTR Battleground Session 1, and I was stationed both days at Kell HS for the 5th and 6th-grade divisions, classes of 2028 and 2029.

We start by looking at 2028 big guys, several of whom had really impressive weekends.

By: Keith Agran

Weston Studivant (Atlanta Xpress, pictured above)

Big-bodied lefty was virtually unstoppable after the catch in close, showed off some nice quickness facing the basket as well and was able to score through contact regularly from the block or the drive, cleaned the glass all weekend and was really sharp on outlets to his Xpress guards, smart defender and intuitive shot-blocker for the age group.

Cortez Hudson (Team Sac)

Cortez Hudson

One of the weekend’s hardest workers as he seemingly never stopped running the floor or moving laterally at both ends, still getting his offensive bearings but when he found himself finishing on the break or getting the ball in tight he was quick off the deck and efficient, long arms made him a versatile defender.

Nijuan Harris (Florida Rebels)

Nijuan Harris

Right with Xpress’ Studivant for top honors among big guys on the weekend, was an absolutely horse near the basket with a lot of shiftiness for a bigger 6th-grader, has clearly been taught how not just to gain position on the block or a few feet from the basket but how to use it when he gets it, pretty nimble in the open floor and also like Stuiviant an excellent passer.

Ezra Gelin (Nightrydas Elite)

Ezra Gelin

Perhaps the smallest guy height-wise in the category but played a lot of forward when I saw him Saturday, guarded guys much taller than himself but was really adept at positional defense as he made it hard on all of them, good timing as a rebounder and with really good shooting touch from deep forced many of those bigs away from the basket.

Spencer Norman (Promise Elite Black)

Spencer Norman (15)

The entirety of the Promise roster was so impressive in nearly all aspects as no one played better as a team unit than they did, the pressure defense in particular was at a high level both in the full and halfcourt, Norman was the ready and able beneficiary as a 4-man from a slew of attacking guards finding him stationed near the basket either off of pushing the pace or sleek penetration.

Nehemiah Lomax (Team South Carolina Black)

Nehemiah Lomax

Noticeable energy and a good understanding of positioning while working tirelessly trying to get the ball, didn’t waste with a lot of unneeded movement when he got the catch and was able to score effectively against a lot of size in the division.

LJ Byrd (AGA)

LJ Byrd

Understanding that his best range right now range was inside 10 feet did a nice job of picking his posts, long and rangy athlete had good lift and his activity level on the board was impressive, such a good mover that finishes in tight seemed easy for him.

Quintin Wilson (Florida Rebels)

Quintin Wilson

A ton of fascinating upside with this stringy but lengthy and rangy athlete, really gets moving out in space and has that lean-power that he used to power inside, has the look of a future elite shot-blocker and rebounder the way he goes after everything hard and the offense is just scratching the surface.

Drew Fisher (Atlanta Xpress)

No question as the weekend went on he got better and better and gained a lot of confidence, in the opening game Saturday he was finding his way but by the last game on Sunday he was assertive and not shying away from taking his offense when it was there, has the look of someone who will sprout to 6-7 or 6-8 someday and as he matures and gains his full agility this could become a stretch package that could develop into something interesting.

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 has both a championship-coaching background on the HS-level and daily newspaper writing experience, both from New Jersey. You can reach him at keithagran1@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @BracketSage.