Southern jam fest hampton va 2023

Imhotep guard Rahmir Barno (above) helped lead Team Final to the 16U championship. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Rahmir Barno (2023 | Team Final | Imhotep Charter, Pa.)
One of two Final and Imhotep teammates on this list, Barno was terrific in two games watched Sunday as Final won the 16U championship. The 5-11 combo guard really turned it on in the second half of Final’s semifinal win over Durant, finishing with 13 points and six assists, then had 10 points in the championship win, including a pair of game-clinching foul shots with five seconds left. Barno has a great feel for the game, including when to dish and when to score, and he’s an elite finisher with both hands. Temple, Drexel, La Salle and Hofstra have all offered since March.

Emoni Bates (2022 | Team Final | Ypsi Prep, Mich.)
It’s always tricky to write about a player who’s considered No. 1 in the country, with all the hype that Bates has: it’s tough not to hold such prospects to a higher standard, expecting greatness and feeling somewhat disappointed if they don’t live up to that standard. But watching Final four times this weekend, it’s clear that Bates very much deserves his ranking, even with plenty of high-level prospects itching to prove themselves worthy of that spot and the attention it brings. A 6-9, 205-pound wing guard, Bates has elite size and length for his position, with a wiry, bouncy frame, and he’s a true three-level scorer who can launch and connect from deep with accuracy, get into the midrange and attack the basket against anybody, finishing all sorts of tough layups. Most impressively, he didn’t hog the ball, played within Final’s offense, had good body language and looked more and more comfortable in the flow as the weekend went on.

Jack Collins (2022 | NJ ShoreShots | Phelps School, Pa.)
A shooter with terrific size, Collins looked like a burgeoning Division I prospect on Friday night when he scored 19 points on just seven shots in a win over Team Loaded 757 (Va.). A 6-5, 190-pound wing guard, Collins just graduated from Manasquan (N.J.) and is taking a prep year at Phelps School in Malvern (Pa.), where he’ll certainly have a chance to prove he belongs on a D-I roster, if he doesn’t do that in the next couple months. In the win over Team Loaded 757, Collins was 3-of-4 from downtown and also grabbed seven rebounds, and he knows how to use his size to his advantage when matched up against smaller guards, getting into the lane and knocking down some mid-range buckets as well. So far, he’s hearing from D-II Adelphi (N.Y.) and D-III Randolph-Macon (Va.).

Quadir Copeland (2022 | NJ Scholars | IMG Academy, Fla.)
Copeland recently joined the Scholars after beginning this offseason with Team Melo (Md.), but the prospect from southwest Philly -- who played his first couple seasons of high school ball at Gettysburg (Pa.), looked plenty comfortable in his new duds as well. A big guard (6-6, 180), Copeland doesn’t just call himself a point guard, he walks the walk, racking up big assist numbers whenever he’s on the court, like a 11-point, seven-assist effort against Team AKT (Va.) on Friday and a 14-point outing against WeR1 on Saturday that saw him get a laceration on his forehead in the first half and return in the second with a bandage to play his best ball thus far. Syracuse, Oregon, Miami, Maryland and more are all heavily involved with Copeland, who’ll head down to IMG this year after playing at Life Center (N.J.) last season.

Joey Dudkowski (2022 | Caveman Academy | Pine-Richland, Pa.)
Watched Caveman, a group of Western Pa. small-college prospects, take down 6th Man Warriors (Md.) on Friday night, and Dudkowski was a major reason why. The 6-3, 176-pound guard was on fire from beyond the arc, missing his first two but then making five of his next six as he poured in a game-high 26 points, along with five assists and three rebounds. More than just a spot-up shooter, Dudkowski was knocking down pull-up jumpers, got into the lane and showcased a beautiful floater and some nifty post footwork, got to the line and attacked the rim, using his strong athletic frame well on the defensive end. A high-academic prospect, he’s hearing from Swarthmore, Carnegie Mellon, Johns Hopkins and UChicago.

It was another jam-packed Southern Jam Fest event hosted by the Hoop Group in Hampton, Virginia. For this article, we’ll run down wings and bigs from the 17U level that caught attention.

For the 17U guards, click here!

Xavier Booker

Booker was the prospect who arguably had the highest ceiling in attendance. At 6-foot-10, he’s fluid while running the floor or even when handling the ball. The southpaw forward screams long term versatility and everything that college programs and NBA teams want in their frontcourt players. Throughout the weekend he used his length to finish well above the rim, buried catch and shoot three’s with efficiency and rebounded the ball at a high level. Booker screams upside.

🔥☠️Dunk heard around the gym #HGJamFest

⚠️ 2023 Xavier Booker (@RealXman23) making his presence know at Southern Jam Fest #HGJamFest pic.twitter.com/DT2YpZm0HV

— Hoop Group (@TheHoopGroup) May 14, 2022

Dennis Parker

Parker is a downhill nightmare especially when in transition where he uses his combination of speed, strength and athleticism to overwhelm challenging defenders. The 6-foot-5 wing/forward is dynamic and versatile on both ends with a knack for creating contact on his drives in a half-court setting and visiting the charity stripe. He also showed good awareness as a playmaker by finding open teammates after gaining the defense’s attention on paint touches.

Jamie Kaiser

Kasier continues his tear this spring with another impressive weekend shooting the basketball and displaying his willingness to do the little things in order to help his team win. Kaiser is a guy who can quickly rain in 2-to-3 triples back-to-back and shift the momentum of a game. When his shot isn’t falling, he’s still effective thanks to his high motor that comes to light when he crashes the offensive glass for second-chance opportunities. His 6-foot-6 frame and ability to embrace physicality (as he does on the football field) shines bright and plays a major key in him winning 50/50s.

Great weekend with the squad, finished 5-0 in The Hoop Group Southern Jam Fest‼️ @NewWorldAAU @RealDealDeme pic.twitter.com/DslSTwHnq5

— Jamie Kaiser Jr (@J_Kaiser53) May 15, 2022

Tyler Tejada

Tejada has made a name for himself this spring at Hoop Group events in part because of his versatility at 6-foot-7. He plays with a fearlessness about him that is very intriguing. While he still needs to polish his overall game, Tejada is more than capable of knocking down shots from the outside in bunches. He can also put the ball on the deck for one or 2 dribbles and surprise defenders by throwing down a dunk where he gets off the ground much quicker than expected. Tejada is expected to be the anchor in the paint for his team defensively as a center, but he’s much more mobile, skilled and agile than most when playing that position.

Aaron Bradshaw

Bradshaw is a legit seven-footer who impacts the game any time he’s involved in a possession. His long wingspan makes him a shot eraser whenever he is in the vicinity of an opposing player, he grabs boards quickly and at their peak and is a lob threat any time he’s around the rim on offense. What surprised me was how comfortable he seemed in face-up scenarios 12-to-15 feet away from the basket. Bradshaw sized up his defender and fluidly got into his jumper with sound results. He’s a guy who prides himself on the defensive end and understands how to play around skilled guards. Like Booker, Bradshaw’s potential is very intriguing.

Aidan Harris

Harris had a tremendous game in a win over Team Wilson on Saturday. The burly 6-foot-6 forward was scoring from three off the catch and making the defense pay for any inside touches where he’d utilize his strength to finish through contact. He scored 25 points in the victory and hit multiple three’s in the second half that eventually took the wind out of the opposition. Harris had a high school season filled with lingering injuries, but is now back and feeling better than ever. It certainly showed on Saturday.

Khani Rooths

When Rooths hit the high school scene there was plenty of buzz thanks to his frame and length as a freshman. He’s a 2024 playing on the 17U level and looks comfortable as his body and skill-set continues to mature. He was impactful on his touches in the paint where he finished above the rim with regularity and his efforts in running the floor in transition were often times rewarded with lobs or dump-off passes. It was good to see him more assertive on his catches out on the perimeter, as the 6-foot-7 wing/forward showed some improvement in his ability to create space and knock down shots.