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adidas Nations high school Superlatives

Dennis Smith, Jr.

(2016 point guard Dennis Smith, Jr. Credit: adidas)

2014 adidas Nations

Kelly Kline/adidas

Kelly Kline/adidas

LONG BEACH, California -- The 2014 version of adidas Nations is behind us now, but with CBT‘s Raphielle Johnson and Scott Phillips both in attendance, they decided to break down some of the top high school players in the event by going over a list of superlatives for the week. Be sure to check out the college counselor superlatives and be on the look out for brief recaps of every college counselor in attendance later this week on College Basketball Talk.
Click here for CBT’s coverage from adidas Nations

BEST PERFORMER:

Dennis Smith - The Class of 2016 point guard is already a top-5 player in the class, according to Rivals, but the North Carolina native had a fantastic week in helping his Team Lillard win the camp’s title. The 6-foot-2 Smith shot 71 percent from the field over the five games at adidas Nations and if you take three-pointers out of the equation -- in which he was a respectable 36 percent on 4-for-11 shooting -- Smith shot a ridiculous 85 percent on two-point field goals (23-for-27). As if that wasn’t enough, Smith also led the camp in assists (4.8 per game), steals (three per game) and also shot 92 percent from the free-throw line. When you consider most of the guys in attendance were older, those numbers are incredibly impressive. (SP)

Dennis Smith - Thon Maker won MVP honors and fellow guards De’Aaron Fox and Eron Gordon also performed well for Team Lillard, but the choice here is Smith even with attempts to avoid duplicating my colleague’s answer. Smith was that good, working incredibly hard to get to the basket while also making sure his teammates were taken care of (as noted above he led the camp in assists). If Smith can get that perimeter shot in order, defenders whose best course of action is to sag off of him will be in even more trouble than they already are. (RJ)

WANTED TO SEE MORE FROM:

Kobi Simmons - Another Class of 2016 guard and five-star prospect, Simmons had a great week, as a point guard, at adidas Unrivaled in Chicago in early July only to see his play regress this week at adidas Nations. The 6-foot-5 Simmons hunted his own offense aggressively but shot low percentages from the field (36 percent, 25-for-68) and the three-point line (16 percent, 4-for-24) and also had nearly double the turnovers (17) than he did assists (nine). Simmons is still an immense talent, and will be one of the better guard prospects in the 2016 class, but there is clear separation from Dennis Smith and Simmons after this week and there are legitimate questions if Simmons is actually a point guard after this summer. (SP)

T.J. Leaf - Leaf wasn’t around long, playing in just one game before leaving for an unspecified reason. It would have been nice to see the highly regarded 2016 prospect play throughout the event, especially in the title game against the loaded squad that included the likes of Dennis Smith, Thon Maker and Eron Gordon. Unfortunately it wasn’t meant to be, meaning that those in attendance didn’t get another chance to evaluate him against some of the best players in the country. (RJ)

BIGGEST SURPRISE:

Billy Preston - There were murmurs from the West Coast all spring and summer that the Class of 2017 forward was playing at a high level and Preston proved it with his play at adidas Nations. The 6-foot-8 Preston shot 56 percent from the three-point line (9-for-16) this week and also rebounded the ball pretty well, especially considering he was facing a lot of players two years older than him. There’s still a long time to go for Preston to enter college, but high-majors should be interested because he’s a stretch forward that can also rebound. (SP)

Wesley Alves da Silva - Jalen Poyser could be another option for this spot, but I’ll go with the 6-foot-5 Brazilian (he plays for Palmeiras in Brazil) in this spot given my limited knowledge about him. Alves da Silva averaged 18.4 points and 5.0 rebounds per game during adidas Nations play, shooting 54.5% from the field. He attempted just three three-pointers the entire weekend, as he spent most of his time looking to create opportunities inside the arc. This performance capped a summer that included the FIBA Americas U18 Championships, where he accounted for 13.4 points and 6.8 rebounds per contest. Not sure if Alves da Silva’s name comes up in college basketball recruiting circles as time rolls on, but his name may be one to keep in mind down the road. (RJ)

BEST PROSPECT:

Dennis Smith - While adidas Nations featured a number of high-level prospects like Class of 2015 top-ten players Jaylen Brown and Chase Jeter and Class of 2016 top-ten player Thon Maker, Smith is the type of athletic point guard with skill that doesn’t pop up very often. While Smith attempted to make some flashy plays that led to turnovers in the spring, he was incredibly efficient in Long Beach this week and made everyone around him better. It’s probably a toss-up between Maker and Smith long term, but I’ll go with Smith at this point because Maker’s ability to add strength and his average hands are question marks going forward. (SP)

Thon Maker - Since my colleague went with Smith I’ll go with Maker, who performed well most of the weekend for the 2016 group that won the title in impressive fashion. At 7-foot-1 he moves fluidly, and despite the lithe frame more than held his own on the glass with an average of 8.0 rebounds per game. Maker didn’t miss a shot in the semifinals, scoring 18 points on 6-for-6 shooting from both the field and the foul line. The perimeter shot is still a work in progress, but given his size it’s more important that Maker continue to hone his skills inside of the arc. If he can do that and gain some physical strength, Maker will cement his status as the best choice in this category. (RJ)