Top 10 high school basketball players and where they're heading next year

A blog by Big Red

So college hoops ended last night, and if you can't tell by me writing this blog, I'm already unbelievably sad about it. So let's take a look at what we have to look forward to next winter. 

#1 Harry Giles - DUKE: The senior 6'9 PF from Oak Hill Academy has absolutely blown me away from the minute I saw him. If you read my blog from earlier today, I mentioned how the game is clearly evolving, we are seeing more guys like Curry who can shoot from just about anywhere, and PF and C's who can take the ball to the rim off the dribble. Harry Giles can do it all. I think the one thing we don't see enough of if his jump shot. It seems like its the one facet of his game that he can really improve on. The only real flaw with Giles is that he's banged up. He has torn his ACL twice, which is an injury that you can't take lightly. Get ready, because Duke has an insane draft class with more to come in the top 10. 

#2 Jayson Tatum- DUKE: The 6'9 SF out of Chaminade College Prep has the full package. He can score in a number of ways, and much like Harry Giles, he's an elite dunker for his size. While there are tons of things we can highlight as his best attribute, I find his passing to be on a whole other level. Tatum is able to recognize when double teams come his way, and can find the open man, much like we see Lebron do in the NBA. Not surprised he and Giles are both attending DUKE, because I've seen quite a few videos on the two, and it turns out that they're close friends. Can't wait to see how well Duke plays next year, check out Frank Jackson, he is a SG ranked number 11 in the country and he will also be attending DUKE with these two freaks. 

#3 Josh Jackson- KANSAS: The 6'7 SF out of Prolific Prep is a player I would relate to an Andrew Wiggins type player. The kid has crazy bounce, and can get to the paint with ease. Much like Wiggins it seems he needs to work on his jumpshot. I say this because most of his highlights show him dunking and passing, in addition it looks like he rushes his shot a little. Jackson was the last player in the top 10 recruits to make his college decision. A few weeks back he made the choice to with Kansas after narrowing it down to Kansas, Arizona, and Michigan State. Get ready for this guy to make some crazy highlight reel dunks next year playing for the Jayhawks. 

#4 Bam Adebayo - KENTUCKY: Finally, I was getting a little worried that we would see Coach Cal in the top 5! What would UK be without its one and cone's. Well here's another one for you, and he looks like he has all the fixings to be a solid NBA player in the future. The 6'9 power forward out of High Point Christian Academy has great ball handling skills for his size, and crazy athleticism. If he can improve his shot, he would remind me a lot of a Draymond Green type player, one who can do it all for you. He definitely shows a lot of emotion during the games, and can rally his team around him with just one of his crazy put back dunks. I'm not sure if it was just me, but I was beyond disappointed in Skal Labissiere this year. Hopefully, Bam Adebayo brings his energy to the team next year, and challenges Skal for the starting role. 

#5 Lonzo Ball- UCLA: A little west coast talent made a splash in the top 5 with this 6'5 PG out of Chino Hills High School. If any of you guys don't keep up with HS basketball, Chino Hills is one of the top teams in nation, let by Lonzo Ball. While he's a little bit taller than your average point guard, he still has elite speed and is shifty, making it easy for him to get in the paint. While his shot is a little irregular, he kinda brings the ball from the left side up to his shoulder, he still knocks down 3's with ease. Definitely a great pickup for UCLA here, and I can't wait to see what he brings to the Bruins offense. 

#6 Miles Bridges- MICHIGAN STATE: The 6'7 SF out of Huntington Prep. For those of you that forget, Huntington Prep is where Andrew Wiggins played, a great prep school out in Michigan that puts out some great talent each year. Bridges is dynamic scorer, who will immediately help out Michigan states team. After losing Denzel Valentine this year, its quite obvious that they could use Bridges ability to score. In addition, keep your eyes out for Josh Jackson's college decision, because if he choses Michigan State, then watch out for the Spartans. I will not attach more highlights to this blog, just so it will load a little faster. Feel free to youtube these guys from #'s 6-10 on the list, as they all have great skills. 

#7 De'Aaron Fox - KENTUCKY: Another great sign by Kentucky here. The 6'3 PG out of Texas, has crazy shooting ability. Despite the fact that he looks absolutely stoned in this picture, the kid can flat out play. I was a huge fan of Marcus Lovett who came out of high school last year, and made a decent impact on St. John's team this year. De'Aaron Fox reminds me a lot of Marcus Lovett. Check out De'Aaron highlights on youtube, and then watch Lovett's tell me they don't seem interchangeable. Despite being labeled as a shooter, Fox is able to slash into the lanes and use his bounce to throw down some crazy dunks. Look out for him next year, as he seems like a great replacement for Kentucky who will likely lose Tyler Ullis to the NBA. 

#8 Malik Monk - KENTUCKY: Coach Cal strikes again. Signing the 6'3 SG out of Arkansas. With one of the best spin moves in the top 10 rankings, Malik Monk is able to get into the paint effortlessly, and spring up for crazy dunks. Despite being a guard, he needs to work on his ball protection and crossover. However, he is a crazy scorer. He uses his strength to get to whatever spot he wants on the court, and I hope he is able to do this next year. It's no surprise that Kentucky got some great new players, and I can't wait to see what they can do next year. 

#9 TJ Leaf - UCLA: With what should be the next Christian Laetner at DUKE, we have TJ Leaf the 6'9 PF our of California. TJ Leaf is here to show us all that WHITE MAN CAN JUMP. The PF is able to rise up with ease and block shots with what looks like no effort. He is quicker than most think, and can lead a fast break. I really look forward to seeing what this guy can do at UCLA, however, I still think this is DUKE's biggest bust of all time. The perfect douchey looking white kid. 

#10 Markelle Fultz - WASHINGTON: To round out our top 10 we have the 6'4 SG out of Maryland. I am so shocked to see that he chose Washington for his school, if anything I expected to see Maryland or Georgetown here. However, Fultz is a great scorer like everyone in the top 10. It will be nice to see Fultz working side by side with David Crisp next year. Crisp was elite guard who came from Brewster Academy, (the national prep school champions last year). Crisp had a great year this season coming off the bench, and I'm sure Fultz and Crisp will work nicely together especially since they look like twins. 

And that does it for the top 10 high school players this year. I hope you guys enjoyed the blog, sorry for the length of it, if you can't tell I'm already counting down the days till next season. Follow us on twitter @ForTheBoys_Blog and thanks for reading.