Boys Basketball – The Shore Scout: Year Five

*Editor's note: The Shore Scout is a basketball junkie who sees numerous local games and has been granted anonymity in exchange for his opinions on teams and players from around the Shore. He was previously with us on our All Shore Media site and has now brought his takes to Shore Sports Network. Enjoy.*

Hi folks, I'm a little late getting going this year, but here I am entering my fifth year writing this blog about Shore Conference basketball, and there’s some pretty good stories emerging.

We've got four Division I seniors at the Shore in Matt Farrell and Dom Uhl of Point Beach, Eric Carter of Jackson Memorial and Louie Pillari of CBA, the WOBM tournament had a surprise winner in Manchester, and Shore Regional opened a lot of eyes by giving St. Joe's-Metuchen all they could handle.

Of the aforementioned four D-I players, three have made their commitments. Carter will attend Delaware, Uhl is going to Iowa, and Pillari to Navy. I'm really curious to see where Matt Farrell eventually decides to go. Why am I so curious? Well, consider this. According to Jeff Goodman of ESPN Insider, over 850 college basketball players have transferred from Division I colleges in the past two years. That’s a staggering number and that’s just Division I.

There’s a lot of reasons for those kids deciding to change schools, but it just underscores how important it is to do your homework and make the right decision. I'm glad Farrell is taking his time after de-committing from Boston College. I think he’s getting some pretty good advice. I really like Farrell as a player. He’s a skilled guard who can handle, shoot and drive, but so can half the state of Indiana, so why is a school like Butler one of many coming all the way to New Jersey to recruit Farrell? What sets Farrell apart from other similar guards?

In my mind it’s his competitive fire. In three years I've never seen the kid take a step back from anybody, plus he’s deceptively quick and plays well in big games. Those are things you can’t teach. As for his teammate Uhl, I was stunned at how his recruitment escalated this summer. I knew he had the physical attributes, but I thought he had a way to go in terms of developing his skill sets and playing at a higher level. Obviously he kicked things up a notch. I'm anxious to see him play this winter.

Jackson’s Carter is a kid who has improved every time I've seen him. His body is more toned, he can handle for a big kid, and he does some nice things on the floor that you don't see in big guys very often. One good example is his court vision. Whether it’s on the elbow or the block he’s an excellent passer, and the kid seems committed to making the right play for his team. As for Pillari, first and foremost, my utmost respect for committing to the Naval Academy. Make no mistake folks, that’s a huge commitment. I think I mentioned last year that I thought Pillari was an underrated player who was a pretty complete player at the high school level. My opinion hasn't changed. He can knock down the three as well as the mid-range jumper, he runs the floor well, and he’s got a high basketball IQ.

Manchester surprised a lot of people, myself included, by winning the WOBM. KaShaun Barnes is the real deal. At 6-2, he’s got great size for a guard and has a pretty quick release from deep. He’s a natural athlete who has great instincts on the court…. Jackson Memorial’s Jesse Hill is a junior to watch. He’s 6-6, he can jump and he’s an instinctive shot blocker. He’s not as polished offensively around the basket as he could be, but watch for him to steadily get better…. Another big underclassman who stood out for me was Peyton Wejnert of Point Boro. He’s the younger brother of Jordan Wejnert, the ex-Point Beach star who now plays for Division II Georgian Court. Only a sophomore, Peyton is like a young colt who shows some surprising toughness underneath plus he can score a bit. Very nice upside….I enjoyed watching Quenton Nelson of RBC play. The Notre Dame-bound football player is just a massive presence on the court, and I got a kick out of watching him shoot his free throws one-handed. He’s pretty good at it, too. And if he wasn't, who’s going to tell him to stop?

Speaking of big and tough, Mike Gesicki certainly fits into that category. The Southern strongman has some highlight reel dunks already this year and Southern is another team that won't be fun for anybody to play. .I really like Toms River South’s backcourt of Tymere Berry, Marquis Davis and Khaleel Greene. Smooth and talented. TRS will be a tough game for anybody on their schedule…People who read my blog last year know I was a fan of Shore Regional's team. I thought they could put five quality kids on the floor a year ago and now they're a year older and stronger. I haven't seen them yet this year but that game against top-ranked St. Joe's had the whole state buzzing….I'm looking forward to seeing Lloyd Daniels Jr. play for Colts Neck. His dad is the same Lloyd Daniels who played for UNLV, played in the NBA and was a playground legend in New York. I saw him play many times and I've never seen anyone pass the ball up the court with the precision he did. If young Lloyd has half the natural ability of his dad, he'll be a nice player for Colts Neck.

It’s early folks, and there’s a lot of teams I haven't seen yet and a lot of players I'm sure deserve mention, so please be patient. In my next blog I’ll look at the Top 10 and give you my early-season thoughts on how I think things will shake out. I'll give you my thoughts on a dozen or so more players and we'll go from there. I'm the Shore Scout, it’s good to be back, and I'll see you in the gym.