Cartersville, GA – Recently (January 9-10, 2021), PrepHoops Next kicked off their inaugural Southeast Kickoff at Lakepoint Sports Center. Several young prospects (middle school) stood out to me from the games that I watched. Made their mark in the new calendar year.
Lincoln Cosby – NYBA 2027 – 6’0” F
It wasn’t hard to spot Lincoln on the floor. With great size and length for his grade, Lincoln also possesses good skill and basketball IQ. He showed promise handling the ball in spurts and when his team needed buckets down the stretch, he showed the ability to slash to the basket and create from the triple threat position. Defensively, he’s all over the court and wreaks havoc with his long arms and timing blocking shots. He draws a ton of fouls and has good form. Watch out.
Stephon Ashley – Fidonce 2026 – 6’0” PG
This kid who goes by the nickname ‘Munchie” showed up and turned heads. In an intense matchup against CP3, he made big play after big play. Whether it was creating for himself or creating for others, there didn’t seem to be anyone in attendance that could keep him from doing so. His feel for the game, pace and ability to see the floor allowed him to not only control the game, but he made everyone around him better. I won’t be surprised to see him contributing immediately once he makes it to high school in a few years.
Dallas Williams – NYBA 2027 – 5’4” PG
Yet another southpaw for this NYBA team, Dallas “D-Low” Williams is incredibly difficult to guard at this stage. He has a nice mixed bag of tricks he uses to get past defenders. Even some of the more physically advanced defenders had trouble keeping him in front of them. You have to like the way he uses his body to his advantage on both ends of the floor. Good length for his age, good quickness and didn’t appear rattles at any moment, even in the toughest of situations.
Ashton Pierce – CP3 2026 – 6’1” G
Once Pierce gets going, he’s a lights out scoring machine. At this stage, he’s what many would consider a “big” guard and routinely shoots right over the top of smaller guards. In the toughest game to date for CP3 2026 team, he single handedly brought his team back from down double-digits and willed them to victory. He has a quick release and no conscious when shooting the ball. If he continues to grow, get stronger and improve his ball skills, he’ll be quite the player from day 1 in high school.