Bounce is wrapping up the 2024 Summit Summer League but doing things a bit different this week than I have in the past.
Bounce is naming some UNOFFICIAL awards for the league based on my own personal opinion. The league itself didn’t have a champion or award winners (although coach Marq Abram did end with the best coaching mark at 5-3), but I am here to pick it up and name my own award winners of a fantastic four weeks that wrapped up this past Wednesday.
So, for full disclosure, these awards are all of my own opinion and not necessarily those of the league’s operators.
Bounce has his own opinions and I stick to them fiercely.
MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
This is an absolute no brainer of a pick. Its Isaiah King and its not close, with all due respect to the 39 other guys that participated over four weeks.
King led the league overall in scoring and was the leading scorer every week but the last, where he still landed third in scoring.
The diversity of King’s game has been phenomenal to watch. He is a powerful downhill scorer and defenders just want to get out of the way. When they don’t, he can punch home a big dunk on them as he did in week four action anyway. But he has a great midrange pull-up and can hit the three off screens, on a pull up, spotting up in the corner, in a pick and pop…basically he’s been able to score anyway he wants over these four weeks.
Early on in the league – I’ll concede week one – perhaps guys were feeling him out if they were unfamiliar with him or his game. But the rest of the time he was just dominant and it didn’t matter what the defense did. King was the best player in the league this August and he was valuable because he was THE guy to go to if you just needed a basket. That kind of reliability due to skill is a rare find.
BEST BOUNCE BACK
This year, Bounce is going to go two ways with this.
Path number one takes us to a guy who didn’t score a ton to have the best bounce back fourth week, but certainly made sure to integrate themselves into much more of the game than the first three weeks. Prairie Heights sophomore Jake Stoy had a tremendous first game in Week 4 of the league as he helped Team Prokop to a 64-58 win over Team Deming. Stoy did a little bit of everything, upping his game as a transition passer, keeping into opposing passing lanes and being an aggressive rebounder. Stoy really stood out in week four action.
The other bounce back goes in a two week span to Justin Carlson (Lakeland), who was second in scoring in week three and led the league in scoring at 23.5 points per game in week four. Carlson is a reliable hand and it made his junior season at Lakeland decent and his spring in AAU solid. But the display of scoring he put on in the last two weeks is massively impressive. He hit the long ball, which he has a tendency to be known for, but he also was great getting down hill and working around the basket. The Justin Carlson post up, spin and jump hook was one of the toughest shots in the league.
WHO GENERATED THE MOST INTEREST HEADING TO SCHOOL SEASON?
Colt Kirkpatrick is a name that is pretty new to a lot of the area fans as well, coming off a career with the Noble-Whitley Warriors homeschool team but heading into his senior season at Central Noble.
Kirkpatrick was a solid hand weeks one and two, just a consistent scorer who was going to give you eight points a game, chip in and help out. But then at the end of week two, he went down with a minor injury and missed most of that week’s second game.
Something must have sparked for Kirkpatrick after that because his final two weeks in the league were by far his best. In those two weeks, Kirkpatrick averaged 15.5 points per game, including a 23 point explosion in his second game of week three while playing for Team Deming. Kirkpatrick became a sure hand, getting out in transition and in week four hit really well from three point range. In those final two weeks, he shot 24-of-34 from the field overall. He finished the four week league as one of just two people hitting above 60 percent of their three pointers. He also shot just under 70 percent from two-point range during the four weeks.
NOW YOU KNOW THE NAME
Some of you may have already known the name Stephen Akase, but since Tippecanoe Valley isn’t in OTH’s coverage area, Akase was really a standout in getting people in Fort Wayne to know who he is.
Akase is just a dominating physical presence and that helps a ton, but he also has a willingness to explore to facets of his game and seemed to understand when and when not to take gambles throughout each of the four weeks, including working on some outside shooting some while still being one of the league’s very best scorers, rebounders and defenders.
OTH’S OPINION: ALL-LEAGUE TEAM
Isaiah King, Fort Wayne Hawks
As mentioned above, King was just the leader of this league in so many ways. He led the league in scoring overall, going for 19.4 points per game and was dominant with the ball. He shot 71.2 percent from two point range and 75 percent from the free throw line while also connecting on the second most three pointers over four weeks.
Stephen Akase, Tippecanoe Valley
Akase was a beast on the glass, finishing second in the league in rebounds to go with fourth in scoring and in steals. Everywhere Akase needed to be, he was. Initially, his play off Viking teammate Davis Cowan was a boost, but in the last two weeks, Akase’s quick cohesion with other teammates helped set him apart as the go to guy a lot of the time.
Justin Carlson, Lakeland
Carlson lands on the list because after being steady for two weeks, he exploded in the second half of the league and finished off second in scoring at 14.3 points per game for the eight game total. His scoring came in a variety of ways with the fourth most two point makes and the third most three point makes while also shooting just shy of 70 percent from inside the arc.
Michael Raudenbush, Homestead
You are going to get a consistency out of Raudenbush with the ball as a scorer, despite the fact that he isn’t consistent on where he shoots from. He really started to separate himself from the league and his many Homestead teammates with his ability to score at all three levels while having an expanded court vision and a sneaky good defensive presence where he can guard most spots on the floor.
Owen Smith, Homestead
The league’s leader in three pointers made, Smith was fifth overall in the league in scoring, but hit 2.8 three pointers per game on average, including a six three pointer made game in the opening week. He moved so very well without the ball in his hands, adapting his spot up ability to wherever the offense flowed. Point guards throughout this league for Smith were strengthened by his ability to read the floor and be exactly where they needed him to be.
Nathan Bowker, East Noble
There wasn’t anyone close to Bowker when it came to setting up scoring opportunities. The last two weeks alone saw him throw three high level no look passes that did illicit oohs and aahs from the crowds. He finished with 28 more assists than the next guy in line as Bowker averaged 6.4 assists per contest which is highly impressive in a league that runs more like an all-star game than something where assists are huge. He also had a big half court buzzer beater in week four to add to the highlight reel.
Trevon Maley, Fort Wayne Hawks
Maley was the only player to lead the league in two statistical categories as his week four propelled him over the top in close races for both rebounding and steals. Maley ended up averaging 7.3 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game to lead the way, while also finishing seventh in scoring with 10.8 points per game. He had a smooth approach and was able to rise up well to rebound the ball. Maley also finished ninth in assists and second in blocked shots make him the only person in the league to finish in the top 9 in all five categories.
These opinions represent those of Bounce and Outside the Huddle. No opinions expressed on Outside the Huddle represent those of any of our advertisers. Follow Bounce on Twitter at Bounce_OTH
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