As we have written previously, historically the Carolinas in general and state of North Carolina’s high schools in particular have produced a remarkable number of outstanding basketball prospects, starting in the 1950s with Walt Bellamy, Lou Hudson and Happy Hairston and continuing with the following elite players, to name just some of the many who are deserving: Michael Jordan, David Thompson, Pete Maravich, James Worthy, Phil Ford, Kenny Williams, Dominique Wilkins, Danny Manning, Chris Washburn, Walter Davis, Tommy Burleson, John Lucas, Buck Williams, Antawn Jamison, Bobby Jones, Cedric “Cornbread” Maxwell, Henry Bibby, Henry Logan, Jerry Stackhouse, Rodney Rogers, Gil McGregor, Mike Evans, Randy Denton, Charles Shackleford, Tony Warren, and Danny Traylor. And that’s not counting prep imports from other states, such as Charles Scott and Charlie Davis, among others.
It looked as if the state would offer another prime crop in the class of 2016, but then 6-10 Duke-bound BF/C Harry Giles from High Point Wesleyan Christian tore an ACL for the second time, transferred to Mouth of Wilson (VA) Oak Hill Academy and sat out his entire senior season; 6-3 Fayetteville Trinity Christian point guard Dennis Smith Jr. also tore an ACL and then enrolled for the spring semester at N.C. State, where he redshirted while rehabilitating his knee; and the third in-state senior stud, 6-10 High Point Christian C/BF Edrice “Bam Bam” Adebayo, stunned ACC fans by signing with Kentucky.
Now, however, there appear to be a host of high school underclassmen in the Carolinas, and especially guards in the general Charlotte area, who project as potential future blue-chippers, and who thus are already being avidly recruited by not only ACC members but also by other major national powers. Based on current information that no doubt will be updated during the upcoming spring and summer, listed below are a dozen young potential future stars from high schools in the Carolinas. They are placed in order of high school class, beginning with current juniors (class of 2017) and concluding with present ninth-graders (class of 2019!)… Get access to the rest of this article and unlimited access to the rest of ACCSports.com when you upgrade to Premium Access! Click on the button below to view all the benefits of becoming a Premium Access member.Get the rest of the story right now with Premium Access!
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