2028 5-10 G Gabby Thomas – Norcross
Nobody shot the ball better than Gabby at UNG Team Camp. The D-I recruit with offers from Furman, Winthrop, Alcorn State, Jackson State, South Alabama, Florida A&M, North Carolina A&T and most recently Hampton, was on a different level than everyone else on the floor. Her signature performance came in a 53-50 loss to Etowah where she drilled nine threes en route to 37 points and 6 rebounds. Thomas was automatic with her shot. Blessed with size on the perimeter, Gabby is extremely smooth getting into her shot. She scores with pull-ups and step-backs and is of course a knockdown shooter off the catch. Throughout camp, Thomas was able to get downhill as well, patiently attacking through traffic with eurosteps, faking passes to the corner before finishing at the rim. For a Norcross team that can sometimes struggle to score the ball for whatever reason, Gabby is a godsend with her high-level shot making. If she replicates what she did at North Georgia at GBCA Live, expect plenty more offers to pour in and at the Mid to High Major level.

2027 6-4 C Taylor Johnson – Norcross
With tremendous size, Taylor has nice promise as an inevitable stock riser her senior season. Johnson does well playing her size. She walls up, blocks shots and rebounds, doing exactly what is asked of her. Johnson isn’t overly raw per say on offense, but I think she is just starting to scratch the surface of her potential. She was effective scoring on putbacks and dump off passes inside. Developing a go-to post move with her back to the basket will help unlock her double-double upside. In a loss to Etowah, Johnson had 9 points and 7 rebounds. With her length and mobility, Taylor is on the verge of landing on a ton of college radars with her best basketball ahead of her.

2027 5-8 PG Savannah Aparicio – Etowah
Unsurprisingly, Savannah netted an offer from North Georgia after guiding Etowah to a flawless 3-0 record with wins over juggernauts South Forsyth, Norcross and Creekview. Aparicio got to the rim at will, making plays downhill as both a scorer and facilitator. The strongly built guard used her powerful frame to penetrate consistently, showcasing smooth pace and control while playing through contact. Savannah finished drives from tough angles off the glass, utilized her in-between touch and thrived as a drive-and-dump passer to her teammates on the blocks. In a 53-50 win over Norcross, Aparicio piled in 23 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists with three three-pointers to her credit. It has taken a while, but now in her senior season Savannah is starting to earn the recognition from college programs she deserves. She’s a no-brainer at the D-II level and a feasible fit at the right D-I program.

2030 5-10 W Grace Quiles – Etowah
If Etowah can get Caitlyn Garcia back at 100% by the time the state tournament roles around, adding impact freshman Grace Quiles to the mix could be the X-Factor needed for the Eagles to take a deep run come March. Quiles holds dynamic upside. She stands out from the rest of the roster with her length and athletic frame; no stranger to strength and agility training. Grace is disruptive on defense with the wingspan and instincts to make plays both guarding on the perimeter and around the rim. Offensively, she shined as a lethal shooter from beyond the arc. Continuing grow her confidence with her new teammates, as Grace gets more and more comfortable hunting her offense, she will help rise Etowah’s long-term ceiling as a title contender. On multiple occasions, her teammates encouraged her to dribble and look for her shot upon the catch and when she did, the results were impressive. Quiles sank three threes against Norcross, finishing with 9 points, 7 rebounds and 1 steal. She hit numerous threes throughout the day and was active crashing the glass in each game. Quiles has tons of tools to work with over her next four seasons. Grace is an exciting prospect to keep tabs on.

2027 5-6 W Jaiden Graham – Etowah
To be honest, I’m not necessarily exactly sure just how tall Jaiden truly is, and while I could break out a measuring tape to find out, the one thing I know for sure is you can’t measure her heart. Undersized at 5-foot-whatever, Graham is one of the most underrated players in all of Georgia. Her determination to compete no matter what task is asked of her is admirable. Graham routinely guards players roughly 6-8 inches taller than her and doesn’t bat an eye. The elite glue guy is a high IQ defender, a tough-nosed rebounder and most importantly a winner. Graham defended 6-foot-3 five-star Carib Morris (South Forsyth) and 6-foot-4 Taylor Johnson (Norcross) and did a good enough job to secure victories in both games. While her defensive impact which sometimes doesn’t always show up in the box score but is undoubtedly one of her greatest strengths shined, it was her offense as well that really impressed at North Georgia as her game has expanded over the years. Jaiden looked quick and efficient attacking the basket with eurosteps through traffic. She knocked down open threes and scored with both hands around the rim, doing so through contact to convert And-1s. Graham racked up 13 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists and 1 steal against Norcross. I’m not sure how many college programs are looking at Jaiden, but they should. If she ends up going D-III or NAIA, she feels like a future All-Conference performer. Schools of higher levels should do their due diligence as well this month.

2028 6-0 F EK Reese – Lumpkin County
Only a rising junior, Emerson is a physical specimen with her height, strength and agility. The golfer is a high-motor difference maker on the hardwood. She rim-runs for putbacks and has nice ball skills for her size, extremely comfortable snatching rebounds and pushing coast-to-coast. Reese will take and make three-pointers when she isn’t powering her way to the rim on backdowns. Defensively, EK chases the ball in the full court, trapping and forcing turnovers. Reese has two majorly productive seasons ahead of her. As she continues to refine her game, EK will become a coveted piece among programs in the North Georgia area.

2030 5-10 F Bryleigh Pittmon – Jackson County
Following a spring of dominant performances with the North Georgia Lady Hawks, Bryleigh made her official varsity debut with Jackson County after shining at the JV level in multiple games to close out last season including a 17-point debut with three threes against Winder-Barrow. With four starters graduated from last year’s 18-win team, Pittmon slid into the starting rotation at North Georgia and immediately impressed with her nose for the ball and aggressiveness. Bryleigh has great versatility and basketball instincts. The combo-forward was one of the Panthers’ most consistent performers through three games on Friday, filling up the box score crashing the glass for rebounds and utilizing crafty moves with her back to the basket to draw fouls. Bryleigh creates mismatches. With larger, slower defenders on her, she is able to attack from the high post and wing to score through contact. Pittmon loves to attack with her right hand. Strengthening her left will help diversify her arsenal and give her more room to work. She flashed advanced footwork off the dribble and in the post with counter moves, up-and-unders and duck-ins to get under the arms of post defenders to draw fouls. What impressed me most was her coachability and willingness to compete. She never ran from the ball, instead always running to it, involved in nearly every play whether it be stealing a rebound, getting on the floor or rushing in for a tie up. With tremendous opportunity at Jackson County, as Pittmon’s confidence continues to rise along with her tangible on court production, Bryleigh will be at the forefront of an exciting 2030 class that is willing to work to continue to raise the standard of Jackson County basketball.

2027 5-6 G Kelsey Clack – Jackson County
Part of a small senior class, Kelsey had a strong day of work for the Lady Panthers serving as both a vocal leader and a lead-by-example guard. The pesky on-ball defender was in mid-season form, flustering opposing star players with her willingness to draw offensive fouls. When on offense herself, Clack impressed with her methodical drives to the basket, using long strides to back her way down and spin to the rim while slipping through traffic to scoop up layups. She made nice passes off the dribble as well and did a good job of limiting turnovers. Kelsey played with rhythm, fluidly catching and shooting from the perimeter when open without hesitation. Clack is an important two-way piece with her sneaky lateral quickness on defense and her blossoming offensive game.

2028 5-7 G Lyla Sanderson – Woodstock
Lyla is adding new dimensions to her game. She enjoyed a breakout sophomore season as a catch-and-shoot three-point specialist from the corners but now looks ready to play an even more prominent role her junior campaign. Sanderson was huge in wins over Union County and Madison County as she embraced lead-guard duties. Lyla looked good initiating the offense and attacking the basket. She has much more confidence with the ball in her hands, able to read defenses and make decisions. In a 41-20 win over Madison County, Lyla scored on a pair of coast-to-coast drives converting with both hands. She sank three threes including a pull-up as she dropped in 18 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal, nearly outscoring the Red Raiders herself. Prior to that, she was equally effective against Union County as she buried threes to pace the offense. Although summer has just begun, it already looks like Sanderson is up to task of stepping up in a major way her final two seasons in Towne Lake.

2027 5-5 PG Avynn Kniceley – South Forsyth
Avynn did Avynn things at UNG Team Camp. The Energizer Bunny was the motor for South Forsyth as the War Eagles didn’t skip a beat with Calleigh Salvador missing in action. Kniceley set the tone with her on-ball pressure defense, helping force turnovers and spark easy transition hoops. Avynn was shifty with the ball on offense, using sharp crossovers to change directions before darting downhill. Kniceley hit some jumpers from the perimeter and was efficient with her baseline pull-up. Energy and effort have never strayed from Avynn from Year 1 to Year 4. You can count on Kniceley.

2029 6-3 W Carib Morris – South Forsyth
The five-star prospect suited up for South Forsyth and scored with ease as usual. She went into the post and scored through bumps and of course stretched the floor to bomb threes. What I was most impressed with was her passing however. She was deadly from the high post, finding cutters as she saw overtop the defense. And if those options weren’t there, Carib confidently attacked with spin moves and reverse pivots to get to her jumper in the lane. Morris let the game come to her throughout camp, hardly ever forcing bad shots consistently applying pressure on the defense with her high IQ decision making.

2027 5-10 W Tamia Tomlinson – Milton
Milton’s staff has raved about Tamia’s growth over the spring, the explosive athlete starting to become more consistent. Tomlinson was effective against Union County, gathering 11 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals and 1 block. Tamia is at her best when she’s curling off screens to cut downhill for layups. She does well gathering herself to play off two feet to finish through contact. For Milton to make it back to Macon, Tomlinson will have to play a large role, helping fill the void left behind by Caroline Young. Tamia has the makings of becoming a stock riser her senior season.

2029 5-10 W Bristol Davis – Union County
Long, active and diversly skilled, the Class 2A Freshman of the Year was very impressive at UNG Team Camp, notably in Game 1 against Class 6A State Runner-Up Milton. Bristol is a rangy guard who has the versatility of playing 1-4. I loved how she pursued the ball, getting on the offensive glass to earn second chance possessions. Davis moved around the floor and was effective in different spots. She showed a willingness to post up with slippery moves with her back to the basket. Bristol scored in transition, dropped in a floater, sank a three and went 3-3 from the foul line as she scored a game-high 15 points to go along with her 7 rebounds and 2 steals. Davis played at the top of the 1-3-1 zone, hindering passing lanes. Whenever a shot went up, she quickly scurried into rebounding position and put a body on opponents before attacking caroms. Union County’s 2029 class is loaded with key contributors with Davis being possibly the most impactful two-way presence.

2027 5-9 G Regan Trlica – Union County
The most important ability is availability. When Regan is healthy, she’s extremely productive, a legitimate college prospect. Trlica looked very good at North Georgia, especially during a stretch in the second half against Milton where she helped the Panthers build a 35-27 advantage before the Eagles stormed back to win 51-40. Trlica showcased her takeover aptitude as she created off the dribble to get to her pull-up jumper out of crossover moves. Playing off pick-and-rolls, she dropped dimes with pocket passes in tight quadrants for layups. Trlica’s court vision along with her well-balanced attack which features slices to the rim and three-point range, make her a difficult cover. Regan put up 10 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals and 1 block against Milton, her fingerprints all over the game. Improving her durability and avoiding freak setbacks will help her maintain her momentum throughout her senior season. Trlica has the skill to be on D-II radars and D-III/NAIA wishlists. The Panthers will be a ton of fun to watch this season in Class 3A. Union County looks primed for a deep state playoff run and in the center of that should be Regan Trlica.

2027 5-11 C McKenna Hood – Union County
You don’t have to be flashy or the tallest or most athletic in order to be effective. McKenna Hood expertly played her role in the frontcourt for Union County as the serviceable big made a living scoring out of rolls to the rim. Hood’s physical play helped the Panthers battle against larger, more athletic teams. McKenna fought for rebounds and went straight up to block shots in the paint as she provided 6 points, 10 rebounds, 1 steal and 3 blocks from the interior against Milton. Throughout camp, Hood also showed the propensity for being able to knock down jumpers from the high post. McKenna’s offseason work is paying off.

2030 5-5 PG Everley Dobson – Creekview
Everley Dobson looks the part; she does not however look or play like a freshman. The dark-haired guard is already one of the pound-for-pound most physically impressive on the roster, packed with a powerful lower half which helps her explode off the dribble. That same strength is implemented when she makes sharp, on-target passes with one-hand. Dobson’s on the fast track to reach her ceiling as she will be coached hard for four years under Coach Eric Herrick’s tutelage as the Grizzlies look to defend their state title. Everley has large shoes to fill, replacing Class 5A Player of the Year Kailyn Hamby (Brenau), but Dobson’s playmaking and outside shooting will help her vie for major minutes in Year 1 as she looks like an impact maker in the talent-rich county of Cherokee.