Race For #1 Spot In Class Of 2011 In Illinois Is Wide Open 

May 4, 2009

11:00 A.M. CST

As we have stated repeatedly, the class of 2011 in Illinois has a chance to go down as one of the all-time great recruiting classes in the state.  However, people may also remember that it was not long ago that we pointed out that despite the enormous amount of talent and depth in this class, we find it ironic that it lacks a clear-cut #1 player--a headliner, or someone who clearly separates himself from the rest of the pack.

This past weekend we were able to watch virtually all of the top prospects in Illinois from the 2011 class at the Bill Hensley Memorial Run 'N Slam All-Star Classic in Ft. Wayne, IN.  What the event convinced us of more than anything else is that at the present time THERE IS NO CLEAR-CUT #1 PLAYER IN ILLINOIS FROM THE CLASS OF 2011 AND THE RACE FOR THE TOP SPOT IS WIDE OPEN! 

With that very thought in mind, the following is a run-down on our current assessment of all of the top prospects in the state from the class of 2011 and how they stack up at this time.

Stock On The Rise

  • Wayne Blackshear   6'5   WF   Chicago (Morgan Park)   Mac Irvin Fire

  • Dre Henley   6'5   WF   Chicago (De La Salle)   Mac Irvin Fire

  • James Siakam   6'6   WF   Carbondale (Brehm Prep)   Illinois Titans

  • Jacob Williams   6'5   2G   Chicago (St. Patrick)   Illinois Wolves

We really thought that Blackshear might suffer Najeeb Echols syndrome after sitting out the last two and a half months of this past season after transferring from Curie to Morgan Park.  However, in the early going Blackshear has shown no ill-effects whatsoever.  He has greatly improved his wing skills, including his shooting range and ball handling ability and is turning into a complete player.  We would still like to see more consistency, but he is clearly among the top five prospects in the class and is making a strong case for #1.

Others will try to take credit, but we were the first to say that Henley is among the elite players in the 2011 class after watching him at an event at Loyola University in Chicago last December.  Other than Blackshear, Henley was the most productive class of 2011 player that we saw at the Bill Hensley Memorial Run 'N Slam All Star Classic.  We absolutely love his versatility, as he is capable of playing as many as four positions on the floor and is effective at any of them.  He is more than capable of emerging as the top player in the class when it is all over.

Siakam is also a multi-dimensional player who is clearly among the top ten prospects in this class and may actually be closer to the top five.  In addition to being an outstanding athlete and a terrific finisher, Siakim is also a good ball handler and a leader on the floor.  Right now the only thing that is lacking is a consistent jump shot from beyond the arc, but he plays with a high level of energy and continues to get better.

Williams is another player who is back on the court after missing the entire past season.  He might be the smoothest player in the class, as he has a sweet looking stroke all the way to 3-point land in addition to sporting outstanding athleticism and ability in the open court.  We think that he has tons of up side and is making a strong push for a spot in the top five.  He will be back at St. Patrick next season and will be part of a team that we believe could be scary good.

Stock On The Decline

  • Mike Shaw   6'7   WF/PF   Chicago (De LaSalle)   Mac Irvin Fire

  • Sam Thompson   6'5   2G/WF   Chicago (Whitney Young)   Mac Irvin Fire

Once again, everyone who reads our material on a regular basis knows that we have been more patient with Shaw than anybody, as until now he has remained our #1 ranked player in the class.  But after watching him in Ft. Wayne this past weekend we have concluded that we can no longer justify that ranking.  The bottom line is that Shaw still refuses to post up.  Instead, his entire offensive game at this time is predicated around pulling up for jump shots along the base line or on the wing.  At this level and going up against the competition that he is facing, he needs to become a more dominant force on the block.  We know that he is capable of it, but right now it simply isn't there.  He is also more than capable of asserting himself on the defensive end, but all too often tends to play in spurts.  As a result, we would have to say that as of now Shaw is on the down side of the top 5 in the class.

Thompson is also a player who talent-wise is capable of being the best player in the class but all too often seems to go through the motions as opposed to playing aggressively, which is what we thought was the case yet again in Ft. Wayne.  We fully realize that playing on a loaded state championship team at Whitney Young this past season he was the odd man out on many occassions.  However, now that he is playing on the 16-under Mac Irvin Fire squad, he needs to be a player that shows that he can take over games, and we did not see that at the Bill Hensley Memorial Run 'N Slam and have had yet to see it on the AAU circuit in general. 

Stock Remains Stagnant

  • Tracy Abrams   6'0   PG   Chicago (Mt. Carmel)   Derrick Rose All-Stars

  • Ryan Boatright   5'10   PG   Aurora (East)   Derrick Rose All-Stars

  • Chasson Randle   6'2   2G   Rock Island (H.S.)   Illinois Wolves

We have to admit we had our doubts as to whether or not Abrams and Boatright could co-exist in the same back court playing on the Derek Rose All-Stars, as their games are similar in a number of ways.  However, make no mistake about it--both Abrams and Boatright showed in Ft. Wayne that they can definitely play together.  Abrams had the ball in his hands the majority of the time and confirmed that he is a scoring point guard first and foremost, while Boatright played off the ball and was used primarily as a spot up shooter and slasher.  The reason that we put both players in the stagnant category is because we would now like to see each of them diversify their games a bit more.  Abrams still needs to show more consistency when playing on the wing, while Boatright still needs to prove that he can be a sound playmaker and make good decisions when he is manning the point.  With the way they are currently being utilized on their traveling team, these are things that we might not be able to determine by the end of the summer.

We have long said that Randle is an ideal combo guard and might actually be the most versatile of all of the top guards in Illinois from the 2011 class.  Right now we actually see Randle being more on the 2-guard side and this is something that became more clearly evident at the Bill Hensley Memorial Run 'N Slam All-Star Classic.  We have seen proof that Randle can man the point playing for his high school team, but he needs to show more consistency in that area when it comes to getting it done against higher caliber competition, and that was something that was plainly evident in Ft. Wayne.

Talk To Us At The End Of The Summer

  • Nnana Egwu   6'9   C   Chicago (St. Ignatius)   Illinois Wolves

  • Jay Parker   5'9   PG   Harvey (Thornton)   Mac Irvin Fire

While we are not sure that Egwu has progressed at the rate that other analysts will lead you to believe, there is no question that he has shown considerable improvement over the course of the last year.  He has now begun to develop a consistent turnaround jumper in the paint area and his hands have gotten much better in terms of catching and finishing.  In the mean time, he continues to show his usual ability to run the floor and block shots.  Simply put, Egwu needs to keep playing, and the problem has been that he received limited minutes on the varsity team at St. Ignatius last season and for whatever reason was on the bench for a good stretch of the 16-under Illinois Wolves tournament contest vs. Indiana Elite when we watched him in Ft. Wayne.  As a result, we have only really had a chance to watch him in brief stretches and believe that we will have a more complete assessment by the end of the summer.

Parker might be the most difficult player to get a read on this class.  We have always liked his ability, as he is a pure point guard with tremendous playmaking skills and an excellent decision-maker.  If anything, he may be too unselfish for his own good.  Playing on a team where Dre Henley and Sam Thompson are clearly the stars, he may need to have a breakout game in order to confirm that he is among the elite players in this class.

The bottom line is that as loaded as the 2011 class is in Illinois, it is still way too early to project anything that even resembles finality when it comes to rankings and evaluations.  That is why we laugh at all of the others who continue to offer numerical rankings of the top players in this class and act as though they have everything all figured out.  A lot can change over the course of the next two years, and in all likelihood probably will. 

Continue to check in with Illinois Prep Bulls-eye for all of the latest as it pertains to recruiting and high school basketball in Illinois.