FIBAMar 25, 2016 by Brett Pickert
The 2016 Nike Hoop Summit Teams Are Announced
The 2016 Nike Hoop Summit Teams Are Announced
For the best kids in the world, it's going to be a busy "offseason" before they make the next step in their careers.On the schedule is the Nike Hoop Summit
For the best kids in the world, it's going to be a busy "offseason" before they make the next step in their careers.
On the schedule is the Nike Hoop Summit in Portland, Oregon. Like many invite-only events, the Hoop Summit puts the best high school seniors from the United States against the World. For kids looking to make it into the NBA, the Hoop Summit is a great event to compete in en route to their dreams. There have been plenty of Hoop Summit participants that have made it to the NBA. Kyrie Irving, Tristan Thompson, and Kevin Durant just to name a few.
Recently, the Nike Hoop Summit revealed the rosters for the All-Star event.
The USA roster is filled with a plethora of talent. You have the nation's best center in Marques Bolden, the nation's second-best player in Jayson Tatum, and Oregon-favorite Payton Pritchard. Harry Giles, the nation's best player, will not play due to an injury suffered at the beginning of the season.
Not much is known about the World Roster with the exception of Thon Maker, who's playing in his second Hoop Summit. Luckily, Nike has produced a rundown of all the athletes representing the World.
Canadian forward Justin Jackson averaged 14.8 points per game at the U19 World Championships in Greece last summer and has committed to play at UNLV in 2016-17. Froling, an Australian forward, has committed to play college basketball at Southern Methodist University for the 2016-17 season. He was named MVP of the Basketball Without Borders tournament in Toronto in February 2016.
The World Team has also named six guards to its 2016 roster: Edin Atic (6’6”, AEK Athens, Greece and Bosnia & Herzegovina), Isaïa Cordinier (6’5”, Denain ASC Voltaire and France), Andres Feliz (6’1”, West Oaks Academy, Orlando and the Dominican Republic), William McDowell-White (6’4”, Ignatius Park College, Queensland and Australia), Wesley “Mogi” Silva (6’6” Paulistano/Unimed Sao Paolo and Brazil) and Martynas Varnas (6’5”, Zalgiris Kaunas II and Lithuania).
Atic is on loan with OKK Spars Sarajevo in his homeland from his Greek club AEK Athens. He averaged 16 points, 7.6 rebounds, 3.8 assists per game for his national team, being named to the All-Tournament first team as they reached the semi-finals of the 2015 U18 European Championships. French guard Cordinier, who plays for Denain in Pro B, the second tier of professional basketball in France, is averaging 11.4 points in 24 minutes per game, as well as establishing himself on the young French national teams. Feliz, was the leading scorer at the U19 World Championships in Greece last summer, averaging 18.9 points per game. He has committed to the University of South Florida next season. McDowell-White is one of three Australians on the team and enjoyed an outstanding 2015 U19 World Championships in Greece with his national team, averaging 7.4 points, 3.7 assists and 2.1 steals per game. Brazil’s Mogi is a guard-forward with Sao Paolo club Paulistano, where he has established himself on the senior team this season. Varnas plays for Zalgiris Kaunas II, the farm team for the country’s powerhouse club. Playing in the second-tier NKL, he is averaging 14.1 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game. He was a key member of the Lithuania team that won bronze at the U18 European Championships in 2015.
The global squad is completed by forward/center Lauri Markkanen (7’0”, HBA-Marsky Helsinki and Finland) and centers DeAndre Ayton (7’0”, Hillcrest Academy, Phoenix and The Bahamas) and Ziming Fan (7’0”, Foshan Long Lions and China).
Forward/center Markkanen is in Finland’s first division, the second level of the pro game in his homeland, where he is averaging an impressive 21.6 points and 7.9 rebounds per game. He has committed to play college basketball at Arizona next season. With his national team, he was the tournament’s leading scorer at the 2015 U18 European Championships with 18.2 points per game. Ayton, a native of The Bahamas currently at high school in Arizona, is considered by many as the top player in the 2017 recruiting class.
Finally, on the 2016 Hoop Summit roster, Chinese center Ziming is in the junior program of professional club the Foshan Long Lions and has played for the China national team at U17 and U18 levels.
The World has won three of the last four Hoop Summits while the US leads overall 12-6. The Nike Hoop Summit will take place April 8, 2016 in Portland, Oregon at 12pm PST. The game will take place at the home of the Portland Trailblazers, the Moda Center. Tickets can be purchased here. Below is a gallery of former Nike Hoop Summit participants who've made it to the NBA.
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On the schedule is the Nike Hoop Summit in Portland, Oregon. Like many invite-only events, the Hoop Summit puts the best high school seniors from the United States against the World. For kids looking to make it into the NBA, the Hoop Summit is a great event to compete in en route to their dreams. There have been plenty of Hoop Summit participants that have made it to the NBA. Kyrie Irving, Tristan Thompson, and Kevin Durant just to name a few.
Recently, the Nike Hoop Summit revealed the rosters for the All-Star event.
The USA roster is filled with a plethora of talent. You have the nation's best center in Marques Bolden, the nation's second-best player in Jayson Tatum, and Oregon-favorite Payton Pritchard. Harry Giles, the nation's best player, will not play due to an injury suffered at the beginning of the season.
Not much is known about the World Roster with the exception of Thon Maker, who's playing in his second Hoop Summit. Luckily, Nike has produced a rundown of all the athletes representing the World.
Canadian forward Justin Jackson averaged 14.8 points per game at the U19 World Championships in Greece last summer and has committed to play at UNLV in 2016-17. Froling, an Australian forward, has committed to play college basketball at Southern Methodist University for the 2016-17 season. He was named MVP of the Basketball Without Borders tournament in Toronto in February 2016.
The World Team has also named six guards to its 2016 roster: Edin Atic (6’6”, AEK Athens, Greece and Bosnia & Herzegovina), Isaïa Cordinier (6’5”, Denain ASC Voltaire and France), Andres Feliz (6’1”, West Oaks Academy, Orlando and the Dominican Republic), William McDowell-White (6’4”, Ignatius Park College, Queensland and Australia), Wesley “Mogi” Silva (6’6” Paulistano/Unimed Sao Paolo and Brazil) and Martynas Varnas (6’5”, Zalgiris Kaunas II and Lithuania).
Atic is on loan with OKK Spars Sarajevo in his homeland from his Greek club AEK Athens. He averaged 16 points, 7.6 rebounds, 3.8 assists per game for his national team, being named to the All-Tournament first team as they reached the semi-finals of the 2015 U18 European Championships. French guard Cordinier, who plays for Denain in Pro B, the second tier of professional basketball in France, is averaging 11.4 points in 24 minutes per game, as well as establishing himself on the young French national teams. Feliz, was the leading scorer at the U19 World Championships in Greece last summer, averaging 18.9 points per game. He has committed to the University of South Florida next season. McDowell-White is one of three Australians on the team and enjoyed an outstanding 2015 U19 World Championships in Greece with his national team, averaging 7.4 points, 3.7 assists and 2.1 steals per game. Brazil’s Mogi is a guard-forward with Sao Paolo club Paulistano, where he has established himself on the senior team this season. Varnas plays for Zalgiris Kaunas II, the farm team for the country’s powerhouse club. Playing in the second-tier NKL, he is averaging 14.1 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game. He was a key member of the Lithuania team that won bronze at the U18 European Championships in 2015.
The global squad is completed by forward/center Lauri Markkanen (7’0”, HBA-Marsky Helsinki and Finland) and centers DeAndre Ayton (7’0”, Hillcrest Academy, Phoenix and The Bahamas) and Ziming Fan (7’0”, Foshan Long Lions and China).
Forward/center Markkanen is in Finland’s first division, the second level of the pro game in his homeland, where he is averaging an impressive 21.6 points and 7.9 rebounds per game. He has committed to play college basketball at Arizona next season. With his national team, he was the tournament’s leading scorer at the 2015 U18 European Championships with 18.2 points per game. Ayton, a native of The Bahamas currently at high school in Arizona, is considered by many as the top player in the 2017 recruiting class.
Finally, on the 2016 Hoop Summit roster, Chinese center Ziming is in the junior program of professional club the Foshan Long Lions and has played for the China national team at U17 and U18 levels.
The World has won three of the last four Hoop Summits while the US leads overall 12-6. The Nike Hoop Summit will take place April 8, 2016 in Portland, Oregon at 12pm PST. The game will take place at the home of the Portland Trailblazers, the Moda Center. Tickets can be purchased here. Below is a gallery of former Nike Hoop Summit participants who've made it to the NBA.
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