The annual USA Basketball junior national team minicamp saw 76 of the top high school players assemble in Colorado Springs, Colorado, this past weekend, and it was an event that was heavily watched by NBA scouts and executives.
The depth of talent and competitive nature of the drills and scrimmages during the three-day event created an intense atmosphere, with players ranging in age from 14 to 19 attempting to position themselves for coveted FIBA event roster spots, future camp invites and a ticket to participate in the Nike Hoop Summit in April.
This year’s event wasn’t as top-heavy with ranked players as previous iterations, with the top six prospects of ESPN’s class of 2025 (and eight of the top 10) all declining invites, as well as three of the top six eligible recruits from the class of 2026 not present.
Like college, the world of high school basketball has undergone significant change in recent years, and USA Basketball is still trying to find its footing. Players have more places to showcase their talents, with more games on television or streaming services and social media providing a significant platform. Also, there are new leagues and pathways in place for players, such as the EYBL Scholastic league, the Grind Session and Overtime Elite (which was well-represented this past weekend), allowing more opportunities to display their skills. This has all created more revenue streams and NIL opportunities that didn’t exist in recent years, as well as a much more crowded schedule for players.
Despite those challenges, USA Basketball is considered the gold standard of scouting platforms, with an alumni list dotted with NBA All-Stars and Basketball Hall of Famers, including LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry and many more. This is why the gym was packed every day with prominent stakeholders from around the country, including representatives from nearly all 30 NBA teams.
That allowed for lesser-known prospects to take advantage of the USA Basketball platform and begin to build their candidacy as 2026 NBA draft prospects, including the No. 1-ranked center, Chris Cenac Jr., and the No. 1-ranked point guard, Darius Acuff. More players of note in the 2026 ESPN 60 include California-based wings Nikolas Khamenia, Brandon McCoy and Christian Collins.
Let’s take a look at those players and recruits who dropped significant glimpses of potential as members of the 2027 and 2028 high school classes, setting themselves up to be heavily scouted in coming years.
Note: Measurements included in this story are the official stats from this camp.
Jump to a class:
2025 | 2026 | 2027 | 2028
2025 recruits
Stats: 6-3, 183 pounds | IMG Academy (Florida)
2025 ESPN 100 rankings: No. 8
Committed: Arkansas
Is Acuff coach John Calipari’s new Rob Dillingham?
Similar to previous USA Basketball camps, Acuff, who recently committed to play for the Arkansas Razorbacks and coach John Calipari, did whatever he wanted with the ball in his hands. The nearly 6-foot-3 Detroit product is a significant scoring and passing talent for whom the game clearly comes naturally, with tremendous ballhandling ability and shotmaking prowess that makes him difficult to contain. He got into the paint at will all weekend, driving in both directions using an array of crossovers and hesitation moves, dishing to teammates off the dribble and finishing off the glass with outstanding touch. Acuff’s willingness to create for others looked much improved.
NBA representatives sitting courtside compared Acuff to Dillingham, the former Kentucky Wildcats guard who emerged as a top-10 draft pick last season despite a lack of great size or length for a point guard and showing little urgency on defense. There’s no denying his talent with the ball, and he appears set to make a significant impact in college if his USA Basketball performance was any indication.
Stats: 6-11, 232 pounds | Link Academy (Missouri)
2025 ESPN 100 rankings: No. 7
Uncommitted: Final list — Arkansas, Auburn, Baylor, Houston, Kentucky, LSU, Tennessee
Cenac continues to ascend in eyes of scouts
Cenac’s profile has risen sharply recently, going from unranked 18 months ago to a top-10 recruit according to most recruiting outlets. That process is far from complete it appears, as the Louisiana big man seems to have made significant strides even since the summer, when he won a gold medal with USA Basketball at the FIBA U17 World Cup in Istanbul. Cenac’s measurements at this camp were eye-popping — standing just under 6-11 in shoes, with big hands, a wingspan over 7-4, and a 232-pound frame with room to add bulk.
Cenac’s skill level looked impressive as well, be it pushing off the defensive glass, creating his own shot in the half court, finding teammates with intelligent passes, making 3-pointers in a variety of ways and finishing out of pick-and-roll with excellent footwork and touch. He has versatility defensively switching and sliding on the perimeter, and is fluid through his hips with the mobility to go out of his area for steals or blocks.
There aren’t many things Cenac can’t do on the court. Finding another notch with his physicality, intensity and consistency are the next steps in his development, as his decision-making is still a work in progress and he doesn’t always know his limitations.
Skilled, long-armed, versatile big men in this mold who can score and defend inside and out are what every NBA general manager is looking for, making Cenac a prospect to pencil in as a high draft pick projecting to the 2026 draft.
Stats: 6-9, 204 pounds | Harvard-Westlake (California)
2025 ESPN 100 rankings: No. 35
Uncommitted: Final list — Arizona, Duke, Gonzaga, North Carolina and UCLA
A standout weekend for Khamenia
Khamenia was already a standout in Colorado Springs last June when I stopped in at the USA Basketball FIBA U18 Americup training camp, and this weekend was no different. He has made strides with his frame, perimeter shooting, and defense, having the type of versatile two-way skill set that would make him an ideal fit on any college roster and, almost certainly, the NBA eventually.
Nearly 6-9, Khamenia has legit guard skills, as he’s an excellent passer, an increasingly dynamic perimeter shooter, and an aggressive slasher who plays through contact and made a significant number of plays inside the arc and around the rim despite not possessing overwhelming explosiveness. His feel for the game and unselfish play make him easy to play with as a teammate, and his instincts translate to the defensive end where he’s almost always in the right spots, talks nonstop and has good enough feet to hold his own on the perimeter.
Despite looking every bit the part of a top-10 recruit every time I’ve seen him, he is ranked No. 35 in his class. NBA scouts in Colorado Springs say they would not rule out Khamenia as a potential one-and-done type candidate because of the premium teams place on do-it-all wings in his mold. He should emerge as a McDonald’s All-American this spring.
Quick hitter
-
Class of 2025 recruit Dante Allen, who is the son of 10-year NBA veteran and Miami Heat assistant coach Malik Allen, has been overshadowed at times by the star power of Cameron Boozer at the grassroots level. Allen (Montverde Academy, Florida) won back-to-back EYBL championships with Nightrydas Elite but looked every bit the part of a NBA prospect in his first invite to USA Basketball. The 6-4½ wing isn’t going to impress with his average frame and explosiveness, but he has an elite feel for the game that makes him a playmaker on both ends of the court, including making consistent shots from the perimeter.
2026 recruits
Stats: 6-8, 193 pounds | St. John Bosco (California)
2026 ESPN 100 rankings: No. 9
Uncommitted
Collins’ late-blooming trajectory intriguing to scouts
Collins captured every pro scouts’ attention with his prototype NBA wing frame at 6-8, 193 pounds with a 7-foot wingspan. Growing more than a foot over the past two years, he was up and down from an on-court productivity standpoint but dropped several significant glimpses of talent that should make scouts happy to play the long game in his evaluation due to the scarcity of players in his mold and the steep development trajectory he’s on.
Collins, the son of 2002 McDonald’s All-American DeAngelo Collins, covers ground, defending all over the court, both one-on-one and rotating for steals and blocks off the ball. He does some exciting things as a ball handler with pace and skill that could be honed over time. Collins is a streaky shooter who is still figuring things out from a consistency, intensity and physicality standpoint. The game moves a little too fast for him right now, as he was more mistake-prone than one might hope, which makes sense considering his late-blooming career.
Unranked entering the summer, Collins is now a consensus top-10 recruit, and although he’s far from a finished product judging by his USA Basketball debut, there’s quite a bit to be excited about long term.
Stats: 6-5, 186 pounds | St. John Bosco (California)
2026 ESPN 100 rankings: No. 2
Uncommitted
McCoy’s USA Basketball streak continues
One player who never misses an opportunity to visit Colorado Springs is McCoy, who made his seventh appearance at a USA Basketball camp, despite having yet to turn 17. The No. 2-ranked prospect in the 2026 class was up-and-down offensively this weekend as his ballhandling ability and perimeter shooting are still works in progress.
He was able to make a significant impact with his nonstop intensity defensively and unselfish play, which he says he patterns after the Boston Celtics‘ Jrue Holiday. Already standing 6-5 with a 6-9 wingspan, bigger than a player such as the Orlando Magic‘s Jalen Suggs who some scouts compared him to, McCoy is on track to have a tremendous physical profile.
He has distinctive fluidity, agility and quickness getting off his feet with impressive dexterity, dropping impressive flashes of explosiveness in small doses. His defensive instincts, feel for the game and intangibles should keep scouts interested in his progress over the next few years, even if scoring doesn’t come all that easily for him at this stage.
Quick hitter
-
Fresh off an outstanding performance at the FIBA U17 World Cup, and making his seventh appearance at a USA Basketball camp despite turning 17 next month, Caleb Holt (Grayson High, Georgia) more than held his own against older players thanks to his skill level, feel for the game, unselfishness and intensity level on defense. Not blessed with great athletic ability, Holt’s intelligence, shotmaking prowess, defensive versatility and effort level should make him a fit on almost any roster, making it easier to understand why he’s ESPN’s No. 3-ranked prospect in the 2026 class, despite lacking explosiveness as a shot creator.
2027 recruits: Players of note from minicamp
-
The No. 1-ranked player in the 2027 class, Baba Oladotun (James Hubert Blake High, Maryland), has grown an inch and a half from last year’s camp, while adding 25 pounds to his lanky, just under 6-9 frame. Despite playing strictly on the wing, the 15-year-old’s fluidity, shot creation and shotmaking prowess give him significant talent to tap into long term. Scoring comes easily for him with the pace and creativity he shows pulling up off the dribble from impressive vantage points. But, Oladotun doesn’t have great length relative to his height and isn’t very explosive at this stage, settling for a few difficult looks this weekend that made him inefficient. His intensity level fluctuates and he’s going to have to keep adding to his game to maintain his lofty projection.
-
C.J. Rosser (Northern Nash High, North Carolina) is at an early stage of development physically, as one would expect at 15 years old, but seems to have a bright future with his perimeter shooting, passing and instincts defensively. He already stands a hair under 6-9 with a 7-1 wingspan, and it will be interesting to see how his explosiveness and 173-pound frame evolve. You don’t normally see players this age and size show the dynamic shotmaking prowess he does, especially with the way he racks up steals, blocks and assists, making it unsurprising he is currently the No. 2-ranked player in the class of 2027.
-
This was my third time watching 2027 recruit Darius Wabbington (Sunnyslope High, Arizona) in a USA Basketball setting, and it was impressive to see the strides the 16-year-old made over the past year. At 6-10, 259 pounds with a 7-foot wingspan, Wabbington doesn’t have the most appealing frame and lacks a degree of explosiveness, but he’s versatile scoring in the post, setting bruising screens operating out of pick-and-roll, pushing off the defensive glass, passing in a variety of ways and making 3-pointers. He is competitive and instinctual on defense and a terrific communicator. His feel for the game and versatility gives him all the makings of a coveted college recruit who ticks boxes NBA teams look for despite lacking the best physical profile.
-
The son of LSU All-American and NFL first-round pick Marcus Spears and WNBA first-round pick Aiysha Smith, Marcus Spears Jr.‘s background stands out along with physical profile. Spears (Dynamic Prep, Texas) is 6-8 with big hands, a 6-10 wingspan and a frame that should fill out in time. The 15-year-old class of 2027 lefty scored in a variety of ways all weekend, attacking the rim and finishing through contact with fluidity, polished footwork and explosiveness playing above the rim while bringing defensive intensity and crashing the glass. The evolution of his jump shot, which sports awkward mechanics, probably will play a role in reaching his potential, but there’s a lot to like with the scoring instincts and aggressiveness he displays.
2028 recruits: Players of note from minicamp
-
Erick Dampier Jr. has yet to play a high school game, entering his freshman year at 14 years old, but a lot would have to go wrong for him not to emerge as one of the best prospects in the 2028 class. He stands a hair under 6-10 with big hands and a ridiculous 7-5 wingspan, and has a 230-pound frame that will continue to fill out. Dampier impressed with the intensity he displayed crashing the offensive glass, his timing and communication on defense and flashes of skill that one doesn’t normally see from players his age. A lot can change before he enters college, but the early results look promising.
-
Yet to play in a high school game despite already turning 16, Adan Diggs came into this camp with a reputation as one of the best prospects in the 2028 class, and did not disappoint. The game comes easily for the 6-4 guard who shows advanced ability operating out of pick-and-roll, getting to the rim, making shots off the dribble and finding teammates with creativity and flair. A little old for his class, how he evolves physically over the next few years will tell us more about his long-term prospects, but there’s a lot to like about the fluidity, feel for the game and scoring instincts he already displays.