There was a huge buzz around the Atlanta area on Monday night as Norcross High School and Meadowcreek met in a rematch of last winter's 7A State Championship Game. Meadowcreek won the title on that day and continued its sucess this time around with a 63-58 victory.
But there was also a murmur through the crowd when Bruce Pearl and Avery Johnson entered the gym along with coaches from Georgia Tech and South Florida. Another college staff member on hand was Joel Justus of Kentucky. So who was the object of their affection?
It was B.J. Boston, the 8th ranked player in the Class of 2020, and the second highest rated shooting guard.
The 6-foot-6 junior for Norcross has a ton of offers from the likes of Duke, Kansas, UCLA, Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, Florida, LSU, Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Clemson, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Pitt, Virginia Tech, Ohio State, Iowa State, Oklahoma State, Rutgers, Texas, USC, and others.
Kentucky has not offered but the visit by Justus certainly indicates that there is interest on behalf of the Wildcats.
Boston has officially visited Alabama, Auburn, Duke, in the fall, plus several unofficial visitsto places like Villanova, Florida, Michigan, Ohio State, Clemson, North Carolina State, Florida State, South Florida and others.
Boston is known as a high level scorer who can put the ball in the bucket on all three levels. Combine that with height that is close to 6-foot-7 now plus length, and it is no surprise that he is seen as a can't miss shooting guard. Eric Bossi watched him back in October in Colorado Springs and came away mesmerized by his vast ceiling.
"B.J. Boston showed up strapped with his jump shot on Sunday and proceeded to let them fly from all over. You look at him and think to yourself how can this skinny kid with a baby face be dangerous? Then he gets into an offensive groove like he was shooting, driving, and making plays in transition and all you wonder is how good can he be?"
Boston also plays with the Athletes of Tomorow (AOT) of the Nike EYBL circuit. The squad featured outstanding talents in the 2019 and 2020 classes such as Isaac Okoro and Sharife Cooper.
Despite the wealth of scorers, Boston averaged 14.9 points. But in the all-important Peach Jam, he went to a different level. B.J. averaged 21.6 points in five games and was an impressive 14 of 20 from 3-point territory for a 70 percent clip.
We spoke with the 17U Head Coach, Omar Cooper, and he seconded a lot of what Bossi had to say about Boston's game.
"B.J. is really good. He can pretty much do it all. He can score at the bucket. He can make the mid-range shot, and he can knock down the outside shot. B.J. is long and rangy. He is also a great rebounder and is really good in the open floor. He is young too. He's not a reclass. His ceiling is high. B.J. is just an all-around really good player."
We also spoke with B.J.'s father, Brandon Boston Sr. on Tuesday afternoon. He filled us in on Kentucky's involvement with his son.
"I go a call the other day from their assistant coach (Justus). He told me he was going to come down on Monday night and watch B.J. play. He wants to get us up on campus. I'm going to check B.J.'s schedule and see when we can do it, but we definitely want to get up there."
As far as where the relationship stands between his son and the Wildcats stand, Mr. Boston agreed that it is in the initial stages.
But there was also a murmur through the crowd when Bruce Pearl and Avery Johnson entered the gym along with coaches from Georgia Tech and South Florida. Another college staff member on hand was Joel Justus of Kentucky. So who was the object of their affection?
It was B.J. Boston, the 8th ranked player in the Class of 2020, and the second highest rated shooting guard.
The 6-foot-6 junior for Norcross has a ton of offers from the likes of Duke, Kansas, UCLA, Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, Florida, LSU, Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Clemson, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Pitt, Virginia Tech, Ohio State, Iowa State, Oklahoma State, Rutgers, Texas, USC, and others.
Kentucky has not offered but the visit by Justus certainly indicates that there is interest on behalf of the Wildcats.
Boston has officially visited Alabama, Auburn, Duke, in the fall, plus several unofficial visitsto places like Villanova, Florida, Michigan, Ohio State, Clemson, North Carolina State, Florida State, South Florida and others.
Boston is known as a high level scorer who can put the ball in the bucket on all three levels. Combine that with height that is close to 6-foot-7 now plus length, and it is no surprise that he is seen as a can't miss shooting guard. Eric Bossi watched him back in October in Colorado Springs and came away mesmerized by his vast ceiling.
"B.J. Boston showed up strapped with his jump shot on Sunday and proceeded to let them fly from all over. You look at him and think to yourself how can this skinny kid with a baby face be dangerous? Then he gets into an offensive groove like he was shooting, driving, and making plays in transition and all you wonder is how good can he be?"
Boston also plays with the Athletes of Tomorow (AOT) of the Nike EYBL circuit. The squad featured outstanding talents in the 2019 and 2020 classes such as Isaac Okoro and Sharife Cooper.
Despite the wealth of scorers, Boston averaged 14.9 points. But in the all-important Peach Jam, he went to a different level. B.J. averaged 21.6 points in five games and was an impressive 14 of 20 from 3-point territory for a 70 percent clip.
We spoke with the 17U Head Coach, Omar Cooper, and he seconded a lot of what Bossi had to say about Boston's game.
"B.J. is really good. He can pretty much do it all. He can score at the bucket. He can make the mid-range shot, and he can knock down the outside shot. B.J. is long and rangy. He is also a great rebounder and is really good in the open floor. He is young too. He's not a reclass. His ceiling is high. B.J. is just an all-around really good player."
We also spoke with B.J.'s father, Brandon Boston Sr. on Tuesday afternoon. He filled us in on Kentucky's involvement with his son.
"I go a call the other day from their assistant coach (Justus). He told me he was going to come down on Monday night and watch B.J. play. He wants to get us up on campus. I'm going to check B.J.'s schedule and see when we can do it, but we definitely want to get up there."
As far as where the relationship stands between his son and the Wildcats stand, Mr. Boston agreed that it is in the initial stages.
