Over the season, bloggers have talked about current preps who could play at the next level, whether it's in NCAA D-I, II or III, NAIA or junior college.
It's also true that there are a lot of Hawaii players who could play at one of those levels, but few, if any, have the physical size and overall skills to make a big impact in D-I.
Size and skill level, at least in one or two specialized areas, are usually the overriding factors in a player being recruited by D-I schools. Of course, there are some exceptions, like former Iolani star Derrick Low, but most D-I guards are 6-4 or 6-5, and how many players that tall in Hawaii can play guard at that level?
Most of Hawaii's top basketball talent is best suited for low D-I or D-II schools, where they could play and contribute. But here's a list of a few current players who have the talent and potential to have solid collegiate careers at the low D-I or D-II levels.
-- Micah Christenson, 6-5 junior guard, Kamehameha. If he opted not to play college volleyball at a bigtime school, he could be a good player at the D-I level as a shooting guard, yet has the size to also play 3. Has a great understanding of the game with excellent ballhandling skills as well as good vision and leadership skills. Would need to add weight and strength, especially upperbody. Could be a star player for UH-Manoa if he went the hoops route.
--Malik Johnson, 6-6, and DeForest Buckner, 6-5, the Punahou sophomores. Both are athletic and could grow in size over the next two years. They are talented physically and with more technique work (shooting, post, overall footwork) and added confidence, they could be the two dominant big men in the state the next two years. Both have the potential to play at a D-I school if they continue to develop over the next two years. They will make coach Alika Smith smile a lot for two more seasons when the Buffanblu should contend for state titles.
-- Marcus Monroe, 6-4 senior, Moanalua. Is a talented athlete with a body that could grow some. He has solid ballhandling skills and vision plus the size and length to be a good collegiate player. Needs to improve his understanding about playing more within the team's system and improve his perimeter shooting. A gifted athlete who under the right coach, could develop at the next level. Played for one of the better coaches in Hawaii, in Greg Tacon.
-- Kainoa Chu, a 6-1 senior, Iolani. Kainoa is fundamentally solid and plays within his strengths. He's an outstanding shooter, especially from 3-point range, and handles the ball well enough to be a combo guard, able to effectively to play the point or shooting guard. He'll need to get stronger physically to play at the low D-I or II levels. But he has a high basketball IQ and a tremendous work ethic. Lack of size hurts his D-I chances. If he goes to the right program, he'll be a contributer at some point, with his best chances at the D-II level.
-- Nehoa Akina, 5-11 senior guard, Kahuku. Nehoa is an outstanding 3-point shooter and has the quickness and strength to get to the basket. He also has a high basketball IQ and could enjoy a solid college career at the D-II level. His father, Hiram, the Kahuku head coach, played at BYU-Hawaii and Nehoa would be a good fit for any team in the competitive PacWest Conference.
-- Isaiah Ekau, 6-2 senior Pahoa. Isaiah is the wildcard in this group. But he's strong physically, with great athletic talent -- quickness and a 40-inch vertical. He's also improved his basketball skills 60 percent from a year ago, when he struggled to consistently hit a 15-foot jumper or was an average passer. This year, he was the best player on the Big Island and led Pahoa to the state D-II title. He wants to play college volleyball, where he's a definite D-I prospect. However, if he did opt to his focus just on basketball, he has a good upside to be a quality player at the D-II level.
There are other players out there with the potential to move on to the collegiate level, it just depends on where their talent and size best fits. Good luck to all.