Got a chance to see Athletes First

[Ash]

play today against Arkansas Wings White in the finals game of the Cager Classic.

Kyle Hardrick, who committed to OU, plays on this team along with Daniel Orton and Xavier Henry (although Henry was a DNP today).

I liked what I saw of Hardrick who was active around the basket, grabbed some boards, and can score in the post. He also hit some jumpers and faced up to the basket a few times.

He had to guard out on the perimeter a few times and always kept his man in front of him.

A very well rounded game. He's going to be a nice player.

They also have a quick guard that could really slash and drive in the lane.

It was fun to watch. Wish I could have seen Xavier play, though.

[tommieharris91]

What did you think of Orton?

[Ash]

Orton has incredible upside, you can see why big time programs are recruiting him or have shown interest.

But, he's very raw offensively and tends to just try and bull his way to a bucket rather than really reading the defense and using his skill. Hardrick looks like a much more skilled player under the basket.

I don't know if he wasn't feeling well or what, but he hardly ever ran the floor at full speed and was moping for most of the game. Constantly complaining to the bench and refs. I've heard some people say he is lazy. I don't know about that but he definitely wasn't going full speed today.

Even so, when he's under the basket, he's a defensive force. Great shot blocker. He's got a long wing span even for his size and he gets off the floor very quickly. He was able to recover from being out of position a couple times and get a hand on shots.

A buddy of mine in the AAU circuit thinks he's ready to dominate at the next level and might even leave after a year or two.

I think he's more of a project than that.

[soonerfan28]

Orton's like 6'10 right , so what's his wingspan like?