June 10th & 11th saw the thermometer mercury blast out the glass encasement and showcase much respect for females in the form of the dopest AAU tournament, Heat Check, put on by Hype Her Hoops.
My guy M is HIM, the realest of real ones Marlon Wells (at far right in photo above) who is that ultra successful Rancho Christian coach. He’s also the director of Why Not Premier 16u and Hype Her Hoops Girls Tournament. 100.
#champs hang with champs
On that Sunday the 11th, I be E-Woods chillin early morn in Corona with my peeps, a two hour drive from my home near the Sports Academy with soph U of Louisville commit Jayda Curry.
I’ve tried to give Jayda good advice since she was a sophomore in prep. She is my dear friend along with her whole family that’s in my heart.
The Ville puts more women in the WNBA than any other women’s hoops program these last 15 years, check the stats. Jayda is projected to be at least a top 1-5 pick on multiple WNBA draft boards.
She moved from playing at Cal to a more high profile Louisville to display her jaw dropping scoring game, leadership, playmaking, and to have more opportunities to showcase her own Heat Check as she chases her “Precious” and an NCAA ring.
And really, how exciting is that?
I am close to so many future WNBA families like that of Charisma Osborne of UCLA and Rayah Marshall. Asia Avinger U of Georgia is a future WNBA 1st round pick. I love deeply those I care about, really.
https://wbasketballblog.com/2022/01/20/2025-wnba-mock-draft-1-0/
Many other young women I advise are chasing that precious goal of being a WNBA lottery pick.
Me, E-Woods, I’m humbly honored to love Jayda’s whole family. Dozens of families I keep in constant contact, but I race out at 9:30 am to catch my guy Marlon’s Heat Check action at The Ladera Sports Complex.
There I swim deep in a pool of Olympic size talent. Many “Big Steppas” are chasing that Lord of the Rings “precious” which is really a symbolic code word.
Grabbing opportunities, lanes, creation of scholarship offers, NIL deals, just whatever motivates an athlete to wake up and drive them in the morning is “the precious!”
#going at each other’s neck for that “precious ring”
People like Dre, Kaleena Smith’s (aka Special Kayyy) dad, who runs 7 Days Basketball wasn’t at The Heat Check, we missed him greatly, but we got with it as brothers in the past.
Let’s get down with the goodness that was Heat Check Tournament people, and the many players that impressed E-Woods. I need to do more of these type of stories to highlight AAU programs big and small, they are love to the game!
First off! Izela Arenas of Why Not 17 U with her fast attack, sleek style of pinpoint play. She features her ready made, nice, nice jumper. Her mentor & trainer Zach Becerra has helped her train into a Power 5 contender lately.
No other name like Izela is burning in the streets more than SHE. High level coaches are checking in with me and are going to monitor, possibly offer her after the Chi-Town swoosh event. Buy stock in Izela I say.
Tati Griffin is this 13 year woman-child guard for the ages! She has been absolutely dominating 17u for Cal Storm. She did her Larry Johnson UNLV impersonation at Heat Check and did as she pleased with the comp.
Tati already plays with Drew League women with her top Elite D1 vibe. I sense high major offers coming soon, call it a hunch. Tati is the future. Easy to see she is a future elite star in girls prep basketball.
A story on her is coming from me, Tati wants to be an entrepreneur and player in the W!
I’m beyond amazed by once-in-a-generation that is Sydney Douglas. She’s transcendent, look for my EPIC story that’s coming out on her soon.
Words don’t do justice on Syd, who almost made Team USA. She made the final cut and deserved to be on the team I believe. Think MJ drive, mentality, and physical tools to go with a ready made WNBA body and height in 7th grade? Mind blowing!
This event was full of real ones that had Mt. Rushmore-level mentors like “Grand Lady in Red” from Rancho - my girl Coach Sherri Pegues who founded GBL Basketball and spawned incredible players like WNBA Jordin Canada to USC commit Juju Watkins.
Coach Pegues has taught legions of lucky Children of God to play the right way and will give more great players to the game. Her squad had Rayah Hawthorne who was killin’.
Her lieutenant, my guy Marshan of Crenshaw fam is raising the lil ones to have proper form on and off the court. Salute. Salute!
Emilia Krstevski of Cal Storm 17 was showing signs of greatness with her 6-4 and strong dominant body movement at the Heat Check. Her future is so bright because she’s such a bright and classy person with an incredible family. She’s one to watch at Sierra Canyon. 100.
The thing with me, I have love for everyone. E-Woods has mad love for Etiwanda's Stan Delus, MaxPreps coach of the year who was on full display at the tournament. His ability to instruct like my guy Steve Smith of Oak Hill Academy fame is undeniable.
This event had so much legendary talent under one roof it reminds me of my fav 90’s song, The Roof is On Fire by Rock Master Scott:
“The roof, the roof, the roof is on fire
We don’t need no water
Let the M^burn, burn M^, burn!”
Lol, it’s all in good fun really. That Heat Check was the roof on fire no doubt!
Here is a link of the Heat Check action, peep the fiyahh action! You gotta peep the visuals people.
https://instagram.com/hypeherhoopscircuit?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA
I highly recommend you read about all the players and support them by attending females games.
A trainer who is headed for Mt Rushmore status is Coach BK out of the IE who is an NBA skills trainer who masterfully Frankenstein-ed my girl Londynn Jones at UCLA and coaches for FBC.
Londeezy is now getting with The Precious with her dope career at UCLA on her way to being drafted to the W. Kids at this tournament want in with the Bruins.
Did you know that UCLA women’s basketball gets 100,000 knocks at their door each year asking, “Can I come play for y’all Bruins please?” via email, voicemail?
I’m as transparent of a person as it comes, I went to college and played informally at school with the UCLA women’s basketball coaches. They’re great people and coaches indeed.
A very great up and coming coach is Matt Tumambing of Ontario Christian who did amazing things with my girl Chloe Briggs, a U of Washington player. I was super proud to be close to her family and help them in any way I could in their recruitment because I believe in Chloe.
Matt, he deftly handled his tournament coaching assignments for Cal Storm and could have five 4-5 star future prospects.
Let’s just say he seems to have really great players already in K-Smith and S-Douglas who are committed to go to Ontario Christian along with Corey Benjamin’s kids that are already matriculated on campus.
Many highly talented players might possibly land at his Ontario Christian school from what players check in and tell me, but they could also land at La Jolla Country Day or Sierra Canyon or Etiwanda, Mater Dei.
It’s like the transfer portal. At one place one year, then picking up and leaving to another program. That’s what happened to Oregon coach Kelly Graves, he had five 5-star college players and now he has none.
I was so amazed by the phenom play of Bella Harmon and Alana White for Cal Sparks. Daaaaang my son, they impressed me LIKE CRAZY with their chemistry, which was like my peeps J-Canada & Mo Billings of Bruins fame, for reals, for reals.
Cal Sparks’ Reign Waugh is that soph for me. She’s so versatile, a Swiss Army knife, like her older sis Rylei. She has an emerging offensive game and is already a ready defender. Her mom Joanne is that caretaker mom of a generation of ballers.
I did miss seeing my guy Josh Lozano who is the new coach at Fairmont Prep. He is an amazing young trainer and coach and if you get with him, great things happening is easy to see!
I love Cal Sparks director Elbert Kinnebrew. I have a blue and yellow foamposite inscribed with his name on my shoes. Elbert is a real one to the game that deserves respect. He also wasn’t at Heat Check and I miss Elbert much.
I got to see Reese Noa, Dylan Tse, Marianne Boco of Troop West, they are deep in my heart for how they are true to the game of basketball. They’re that independent AAU team doing big things, marching toward their recruiting destiny.
I met incredibly skilled youngsters that will be the best in the country. Like 6th grader Alanah Camacho who has big dreams to be the best version of herself and plays for the Sports Academy team. Her coach Gideon Gamble gave her whole team such inspiring great advice after a loss and before games. And really, how dope is that?
Me? I just try to help kids that might want some advice chasing that precious to be like Jayda Curry getting to the W or others I advise like Asia Avinger who came up on the cover of SLAM Magazine.
Asia recently transferred from SDSU averaging 15 ppg to U of Georgia. Multiple Pac-12 coaches see her as a 1st round pick in the W in her final year of college. How hot is that?
Another incredible young talent I noticed was 8th grader Dani Robinson of Team Prodigy. Her fam so dope, she’s trying to make her own lane and name which I respect. Her skill set is blazing bright.
I’m also very high on young Peyton Jacobsen. Her dad is the stuff of legends, she the stuff of her own legends for Cal Sparks! Jordan Janae Brown, who I never got to meet but I appreciate all the same, was killin’ with her long frame and deft moves for SES.
And I’m all in for Jade Fort on team Paul George Elite, she was killing all tournament. For 6 months I have been tracking her along with the utter amazing convo guard Jailynn Clayton of PG Elite.
Recently Jade had a savage game over Jordan Lee of St Mary’s High. And the ever improving Jasmin Moore of 16 U Paul George Elite and Ventura High - she’s that Swiss Army knife that has seen her recruitment rise, her stock build along with her offensive game building confidence and fiyahh!
Lily Rose, the youngster freshman, plays in the Paul George Elite organization that is run by the most 1st class real one extraordinaire Corey Wesson!
Cal Storm 16 U 7th grader Zaire Cherri Baller Hatter, who I already did a HUGE story on, was killing all tourney, zooming through the lane and just beyond amazing.
She’s gotten with so many incredible D1 coaches the last month or so and I would not be surprised to see bigtime D1 offers start pouring in for this future W player. Let’s just call it a hunch.
https://californiapreps.rivals.com/news/zaire-cherri-hatter-is-paul-pierce-the-truth-
Amalia Holguin of Why Not 17 U is that incredible prospect that you have to respect, an all around and proficient player in many ways. And you have to respect that she has overcome so much.
Her grind is nice, handle is nice, smooth. Much has been put into her and like the saying goes, those to much is given, much is expected!
One of my absolute favs is my friend Aderang Ring, the Why Not 17u 6-5 junior shooter that amazes me. She should be appreciated more, she has some pretty good offers but I can see the lines of creation of the WNBA for her,
Her prep coach is my dear friend April Schilling who is also a coach for the Dallas Wings. A-Ring just needs a little support, the right place in college to showcase her incredible skills that could blow off the doors.
Clifton Baker is that super amazing trainer and has coached at multiple schools. He’s presently working with so much high level elite WNBA talent it’s hard to keep track. He’s future Mt. Rushmore material, a philosopher-king that looks inward and gets right with himself and he’s able to help channel your game to mass effect. Look for my future story on him.
That’s it people. I have nothing but love for people that have love for kids and doing the game right.
But if you wake up and drink two gallons of hater-aide and you’re vindictive, if you have a bad heart in AAU, that speaks for itself. It’ll catch up to you as surely as you can’t outrun your shadow people.
I’m just a dude who’s had a lot happen to him in life but I’m trying to move the right way, be transparent and find a way forward for others in their future, create a better place for all, feel me?
These fine young ladies at Heat Check seek respect from college coaches, their peers, and a possible future in the WNBA. They are seeking the precious in being the best version that they can be of themselves. And really, just how dope is that?
