Breaking Down Maine’s 2020 Rankings

Wednesday, February 12th, 2020

How can a player no longer playing within the state of Maine be the top ranked prospect in the state?

Well, despite the fact that Aidan Carpenter left Lee Academy at mid-year, he's always been a member of Maine's class of 2020, dating back to his time at Hyde. He also won't officially debut for Siena until next fall, alongside the rest of the class of 2020.

So, while he may not be in Maine right at the moment, there's just not another prospect in the state who projects quite as high at the next level. Carpenter is a big guard who was putting all the pieces together in recent months and playing the best basketball of his career. His ascension started in the spring with Rhode Island Elite and continued into the NCAA recruiting periods in June and July. This fall, while it wasn't nearly as visible, his game had gone to even higher levels. He was beginning to look like a steal for Siena and should have an opportunity to make an immediate and significant impact during his career in the MAAC.

Beyond Carpenter though, there is a deep class compiled of both local and prep products.

Bridgton Academy forward Chris Camille, a Brookline (MA) alum, may be headed for junior college following his post-graduate year, but he has nonetheless started to put together all of his tools after year of showing clear potential but inconsistent production. He may be off conventional radars for the next couple of years if he does go the juco route, but if he keeps progressing as he has over the last 8 months, we'll see him have a succesful career at the D1 level in the near future.

Gould Academy's Kai Kostmayer is the most intriguing available prospect in the state with a rare combination of size, skill, basketball IQ, and even athleticism in the frontcourt. Sanford's Leyton Bickford is staying home to star for the University of Maine and the top ranked true local product while the top five is rounded out by another D1 pledge in Lee Academy's Mikey West, a highly skilled Connecticut native heading to Bethune-Cookman.

Greely's Logan Bagshaw is up to 6th overall in the state, making him second overall and the best available in the state association. His offensive talent and production is undeniable and as the defense continues to gradually catch-up, his overall impact will only continue to grow.

The Hyde School has a pair of top ten prospects in Jalen Graham, a well-known high-level athlete on the wing, and Jarell White, a power wing with a college ready body. Bridgton guard Bryson Andrews and Lee guard Joel Pullen complete the top ten.

In total, the updated Maine 2020 rankings include 20 prospects. Westbrook's Mike Connolly, Hermon's Isaac Varney, Freeport's Gabe Wagner, York's Will MacDonald, North Yarmouth's TeAndre King, and Bonney Eagle's Zach Maturo made the cut from the local ranks while Lee Academy big men Julius Raudonius and Cyrille Diop are also among the group along with other prep products Angel Price-Espada from Hyde, Sean Trumper, Mark Barrett, and Liam OConnell from Bridgton, as well as Declan Nugent from Berwick Academy.