#NEOpenGym - Best of the 2026 Frontcourt & Wings

Thursday, October 31st, 2024

The class of junior wings, forwards and bigs who attended the open gym on Sunday was definitely an impressive one. In today's recap, we're gonna take a look at who caught our eye throughout the day.

Ethan Griffin, Westminster - Griffin put on a show at the New England Open Gym, as the Connecticut native's pure strength and force allowed him to dominate in his game sets. He operates very well as rim-runner with bounce and physicality to attack the basket through contact, and blocks shots at-will. Scholarship interest has bubbled around his name as he's shown capability as an outside shooter as well.

Julian Dent, MacDuffie - Starting to scratch the surface of his upside, Dent has tons of potential to monitor moving forward. He's got length on the wing, with defensive versatility to guard multiple spots, and a developing offensive arsenal. His handling ability is impressive, and he can get up to finish athletically for dunks. It will be interesting to see how his game develops as he continues to work on being a shooting threat.

Ryan Bernard, Natick - The Metrowest town continues to churn out college prospects, and Bernard keeps that notion going. At 6'5", he's a sniper on the wing with a smooth, fluid shot. He guards multiple positions on defense and can rise up to dunk the ball, which he did multiple times throughout the day on Sunday. 

Brode Frink, Proctor - One of New Hampshire's hidden gems, Frink enters his junior year with tons of upside, as he averaged high double figures last year in the NEPSAC. Frink has a great combination of size and speed at 6'5" to get downhill past defenders, really competes to rack up rebounds, is a pull-up shooting threat from mid-range to the three.

Stryckland Whittley-Ligon, Kingswood-Oxford - The KO forward started to shine on his Middlesex Magic HGSL squad this season, and has intriguing upside. His defensive prowess is noteworthy as he can switch onto bigger and smaller players, and has athleticism to protect the rim. With a strong body, he gets into defenders and has moves to score inside.

Sam Mayfield, Pope Francis - Standing at 6’6, there’s a lot to like about Mayfield’s game. He brings a degree of fluidity to the court with some interior scoring skill and doesn’t shy away from contact. Mayfield thrives on dump off passes down low, getting leverage on his defender and rising up for dunks. With plenty of length, and room to add muscle to his frame, there’s great upside to him to keep tabs on.

Mihailo Vojinovic, Macduffie - Coming into Macduffie, the forward from Montenegro impressed. He's got glaring size at 6'8" with a developed body to go along with it. He does a great job of scoring inside, with a nice hook shot, and controls the glass when he's in the game.

Quinn Stockman, St. John's Prep -  A prospect of note at St. John's Prep this year, Stockman has continued to elevate his game. He's got size at 6'4", with knockdown outside shooting skills and a stronger frame to attack the basket and overpower defenders. In this setting, he did a good job of breaking down defenders off the dribble, and made some reads as a playmaker on drives.

Christian Chartier, Winnacunnet - A true catch-and-shoot scoring threat is what Chartier brings to the court. He knows how to rotate and relocate to get set for shots from long-range, and releases the ball at a high point. In his open gym outing, he was able to use his quick release to knock down three's, but also made some cuts to the basket to finish off the glass.

Jed Alsup, Waynflete - Alsup has been known to score the ball in bunches in the MPA, and his scoring skills definitely stood out to us. He's a smooth finisher that powers through the lane to rise up for layups. His shooting stands out as he can convert off balance as well.

Alexander Ellis, Frontier Regional - Ellis did a nice job of using his body in his open gym showing to get around defenders in the post and score at the basket. He stands at 6'4" with upside as a forward.

Foster Wilinski, Needham - Entering a big junior year at Needham, the 6'5" wing is an MIAA prospect to know. He can score it inside and out, thriving as a shooter off the catch, which allows him to fake and drive to the basket as well. With nearly a 4.0 GPA, high academic's should take a look at the junior heading into the season.

William Lewis, Bancroft - Lewis has a strong body at the forward spot with some grit to his game. He doesn't shy away from contact down low and uses his powerful frame to push defenders off their spots. As a defender, he does a good job of holding down the paint and giving attacking players a hard time.

Gabe Tesler, Hingham - Tesler's got some upside to watch in the MIAA's class of 2026. He did a good job of using step-through moves to get to his spots, made some good passes and knocks down shots off the catch.

Anthony Ferola, Portsmouth (NH) - This Portsmouth New Hampshire junior is another otable name for a squad with big goals for this upcoming seaosn. At 6'4", his rebounding chops stood out as he positioned his body well to pull them in. His finishing is another notable aspect of his game as he does well following up shots on the offensive end for putbacks.

Samuel Thompson, Macduffie - Thompson's got good size as an off-ball guard and makes an impact as a secondary scoring option. He's a southpaw with great touch around the basket and good balance to make shots through contact.

Melih Tomak, Agawam - Tomak is an intriguing forward prospect out of the Western Mass region. He's got burst to his game to take off with the ball, and pop to finish above the rim. In his showing on Sunday, he was able to convert three's in numbers, a promising to watch moving forward.

Mitchell Carey, Amherst Regional - Carey has some upside to watch for at Amherst-Regional High. He's got size at 6'5" with some guard skills to him. He can create space off the dribble, and impact the game with his length on defense.

Reece MacDonald, York - The Southern Maine native brings impressive guard play to the court. He caught our eye as he made smart dives to the basket and can convert off-balance layups. His ability to make a quick pass or shoot off the catch is notable as well.