Belleville, MI: Since 2017, Our Rising Stars camp has been the premier event for 6th-8th graders to get a chance to catch the eye of all our evaluators in an individual setting without high schoolers playing or being with their respective travel teams. In the inaugural year at Livonia Churchill, we seen players like Ruby Whitehorn & Abby Kimball make their claim of being what they are today, two of Michigan’s top 2022 players. Last year at Hype Wayne, we seen players like Macey Fegan and Samyiah Jefferson put their stamp on the event. This year? a new venue, same purpose! Who stood out? What players made a name for themselves? Let’s find out the top performers for the 3rd annual LBI Rising Stars!
2024 Kendall Hendrix 5'9" SF Power Middle School
This time last year, Hendricks was a raw 7th grader that oozed with potential, and you automatically could tell her best days were ahead of her. This year she has worked on her game and was dominant all day long. She has good hands, with a soft touch around the basket, she runs the floor really well and doesn’t waste any time when she’s looking to score, I love the way she pursues rebounds and her overall approach to the game, she uses her length to her advantage on the defensive end and her overall game is improving as she is able to put it on the deck more.
2024 Maya Anderson 5'9" SF Detroit Edison Middle School
If you didn’t know by now, it’s time to start mentioning the name Maya Anderson when you’re talking about the top 8th graders in Michigan. A no-nonsense guard who is out to do one thing when she plays, and that destroys whoever is in front of her. I love the mechanics on her jump shot; she can score when she gets ready from all over the floor, I love the way she finds her teammates in the right spots using screens, she’s a physical guard with a body that’s would be prepared for the High School game right now.
2024 Devin Hagemann 5'6" PG Detroit Edison Middle School
Just when opponents thought they were done dealing with “Hagemann” at Detroit Edison in 2021, the rich get richer as Devin Hagemann enters at the helm of the Pioneers offense. “Pooter” is a heady PG just like her big sister who thinks the games play ahead; she’s a crafty scorer, super quick in and out of dribble combinations, and keeps the ball moving on offense. Looked like the most complete PG on the day.
2024 Brooke Simpson 5'8" SG Homeschool
If there were a best-kept secret in the 2024 class in Michigan before today, I would enter the name Brooke Simpson, and if it wasn’t for events like this, we might have never known. Simpson is a Home School kid from Belding with some major game. You can tell she spends a lot of that time working on her game. She goes hard and never takes a playoff, attacks the basket with a purpose, doesn’t waste her handle while blowing by her opponents, and she has a touch from the outside — a prospect to keep your eyes on moving forward.
2025 Rylan Buschell 5'2" PG Ypsilanti Lincoln Middle School
Every time I watch this kid, I come away more and more impressed with her. Her heart is her biggest attribute, she finds ways to make her presence felt on the game, probably the best at the camp at getting separation with her dribble moves, one of the smallest prospects in attendance but she’s vocal as well and has everything you want in a lead guard and she really sees the floor well despite her size. Excited to see her play more during the winter.
2024 Na’Kiya Bonner 5'6" PG Detroit Edison Middle School
Simply put, this is her setting. You’d be hard-pressed to find any kid in the gym that’s going to outwork or love to hoop more than Na’Kiya Bonner, and that’s what sets her apart. Battling injury on the day, we didn’t get the flash that we’re accustomed too but she was still efficient and battled, in transition she may be the best middle school prospect in Michigan the way she moves in, and out of cuts, her ball-handling skills are above average but what I took away from her game the most today is that she is knocking her shot down at a more consistent rate.
2024 Christian Sanders 5'7" SG Detroit Country Middle School
A high energy guard with long arms, Sanders impressed me most with her motor, she took every drill serious and did every rep at game speed, she also moves well without the basketball and puts herself in position to score whenever her team needs her.
2024 Taryn Jackson 5'6" SG Lowell Middle School
A defensive-oriented guard who has no problem creating offensive opportunities for herself and others on that end of the floor primarily. On the offensive end, she pursues contact like a running back getting inside; her feel for the game is improving as she looked to find others as much as I’ve ever seen.
