The Future: Nojel Eastern

This Thanksgiving, I'm thankful for basketball. I am lucky enough to go to a high school where one of the best high school tournaments in the Chicagoland area is being played: the Majkowski Classic at Saint Viator. Now, not all the teams are particularly noteworthy, but there is one player who blew me away on Tuesday. That player is Nojel Eastern

Eastern, a 6'6" shooting guard from Evanston Township High School, is listed as the 4th best prospect in the state of Illinois, and he is probably the best prospect to play at Viator in the last 10 years. He recently committed to Purdue and he has been the talk of the tournament since. 

While Eastern certainly didn't disappoint when I watched him, his style was a bit unorthodox. He's not a typical 2 guard: he's more physical and can be a bully in the post. He has a bruiser-like mentality, but he still has a nice left-handed stroke with 3PT range. The one weakness I saw was his ballhandling. He's going to have to improve that if he wants to be a shooting guard in college. Also his physicality can hurt him, as he could've been called for three offensive fouls in the game (only one was). 

Overall, I was impressed with Nojel Eastern. He can truly play anywhere on the floor. Keep an eye on him next year.