Preview: Senior Boys' Tri-City Top 40 Camp In Coordination With Adidas Brand

Back where it all began.

Seven years ago, professional basketballer and Kitchener Grand River product Imad Qahwash launched the Tri-City Top 40 Camp in coordination with Adidas Brand at RIM Park in Waterloo, a camp aimed at providing an exposure and skill development platform for area junior aged basketball players.

Among those in attendance that weekend?  Jamal Murray, the current Denver Nugget.

Although Murray eventually became the most famous Top 40 Camp Alum from that initial class, numerous others have had tremendous success in their own right.  In fact, there were around a dozen players that went on to play post-secondary basketball, including notable CIS talents Nedim Hodzic (Waterloo), TJ Lall (Carleton), Matt Minutillo (Laurier) and Mike Blumel (Queen’s).

Since that time, Qahwash has expanded his offerings to include Senior aged high schoolers as well as development (“Phenom”) camps for youth, and taken his program coast-to-coast -- from Nova Scotia to British Columbia and everywhere in between.  In total, 121 players that have attended one of his camps have ended up playing post-secondary basketball, either in Canada or the United States – with many more to come.

This weekend’s “Senior Boys Top 40” event at RIM Park is a star-studded event that features no less than (approximately) two dozen all-stars from local high school leagues, as well as a handful of prep players, and several out-of-towners wishing to test themselves against CWOSSA’s best.  In speaking with him earlier this week, Qahwash was excited to see what the weekend would have in store.

“We’ve got MVP’s from the main area high school leagues, tremendous post-secondary prospects, and a very deep talent pool,” he said. 

“In addition, we’ve got numerous post-secondary coaches and scouts that will be in attendance.  This area has become a recruiting hotbed, and it’s great to see kids these days have these sort of opportunities,” he added.

Here’s a quick rundown of the teams, including some of the notable players:

Arkansas (Red)

The Arkansas team has an interesting mix of out-of-town players and local talent, including Matt Bardoel (St. Anne Tecumseh) and Noah Balogun, a 6’6” forward with a 7’ wingspan out of Barrie.

This team is also very deep at the guard positions, keyed by D10 MVP Khaled Djabo of JF Ross (George Brown / OCAA Commit), Diego Garcia of JHSS, Gony Dak of Bluevale and Tyreak Farquharson of WCSSAA Champion Eastwood Collegiate.

A couple of D8 players who spent the season as rivals on the court – Ben Mascarenhas (St. Benedict) and Gew Chuol (St. Mary’s) will also team up for Arkansas, as will Terrell Lloyd (Woodstock College Avenue) and Alex Garbuio (Guelph St. James).

Kansas (Blue)

Scoring shouldn’t be a problem for the Kansas team, as they have several talented performers that can fill it up in a hurry.  Among them are Kanayo Nnadi out of Eastwood, an uncommitted prospect who was one of CWOSSA’s top talents this past high school season.  

Kuel Thomas, a first-team WCSSAA all-star who propelled Huron Heights to a late-season run and CWOSSA “AAA” berth, will also suit up for Arkansas, as will one of Brantford’s top talents, 6’1” shifty PG Keaton Thornton out of Brantford Collegiate.  

A couple of D8 guards, Paolo Malacad (St. Mary’s) and Justin Ching (St. Benedict) will further bolster the backcourt.

Zach Cudmore, a 6’4” forward who was the overtime hero for Centre Wellington in the CWOSSA championship game, will solidify the front-line alongside Ethan Mercier of Preston.  Both players were Top 40 Camp All-Stars from a season ago.

Out of towners Jaiden Langboung and Jerome Hughes round out the ten-man roster.

Notre Dame (Green)

On paper, Notre Dame could certainly provide some highlights – thanks in part to what should be a fun backcourt to watch.  Layee Jabateh of Eastwood, who put the Rebs on his back in a CWOSSA win over CWDHS, is an absolute bully in the paint and, despite his size, will post rebound totals often better than many forwards in the same game.

Meanwhile, Mahier Mohammed (Resurrection) was a scoring machine for the Phoenix this past season, posting numerous 30+ (and even a couple 40+) efforts. 

On the front line, WCSSAA MVP Emanuel Otong out of Glenview Park (Mohawk College commit) is sure to get his share of dunks (and blocks) during the weekend’s festivities.

That trio will surely appreciate playing with Bluevale’s Michael Allen, a heady PG who is a terrific floor general and always gets his teammates involved.

As if that wasn’t enough, Notre Dame also features Jody Brown Jr. (St. Mary’s), a guard with nice size and one of the top talents in the D8 league this past season.

I’ve heard good things about Trey Wilson (Barrie St. Joe’s), who is equally adept at finishing inside with dunks as he is out by the three-point line.

Cleaning up on the inside will be a couple of WCSSAA All-Stars, Zach Jones (SSS) who had a 35-point playoff performance that propelled Southwood to the Quarterfinal round, and Ryan Beach of Waterloo Collegiate.  Matt Pigott will also be assisting on the interior.

Ayden Jackson (formerly of Guelph CVI, now with SJK) rounds out a very deep roster.

Providence

If you’re looking for size, Providence has it in spades.  6’8” Hendrik Stam (formerly of St. Anne Windsor/Riverside but now in Thunder Bay) and 6’7” Khami Wilson (Resurrection) are big boys that will anchor the front-line alongside WCSSAA all-star Logan Cheyne of Jacob Hespeler.

Ethan Passley (D8 MVP) and Jordan Rogers of Glenview Park will team with Eastwood high-flyer Abdei Hamad to provide an electric backcourt combination.

Michael Sieber, a Woodland Christian product, put up some serious numbers (three games of 28+) this past season to keep his smaller school often competitive in a tough D8 circuit.

Rounding out yet another solid squad are Deandre Fordyce (SJK) and D10 all-star Charlie Hamilton of Orangeville.

Stay Tuned

I’ll be in attendance this weekend at the event, and providing updates and tweets from the happenings. Stay tuned for the details!