High school basketball: MaxPreps National Player of the Year watch list

The 2022-23 high school basketball campaign has been filled with impressive performances from top prospects across the nation as the season hits the approximate mid-way point.

Although there is no clear front-runner in the MaxPreps National Player of the Year race, a handful of players have established themselves as contenders to emerge from the pack, including Flory Bidunga, Cameron Boozer, Dylan Harper, Ronald Holland, Tre Johnson and Jackson Shelstad.

Today we took a look at 20 of the top players in high school basketball regardless of class as we release our MaxPreps National Player of the Year watch list.

With just under three months remaining in the high school basketball season, there is plenty of time for other players to emerge as deserving candidates for POY honors. Airious Bailey, McEachern (Powder Springs, Ga.)

Five-star junior is averaging 22 points, 14 rebounds, three assists and three blocks through 15 games for the 9-6 Indians. Bailey is regarded as the No. 15 prospect in the Class of 2024.

Top five junior prospect has helped the Wildkats start the season with a 9-4 record, averaging 19.7 points, 12.8 rebounds and 4.7 blocks while shooting 82 percent from the field. Bidunga has connected on 111 of 136 field goal attempts this season.

Top-ranked sophomore prospect is averaging 20.7 points, 10.5 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.3 blocks to lead the Explorers to the No. 10 spot in the MaxPreps Top 25 with a record of 13-3 against a brutal national schedule.

Regarded as the No. 7 overall prospect in the senior class, Buzelis has led the Buffaloes to the No. 4 spot in the National Top 10 by averaging 15.4 points, six rebounds and two blocks across seven games of NIBC play.

Top 25 Connecticut commit has put together a stellar start to his senior campaign, averaging 22.5 points, 7.4 rebounds and 6.4 assists while competing against high-level national competition.

Top-ranked senior prospect is averaging 19.7 points, 7.6 assists, 5.3 rebounds and 3.3 steals to lead Wheeler to a 9-5 record against a daunting national schedule. The USC signee is a true point guard that consistently fills up the stat sheet.

Under-the-radar junior prospect has put his stamp on the NIBC this season, averaging 16.7 points, 6.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 2.7 steals and 1.2 blocks through six conference games for MaxPreps Top 25 No. 7 Long Island Lutheran. Edgecomb is second in the NIBC is scoring average and leads the conference in steals per contest.

Top 20 junior prospect has put together an impressive first half of the season, leading the Vikings to a 15-1 record with averages of 25 points, six rebounds, four assists, two steals and two blocks while shooting 54 percent from the field and 81 percent from the free-throw line.

Top five junior prospect has established himself as a serious contender for MaxPreps National Player of the Year honors so far this season, averaging 24.7 points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals while shooting 55.6 percent from the field to lead the Ironmen to the No. 13 spot in the MaxPreps Top 25.

Four-star Maryland signee has been the catalyst for MaxPreps Top 25 No. 2 Paul VI, recording 22 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds in an 88-62 victory over last week Bishop O'Connell (Arlington, Va.).

Among the leaders in the clubhouse for MaxPreps National Player of the Year honors, the five-star Texas signee is averaging 22.1 points, 9.9 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.8 steals while shooting 54 percent from the field to lead the Panthers to the No. 3 spot in the MaxPreps Top 25.

Top 30 Auburn signee leads National Top 10 No. 2 Prolific Prep in both points and assists, averaging 17.8 points, 5.2 assists and 3.5 rebounds while shooting 40 percent from 3-point range and 85 percent from the free-throw line. The Crew have a record of 19-0 this season.

Top-ranked junior prospect has been the catalyst for MaxPreps Top 25 No. 18 Lake Highlands, averaging 22.2 points, 6.8 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.8 steals while leading the Wildcats to an 18-3 record.

Top 25 Duke signee has put together a strong senior campaign against stiff national competition, averaging 16.0 points, 8.1 rebounds and 3.5 assists. The Huskies are currently ranked No. 14 in the MaxPreps Top 25 with a record of 15-3.

Regarded as a top 40 prospect in the junior classification, Philon is one of the nation's leading scorers as he averages 36.6 points, 6.1 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 2.7 steals while shooting 52 percent from the field for the 15-5 Hornets.

Five-star junior averages 12.2 points, 7.1 rebounds and 2.0 assists while shooting 61 percent from the field in just 16.8 minutes per contest. Queen recently had a season-high 34 points in a showdown against Sunrise Christian Academy.

Four-star Oregon signee is tallying 29.4 points, 5.2 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 2.8 steals while shooting 56 percent from the field and 93 percent from the free throw line. Shelstad exploded for 43 points and eight rebounds in a win over Tualatin and 38 points and seven rebounds in a win against Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth, Calif.) back-to-back nights at the Les Schwab Invitational.

No. 2 ranked prospect in the senior classification is averaging 19.8 points through the first 10 games of his senior campaign to bring his career points to 1,675. D.J. could become the third generation to score over 2,000 points in his family.

The catalyst for the high-scoring Cougars, Williams is averaging 23.1 points, 8.1 assists and 2.5 rebounds. The Memphis signee is regarded as the No. 19 prospect in the Class of 2023.

Four-star Baylor commit is averaging 22.4 points, 5.4 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 2.8 steals to lead the Saints to the No. 12 spot in the MaxPreps Top 25. Wright is regarded as the No. 59 prospect in the junior classification.

Past MaxPreps National Players of the Year
2006 — Greg Oden, Lawrence North (Indianapolis)
2007 — Kevin Love, Lake Oswego (Lake Oswego, Ore.)
2008 — Brandon Jennings, Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.)
2009 — Derrick Favors, South Atlanta (Atlanta)
2010 — Harrison Barnes, Ames (Iowa)
2011 — Austin Rivers, Winter Park (Fla.)
2012 — Kyle Anderson, St. Anthony (Jersey City, N.J.)
2013 — Jabari Parker, Simeon (Chicago)
2014 — Stanley Johnson, Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.)
2015 — Ben Simmons, Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.)
2016 — Lonzo Ball, Chino Hills (Calif.)
2017 — Michael Porter Jr., Nathan Hale (Seattle)
2018 — R.J. Barrett, Montverde Academy
2019 — Sharife Cooper, McEachern (Powder Springs, Ga.)
2020 — Cade Cunningham, Montverde Academy
2021 — Chet Holmgren, Minnehaha Academy (Minneapolis)

2022 — Dariq Whitehead, Montverde Academy