Long Island Guard Goes Off!
In today’s hothouse and cutthroat recruiting climate, the competition aspect, and obstacles that high school players endure creates adversity like never. With college coaches actively seeking experienced multi-year transfers with a veteran savvy first, then JUCO transfers and then post-graduate prep kids in that order, the adversity that comes with being a high school prospect is clear and apparent.
As an undersized guard, in a college basketball landscape where bigger guards and mismatch threats are one of the hottest commodities? The odds are definitely not working in anyone’s favor. Yet with the sheer grit and engine Class of 2023 5-foot-11 Long Island Lutheran guard Jayden Reid plays with, piling up offers won’t be nearly as arduous a task. Reid—who erupted with a 12-point second half and a nifty, game-winning up and under move in traffic with 1.2 seconds remaining to lift LUHI over Stepinac in a dramatic 47-46 victory last year—has seized some of the leadership reins for a Long Island Lutheran team teeming with even more talent in 2021-2022.
Reid went off for 30 points to lead LUHI to a 78-54 victory over Half Hollow Hills East Thursday night. Known for his shiftiness and adeptness for carving his way to the rim and finishing in crafty, acrobatic fashion, Reid has become a dependable outside shooter who has developed a rapport with a number of new teammates.
Among those teammates is James Johns, a 6-foot-6 wing who transferred in from The Rock School in Gainesville, Fla. Reid found Johns on an extravagant lob pass that Johns punched home for an acrobatic dunk during a wild 13-0 LUHI closed out the first half on. Reid, who holds offers from Stony Brook, Robert Morris, and Dayton, connected on a 3-pointer and a jumper during that vital scoring surge. This enabled them to seize control of the game, after they opened the second quarter on a 7-0 surge and then weathered a Half Hollow Hills East run.
Reid is like another New York Guard guard who got hot at the opportune time, Zakai Zeigler of Our Savior Lutheran. Now making a legitimate instant impact at Tennessee after blossoming as a late bloomer recruit who shined at Peach Jam, Zeigler is a similar diminutive guard who atones for his lack of height with quickness and a three-level scoring acumen and college ready physicality.
Reid broke out last year and has sustained momentum into this season, where he has the chance to solidify himself as a mid-major plus and high major caliber recruit. He was MVP of the SLAM Summer Classic, erupting for 27 points and bursting his way to the rim and putting pressure on the defense throughout.