Houston County schools have exciting young players coming through the basketball pipeline this year

Although select upperclassmen like Houston County’s Malik Gillespie and Veterans’ Francesca Jones might dominate the narrative this season, there are plenty of up-and-coming young players to keep an eye on as the year progresses.

Some, like Perry’s Kam Thomas, got a lot of playing time last year due to necessity. Head coach Mark Gainous isn’t afraid to put younger players on the court especially if they show a commitment to basketball like Thomas has.

“Kam has really improved. He’ll have a chance to be the starting point guard for Perry High School as a sophomore and I credit the AAU organization Warner Robins All-Stars for developing those guys,” Gainous said. “I’ve seen a big difference in Christian Grant and Kam Thomas.”

Warner Robins, who has historically been the premier program in the county, will have to start leaning on some youth this season too.

Last year’s roster had eight seniors. The year before that had six. This year it’s just Gavyn Williams and Rykeem Ashley who both served bench roles last year.

Tristan Warren and Kam Schmitz are two names that have been circulating since last season and now their varsity readiness will be put to the test as they’ll be asked to soak up real minutes.

The Perry girls program has a trio of freshmen coming in from Perry Middle School’s eighth grade championship last season. They were a suffocating defense down the street and have potential to blossom if coach Austin McIntyre’s culture of intensity and competitiveness takes in the Panther Pit.

Rhazyiah Oliver, Jakayla Keene and Layla De Jesus are three names to keep tabs on this year.

Houston County, who’s been challenging the Demons for best boy’s program in recent years, has some players coming in from Feagin Mill Middle School that Buddy Bivins thinks can make contributions right away with football players and injuries forcing the Bears to reach deeper into their bench.

Keelyn Johnson impressed Georgia Middle School Hoops with his all-around skillset last year and Bivins said he’ll be thrown into the fire.

Damin Blasingame surprised Bivins with how he came out during training camp, and he could see the floor early. Kell Stevens was another name mentioned for HoCo.

Across the region the Veterans girls are leaning heavily on young players with the loss of five players including four starters.

Sophomore Kiersten Rogers might be the most interesting with her athletic ability, but she will be out early from an offseason injury.

Camila Vicioso, though she’s a junior now, showed potential as a forward who could handle the ball last season. She’ll be in a much bigger role this year.

Then there’s the Northside boys. They have five seniors this year and return three starters from their best season in about a decade, but they also have some exciting young prospects.

Caden Lowe is the biggest name, he’s turned heads with his athletic ability and defensive talent since he was at Thomson Middle School.

Assistant coach Anthony Stewart said Lowe is already one of the better defenders in the program, and is physically ready to be implemented right now.

Freshman Kingston Allen transfered from Central Fellowship Christian Academy over the summer and has garnered praise for his attitude and coach ability.

There are a lot of upperclassmen that will bear the brunt of their team’s expectations, but Houston County has plenty of young, exciting talent coming through the pipeline.