Jasper Johnson, left, and Tre Johnson
If you want to see some of the nation’s best high school players — and likely future college stars as well as possible NBA players — then come to Woodford County High School Sunday for the Court XIV Classic.
Host Woodford will play Tates Creek at 3:30 p.m. before the marquee matchup at 6 between No. 4 Link Academy (Mo.) and Huntington Prep (W.V.). Link won the 2023 GEICO Nationals and has a loaded roster again.
The familiar name is junior guard Jasper Johnson, who helped Woodford reach the state tournament last year. He’s a top 10 player in the 2025 recruiting class.
However, Jasper Johnson has plenty of talented teammates.
— Tre Johnson, a Texas signee, is the fourth-ranked player by ESPN in the 2024 recruiting class.
“He is one of the best combo scoring guards in the country in his class,” Link coach Bill Armstrong said. “He is a lot like Jasper and they have been able to feed off each other as they are continuing to learn to play together.
“He is a big-time scorer but has become more of a two-way player and is showing he has the versatility to do everything well. His best attribute, though, is shot making. He can make difficult shots with NBA type range. His size, length and strength all stand out.”
— James Brown, a 6-9 center, has signed to play at North Carolina and is ranked No. 63.
“He has worked hard on his body but is also a skilled kid who has made some 3-point shots for us and will make more,” Armstrong said. “We can run the offense through him on the post and perimeter because he makes decisions well.
“He has been a presence inside but he has to continue working defensively to stay out of foul trouble. He is a capable shot blocker but he’s really more of a physical defender. He will take charges. We switch everything because he can move his feet so well and stay in front of players.”
— Arkansas commit Jalen Shelly is a top 50 player in the 2024 class who can play the small forward or power forward spot.
“He can really shoot the ball and has the ability to create mismatches on the floor. He can beat a bigger man off the dribble and if you put a smaller guy on him he has a post game and is hard to keep off the glass. He’s learning how to be a two-way player,” Armstrong said. “He learning to use his quickness and speed to be disruptive and he can block shots off the ball.”
— Point guard Labaron Philon is a Kansas commit and top 40 player. He has over a 3-to-1 assist-turnover ratio at point guard as he continues to learn the position.
“He averaged 34 points per game in high school last year and has had to sacrifice to become an elite point guard,” Armstrong said. “Our guards are our strength as really I think those three (Jasper Johnson, Tre Johnson and Philon) are as good or better than any three in the country.
“Point guard is his natural position but at a smaller high school he had to do different things and it’s always good to have that versatility in college because you never know exactly what your team will need. But we have three guards who can all three play multiple positions and all have good size, length and athleticism.”
— Top reserve T.O. Barrett is a Missouri commit.
“He is our defensive leader,” Armstrong, who has 21 years of college coaching experience including time at LSU and Ole Miss, said. “He’s our energy guy. His strength is his physique and athleticism. He’s a very unselfish player but he’s also a strong driver and finisher at the rim.”
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Tickets must be purchased online and are on sale here.
