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What does recent Kentucky basketball commit Malachi Moreno of Great Crossing do best?
“Right now what he does best is defensively he really changes the game, especially at the high school level,” said Great Crossing coach Steve Page. “His timing is really good at blocking or altering shots.
“He has long strides and he just doesn’t stop running. He passes the ball really well. He will tell you his shot from distance is one area he needs to improve the most. He was a 70 percent free throw shooter last year.
“He will expand his game and at the high school level he is almost always double or triple teamed every time he catches the ball so it is not ever easy for him to score.”
Page said Moreno has changed the release point on his shot and has worked with his brother, former Eastern Kentucky standout Michael Moreno, on his shooting form because Michael Moreno was a terrific shooter in college.
“Coach (Mark) Pope’s offense is going to stretch the floor,” Page said. “We will do similar things. We will put him in the middle and let him be the orchestrator of the offense.
“He is also going to put 15 to 20 pounds on pretty quickly in a college strength program. We can work on playing through contact. He is phenomenal at passing out of a double team. Sometimes he’s almost too unselfish. He averaged 16 points per game (last season) and shot 66 percent but he’s always looking for open teammates. He just does not force things.”
3 Responses
The buzz I’m hearing that the cats has taken over Alabama and N. Carolina for Jasper Johnson is going to be a cat.
Things are looking good for getting Braylon Mullins too.
Coach Pope is working his butt off on the recruiting trail. Moreno is helping.
We are 4 deep at the guard/wing positions, unless Perry, Noah, Chandler, or Oweh transfer. If Pope were to miss on both Johnson and Mullins, we are still in decent shape. We need help at the 4 & 5 spots even with the Moreno signing. Carr, Almonor, Williams, and possibly Garrison will be gone after this season. Moreno will need a lot of help on the frontline. Freshmen need to understand that upper classmen who are as good or better than them will get to bulk of the minutes, as it should be.