Saunders continues to be one of the most debated prospects in the west. He is a gamer that has the right approach each and every time out, but at his size his perimeter shot needs to get a whole lot better if he is to be a consistently affective scorer at the Division I level.
At 6'6 he is big enough to be a dominating forward at this level and projects well as a small forward at the next level. He has a really big wingspan that allows him to get that extra edge on defense either batting balls away or blocking shots. He is incredible strong and can physically overpower almost all players on the court and isn't afraid to use his body. His wide frame provides him with a great base for boxing guys out and getting rebounds.
Not only does Saunders posses the ideal athletic gifts you want in a basketball player, he has lots of skills, too.
He has good handles for somebody his size and can take guys off the dribble going in either direction. When going off the dribble he does a good job using his body to shield guys off of the ball and can bully a smaller opponent all the way to the hoop. He is a great finisher around the hoop, using those long arms to drop the ball in around defenders and he will throw down a hard dunk here and there. He can really score in the paint and shows the capabilities to do so with either hand.
On defense he is a great rebounder and has the quickness to match up against guards and the strength to take of forwards and centers. He can block shots and get steals and is overall a very strong defender.
Wesley does a great job of making plays in transition and can run the break. He can lead the break and is great at finishing at the basket or at least getting to the charity stripe, where he is a very good free throw shooter. He also is a very willing passer and does a good job of waiting to draw the defender until he dishes it off.
Overall Wesley is an extremely talented player with more room to grow. He is definitely a guy who could rise in these rankings once the season starts.
Wesley Saunders, SF, Compton Magic- Plain and simple, the 6-foot-5 wing is going to cost somebody their spot in the rankings next time we update the Rivals150 for the class of 2011. A solidly built kid with outstanding body control, he keeps coming at defenses. He gets on the glass, plays defense and gets to the free throw line a ton which is great because he's a super free throw shooter.
Rivals report from Las Vegas AAU summer tourney:
Wesley Saunders is visiting CU this weekend.
Let's go Tad!
Overall, Saunders loved Colorado.
"This is really a great place that I'm comfortable at, I could see myself going here," Saunders said.
More at Rivals..."He is open right now but I think after he gets back from Harvard, he will definitely sit down with his parents and talk about what they are going to do. My guess is that he'll be making a decision sometime next week."