HoopWise from New England Basketball Journal

Recapping the 2026 Atlantic City Showcase

Steve Hewitt and Ethan Fuller recap the Atlantic City Showcase during the May live period, discussing heavy college coach attendance, why May recruiting is picking up amid transfer-portal effects and coaching-staff turnover, and how Ethan covered the event after taking a 10-hour bus from Boston. Ethan explains his approach to large showcases — building a detailed schedule, watching full games when possible, taking notes in real time, and evaluating AAU play as a role-based, college-like environment. They promote Ethan’s 40-standout coverage and preview upcoming AAU content and a late May/early June magazine. Atlantic City Showcase, basketball, recruiting, AAU, prep basketball, New England basketball, HoopWise podcast   Topics 01:12 Heat And AAU Grind 01:51 Bus Trip Debate 04:02 Atlantic City takeaways 07:33 Ethan's scouting process 15:32 2027 standouts 19:28 2028 standouts 24:55 2029 and 2030 standouts 30:20 Final takeaways

MIAA Coaches on the Prep School Dilemma

Ethan Fuller and Steve Hewitt talk with with Medfield High girls coach Mark Nickerson and longtime Andover boys coach Dave Fazio to discuss the evolving MIAA public school vs. NEPSAC prep dynamic, focusing on player retention, recruiting and program impact rather than specific teams. Nickerson describes losing top players to Nobles despite efforts like the Eastern New England Showcase, which he fears has become a scouting tool for prep programs, and notes limited engagement from Division 1 coaches. Fazio shares similar experiences, including a player reclassifying and ultimately leaving for Brewster, and argues many families believe prep is necessary for Division 1. Both emphasize relationships, community and youth pipelines, while proposing changes such as a summer coaching window, earlier season starts, exemption games, and formats like a Super 8 or statewide tournament to improve exposure and competition. Topics 01:51 MIAA vs Prep Setup 11:42 Hard Transfer Choices 17:03 Biggest Disadvantages 21:32 MIAA rule changes 32:22 Coach collaboration 46:14 Leveling the Playing Field 51:50 Would a Super 8 tournament work? 53:22 Final Thoughts

Newman School Coach Jackson Johnson

Ethan and Steve welcome Newman School coach Jackson Johnson after Newman’s second straight NEPSAC AAA title and its first National Prep School championship, plus an NEBL title, with 11 college commits (nine Division I) on the roster. Johnson reflects on how connected and resilient the championship group was, the difficulty of turning from the AAA playoffs into the National Prep Tournament, and how more intentional January recovery planning helped avoid late-season fatigue.    Topics 01:23 Coaching and New Dad Life 02:16 Processing a Title Season 03:42 Gauntlet to National Prep 06:50 Managing Fatigue and Prep 11:37 Illinois Fit and Growth 15:38 Building Leaders on Stacked Roster 20:06 Ivy Commits and Unsung Heroes 23:06 Relating to Modern Players 28:00 Program Rise and Recruiting Buzz 33:05 Helping Players Get Recruited 33:36 Coaches as Experts 34:26 Navigating Agents 34:53 How Recruiting Changed 35:59 Building Next Season 36:39 Player Development Focus 37:58 Full Court Press Begins 38:49 Best Ball Handlers 41:46 Best Shot Blockers 45:01 Overrated Stats Debate 52:57 Rebounding and Margins 57:11 Wrap Up and Thanks

AAU Roundup: Early standouts

Ethan Fuller and Steve Hewitt recap their first AAU weekend coverage at the New England Spring Showdown and the NERR Northeast Hoops Festival, discussing how AAU evaluation differs from high school through roles, pace, exposure, intangibles and the relationship between winning and recruiting visibility. They highlight players poised for big spring/summer leaps, plus underclass standouts. The episode ends with producer David Yas hosting a trivia throwdown about the 1986 Boston Celtics. Topics 01:19 First AAU Weekend Recap 05:44 Why AAU Matters 09:15 Winning And Exposure 10:57 Players To Watch 29:37 Rapid-Fire Standouts 32:14 "Full-Court Press" Trivia 37:31 Trivia Finale and Signoff

Inside Our Best Of New England Rankings

Ethan and Steve explain how they created their new player rankings, aiming for transparency about evaluation and projection. They discuss the difficulty of ranking high school and prep prospects amid variables like role, opportunity, team context, and competition level, noting clearer top tiers but thin margins in the middle of lists. HoopWise released top-50 rankings for 2026 and 2027, will use watch lists for younger classes, and plans semi-regular updates (while 2026 is final). Their approach weighs translatable skills, outlier physical traits, versatility, consistency, winning impact, leadership, and input from college coaches, while acknowledging the transfer portal’s impact on high school recruiting. They cite examples and emphasize rankings differ from awards and that many strong players fall outside the top 50.   Topics 01:05 Why Ranking Is Hard 04:52 Rankings Format and Updates 07:23 Steve Evaluation Priorities 12:03 Prospects vs Best Players 14:52 Success Stories and Translation 18:41 Girls Guard Skills and Defense 25:01 Prep vs Public Balancing 29:29 Portal Era and Competition 31:56 Rankings Perspective and Wrap