The Iverson Classic brought 28 of the best players in high school basketball together in Memphis, Tennessee, for three days of intense practices, scrimmaging and other live competition. The NBA allowed each team to send one representative to evaluate the two days of practices, with no restrictions on the number of evaluators allowed for the actual game. This provided an opportunity for teams to start building out their scouting files on a class that has been almost invisible to them due to mass cancellations of camps, tournaments and other exposure events over the past 14 months because of the coronavirus pandemic.
With the normal all-star circuit -- the McDonald's All-American game, Nike Hoop Summit and Jordan Brand Classic -- all on hiatus, the Iverson Classic filled the void, reeling in a huge swath of talent, including 12 of the 22 players currently classified as five-star prospects in ESPN's recruiting rankings. Several other prospects outside that range made compelling cases over the week for why they are deserving of one-and-done consideration.
While we've scouted many of these prospects live over the high school season, it was very useful to see this group through the eyes of the 30 or so NBA scouts who were evaluating these players for the very first time and getting their raw initial impressions of the class, which were largely extremely positive.