WESTON, Mass. — Three seasons of the Summer Draft League have come and gone in the blink of an eye.
The Elite boys division season concluded Thursday night at Rivers with the All-Star game and championship games, and it’s noticeable how far the league has come in a short span. Since 2024, the Draft League – a competitive, developmental league for promising young prospects in the area – has grown exponentially. The number of participants has nearly tripled alongside the launch of a Girls division and the continued expansion of the Gold and Junior divisions.
League co-founders Chris Giordano and Kyle Butler are ecstatic with the year-over-year growth, sustained success and improved quality of play. They’re even more excited about the future as they hope to create a pipeline of players who start in the Junior division and eventually make their way to the Elite division, which is the oldest and most competitive circuit.
“The core of what we're doing is really strong and we're going to keep building on that foundation,” Butler said.
Team Nelson – drafted and coached by Brimmer & May coach Tom Nelson – won the Elite division championship with a 73-68 victory over Team Perron – which is led by Newman coach Justin Perron. Here are seven standouts from the night that included the All-Star game, which was played before the championship.
Jamar Hightower
Class of 2029, 5-10 guard
Boston College High School/Brockton, Mass.
The MVP of the championship poured in a game-high 35 points, including three 3-pointers and 19 in the second half. His finishing ability was elite, with buckets that included a tough one on a spin move to the basket, an off-hand layup, a terrific euro-step for a layup and a three-point play with less than a minute to go in the game that put Team Nelson up five and made a difference in the closing seconds to hold off a late Team Perron comeback bid. I also noted some playmaking ability, which included a perfect backdoor pass to a cutter.
Darwin Mendoza
Class of 2029, 5-11 guard
Braintree High School/Braintree, Mass.
Mendoza was cooking as Team Nelson’s lead ball handler; he was comfortable, patient and effective in pick-and-roll opportunities, and he has advanced skill with the ball that he combines with speed and change of direction. He made crossovers look easy as he created separation to get to the rim several times, which included a few crafty reverse finishes. He had 19 points.
Aidan Landers
Class of 2029, 6-3 guard
Austin Prep/Dracut, Mass.
Landers was Team Perron’s hero last week, scoring 26 points to send them to the championship game, and you could see why. He simply never makes a wrong play and boasts a high IQ. There was one play when he corralled a defensive rebound and didn’t make a dribble, instead immediately firing an outlet pass that served as a hockey assist for a transition score; a hesitation or making one or two dribbles would have stalled the attack. Landers had 20 points, and he showed great skill and feel in his takes, which included a tough jump step move for a three-point play off the window and another move when he lost a defender on a pump fake for a step-through finish.
Jack Wilson
Class of 2030, 5-11 guard
Lincoln Sudbury/Sudbury, Mass.
There was a stretch in the first half when Wilson was legitimately unguardable, with defender after defender failing to get in front of him as he used his quickness in open floor to get by all of them. He drew at least four fouls during that flurry, and he spent the rest of the game making smart and heads’ up plays everywhere, including a steal in the backcourt and multiple great passing reads. He finished with 18 points.
Xavier Bogart
Class of 2030, 6-0 guard
Xaverian Brothers/Framingham, Mass.
The play of the night belonged to Bogart, who scored an impressive winner at the buzzer to win the All-Star game. His team trailed by two in the waning seconds when teammate Sean Carlson pulled up for a 3-pointer that missed; Bogart was in the perfect spot to corral the rebound and then convert a game-tying bucket while being fouled. With no time on the clock, Bogart stepped to the line and calmly drained the free throw for a 76-75 win.
Terrence Clark
Class of 2029, 6-0 guard
Catholic Memorial/West Roxbury, Mass.
This wasn’t the type of All-Star game you see in the NBA; this was competitive throughout, and I loved Clark’s effort and smart decision-making. He controlled the glass on both ends, flew for offensive rebounds and made terrific plays off the bounce, hitting shooters consistently off paint touches. He also recorded a block and showed some promise with his 3-point shooting ability.
Jake McNeil
Class of 2031, 5-0 guard
Immaculate Conception/Lowell, Mass.
McNeil was the smallest player on the floor in the All-Star game, but it didn’t matter. His quickness and shiftiness with the ball was outstanding as he created separation consistently off the bounce and found creases and creative ways to get to the basket, whether it was splitting defenders or putting up floaters on the run as he anticipated helping defenders. He hit a big late 3-pointer, too, and he made good playmaking decisions when he was playing with speed in transition.
