It’s official: Lake Taylor to host national power Oak Hill
by Jamaar Hawkins, recruit757
Green Run had a historic season in 2015. But despite starting the season 19-0, the Stallions were defeated by Hampton in the first round of the Group 5A South Region tournament. For the second consecutive season, the Stallions’ run at a state tournament appearance would end at the hands of the Crabbers.
Rising sophomore AJ James was a reserve on last year’s Green Run team, but has seen his role grow coming into his second season on the varsity level. The Stallions captured this past weekend’s Virginia Wesleyan Team Camp for the second straight year, defeating Granby in the championship.
“My main thing is defense. I’m a defender, first. I want to be a great defender at the next level. Going against Division I prospects all the time helps prepare me for the next level,” the 6-foot-2 wing noted.
James, experienced firsthand the Stallions’ regular season run last season. Losing to Hampton was a tough experience for the team but has made the program even hungrier coming into the 2016 season. Upperclassmen like point guard Damon Showers, last year’s Atlantic Conference Defensive Player of the Year, have been an integral part in AJ’s development during the offseason.
“Defensively, {Damon} plays his role as a defender. He’s just a lockup defender and plays 100 percent every time he steps on the floor,” said James, who had a personal-best this summer.
The class of at the moment, but his recruitment is sure to pick up in the coming years. But get this, the sophomore may not even be the most recognizable name in his household, with younger sister, Aziaha, one of the top class of 2021 players in the Hampton Roads area. Aziaha earned MVP honors in this summer’s Hampton Roads Futures Classic, finishing with 25 points, seven rebounds, three assists and two steals.
“She is on another level than me,” AJ said of his younger sibling. “Comparing us as both seventh graders, she is on another level. I played my role when I was in the grade. But she is just an all-around player. Just on another level,” AJ added.
AJ, also competes in volleyball during the offseason, a sport that could spawn recruiting interest for the athletic James. But for now, a state title is on the agenda for James and the rest of the Stallions’ basketball program.
“Losing to Hampton just made us grind harder. We know we’ll see them again this year. After we won at Wesleyan, that’s a question a lot of people had for us, but our main focus is winning States,” he added.
-Jamaar Hawkins
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