Team Preview: Minneapolis North

The Minneapolis North Polars lose a lot from last years loaded time, but once again come back with a squad ready to make a run to state. North graduated their top two scorers in Odell Wilson IV and Tayler Johnson, who had been mainstays in the Polar lineup for years. They also suffered a tough loss in the transfer of talented freshman Tre Holloman, who started at point guard as an 8th grader for North. Despite these losses, Minneapolis North has a promising looking squad with a good mixture of experience and youth.

North has a trio of very good senior guards this year, the first of which we will talk about is Eli Campbell. He is arguably the top senior in the Minneapolis City conference, and has a chance to be a star on this North team after missing a lot of time last year with injuries. Eli had a productive AAU season with Grassroots Sizzle and will come back hungry for a big season. He is a small but shifty point guard whose quickness makes him a hard cover for defenders.

The next up on the list of experience guards is Nasir El-Amin. He carries a target on his back with the El-Amin name at North, but he more than backs it up with his play. Nasir was a consistent scorer at 8.5 ppg as a junior, but absolutely exploded for 37 points against the eventual D2 Wisconsin State Champions Kaukauna High School. Along with his scoring ability, Nasir will bring poise and leadership to a team that will have to rely on some young players to contribute early on.

Third on the senior trio is Omar Brown. Omar is a high level football player, who translates his athleticism to the basketball court. He is one of the top defenders in the senior class, and will often be found guarding the opposing team's top player. He averaged 4.5 ppg as a junior, but that number could rise as he sees an increased role on offense following the loss of three starters. Omar's athleticism and length makes him a hard over when he gets aggressive taking the ball to the rim.

Joining the seniors will be a couple of talented underclassmen. Willie Wilson is one of the state's elite freshman, and will be a dangerous member of the Polar lineup. He has solid length for a guard with the potential to keep growing past his already 6'2 frame. He has shown great athleticism and a high vertical which was evident in some of his dunks at the Twin Cities Under The Radar event. He dominated at the JV level as an 8th grader while also averaging 6.6 ppg in his varsity time. Willie is a talented scorer, and will continue to improve while expanding his role as the season goes on.

Sophomore Davon Townley is another one of Minnesota's premier players in his class. He brings good size at 6'6 to replace Odell Wilson inside, but is a much more athletic player. He has a solid three point shot to stretch the floor, with the quickness to blow by bigger defenders. When he gets in the open floor he's not afraid to try to dunk on someone's head as he always goes to the rim with authority. Davon Townley will be an extremely tough matchup for AA schools as not many teams will have someone that can match his size, let alone his athleticism too. He also gives North the size needed to compete with some bigger class schools.

The bench is where Minneapolis North will really need some guys to step up. The aforementioned five players are really the only experienced players North has coming back, so the bench will be relatively new to varsity competition. Clifford Brown saw minutes sparingly as a freshman, and with off-season improvements could be a key guy off the bench as a sophomore. Ar'mon Dalton is a senior who got minutes in a few games last season, and brings some solid size at 6'2. DeMeiko Anderson and Rio Sanders were two 2022 players who were featured in the TC Under The Radar showcase listed as Minneapolis North players, so they could be some names to watch for as well.

Overall, Minneapolis North will feature one of the top lineups in Class AA, and will likely remain the favorite for another City Conference title. North will face arguably the toughest non-conference schedule in the state, consistently playing much bigger schools and out of state powers (Hopkins, Milwaukee Washington, Eden Prairie). Their starters will be able to take them far in the playoffs, but in order to have a shot at the state title, they will need to have a few bench players step up and provide big contributions. Coach Larry McKenzie is one of the top coaches in the state and is known for his ability to get the best out of his players, so it should come as no surprise when Minneapolis North has another successful season.

Regular Season Record Prediction: 19-7

Scoring Leader Predictions: Eli Campbell 16 ppg
                                                 Nasir El-Amin 14 ppg
                                                 Davon Townley 12 ppg
                                                 Willie Wilson 11 ppg