Indiana Underclassmen To Watch: Kevin Easley Jr.

Kevin Easley Jr. looks to be the next in line of talented prospects to swing through Indianapolis Lawrence North.

Two all-timers include former five-star prospects Mike Conley and Greg Oden from the class of 2006. Other standouts include former four-star Michael Chandler (2011,) former Louisville Cardinal Stephen Van Treese (2009,) and current Michigan State Spartan Eron Harris (2012) among several others.

Easley, though, has a chance to make his mark.

"Kevin's one of the top kids to come through," Lawrence North assistant Chandler Thompson said. "He has a chance to pull it off earlier than some of those guys because he started varsity as a freshman and contributed right away."

Several college programs have already made it to an open gym to check out Easley Jr., including the Hoosiers. He already holds early offers from IU, Purdue and Xavier among others.

“He has an aura around him," Thompson said. "It’s not one great thing he can do – he can do a lot of great things.

"He can both score and rebound with the best of them. He handles at a decent rate. He can shoot at a good range. You won’t expect him to block a shot but then he comes out of nowhere to do that.

"He does a lot of small things really well. He reminds me of a [former NBA star] Grant Hill-type player, in that way.”

Like many underclassmen, Easley Jr. has to continue working on his conditioning to continue making strides in improvement.

"I think he’s also working on more of a wing type player," Thompson said. "His explosiveness and taking people off the dribble, so improving his ball-handling.

"He’s not going to be a power forward in college. He’ll be a big guard or a small forward. At the level of IU, he’d be a big guard or small forward.

"If coaches max him out, I think he could become a great player at that level. If he keeps working and coaches can get the best out of him, the sky is the limit for him."

Easley Jr. was named to the "Underclass Supreme 15" list by the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association after a standout sophomore season at Lawrence North, when he averaged 11.7 points and 6.3 rebounds per game to help his squad to an 18-6 overall record.

Lawrence North's full 2016-17 schedule hasn't been released yet. However, it will include the Hall of Fame Classic in New Castle, Ind., which could feature a matchup against New Albany High and 2018 five-star guard Romeo Langford.

For more on Langford, check out our underclassmen feature here (link).