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ESPN's Adam Finkelstein recaps last weekend's Hoop Group Northeast Jam Fests in Providence and Philadelphia, today on ESPN's Basketball Recruiting section, which you can find here.

Finkelstein highlighted several locals that stood out over the weekend, including New Hampton (N.H.) forward Noah Vonleh, Worcester Academy forward Matt Cimino and Capital Prep (Conn.) guard Kahlil Dukes.

Here's what he had to say about each:

STANDOUT PERFORMANCES

Noah Vonleh (Haverhill, Mass./New Hampton)
2014, PF, 6-8, 220 pounds
Still nursing a sprained ankle suffered last weekend in Las Vegas, Vonleh turned what should have been a limitation into an opportunity to showcase his developing versatility. While still showing his trademark playmaking skills off the dribble, he also went to work with his back to the basket. The Rivals took the title in Providence with a decisive second-half run, all of which came when running the offense through Vonleh in the post, as he not only scored with jump hooks and double pivots but also passed out of double teams to find shooters, punishing the defense for whatever coverage they attempted.

SURPRISE PERFORMANCES

Matt Cimino (Falmouth, Maine/Worcester Academy)
2014, PF, 6-9, 200 pounds
Cimino put on a show in the second half of the U-17 championship game in Providence, knocking down five second-half 3s by working the inside-out, two-man game with Vonleh. He’s a good post feeder from the perimeter, with agility and touch to throw soft bounce passes and the size to throw over top of pressure as well. His combination of size and skill also forced the opposition into defensive mismatches, as the Westchester Hawks had to use their longest defender to contest Cimino’s 3-point shot, leaving Vonleh free to operate against a smaller defender on the block.

PLAYER TO WATCH

Kahlil Dukes (Hartford, Conn./Capital Prep)
2013, SG/PG, 5-11, 160 pounds
If you like the comparison game, you’ll appreciate this reference from one on-looking college coach who compared Dukes to a poor man’s Eddie House. The former Arizona State sniper was an undersized 2-guard who did his best to slide over to the point but eventually embraced his identity as a scoring guard and played over 10 years in the NBA because of it. Dukes is cut from a similar cloth. He’s transitioning to the point and showing some growth with his decision making, but his niche is his ability to make shots in bunches and he owns the special skill of being able to make tough shots with high degrees of difficulty.

Scoring is in Capital Prep junior Kahlil Dukes’ DNA. He reached 1,000 career points as a sophomore. He dropped 51 points in a game against Classical Magnet recently. Dukes has always been a scorer. You can go on YouTube and find videos of him from middle school doing exactly what he does today: embarrassing defenses.

There have been questions about Dukes too. Many scouts consider him to be an undersized two guard at 5-foot-11. Some question his upside at the next level as well.

After seeing him go up against West Roxbury, here are some observations I made:

Scoring

Dukes had an effortless 31 points against West Roxbury last Wednesday in the BABC Holiday Classic. He was scoring in every imaginable way, whether it was acrobatic drives to the hoop, pull-up jump shots, or deep three-pointers. Here are some clips of Dukes’ field goals:



The first two clips show Dukes’ great body control. He is that type of player that never is out of control. He’s always on balance and driving to the basket with a purpose. In the third clip, Dukes gains separation from the defender with a nice step-back move to get a pull-up jump shot. In the fourth, fifth, and sixth clip, Dukes demonstrates his superior basketball I.Q. Part of the reason why he is such a good scorer is that he knows defensive tendencies and how to take advantage of them. I made the last clip in slow motion to show just how good Dukes’ shooting form is. He has serious range on his jump shot and shoots a great percentage from everywhere on the floor.

Passes

There is no getting around the fact that Kahlil Dukes is a combo guard. He is by no means a point guard. At the high school level, he can play the point. At the next level he will need to improve his ball-handling and quickness to play any minutes at the point. He has the court vision and passing ability, which is key to his development into a point guard.



In all of these clips, Dukes does an excellent job of feeding the post. As a wing and a point guard, this is critical to a team’s success.

Shot Selection

For the most part, Dukes has good shot selection. As one of the Nutmeg State's finest scorers, it is Dukes’ role to take the most shots on his team. There were a few shots, however, there were questionable decisions.



Look at where Dukes is standing in the first clip. That is a three-pointer well beyond the NBA three-point line. This is a bad shot. Yes, Dukes did hit the back of the rim proving that he can hit that shot, but with 25 seconds left on the shot clock, he could have found a better shot. When he faces tougher defenses, Dukes cannot settle for deep range shots like this. In basketball, every possession counts and it is imperative for players to capitalize on every possession to get the highest percentage shot as possible.

In the second clip, Dukes makes a nice move around his first defender but gets his shot partially blocked because of the second defender. On a fast break, it would have been a better decision to pull the ball out and run a play rather than forcing a difficult shot on two defenders.

Observations

There were some things that stood out about Dukes that could not be seen on video.

-- Dukes has the poise of a Division I player. He never talks to the refs. He never talks back to his coach. He always supports his teammates. Dukes has the intangibles to play at the next level, which is why he has had a solid dose of low Division I offers.

-- Upside seems to be one of the main concerns with Dukes, but if he can develop into a point guard, what is there to worry about? This past summer, Dukes performed well on the national level with the Connecticut Basketball Club alongside superstars like Andre Drummond and Kris Dunn, proving that he can score on more than just the competition he faces in Connecticut.

-- The main concern at this point may be on the defensive end. Dukes has to play a less aggressive role on Capital Prep because they need him to stay out of foul trouble. As a small guard, he will need to work on his build (while maintaining his coordination and quickness) if he wants to play serious minutes at a Division I school.

Conclusion

Every high school team in America could use a guy like Kahlil Dukes. He can flat out score and has an unbelievable feel for the game. Sure, he is doing this type of damage on a team that is not a Top 35 team in Massachusetts, but Dukes does this to nearly every team he faces, regardless of the level.

With his elite scoring ability and underrated potential, Dukes could be a diamond in the rough on the New England basketball scene.

On ESPNHS' Connecticut blog, Mike Grimala checks in with Capital Prep junior guard Kahlil Dukes and Ledyard senior running back Alex Manwaring, to talk about the best moments of 2011.

The full Q&A session can be found here. Below are some excerpts:

Best High School Team
Manwaring: Xavier. The way they churned out good teams in just about every sport, whether it was football or wrestling, was kind of amazing. They're good at everything.
Dukes: New London basketball, because I'm a big Kris Dunn supporter.

Best High School Athlete
Manwaring: This is a tough one, but I have to say [Ansonia running back] Arkeel Newson. He had something like 3,500 yards this year, and he's definitely tough to stop.
Dukes: Definitely Kris Dunn. Nobody knew who he was last year, then he went out during the summer and played against all the best players and really made a name for himself.

Your Best Moment of 2011 (On the field)
Manwaring: I guess I would have to say our game against Bacon this year. I ran for 317 yards, which was a school record.
Dukes: I'd say the live period in July when all the college coaches could watch me play. I think I made a lot of progress and let everyone know what kind of player I am.

Your Best Moment of 2011 (Off the field)
Manwaring: My best moments were all sports-related! I'm going to say Thanksgiving Day when I scored four touchdowns.
Dukes: When I got my first offer. I was in the airport, it was August 1st or 2nd. It was from Vermont.

Your New Year's Resolution (On the field)
Manwaring: The same as always -- to work my butt off, especially since it's my senior year. I want to win the state open in wrestling.
Dukes: Win.

Your New Year's Resolution (Off the field)
Manwaring: Do the best I can every day, and the rest should be good.
Dukes: To be the best person I can be.

CHELSEA, Mass. -- Connecticut power Capital Prep may not have the size of many elite high school basketball programs, but –- as the Raiders of West Roxbury can attest –- they sure can run.

Led by standout guard Kahlil Dukes, Capital (4-1) used its speed to overpower Westie on both ends of the floor, en route to an 83-65 win at the BABC Holiday Classic Invitational, at Chelsea High School.

“That’s the way we play,” Capital head coach Levy Gillespie said. “It gives us an advantage because we don’t have a particularly big team, but we have a quick team. We can pressure people full-court most of the game … and on offense these guys love to score.”

Providing the greatest chunk of this scoring was Dukes, who led all scorers with 30 points. Coming off a 51-point performance in the Trailblazers’ double-overtime win over Classical on Monday, the junior showed tremendous pace on, using quick moves to slice through the Raider defense for easy layups.

Dukes also showcased his range, knocking down several 3-pointers from the baseline. He was also seen hitting three's from beyond NBA range with ease during halftime.

The Capital speed was evident not only on the fast break, but on the defensive end as well, as the Blazers employed a full-court press for almost the entire game, frustrating the larger Raiders team into forcing errant passes.

While Capital held a comfortable lead for a majority of the game, the nail in the coffin was hammered in during the third quarter.

Trailing by nine after one period, West Roxbury remained in striking distance with clutch outside shooting by sophomore Markus Neale and a strong presence under the basket in senior Sterling Brown.

Neale and Brown, the Raiders’ two captains, led the team in scoring with 18 and 15 points, respectively, and the deficit remained at 10 at half.

The Blazers brought the hammer down in the third, however, as Dukes (9 points in the quarter) got some help down low from bruising senior forward DeWayne Wynn (12 points in the third, 20 total).

“I think we came out of the half feeling kind of confident, we had a 10-point lead,” Gillespie said, “and the objective obviously was to push the ball. I think after halftime we were able to do that much more; we had guys that were open and [we got] four or five layups right under the basket, which really worked in our favor.”

Capital built a 67-42 lead after the third frame before bringing in its reserves and coasting to an 83-65 victory.

The Trailblazers return to action Friday when they host Bullard-Havens Regional (Conn.). West Roxbury will play New Bedford on Thursday in Chelsea for its final game of the BABC Invitational.

Windsor (Conn.) 98, New Bedford 71

The theme of Connecticut dominance continued in Game 2 of the Invitational, as Windsor (Conn.) High shot the lights out in a 98-71 rout of New Bedford.

Eight different players scored in the first half for the Warriors (12 total), as Windsor built a 23-10 lead after the first quarter. An 11-point halftime margin ballooned further in the third, as senior guard Andrew Hurd nailed four 3-pointers, the last of which gave Windsor a 66-40 lead with 2:30 left in the third and brought the New Bedford reserves into the game.

Hurd (20 points) was one of five Warriors to finish in double figures.

Junior guard Rylin Collazo carried the Whalers, leading all scorers with 24 points, including a bucket from beyond half court as the first half expired.

New Bedford will face West Roxbury on Thursday at 4 p.m. in the final game of the tournament for both teams.