The Hoosiers add another 2020 offer to the recruiting board: four-star PF Jaemyn Brakefield from Huntington, West Virginia. Brakefield is a top-35 player nationally, fifth highest ranked PF in the 2020 class. He is also the top ranked player in the state of West Virginia according to his 247Sports Composite ranking.
Brakefield is a 6-foot-8 wing for Hunting Prep and currently weighs in at 210 pounds. He plays for PhenomU on the high school prep circuit.
Indiana Basketball has now offered the two of the top three players in the state, given that they offered Jalen Bridges early this week. In between, the Hoosiers are also showing interest in the second highest ranked player in West Virginia: PG AJ Hoggard, who happens to be on the same Huntington Prep team as Brakefield.
Brakefield currently holds a number of offers from major players including Louisville, Ole Miss, Alabama, Kansas, Baylor, Illinois, Ohio State, Vanderbilt, Seton Hall, and numerous more. Kentucky and Duke are two schools that have also been mentioned in the conversation, but no offers have been given to Jaemyn Brakefield as of yet.
Scout’s Take on Jaemyn Brakefield
Jaemyn Brakefield is an athletic wing that can aggressively attack the rim from all angles on the floor. He has the verticality to make impressive plays on both ends of the floor. His primary way to score involves using his speed and explosiveness to beat players with his dribble – ultimately leading to an acrobatic finish at the rim.
Brakefield can handle the rock, and he does it reasonably well for a player of his size. That being said, he will need to tighten his ball handling if he plans to significantly own dribbling duties at the next level. As you often see with highly athletic players, they can be a bit wild with their dribble due to their explosiveness and speed as a player. Their bodies travel at a quicker pace than their ball handling abilities. When Brakefield gets loose with the ball, he has compensated with his physical energy.
Notably, Jaemyn Brakefield is right-handed, but shoots with his left hand – a la past Hoosier Stanford Robinson. How will this impact him at the next level? That will depend on his ability to shoot consistently with his current shot form. Part of the issue with Stanford Robinson was that the coaching staff wanted him to find a more consistent way to shoot free throws and improve his percentages on the floor. Time will tell if Brakefield needs to go through a similar experience.
At 6-foot-8, he again fits the mold of recent Indiana targets that have extra length and size at their respective positions. He is an absolute problem in passing lanes for opposing offenses, and when he is in position under the rim, he uses his jumping ability for athletic shot blocks. If Brakefield gets his hand on the ball, expect that ball to land in the stands. The blocks in his highlight films below are worth checking out.
