Legendary basketball broadcaster Dick Vitale is famous for coining catchphrases like “Rolls Royce” (a flat-out superstar) and “Diaper Dandy” (elite freshman), that he frequently uses on air but also serve as a basis for his “V-lists” that reflect his creative insights and analysis of college hoops.
With that in mind, here’s my take on creating “V-lists” for Minnesota High School Boys Basketball for the 2025-26 season. It is important to note that these lists will only include players that I have seen play. This winter I had the opportunity to watch more than 50 high school boys’ basketball games, including many of the state’s premier players and teams. Obviously, I didn’t see every team and I must confess to a Twin Cities metro bias (that’s where I live) so please know there is no intent to slight or diminish the accomplishments of all the other great teams and players throughout the state.
All Rolls Royce
This year’s prime time players with their college choice.
1st Team
Christian Wiggins: Senior – Wayzata (Iowa State) – best two-way player in the state who was named the Gatorade Player of the Year and would be my choice for Mr. Basketball as well. Proven winner who will be playing for one of the top 5-10 college programs in the country next season.
Nolen Anderson: Senior – Wayzata (Minnesota) – sweet shooting big man who is the prototypical stretch 4 in today’s game.
Cedric Tomes: Senior – East Ridge (Minnesota) – certified bucket getter who averaged more than 30 ppg for the Raptors.
KJ Wilson Jr.: Sophomore – Tartan (Undecided) – dynamic point guard and leading scorer for the undefeated Titans.
Max Iversen: Senior – Maple Grove (NDSU) – high-scoring guard who hit clutch shots to lead the Crimson to a pair of victories over Wayzata during the regular season – the only losses the Trojans suffered to a Minnesota team.
2nd Team
Jayden Moore: Senior – Hopkins (UND) – had an impressive career with the Royals becoming the school’s all-time leader in scoring, assists, and rebounds. Also broke the Minnesota state record for career assists with more than 1,275.
Baboucarr Ann: Junior – Maple Grove (Undecided) – versatile wing player that already has numerous high major offers.
JoJo Mitchell: Senior – Cretin-Derham Hall (St. Thomas) – high-scoring combo guard who should fit in well with Johnny Tauer’s Tommies.
Dothan Ijadimbola: Senior – Totino-Grace (Drake) – powerful wing player that has taken on a leadership role for the Eagles as they look to capture another state title.
Hamze Yusuf: Senior– Eden Prairie (Undecided) – had a breakout season for the Eagles averaging more than 23 ppg and is a popular member of his local Somali community, a great human-interest story that was recently covered by WCCO TV’s Mike Max.
3rd Team
Deon Wallace-Johnson: Junior – DeLaSalle (Undecided) – a rising star with breath-taking athleticism.
Kellen Troup: Junior – Minnehaha Academy (Undecided) – a late blooming, athletic 6”7 wing player who leads the Redhawks in scoring at 20 ppg.
Tyler Forrest: Junior – Chaska (Undecided) – a starter since 8th grade, he is the driving force and unquestioned leader for the up-and-coming Hawks who enter the state tournament on a 22 game winning streak.
DeAngelo Dungey: Senior – Totino-Grace (Undecided) – transferred from Breck and has seamlessly replaced the wing scoring of last year’s Eagle star Chase Watley.
Isaac Olmstead: Senior – Wayzata (University of Minnesota-Duluth) – has battled some injuries this season but is one of the most entertaining players to watch. He’s the floor general for the high-scoring Trojans and is without a doubt the most creative passer in the state.
4th Team
Dre Collins: Junior – Richfield (Undecided) – athletic wing player who is the leading scorer at more than 18 ppg for the highly-ranked Spartans.
Thomas Jordan: Sophomore – Buffalo (Undecided) – averaged nearly 20 ppg and teamed with his twin brothers, Matthew and Tony , and fellow sophomore star, Eli Hegle, to make Buffalo one of the surprise teams in the state. And with virtually everyone back, expect big things from the Bison next season.
Jumair Wright: Sophomore – Minneapolis South (Undecided) – MVP of the Twin Cities championship game and a unanimous selection as the MVP of the Minneapolis City Conference.
Ty Schlagel: Junior – Cretin-Derham Hall (Nebraska) – athletic 6’7 wing player who is a versatile scorer for the Raiders.
Vinnie Cronin: Junior – Edina (Undecided) – high-flying wing player who has dramatically improved his perimeter game and led the Hornets in scoring at 20 ppg.
Diaper Dandies
Best freshmen.
1st Team
Malik Martin – Camden – reminds me of former Henry great Johnny Gilbert who went on to play at Oklahoma
Jed Keenan – Chaska – poised beyond his years, averaged more than 11 ppg off the bench and could be the X-factor if the Hawks are able to win the title this year
Beckham Nelson and Elliott Thompson – Minnetonka – this pair started in the backcourt for Minnetonka, one of the state’s best programs in the state’s best conference.
Carter Cupito – Minnehaha Academy (only an 8th grader) – this 2-sport standout (QB on the football team) has great court presence and is an excellent perimeter shooter who averaged 12 ppg this season. It’s a bit premature and he has a long way to go but he could be following in the footsteps of another Minnehaha QB/basketball legend, Jalen Suggs.
2nd Team
Mekhi Abner – Minnehaha Academy – physical post player who scored in double figures for the state tournament bound Redhawks.
Peter Kiedrowski – Breck – double figure scorer for the Mustangs with good bloodlines, father Peter played collegiately at Carleton and was part of Minnehaha Academy’s 1996 state tournament team when the Sweet 16 format was used (Google it – that was a fun year) and his grandfather Jay played for the Gophers and was part of the legendary Edina teams of the late 60’s that won 3 consecutive state titles and had a 69-game winning streak.
Adam Kieffer – Shakopee – heady point guard who earned a starting spot in mid-season for the Sabers.
Connor Johnson – Edina – physical wing player who started to earn varsity minutes near the end of the year for the Hornets.
Rashad Smith – DeLaSalle – athletic guard who is waiting his turn on an Islanders team loaded with talent.
Swiss Army Knives
Players who provide their teams with a little bit of everything: scoring, rebounding, ballhandling, passing, and defense.
Gavin Walter: Junior – Champlin Park
Baboucarr Ann: Junior – Maple Grove
Kalin Jochum: Junior – Chaska
Kamar Thomas: Junior – DeLaSalle
Duke King: Senior – Tartan
Making it Rain
Elite 3-point shooters who are within range when they enter the gym.
Luke Schroeder: Junior – Shakopee
Eli Herzog: Junior – Chaska
Owen Counce: Junior – Osseo
Grant Hansen: Junior – Orono
Eli Hegle: Sophomore – Buffalo
Kolby Thompson: Junior – Prior Lake
Lightning McQueen
Players who use their lightning speed to attack the basket in transition.
Malachi Hill: Junior – Totino-Grace
Xavy Ivey: Junior- Wayzata
Kwa Silikpoh: Junior – Osseo
Moussa Dukuly: Sophomore – Champlin Park
Conner Watts: Junior – Benilde St. Margaret’s
Dipsy-Do-Dunk-Aroo
Best dunkers.
Gideon Horne: Junior – Richfield (broke a backboard in a section game – worth a YouTube search)
Deon Wallace-Johnson: Junior – DeLaSalle
Emmanuel Oyesanmi: Sophomore – Tartan
Kellen Troup: Junior – Minnehaha Academy
Vinnie Cronin: Junior – Edina (He’s no Billy Hoyle)
Department of Defense
Lock down defenders who embody Coach Dale’s defensive advice to Buddy in Hoosiers: “I mean, think of your opponent as chewing gum. By the end of the game, I want to know what flavor he is.” Buddy’s answer “Dentyne.”
Jason Johnson: Senior – Cretin-Derham Hall
Tre Moore: Sophomore – Hopkins
Tyler Forrest: Junior – Chaska
Deon Wallace-Johnson: Junior – DeLaSalle
Christian Wiggins: Senior – Wayzata
Aircraft Carriers
As Dickie V would say, not only do they look impressive in the airport, they help control the paint.
Jack Thelen: Junior – Maple Grove
Ahmed Nur: Junior – Hopkins
Graham Sanneh: Senior – East Ridge
Colten Gunderson: Senior – Prior Lake
AJ Taban: Junior – Totino-Grace
All Marco Polo
Players on the move – these are the most impactful transfers. While this is certainly a lightning rod issue there is little doubt that transfers are changing the competitive landscape of high school basketball – and it is an issue that impacts schools large and small, public and private as evidenced by the fact that transfers played key roles in recent championships for Wayzata, Totino-Grace, Breck, and Cherry.
Max Iversen: Senior – Delano to Maple Grove
Jack Thelen: Junior – STMA to Maple Grove
Duke King: Senior – North St. Paul to Tartan
DeAngelo Dungey: Senior – Breck to Totino-Grace
Ayden Green: Junior – Breck to Minnehaha Academy
Xavier Frelix: Senior – Park Center to Hopkins
Super Southpaws
While less than 10% of the U.S. population is lefthanded, southpaws are everywhere in high school boys’ basketball. It must be a Minnesota thing – 40% of the Gopher starters are lefties (Langston Reynolds and Jaylen Crocker-Johnson) and 33% of the Timberwolves roster are lefties (Julius Randle, Mike Conley, TJ Shannon, Joe Ingles, and Rocco Zikarsky.)
1st Team
Willie Roelofs: Junior – Mahtomedi
Deon Wallace-Johnson: Junior – DeLaSalle
Nolan Myren: Senior – Spring Lake Park
Jack Thelen: Junior – Maple Grove
Duke King: Senior – Tartan
2nd Team
Jaeden Udean: Junior – DeLaSalle
Ichima Idoko: Sophomore – DeLaSalle
Malik Martin: Freshman – Camden
Ramadan Ibrahim: Junior – Minneapolis South
Anthony Ortiz: Senior – Minnetonka
3rd Team
Blake Betton: Junior – Shakopee
Donte Branch Jr.: Junior – South St. Paul
Pierless Davis: Senior – Champlin Park
Max Munsell: Sophomore – Breck
Milton Nuahn: Junior– Benilde St. Margaret’s
Honorable Mention
Hoop Habits very own Quincy Bean Tucker – Class of 2040
Under the Radar
The stars and emerging stars that simply don’t get the media attention or recognition they deserve.
1st Team
Carson McMichael: Senior – Blake
Peyton Gholson: Junior – Rosemount
Tyrece Hagler: Junior – Richfield
Matthew Johnson: Junior – St. Louis Park
JP Musoke: Senior – Breck
2nd Team
Kobby Sambrew: Junior – Prior Lake
Tian Chatman: Senior – Totino-Grace
Jack Burke: Senior – Southwest Christian
Joel Saah: Senior – Osseo
Matthew Jordan: Junior – Buffalo
3rd Team
Kyler Pust: Senior – Champlin Park
Cal Spencer: Junior – Spring Lake Park
Cooper Fahning: Senior – Eden Prairie
Willie Wright Jr.: Sophomore – Minnetonka
Tommy Shunmugavelu: Senior – Wayzata
Frank Lloyd Wright
Coaches who are architects responsible for building some of Minnesota’s elite programs.
Ken Novak Jr. – Hopkins
Bryan Schnettler – Wayzata
Mark Klingsporn – Tartan
Jerry Kline – Cretin-Derham Hall
Nick Carroll – Totino-Grace
About the Author
As Hoop Habits’ media contributor, Roger Johnson brings decades of basketball expertise to his articles. Having served as a marketing executive at Wells Fargo & Company and a content writer for Ultimate Hoops, Roger’s true passion has always been basketball. With experience as a collegiate player at Moorhead State University, coach, and parent of successful players, Roger offers unique insights into the game. His dedication shows through his Minnesota Timberwolves season tickets, University of Minnesota basketball support, and attendance at over 3,000 basketball games throughout his lifetime.