WATCH: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams pull up to the Nike EYBL showcase featuring Kiyan Anthony and Bryce James' schools

By Oluwajoba

Modified Dec 17, 2024 13:57 GMT

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OKC Thunder stars Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams were in attendance with CBS analyst Richard Hamilton to watch the next generation of players at the Nike EYBL showcase in Las Vegas. The trio took time out of their schedule to catch the matchups featuring Kiyan Anthony's Long Island Lutheran and Bryce James' Sierra Canyon.

Gilgeous-Alexander and Williams took in the action as Sierra Canyon took on the Coronado Cougars at Dolby Live on Saturday before Lutheran clashed with Link Academy the following day.

Alexander and Williams were able to attend the showcase as they are currently in Vegas for the NBA Cup final, having beaten the Houston Rockets 111-96 in the semifinal at the T-Mobile Arena.

As for the showcase EYBL game, Sierra Canyon beat the Cougars 78-58, although Bryce did not play a part in the victory due to an injury. In his absence, Gavin Hightower, Chris Nwuli and Jayden Alexander scored a combined 46 points to help Sierra Canyon to the win.

Hightower dropped 18 points, while Nwuli and Alexander recorded 17 and 11 points, respectively. The triumph improved Sierra Canyon’s record to 8-1 this season, having lost to Lutheran High School last Friday, in a game that both Bryce and Kiyan missed.

But despite the win over Sierra Canyon, Lutheran High School dropped to 4-4 after it lost its EYBL showcase game to Link Academy 66-42 on Sunday and Sunrise Christian Academy 44-43 on Monday. Kiyan also missed the two games due to injury.

What next for Kiyan Anthony and Bryce James?

Should they recover early, both Kiyan Anthony and Bryce James could feature for their teams in their respective next games. As for Kiyan, he could play when Lutheran takes on Owasso at the City of Palms Classic on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Bryce’s Sierra Canyon will take on Millikan in a holiday battle on Saturday.

Both Kiyan and Bryce are two of the most popular players in the Class of 2025, even though Kiyan seems like the more promising prospect.

He is ranked 35th in On3’s list for the Class of 2025, significantly higher than Bryce James, who is ranked 204th. Anthony also outscored James when they faced off at Nike’s EYBL in the summer, scoring 18 points and registering four assists, compared to Bryce’s eight points and two rebounds.