At 6 foot 7 inches tall, 14-year-old Caleb Gaskin was one of the youngest players at the USA minicamp this year and he impressed several NBA scouts with his performance. Each year, USA basketball hosts a training camp to create a Team USA for youth. The camp has the top players from each high school class and is held at the same location as the final four. (Held in the same location as the final four, this camp brings together the top players from each of the high school classes where players are given the opportunity to compete against one another on a bigger stage.) I noticed Gaskins in one of the first drills, which was a 3-on-3 drill. This is one of my favorite drills for youth development because it forces players to talk on defense and you get a chance to see the reads players’ make in the open space.
During the start of this drill, some of the top players of each class, such as Tre Johnson and Dylan Harper (class of 2024), Koa Peat (class of 2025), etc. demonstrated to the rest of the group of athletes. As I watched, a kid by the name of Caleb Gaskins was in that group. This 6’7” wing was competing as if he was an upperclassman. He showed off his maturity and IQ early. He was able to defend and fight through screens, dunk, throw lob passes, and spaced out and knocked down 3s. Gaskins was doing it all!
At the end of day 1, I found out he was only 14-years-old. I couldn’t believe it! I told myself tomorrow we are going to see if he cooks up again. Same result in day 2. We had a conversation after day 2 where Gaskins explained to me why he was so advanced. “I work on my game a lot and most people are surprised to find I’m only 14.“
On top of Gaskins being 14-years-old, I automatically assumed he was getting offers from the top colleges, and to my surprise, Gaskins told me, “I haven’t received any offers from D1 schools, but I have been offered by a D2 in my hometown (Melbourne, Florida).” Mind you that during the camp, I had talked to several NBA teams that were impressed with Gaskins. Zero Division 1 offers need to change immediately! Gaskins is a player to keep an eye on going forward. He has high upside. Interview and highlights below: