Pocatello, Idaho – When you think of Idaho, what comes to mind? Famous potatoes or the Blue Turf in Boise? What probably doesn’t come to the top of your mind is hoops talent. 13-year-old Isiah Harwell Isiah Harwell 6'4" |…
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Subscribe Already a subscriber? Log inPocatello, Idaho – When you think of Idaho, what comes to mind? Famous potatoes or the Blue Turf in Boise? What probably doesn’t come to the top of your mind is hoops talent. 13-year-old
Isiah Harwell
Isiah
Harwell
6'4" | WF
ID
is looking to change all that.
If ever a player was perfectly suited for the challenge, it’s Harwell. The 6’3 guard comes from a basketball family, following in the footsteps of his older brother Maleek, who played at Boise State, and his dad Ron, who played for Idaho State. I recently had a chance to sit down with Ron to learn a little more about the youngest Harwell.
Isiah is a big guard with the ability to see over defenders and make passes to his teammates. According to his father, he’s also started to display some big-time athleticism.
“He’s really starting to come into his own as far as an athlete, he’s been playing above the rim for the past two months,” says Ron Harwell.
Despite usually being the tallest player on the floor, Harwell is extremely comfortable handling the ball. He’s a versatile weapon that can score off the bounce or down low.
“He’s still down there bumping with the bigs and can score on them with ease and he has a plethora of moves down low, then he can go to the outside and jump over you to get his shot off,” Ron added.
The elder Harwell is not speaking hyperbole, one look at Harwell on film and you see the largest player on the floor, grabbing rebounds, leading the break, and setting up teammates. He already possesses an advanced arsenal of 1 on 1 moves, developed from years of honing his ballhandling skills.
“He was playing inside a lot in 4th grade, 5th grade, and 6th grade, but he was always being trained as a guard. I was of the mindset that you have to be able to handle the ball to be independent,” Ron said.
When it comes to improving his mindset, the younger Harwell doesn’t have to go far for advice. His father Ron was a prep star in Memphis, Ten. who competed against talent like Penny Hardway and former college All-American Todd Day. He would eventually go on to accept a scholarship to play at Idaho State. His older brother, Maleek, was a Rivals top 150 prospect who would go on to play at Boise St before finishing his career at Cal Poly.
As if it wasn’t enough to have to live up to the expectations of being in a basketball family, Harwell is already being tabbed as one of the best prospects to ever come out of the state of Idaho. Despite the hype, Ron asserts that his son never gets rattled.
Already a skilled offensive player, the younger Harwell is currently working with his father to improve his skills on the other side of the ball.
“I was known as a defensive stopper,” Ron said, “so I work with him on the defensive end.”
With his pedigree, skill set, and work ethic, it’s going to be fun to watch Harwell develop over the next few years. While big things may be on the horizon, for now, Harwell trains every day with his dad and his Utah Drive AAU team. He works tirelessly to improve his skills, in the hopes of one day following in the footsteps of big brother and father, and earning a Division I scholarship.
