Who are the top players for Nashville SC U-17s?

<!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size">Nashville's academy is still in it's infancy stage and they are taking baby steps towards building out a functioning program. They recently hit a major milestone in signing their first academy player —&nbsp;Adem Sipic. Sipic has been the best player from their 2006 class and their U17 team and it is very encouraging to see Nashville reward him with a first team deal. Sipic has not been a Youth National Team player, but is just on the fringes of being at that level. The rest of the 2006 and 2007 class lacks high level talent, but have some solid players that could end up having pro careers. One exciting development is that Nashville have promoted their top 2008, [player_tooltip player_id='124142' first='Charly' last='Dealmonte'], to the U17 team. This is a great sign because they are showing that they are identifying talent and moving them aggressively through their pathway.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"large"} --> <p class="has-large-font-size">My grading system</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I use a numerical scoring framework to grade players. I look at what I consider to be the most important traits and skills for each position and apply a numerical value to each of those categories. I take into account the age of the player when grading for each category. The categories include physical traits, technical ability, intellectual understanding of the game and their mentality in how they approach the game. I average those individual scores in order to generate a holistic grade of the player. The score helps me identify what tier of prospect a player is.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Tier 1</strong>: </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>High impact Youth National Team Player, often times playing up an age group</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>High impact club player, often times plays up an age group and still heavily impacts games</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>On the fast track to the first team</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Tier 2:</strong> </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Depending on strength of the age group, likely Youth National Team pool or core player</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>High impact player within his age group</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Potential future first team player</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Tier 3:</strong> </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>On the outside looking in to the Youth National Team</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Consistently one of the more impactful players on his club team</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>On track for a look in MLS Next Pro, USL or NCAA soccer</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Possesses some high level skills or traits, but also holes in his game</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"large"} --> <p class="has-large-font-size">CF, Adem Sipic (2006)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>What kind of player is he? </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sipic is a big and athletic striker that uses his physical tools well to get into dangerous areas. Sipic is the type of striker you love to have if you are a team that likes to win in transition. Sipic is great at stretching backlines, floating out wide and using his speed to make defenses uncomfortable. He is still a little raw in hold up play, connecting with teammates and creating his own chances, but he is a player that can do a lot of damage in space. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Tier:</strong> Low 2</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"large"} --> <p class="has-large-font-size">WING, Connor Stretchen (2006)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>What kind of player is he? </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Stretchen has the foundational tools to be a player that could develop later in his career. He has very good size and he is a fluid athlete. He also has good feet and control of the ball. What Stretchen has not yet figured out is how to apply his gifts in the most dangerous and consistent way in a match. If he can learn how to attack and read the game more consistently there is an intriguing upside to his development.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Tier:</strong> Low 3</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"large"} --> <p class="has-large-font-size">AM, Alejandro Velazquez-Lopez (2006)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>What kind of player is he? </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Veazquez-Lopez is a very refined and polished player for this age level. He is a classic playmaking 10 with good dribbling ability, vision and passing instincts. He has a strong frame which allows him to protect the ball well, but does lack speed and quickness. He will likely never be super impactful against the ball, so his role and value will be limited to certain types of game models.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Tier:</strong> Low 3</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"large"} --> <p class="has-large-font-size">WING, [player_tooltip player_id='15134' first='Dominic' last='Wilson'] (2006)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>What kind of player is he? </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Wilson is a good transition player with good finishing ability in the box. Wilson is at his best in transition when he is played into space where he doesn't have a ton of traffic to deal with. He struggles a little bit against low blocks and set defenses. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Tier:</strong> Low 3</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"large"} --> <p class="has-large-font-size">CB, [player_tooltip player_id='59806' first='Scott' last='Cheevers'] (2007)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>What kind of player is he? </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Cheevers is an imposing figure in the backline. He has the ability to be dominant in duels because of his length and strength, but he can get caught out of position at times. Cheevers shows flashes of ability on the ball, but it is still far too inconsistent. Cheevers is another player that could hit big later on in his development. I am excited to see how he does as more of the anchor of the backline next year.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Tier:</strong> Low 3</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"large"} --> <p class="has-large-font-size">RB/WING, [player_tooltip player_id='124142' first='Charly' last='Dealmonte'] (2008)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>What kind of player is he? </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Dealmonte is an exciting young wide player that can play both full-back positions and as a winger. Dealmonte is adept at pushing forward, attacking defenders one on one and using quickness, technique and creativity to get himself and others into dangerous positions. Tactically, he is still figuring things out — both with the ball and against the ball, but that should develop in the next couple of years. Dealmonte looks like a player that Nashville is fast tracking to be another academy graduate. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Tier:</strong> Low 2</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->