High school boys' basketball: These 15 players will make their mark on the season

The boys' high school basketball season has already taken flight and early indications are that multiple desert teams have what it takes to soar deep into the playoffs.

There is a lot of returning talent in the desert this year. Three teams (Palm Springs, Palm Desert and Rancho Mirage) are already ranked in their respective divisions, a pair of league MVPs return, and one of the top players in the desert is back in action after missing all of last year with an injury.

League play in the Desert Valley League has already started and the Desert Empire League joins them later this month.

So it's a good time to look at the players who are expected to be the driving forces for their team's success this season.

These are the 15 players all desert hoops fans should know for the 2023-24 season, listed in alphabetical order.

High school girls' basketball: These are the 15 players desert fans should know

Jake Brande, Palm Desert

Sophomore: Brande is a versatile post player for the Aztecs, who can score in a variety of ways. He averages 8.1 points and 8.5 rebounds per game, but showed in a 22-point game earlier this year that he has taken a big step from the time he got as a freshman on the varsity last season.

Zach Buley, Palm Springs

Senior: Buley is coming off a year in which he was the Desert Empire League MVP honor, and was named The Desert Sun's basketball player of the year after averaging over 20 points per game. So he was an easy pick for this list. In the early going for the Indians, who are ranked ninth in Division 2A, his scoring average is down but that's because there are a lot of scoring options on the team this year. His veteran presence and clutch gene will no doubt be valuable as the season wears on.

Coby Christensen, Palm Desert

Senior: Desert hoops fans may know Christensen's story. He was a great player at Palm Springs and transferred to Palm Desert, but missed his entire junior season with an injury. Now he's a senior, he's healthy and he's making up for lost time. The best pure shooter the desert has seen in a long time, Christensen can score in bunches, but don't paint him as just a shooter, he can score in the mid-range and at the hoop too as evidenced by a 37-point game against Riverside Prep where he only made 4 3-pointers. He's averaging 24.0 points per game.

Jayden Creavalle, Palm Springs

Senior: The name Creavalle, immediately brings the word "creative" to mind and it suits Jayden's game. He's one of those players who can do everything, shoot, dribble-drive, pass and defend at a high level. The game seems to slow down for him, even though, he's moving fast. A fun player to watch. He's averaging about 15 points and five rebounds so far. A returning All-DEL first-teamer.

Jayse Creavalle, Palm Springs

Junior: Younger brother to Jayden, Jayse has elevated his game this year and is being counted on to do a lot more as the team's point guard. His game management is excellent and he can score, too, already with a 20-point game under his belt this year. A returning All-DEL first-teamer.

Paul Dreisbach, Xavier Prep

Sophomore: Dreisbach is a scorer plain and simple. He is hitting 3-pointers at a 38% clip. He can score with a mid-range floater. He can score at the rim and he can score from the free-throw line. It all adds up to an area-best 25.0 points per game so far this season. An entertaining player to watch.

Jordan Glaspie, Desert Hot Springs

Senior: People may forget that it was the Golden Eagles who made the deepest playoff run last season, and Jordan Glaspie led the way for that team. The first-team all-DVL performer is back to lead Desert Hot Springs again. The quick guard is tough to slow down on the dribble-drive and is comfortable hitting from long-range, too, as evidenced by his five 3-pointers in the team's final playoff game last season.

Jayden Gonzalez, Indio

Senior: Gonzalez is back from a first-team all-DVL performance last year for the DVL co-champion Rajahs and the tall guard has the Rajahs off to a good start again, already with a win over DVL rival Yucca Valley. Gonzalez is 6-foot-3 but runs the point guard duties for the Rajahs and does it well. He can score on his own, but loves to set teammates up for easy buckets. A unique player that has a lot of game.

Marcus Gragg-Buchanan, Rancho Mirage

Freshman: You don't get a lot of freshmen on a list like this, but coach Rob Hanmer is excited about his young point guard. Gragg-Buchanan is piloting the team, which is off to a 7-2 record and is ranked No. 7 in Division 4A, and he's already adjusting to the speed of the varsity game. He averages a team-high 13.5 points per game.

Myles Harper, Yucca Valley

Senior: After an extremely prolific and long-lasting football season for the star running back, Harper is just now getting into the high school hoops season. He scored 13 points in his first game back, and his speed, athletic ability and basketball IQ should help the Trojans vie for a second straight DVL title. He is a returning all-DVL performer.

Jacorey Jones, Palm Desert

Sophomore: Jones is sort of a Swiss-army-knife type player for the Aztecs, who contributes in a lot of different ways. He averages 7.9 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 2.5 steals per game. A valuable piece to an Aztecs team that is off to an 8-2 start and is ranked No. 13 in the latest Division 3AA poll.

Jadon Pierce, Yucca Valley

Senior: Pierce was co-MVP of the Desert Valley League last year and he's back to help the Trojans contend for a second straight title after tying with Indio for the top spot last year. Pierce is a dynamic player averaging around 15 points so far this year, including a 20-point game against Rancho Mirage for a Yucca Valley team that is still rounding into shape due to an extended football season.

Julian Ramiu, Palm Springs

Senior: While the other Indians players on this list are returning all-league players, Julian is the semi-secret weapon for the Indians. He's playing a huge role in the Indians' offense, averaging 14 points and 10 rebounds and had 28 points in the team's win over Warren High earlier this year.

Derick Silva, Shadow Hills

Sophomore: The versatile guard has emerged as the go-to guy for the Knights and he's taking that role in stride, averaging an impressive 20.2 points per game and has scored at least 15 points in every game.

Augustine Youssef, DCA

Junior: Youssef has blossomed into one of the top players in the desert. He's averaging 20.5 points, 9.8 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game for the Conquerors in the early going. The 6-foot junior can score at all three levels and as his stat line shows, contributes heavily in all three triple-double categories.

Shad Powers is a columnist for The Desert Sun. Reach him at shad.powers@desertsun.com.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: High school boys' basketball: Get to know these 15 impact players