Coachability has become one of the most immense and immeasurable intangibles a player at the prep level can possess.
It is an essential ingredient in gauging the upside and prolonged development of a promising prospect.
For Choate Academy (CT) Class of 2020 combination guard Hayden Peek, a transfer via Trinity Pawling (NY) with a Division-1 caliber skill set, coachability is a bedrock principle.
His incremental day to day development and how well he adapts to coaching has shaped him from a role player to an upside-heavy prospect.
The 6-foot-5 Peek averaged 11 points, five boards, and four assists as a sophomore at Trinity Pawling.
He rapidly emerged into a pivotal supplementary piece to crafty Class of 2018 guard Brandon Redendo.
Redendo, a facilitator and a scorer who took playmaking matters into his own hands this past season, frequently created for Peek and allowed him to carve his niche as a catch-and-stick threat.
Subscribing to an arduous workout regimen this summer and tuning up his physicality has been translatable to sublime performances on the court.
Peek showed out at the West Coast Rising Stars All Star game in July. He also emerged as one of the top-tier juniors at the Fab 48, a portent of Peek's stock rising at the right time.
"He's got all the tools to be successful, but what really separates Hayden from other guys his age is his work ethic and that desire to be an elite level player," said NY Pride AAU coach/trainer Aldo Redendo, an instrumental presence in pushing Peek's evolution this summer.
"He's about 6-foot-5 and can throw it down with either hand. He's got a great set shot. He's become extremely proficient at getting to the hole, rebounding the ball and playing smothering defense. With two years of high school left, he's got the potential to be a mid major player. There's a huge upside with him. He works as hard as any player I've ever had, as far as getting into the gym and being consistently devoted to working at his craft. He still needs to work at scoring the ball off the dribble."
Developing into a springboard-bouncy attacker, Peek has discovered a newfound love for blowing by defenders and finishing at or above the rim.
He's cognizant that becoming a deadeye shooter will catapult him to Division-1 credibility.
And so becoming a 500 shots per day guy and a purified knockdown shooter, one capable of navigating a pressure cooker with timely shots, is the challenge Peek now finds himself readying himself for.
At Choate, a prestigious and academically enriched program, Peek will have the opportunity to be a high impact transfer with his scoring and defensive versatility.
This should turn interest from NEC, MAAC, and Ivy League programs into a stockpile of offers by next summer.
"Coach Drew Dawson runs a great program at Choate and there are certainly some high level guys and Division-1 guys Hayden will play alongside," explained Redendo.
"He will be in a great environment where he can grow and thrive under that structure. It will really help prepare him for the next level. He's got a chance to, in two years, be a very special player there and do some eye widening things with his athleticism and skill set."
This summer certainly helped. Peek was a role player on a Team Rio program featuring heavily touted national recruits such as Bryan Antoine and Scottie Lewis. Both are highly prioritized high major prospects who will pick and choose where they want to play in college.
Peek is quick to cite two people in the development of his skill set and newly acquired scoring prowess.
The first is Sam Peek, his sharpshooting older brother who starred at Trinity Pawling and will prolong his career at Wesleyan (CT).
The second is Brandon Redendo, the lead guard who spearheaded Trinity with 21 points and a league-best eight assists per game in 2017-18.
Both recently graduated guards continued to hold him to a high standard while making sure he ramped up the unrequired work.
"Hayden does everything to the max, he is workmanlike both on the court and off it," said Aldo Redendo, a longtime Westchester County player development ace who has trained the likes of Taj Finger (Fox Lane/Stanford), Hilton Armstrong (Peekskill/UConn/NBA), Mike Kach (Carmel/UPenn), Donnie McCrath (Kennedy Catholic/Providence) and countless others.
"He's got a 3.7 GPA. He's taking some high level courses. An Ivy League situation would really give him the opportunity to be a player. I think that should be where the expectation level is set with him. He's got the natural ability and the on-court awareness and IQ factor."