When people talk about the biggest collections of high school basketball talent in South Florida, the conversation usually gravitates toward the familiar names.
Columbus. Calvary Christian. National prep programs like Prolific Prep. Programs with national schedules, highly ranked recruits and seemingly nonstop attention from scouts and media.
But there may be another name that deserves to be mentioned much more often.
The small private school in Weston has quietly become home to some serious basketball talent, and one recent Sagemont roster may eventually look even crazier in hindsight.
Matthew Able. Kevin Thomas. Ricky Liburd.
All three shared the floor at Sagemont.
Today, Able and Thomas are at North Carolina. Liburd is at Michigan.
And all three have legitimate paths that could eventually lead to the NBA.
Think about that.
Three potential NBA players coming out of the same small South Florida school.
And the scary part?
Sagemont may be loading up again.
Matthew Able: The NBA Buzz Is Already Here
Of the three, Matthew Able is already beginning to receive the type of attention that can change the perception of an entire high school program.
After spending his freshman season at NC State, Able transferred to North Carolina for the 2026-27 season.
And he's arriving in Chapel Hill with legitimate NBA Draft buzz.
Able has already appeared in early 2027 NBA mock drafts, including a CBS Sports projection that placed him No. 13 overall.
That's not simply "NBA potential."
That's lottery territory.
For anyone who watched Able at Sagemont, the development shouldn't be surprising.
Able could score.
He had the size to play through smaller guards, the skill to create his own shot and the shooting ability to punish defenses from the perimeter. He averaged 20.4 points, 5.9 rebounds and 2.9 assists during his senior season while shooting 40 percent from three.
Now take that foundation and put it inside North Carolina.
If Able makes another significant jump this season, Sagemont could potentially have a former player hearing his name called very early on NBA Draft night.
Kevin Thomas Might Have the Highest Ceiling of Them All
Then there's Kevin Thomas.
And Thomas might ultimately become the biggest wild card of the group.
The 6-foot-6, 205-pound North Carolina freshman possesses the type of athletic tools that are impossible to teach.
Explosiveness.
Length.
Power.
Ability to play above the rim.
Defensive versatility.
Thomas can impact a basketball game without dominating the ball, and that's part of what makes his long-term development so interesting.
Because Kevin isn't a finished product.
That's the exciting part.
If the shooting, handle and overall offensive polish continue catching up with his physical ability, how good can he become?
There may not be a clear answer yet.
His ceiling is enormous.
Now he'll have access to North Carolina's coaching, strength program, facilities and daily competition while developing alongside Able.
Don't be surprised if Thomas is a name NBA scouts eventually start talking about much more seriously.
Ricky Liburd Could Be About to Get His Opportunity
And then there's Ricky Liburd.
Maybe the least nationally discussed of the three right now.
That could change quickly.
After redshirting during Michigan's national championship season, the 6-foot-5, 200-pound guard enters this season with a major opportunity in front of him.
Liburd has always possessed intriguing tools.
He's long, athletic and physical, with an approximately 6-foot-9½ wingspan and the ability to impact both ends of the floor.
Now circumstances at Michigan could accelerate his opportunity.
The unfortunate season-ending ACL injury to highly touted freshman Brandon McCoy Jr. leaves a significant hole in Michigan's rotation.
That doesn't mean Liburd automatically gets the job.
But somebody has to earn those minutes.
And Ricky could find himself competing for a major role, potentially even a starting spot.
Sagemont fans have already seen what happens when Liburd gets an opportunity.
In the 2025 state championship game, he exploded for 29 points, nine rebounds, four assists and three blocks.
Now imagine that talent after a full year developing inside Michigan's program.
This could be the season the rest of the country finds out who Ricky Liburd is.
Kevin Thomas, Matt Able & Ricky Liburd Teammates
Three Different Players. Three NBA Paths.
That's what makes this bigger than simply saying Sagemont had a good basketball team.
Look at the three individually.
Able has already generated legitimate lottery-pick buzz.
Thomas may have as much untapped physical upside as anyone from the group.
Liburd has spent a year developing at Michigan and may now be staring at the opportunity he's been waiting for.
There are obviously no guarantees when talking about the NBA.
But we're not talking about three random high school teammates who went off to play college basketball somewhere.
We're talking about three players from the same small South Florida school who are now at North Carolina and Michigan, with each possessing legitimate attributes that could translate to professional basketball.
That's a talent story.
And it raises an obvious question:
Why isn't Sagemont talked about more as one of South Florida's premier destinations for basketball talent?
Maybe the Talent Has Been Hiding in Plain Sight
Sagemont's championships matter.
Four consecutive state titles don't happen accidentally.
But perhaps the banners have actually overshadowed another part of what has been happening in Weston.
Look at the players.
The program hasn't simply been winning games.
It has been developing high-major talent.
Able, Thomas and Liburd are now three of the clearest examples.
And when you consider the size of Sagemont compared with some of the basketball brands it competes against for attention, what has happened there becomes even more impressive.
This isn't a giant national basketball academy.
It isn't a program whose entire identity is built around recruiting a new collection of nationally ranked prospects every year.
It's Sagemont Prep in Weston, Florida.
And somehow, three potential NBA players were sharing the same gym.
Now AJ Braziel Gets the Keys
Which brings us to perhaps the most intriguing part of the story.
Sagemont may have another wave coming.
The program enters 2026-27 with a new head coach as Andre "AJ" Braziel takes over for David Roe, who has transitioned into his role as Upper Campus Principal at Sagemont Prep.
But calling AJ a "new" coach only tells part of the story.
He's new to the head coaching position. He isn't new to Sagemont's talent development.
Braziel has been there.
As an assistant coach and skills trainer, he worked inside the program while players like Able, Thomas and Liburd developed.
He knows the players.
He knows the culture.
And, perhaps most importantly for where Sagemont goes next, player development is already a major part of who he is as a coach.
Now he gets the keys to the program.
Joining him is Jules Penn as an assistant coach, creating a new leadership structure for Sagemont as the program begins its next chapter.
And the timing couldn't be more interesting.
Because the cupboard isn't bare.
Far from it.
Another Loaded Sagemont Group Is Coming
This year's Sagemont roster may once again be one of the most talented and slept-on groups in Florida — and potentially one worth watching nationally.
That's what makes the AJ Braziel era fascinating before he's even coached his first season as the head man.
The question isn't simply whether Sagemont can win another championship.
We've already seen Sagemont win.
The more interesting question is:
Who's next?
Who is the next Able?
Who makes the jump Thomas made?
Who is sitting on this roster right now that people outside South Florida may barely know, but college coaches and scouts could be talking about very differently a year from now?
That's the standard Sagemont's recent talent has created.
And having a skills trainer now running the entire program makes the player-development side of this next chapter particularly intriguing.
AJ isn't simply inheriting wins.
He's inheriting talent and the responsibility of developing the next wave.
Stop Calling Sagemont a Sleeper?
Maybe that's ultimately where the perception needs to change.
For years, Sagemont has been easy to describe as the little school in Weston that keeps beating bigger basketball names.
But look at where the players are going.
North Carolina.
Michigan.
Look at what NBA evaluators are beginning to say about Able.
Look at the physical ceiling Thomas possesses.
Look at the opportunity potentially opening for Liburd.
And then look at the talent preparing to come behind them.
The four straight state championships are impressive.
But the talent may ultimately become the bigger story.
Because years from now, if Matthew Able is playing in the NBA, Kevin Thomas develops into an NBA prospect of his own and Ricky Liburd takes advantage of his opportunity at Michigan, people may look back at that Sagemont team very differently.
Three future pros potentially sharing the floor.
At a small school in Weston.
And another generation already coming behind them.
Maybe Sagemont Prep isn't simply one of South Florida's most slept-on winning programs.
Maybe it's becoming one of South Florida's most slept-on basketball talent factories.
And with Andre "AJ" Braziel now running the program, we may only be beginning to see what comes next.
