Who is on the Link Academy high school basketball roster in 2022-23?

Link Academy begins its second season as one of the top high school basketball programs in the nation while playing on Camp Kanakuk's campus in Branson.

The Lions had an incredible breakout season in its inaugural year when it finished as the runner-up at the GEICO Nationals while playing against teams that fans in southwest Missouri typically see in the Bass Pro Tournament of Champions.

In January, Link Academy will make its debut at the Tournament of Champions this season. The team is led by former LSU associate head coach Bill Armstrong after Rodney Perry was hired away as an assistant coach at Kansas State.

More:Link Academy: Meet the new Branson high school basketball power you've never heard of

Here's a look at those who are on the roster entering the 2022-23 season:

Tyler McKinley, 2024

McKinley is a four-star 6-foot-8 power forward who comes to the Ozarks from Cincinnati. He holds offers from Cincinnati, Dayton, Kansas State, Miami (Ohio) and Ohio.

McKinley is currently ranked No. 61 nationally and was the top-ranked player in Ohio before making his move to Branson.

Ryan Forrest, 2023

Forrest is a 2023 guard from Marion, Arkansas, who stands at 6-foot-2, 170 pounds. His summer recently landed him offers from Missouri State, Illinois-Chicago, North Carolina A&T and Oral Roberts.

Forrest currently has a three-star ranking from 247Sports.

B.J. Davis-Ray, 2025

Ray is a 6-foot-6 shooting guard who is sure to receive big-time attention in rankings in future updates. He's already received some offers from some of the biggest teams in the country.

Schools to already offer the incoming sophomore include Kansas, Tennessee, Illinois, LSU, Kansas State and Houston. The Dallas native is ranked as the 18th-best player in his class by ESPN.

Aaron Rowe, 2025

The top prospect out of Columbia will make his way down to Link Academy. The 6-foot point guard is sure to be one of the biggest prospects in the country.

Already holding offers from Kansas State, Saint Louis, Missouri State, George Mason and Pepperdine, Rowe led Father Tolton deep into the postseason last season during his freshman year.

ESPN has Rowe ranked as its 15th-best player in the 2025 class.

Elliot Cadeau, 2024

Cadeau has emerged as the elite player on this roster by having a five-star rating and being ranked as the No. 7 player in the country. Plenty of attention is heading his way.

Cadeau holds offers from seemingly every school that can get on the phone with him. He holds offers from North Carolina, Louisville, Baylor, Texas Tech, Tennessee, Oklahoma State, Georgetown and many others.

The New Jersey native makes the move as one of the best point guards in the country while standing at 6-foot-1, 165 pounds.

Ja'Kobe Walter, 2023

Baylor's five-star commit is ranked as the No. 15 overall player in the country after making the move from McKinney, Texas. He stands at 6-foot-5 and is considered a shooting guard.

Before choosing Baylor, Walter held offers from Alabama, Auburn, Texas, Arkansas, Flordia, Kansas, Oklahoma, Ohio State, UCLA and pretty much everyone else.

247Sports projects Walter as a Power-5 quality starter who is one of the most productive and fundamentally sound shooting guards in his class.

Corey Chest Jr., 2023

Chest is making the move to Branson after playing high school ball in New Orleans for the last few years. He's an LSU commit who has four stars to his name along with being the No. 62 player in the country.

Chest recently committed to LSU when picking over schools like Kansas, Houston, Ole Miss and others. He's praised for this motor as a 6-foot-8 power forward who was once the top prospect in Louisiana.

R'Chaun King, 2024

King is making the move to the area from Memphis where he started to catch on as one of the city's rising prospects. He'll now have a chance to prove himself on the national circuit.

He's already caught the attention of some with offers from Florida, Ole Miss and Saint John's. He's a 6-foot-6 power forward without any national rankings but that is sure to change soon as he suits up for the Lions.

Jacolb Cole, 2023

Oklahoma-bound Cole is ranked as the No. 81 player in the country as a 6-foot-7, 185-pound small forward who picked the Sooners over teams like Nebraska, Georgia, Houston, LSU, Tennessee and others.

The four-star prospect is a lefty who is praised for his size, length and effort at the wing position. He has the "desire to be great," according to 247Sports and he'll be a great player once he develops his 3-point shot.

Nate Guerengomba, 2024

Guerengomba is a three-star forward from Washington D.C. who is piling up offers from Power 5 programs. He holds recent offers from Iowa, Mizzou and Virginia Tech while also receiving offers from New Mexico State, Rhode Island, Rutgers and others.

The 6-foot-4 small forward is considered a Top 150 junior and was touted as someone who is fun to watch. 247Sports wrote that he's an athletic, tough and strong competitor who finds ways to make things happen around the rim.

Cade Phillips, 2023

Phillips is a three-star power forward who is considered a Top 150 senior in the country. He committed to Tennessee in April over schools including Alabama, Auburn, Florida State, Georgia and others.

At 6-foot-9, Phillips chose the Volunteers even when his parents played for Alabama. The former Jacksonville (Alabama) High is considered a premier shot-blocker and he helped lead his high school program to its first state title last year while averaging 13.3 points, 8.2 rebounds and 4.5 blocks per game.

Ben Linnemeyer, 2023

Linnemeyer makes his way down to Springfield from Columbia where he was a standout at Rock Bridge. His recruitment hasn't quite caught on but his 6-foot-6 stature as a shooter will be an attractive one to many as he plays in this program.

Cameron Carr, 2023

Carr is a 6-foot-4 combo guard who is originally from Manhattan, Kansas, the home of Kansas State which has offered the senior along with the likes of Northwestern, Tennessee and Virginia.

Carr is in his second season with the Link Academy program. 247Sports called him a "late-bloomer" who is thin but can score and be a playmaker. His father, Chris Carr, played in the NBA after a career at Southern Illinois. He was an assistant at Kansas State and is now in his second year as an assistant at Drury.

Link Academy 2022-23 schedule

• Nov. 5-6 — The Scrimmage (Dallas)

• Nov. 8 — Vision Academy

• Nov. 12 — Lang Prep Academy (Branson)

• Nov. 19 — The Big Show (Fort Smith, Arkansas)

• Nov. 21 — Bentonville West

• Nov. 25-26 — Thanksgiving Hoopfest (Dallas)

• Dec. 1-3 — Marshall County Hoopfest (Paducah, Kentucky)

• Dec. 8 — Ozark Mountain Shootout (Glendale High)

• Dec. 10-11 — 48 Hours of Basketball (Springfield)

• Dec. 15 — Norm Stewart Classic (Columbia)

• Dec. 18-20 — City of Palms Classic (Fort Myers, Florida)

• Jan. 6-8 — Gotham City Showcase (New York City)

• Jan. 12-14 — Bass Pro Tournament of Champions (Springfield)

• Jan. 16 — Hoophall Classic (Springfield, Massachusetts)

• Jan. 20-21 — Quincy Shootout (Quincy, Illinois)

• Jan. 27-29 — Duel in the Desert (Phoenix)

• Feb. 10-11 — Dr Pepper Classic (Chattanooga, Tennessee)

• Feb. 15 — OKC Prep (Branson)

• March 31-April 2 — GEICO Nationals (Fort Myers, Florida)

Wyatt D. Wheeler is a reporter and columnist with the Springfield News-Leader. You can contact him at 417-371-6987, by email at wwheeler@news-leader.com or Twitter at @WyattWheeler_NL. He's also the co-host of Sports Talk on Jock Radio weekdays from 4-6 p.m.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Link Academy high school basketball 2022-23 roster