MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — The sophomore class of boys basketball players in the state has one clearly at the head of the class: Apple Valley’s Tyus Jones.

But moving up the chart is Robbinsdale Cooper’s Rashad Vaughn. All the big schools are talking to him, and it’s for good reason.

Watch him move, watch him work and watch him play. It doesn’t take long to pick him out on the basketball court. Vaughn has that kind of skill set that puts him apart from others.

“He handles the ball really well and he can go inside. He’s a very complete player, he can go outside and he can go inside. With our offense he’s all over the floor so it’s hard to defend him in one spot,” said David Johnson, Cooper’s basketball coach.

His workout schedule is a big reason why. It starts early. You look at Vaughn’s body and his body of work, and he reminds you of another big-time basketball player that came through Cooper High School that now plays in the Big 10 Conference.

Before Rodney Williams was making it at Williams Arena with the Minnesota Gophers, he was carving out a name. At Cooper High School, the comparisons between he and Vaughn come quickly.

“That’s all I hear here is Rodney this, Rodney that. It’s in the hallway and with the teachers,” Vaughn said. “And he was just here so we’ve been going at it in open gyms a lot. It was fun.”

In the meantime, the super sophomore keeps moving up the ladder, keeps  people watching and keeps finding out how to convert potential into talent.

“I’m pretty much a versatile player. I can play the one through the five, I can shoot, I can take you off the dribble. I can pretty much play all positions so I can be effective. I can play any position,” Vaughn said.