It is with a heavy heart that we report the passing of freshman star Armoni Sexton. The 6-foot-7 athletic forward from Paterson Charter was apparently shot and killed Saturday night in Paterson.

It is a tragedy that another promising young person has had hit life ended prematurely before he could realize his vast potential.

How good was his potential? NJ Hoops had seen Sexton play close to 10 times already in his brief career, including twice this season with Paterson Charter High School. He was under strong consideration to be ranked #1 in the state in the Class of 2018, but was ranked 2nd behind Nazreon Reid.

One of the first times NJ Hoops saw him play we were remember thinking he reminded us of a young Timmy Thomas and hailed from the same area. He had a very lively body and an excellent motor and the ability to score inside and outside. He could take over games in many different ways and frequently did.

He made an impact on the high school level as a freshman including a 41 point effort in a win over Saddle Brook.

It is a complete shame that we will never get to see him play again and see how far his immense talent could have taken him. It's a loss for the basketball community in the state and obviously much more so for his family and friends.

Armani Sexton R.I.P.