"Need you in Durham Nate": Hoops fans react to $1.3 million NIL-valued Nate Ament's performance at the Neptune Tip-Off Classic

Nate Ament and his Highland High School Hawks are participating in the Neptune Tip-off Classic in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Their most recent game was against Catholic Crusaders on Friday. It was a close game, with Highland escaping with a 60-57 victory.

The game was a battle between the five-star power forward Ament and the three-star point guard from Catholic, Ashton Walker, who is a Radford commit. Both players shone during that game and fans have noticed.

Fans were praising Nate Ament for his performance against Catholic that night, with some trying to convince him to choose their respective schools. Meanwhile, others were praising the Reebok ambassador, whose NIL value stands at $1.3 million.

"Need you in Durham Nate," commented the Duke Nation fan account.

"Future ND legend Nate ament," said a Notre Dame fan.

"my yb like that 🫣 @ament_nate," added another commenter.

Meanwhile, others were praising Ashton Walker, as the three-star prospect showed he was not intimidated by his No. 4-ranked foe.

"@ashtonwalker._ The kid 💯," commented one Catholic fan.

"yeah gang @ashtonwalker._," added another.

"ash❤️💙," another fan commented.

Fans react to Nate Ament vs. Ashton Walker matchup (Source: instagram/slam_hs)

Duke University is one of Ament's top schools and he could get to play with the No. 2-ranked Cameron Boozer. Meanwhile, Notre Dame is considered one of the favorites, with a 15.2% chance of getting him. The top favorite so far is Tennessee with a 20.2% chance of getting Ament's commitment.

As for Walker, while he is rated a three-star, he is unranked by 247Sports. Though his performance against Ament and Highland may prove some of his doubters wrong.

What is next for Nate Ament and Highland High School? A look at their next matches

Highland High School has not yet started its regular season games in Virginia, with its first game not happening until Jan. 3. That's when Nate Ament and the rest of the Highland Hawks face Craig County.

After that, their next regular season opponent will be Narrows High School on Jan. 7, followed by Eastern Montgomery on Jan. 14. None of these opponents have any ranked or rated players.

For now though, they are still playing some pre-season games with the Neptune Tip-off Classic. Their next opponents are Broughton on Saturday, followed by Prince George Christian Academy on Monday.

The Hawks recently came off a win against Massanuten Military Academy on Nov. 20, but had back-to-back losses earlier in the month. The first one was against No. 1-ranked AJ Dybantsa's Utah Prep on Nov. 6, and the second was by Perkiomen School on Nov. 10.