AAU Breakout Player of the Year: Jordan Zubich, Starks Elite

When it comes to handing out awards at the end of the AAU season there can be an awful lot of debate about which players are most deserving of recognition. But not always. If you have been reading our evaluations and tournament coverage throughout the spring and summer of 2021, it will come as no surprise to you today to learn that the winner of the Prep Girls Hoops AAU Breakout Player of the Year award is 2024 guard [player_tooltip player_id="178277" first="Jordan" last="Zubich"] of Starks Elite. No other player has stepped up to the plate and delivered more often this year than the lanky 6-footer from Mountain Iron-Buhl. She entered the season as a solid prospect worth paying attention to. By the end of the summer Zubich had Division 1 offers in her pocket and had made it abundantly clear that she is a top prospect among Minnesota’s incoming sophomores. [player_tooltip player_id="178277" first="Jordan" last="Zubich"] <strong>– 2024 guard, Starks Elite (Duluth Marshall)</strong> We watched Jordan a lot, both in person and online, over the past two years in high school basketball. She showed us enough to earn a Top-35 ranking in our first sorting of the Class of 2024 last fall. We watched Jordan a lot this spring and summer, too, live and in color. What she showed us was light years beyond what we had seen before. Zubich announced her arrival very quickly with Dyami Starks’ squad from Duluth. Playing two years up, Jordan was dominant. Her play earned Zubich a big jump to #16 in the 2024 rankings. By the time the D1 coaches showed up at the Mill City Invitational in July, Zubich was big news and the recruiters saw it for themselves. Bottom line: Jordan is legit. She is an elite shooter, an excellent ball-handler and a terrific floor leader. She’s got ice water in her veins and never seems to be in fear of the big moment. When she eventually fills out and gets stronger we have no doubt that the sophomore will be successful in collegiate basketball. <strong>RUNNER-UP</strong> [player_tooltip player_id="302254" first="Vanessa" last="Saidu"] <strong>– 2023 forward, 43 Hoops McCoy (Park Center)</strong> Vanessa definitely caught our attention last winter with Park Center as she emerged on the scene as an impact player in high school basketball. This spring and summer we saw more of the same package, except it was brighter and shinier and more intriguing than before. Saidu is one of the most athletic players in the class. With a 6’6 wingspan, Vanessa’s, leaping ability and agility set her apart from most others. In a remarkable debut, the 6’2 forward entered the rankings at #25 and plenty of coaches came to watch. As she gets stronger and her skills become more polished, we’re confident Vanessa will parlay her breakout season into some quality college opportunities. <strong>HONORABLE MENTIONS</strong> [player_tooltip player_id="223912" first="Jenny" last="Ntambwe"] <strong>– 2022 forward, Stars Bjorgaard (Coon Rapids)</strong> Jenny wasted no time in launching her breakout campaign as the 6’1 power forward was outstanding in her debut with Chris Bjorgaard’s team on opening weekend. Jenny’s skills have come a long way over the past year. She’s smoother, has softer touch around the basket and has expanded her on-court understanding of the game by leaps and bounds. Combine that with a big frame, a tremendous work ethic and a high GPA and Ntambwe has made herself into an excellent next level prospect. Her ranking has risen from #140 to #64. [player_tooltip player_id="186118" first="Lauren" last="Pawlyshyn"] <strong>– 2023 guard, FBC Real (Prior Lake)</strong> Lauren is an outstanding tactician who can execute the coach’s game plan with no fuss, no muss. She distributes effectively, gets to the paint very well for her 5’6 size, and can shoot lights out in any given game. This year Lauren definitely put up numbers on her own accord. Pawlyshyn has great handles and is very creative when facing defenders one-on-one. What we saw this summer from Lauren was a higher degree of confidence, which translated into a more consistent level of performance. Lauren’s breakout year has seen her rise to #51 in the Class of 2023. [player_tooltip player_id="215973" first="Savanah" last="Gardner"] <strong>– 2024 forward, Stars Amundson (Eastview)</strong> What we witnessed from Savanah in her first full summer of evaluation one year ago was potential. What we saw from Savanah in 2021 was performance. There’s never been any question about the 6-footer’s talent level or the fact that she has an exceptional build for basketball. This year she put it all together to play with a level of self-assuredness, poise and leadership we hadn’t seen before. That raised her overall game to a new level and earned Savanah a jump from #32 to #20 in our Prep Girls Hoops Class of 2024 rankings. We weren’t the only ones to notice Gardner’s breakout performance, either, and recruiting interest is high. <span style="font-size: 10pt;"><em>Top photo: [player_tooltip player_id="178277" first="Jordan" last="Zubich"] (second from the right) made a lot of noise with her Starks Elite teammates</em></span>