Top 2025 Defenders from the Spring and Live Periods

Hunter Keith August 6, 2022 @ 01:12 PM

Throughout the AAU season and particularly in the Live Periods, the 2025 class was represented on the basketball court. The class is an ultra-talented class and look to hear many of their names during the upcoming basketball season. The fact that some are even garnering college offers already illustrates this point. In this article, we highlight some of the players who stood out on the defensive end of the court.   [player_tooltip player_id='346835' first='Jaida' last='Civil'] / 2025 / 5'10" CG / ECU Family 2023   Civil is one of the best athletes I've ever seen on a basketball court. I'm left in awe every time I see her play. Civil is fast, quick, strong, athletic, fluid, etc. Every time she laces up the sneakers, she is probably the best athlete on the court. Civil can defend 3 positions on the floor. She can disrupt the 1, stay in front of the 2 or 3 and contest their jumpers, and can stop all of them from driving with her foot speed, her length, and athleticism. Civil sttod out this live period and did so playing up two grades against upcoming Seniors. Many of her opponents were serious D-1 prospects, but then so is Civil. Civil has not only received major interest from D-1 schools but has received several offers from two power 5 teams in the State. r defense and athleticism are off the charts. peaking of D1 Offers, Civil has received major interest and has already received offers from major power 5 programs in the State of Florida.   [player_tooltip player_id='346854' first='Jolena' last='Gardner'] / 2025 / 6'0" PF-C / Team Knight 2025   Don't sleep on Jo Jo Gardner. When all said and done she could be in the top 5 of PGH's 2025 rankings (presently ranked 29). Gardner is one of the best defenders in the 2025 class right now. At 6'0" she is lengthy and athletic and plays with a combination of power and finesse. She anchored the middle for Columbia High school as a Freshman and did the same for Team Knight in the 15U Division this past AAU season. Here shot blocking ability is elite. Gardner is versatile and defends on the wings and in the painted area. She is also a force in defensive rebounds and nearly averaged a double-double her Freshman season.   [player_tooltip player_id='406282' first='Mia' last='Heredia'] 2025 / 5'7" CG/ J Sizzle 2025   Heredia is one of the top defensive guards in 2025 . Heredia is quick, fast, and not afraid to mix it up with ball handlers. Her on-the-ball skills are very good and she makes life miserable for opposing point guards. Her track speed on the court is unmatched by many and it allows her to stay in front of ball handlers. Heredia also has great court vision, great anticipation, and a desire to win every play. She showed some versatility and grit playing the point on the final day of the National Championship.   [player_tooltip player_id='400803' first='Trinidy' last='Harris'] /2025 / 5'4 PG / Tre Mann Elite 2025   Harris is a pure point guard that is lightning quick and she is one of the best on-ball defenders in the 2025 class. She showcased her defensive skills throughout the AAU season and last year in high school she averaged over 3.5 steals per game. Harris is a good on-ball defender and she is also good at playing help side defense. Harris is lightning quick and has great straightaway speed as well. Harris does a good job of moving her feet and keeping her opponent in front of her. Harris uses good defense to create offense and she is at her best in the open court. Last season Harris led her team to the Class 1A State Championship game and also averaged 3.6 steals per game.   [player_tooltip player_id='346819' first='Trishay' last='Collins']/2025 / 6'1" PF / ECU Family 2025   Every time I caught up with Collins at National Championship she was out on the court wreaking havoc in the paint. At 6'1 she has great size, and athleticism, and is a real presence on the court, offensively and defensively. Collins controlled the paint and was even impressive on close-outs defending jump shots. She is versatile and has the potential to be dominant with her size and athleticism.

Throughout the AAU season and particularly in the Live Periods, the 2025 class was represented on the basketball court. The class is an ultra-talented class and look to hear many of their names during the upcoming basketball season. The fact that some are even garnering college offers already illustrates this point. In this article, we highlight some of the players who stood out on the defensive end of the court.