2025 Rankings: Top Perimeter Defenders
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With guards becoming more and more skilled every day, perimeter defense is an essential part of a team’s overall success. It has often been the key in state championships over the years. There are quite a few top-level perimeter defenders…
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Continue ReadingWith guards becoming more and more skilled every day, perimeter defense is an essential part of a team’s overall success. It has often been the key in state championships over the years. There are quite a few top-level perimeter defenders in this class.
Here I take a look at just a few of them.
Trinity Jones Trinity Jones 5'7" | PG Desert Vista | 2025 State AZ Desert Vista (Featured Image)
Jones guards the perimeter with a purpose. She sits down on D and looks to make the player she’s guarding extremely uncomfortable. She’s also very smart in that she looks to take away the strengths of whomever she’s guarding.
Morgan Van Dyke Morgan Van Dyke 5'7" | SG Paradise Honors | 2025 State AZ Paradise Honors
Morgan’s effort is rarely matched. She contests everything in front of her. She sticks to her opponent when they have the ball and waits for opportunities to attack it from the weak side.
Erica McGadney Erica McGadney 5'10" | SF Saguaro | 2025 State AZ Saguaro
McGadney has all the tools to be the best defender in the state. She has length, toughness, and good footwork. Erica has the versatility to guard multiple positions when caught in switches, whether it’s a rangy or quicker players. She is a steal or block waiting to happen every trip down the court
The term dawg isn’t legitimately thrown around often, but that’s exactly what Aiyanna is on defense. She uses excellent footwork to keep the ball handler in front of her and has extremely active hands that pester the person she’s guarding.
Layla Flores Layla Flores 5'9" | SF AZ Compass Prep | 2025 State AZ Dream City Christian
Energy and athleticism are the two things that come to mind when describing Layla’s defense. She has a motor that won’t stop, and even when she is beaten by her opponent, she doesn’t give up. She gets back into the play, looking to cause havoc.