Breakout Candidates This Season

Brady Peterson October 7, 2023 @ 01:03 PM

Every year, kids will graduate and move on, and others will step up and become more prominent players at their schools. I want to highlight some kids who could become household names in the state after earning a more significant role this coming season.   [player_tooltip player_id='533079' first='Brooklyn' last='Love']   The Knights had a group of upperclassmen last season and slowed the pace down more than most teams. Love may be good enough to change that identity. She attacks in transition and makes plays for herself and others. Her speed alone puts pressure on recovering defenses, and that panic tends to leave open spaces for Love to get to the basket or hit one of her teammates in stride for an open layup. Of everyone in Southeast Wisconsin, Love has the most breakout potential.   [player_tooltip player_id='533083' first='Taylor' last='Gifford']   Over most of her first season at Waukesha West, Gifford was around the basket. She rebounded on both ends, battled physically against some of the bigger kids in the Classic Eight, and played like a post. There were plenty of guards and wings, and Gifford played a little out of position but did a solid job throughout the season in that role. Now that the Wolverines lost four starters, Gifford may play more in a natural spot on the wing. Everyone who knows her raves about her shooting, and with some of the players they lost, that will be valuable for this Wolverines group.   [player_tooltip player_id='633025' first='Julia' last='McRae']   Whenever teams have a post player at the level of Megan Schultz, they'll create their identity around that kid ten times out of ten. That's not a bad thing, but usually, it doesn't create an environment for a kid like McRae to excel and make things happen with the ball in her hands. This season, McRae could utilize her ability to navigate through traffic, run in transition, and fire passes on drives to open shooters. The Viking has the talent to excel in the Woodland-West, and I'm eager to see how she fairs in conference play.   [player_tooltip player_id='448246' first='Addison' last='Baumgart']   I don't know if any program in the state has had a more unlucky past year than Kaukauna. They've lost two of the best players in program history to significant knee injuries and, in turn, lost a legitimate chance at making a run at a gold ball last March. There has been one shining light amidst the past year in the emergence of junior forward [player_tooltip player_id='448246' first='Addison' last='Baumgart']. She played superb basketball to end the season and was nearly a significant part of a regional title, even with the injuries. Her gravity will create space for her teammates to attack the basket, and she's been adding aspects to her game over the past summer, so she'll probably be better than I remember her from her AAU run.

Every year, kids will graduate and move on, and others will step up and become more prominent players at their schools. I want to highlight some kids who could become household names in the state after earning a more significant role this coming season.