Postseason Snubs
In this article:
Can I say my opinion for one minute. Well, it may be longer than that. I have always been a guy who couldn’t stand post season awards. I think they can be so subjective. Doesn’t matter the sport, but anything…
Access all of Prep Girls Hoops
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingCan I say my opinion for one minute. Well, it may be longer than that. I have always been a guy who couldn’t stand post season awards. I think they can be so subjective. Doesn’t matter the sport, but anything beyond giving the MVP award or Miss Tennessee award out (which that too can be subjective) is always just a head scratcher. You may ask why? Let me tell you. The general public doesn’t know the measurables. Do the voters even know the measurables? For instance, a girl who has a solid start and then hits district play and kind of fizzles out. Does she get credit for her work prior to her slump or does the latter matter and how far her team goes in the tournament?
Don’t get me wrong, I am not taking anything away from those who were nominated. In my opinion, I wish there was a place where the best of the best got together mid-season and really competed. That way we see everyone at their best and get a true look at who is who. The NBA does it. The WNBA does it. I mean you don’t see their All-Star stuff at the end of the season. But I know we aren’t that and I respect those who do actually take the time out to vote and see games. I am just saying some districts are tougher than others and some people’s stats can be patted just a tad based on competition.
The reason for the write up is because I know there were some snubs for the BCAT All-State team. Once again, the girls who made it deserve to be on it. The reason why I am using the BCAT as a comparison is because a) coaches vote b) it is the latest (surely not the last) big publication for postseason awards. It just sucks that there has to be girls who didn’t make it even though they did a phenomenal job for their club. From District MVPs to linchpins who are the main components of their squads, some girls just weren’t nominated. At the end of the day, it’s ok. There is a reason behind everything.
So that is my rant. The general public needs to know the measurables. Shoot, the players need to know the measurables so they can shoot for the opportunity. Just think, if players knew, they could be doing the extra stuff to get there. Heck, they should be doing that anyways, but for real, they could make it a goal to obtain. If they want the rebounding award, they know to go out and get 8+ rebounds a game to be nominated. You think a coach is going to say no to that.
In conclusion, I came up with a BCAT All-State. These names were chosen from girls who were District MVPs, big factors to their teams success by scoring or making timely assists, were in the news nightly, consistent in their play, and just a big time x factor. Now, don’t get me wrong, I will probably leave a few names off myself. I am one man. I just wanted to take a stab at this and create my own All State Snub team. Plus, I got to make something conversational.
(Classification and position weren’t taken into consideration when choosing this team.)
Ava Zenner Ava Zenner 5'7" | PG Franklin Road Academy | 2028 TN -FRA
Kayte Madison Bjornstad Kayte Madison Bjornstad 6'1" | C Franklin Road Christian School | 2026 State TN -PCA
Natalie Kaye Natalie Kaye 5'9" | SG Grace Christian Academy | 2024 State TN – GCA
Brooklyn Jones Brooklyn Jones 5'0" | PG Goodpasture | 2027 TN – Goodpasture
Skylar Walden Skylar Walden 5'8" | PG The Kings Academy | 2027 TN – TKA
Jade Watson Jade Watson 5'7" | PG Rockvale | 2027 TN -Rockvale
Bella Shepherd Bella Shepherd 5'6" | SG Lipscomb-Academy | 2026 State TN -Lipscomb Academy
Makynli Bacon Makynli Bacon 6'0" | PF The Webb School | 2028 TN – Webb Bell Buckle
Avary Brewer Avary Brewer 5'7" | PG Bradley Central | 2025 State TN – Bradley Central
Carlyn Burdette Carlyn Burdette 6'1" | PF Collierville | 2024 State TN – Collierville
Kaelyn Flowers Kaelyn Flowers 5'6" | PG Blackman | 2024 State TN – Blackman
Bailey Ford Bailey Ford 5'7" | SF Beech | 2024 State TN – Beech
Erianna Thomas Erianna Thomas 5'5" | PG Pearl-Cohn | 2024 State TN – Pearl Cohn
Maliyah Glaspar Maliyah Glaspar 5'5" | PG Gatlinburg-Pittman | 2026 State TN – Gatlinburg- Pittman
Natalie Barnes Natalie Barnes 5'7" | SG Coffee Co. | 2026 State TN – Coffee Co.
And so many others….
Congrats to those who did make the 2023-2024 BCAT All-State Team. You are well deserving of it. For those who didn’t make it. Keep doing what you do. All of you are raising the bar for the game of women’s basketball in our state. The decisions are tough so keep making it tougher. We commend all of you for a super job well done.