Most Improved – Coach’s Choice

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I reached out to a handful of coaches and these were who they or their team deemed as the most improved player and/or someone that could be a key contributor next season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1126138"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-681a63d1dcf54"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Jaya is one of the top prospects in the Midwest. She is a relentless worker and has the mindset required to be a high-level player. Here are some comments from Coach Maher on Jaya:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>"[player_tooltip player_id='1126138' first='Jaya' last='Taylor'] was voted most improved by her teammates and coaches this year. Jaya started her 7th grade season playing one half of JV and getting some minutes on the varsity. Through hardwork and disciple day in and day out, Jaya earned a starting spot in January. The growth we saw in Jaya was her command of the floor. Once she started to get more familiar with how the offense ran, she was able to create for herself offensively and for her teammates. Once she earned her starting spot she proved she deserved that spot and held it the rest of the season."</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One note to add is that Jaya ended up being Shanley's second leading scorer on the season at 11.2 points per game. She was really impressive in Shanley's postseason games, averaging just under 18 points per game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1060622"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-681a63d1dd014"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Claire is a very intriguing player and someone I am interested to watch next season. She has great footwork and a very nice touch around the rim. I like her shooting form and think she has potential to become a three-point threat. Here are some comments from Coach Watson:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>"[player_tooltip player_id='1060622' first='Claire' last='Woods'] showed tremendous growth throughout the season, consistently putting in the work to improve her skills and confidence on the court. We're excited to see her continue building on that momentum and expect her to be a key contributor next season."</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"Taylor Hodny","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2028","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"5'8u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"12124","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Grand Forks Red River","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-681a63d1dd12e"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Taylor is a 2028 who Coach Kent Ripplinger is excited to see how she can impact the team going forward. She is the type of player that fits in with the Red River defensive culture. Here is what Ripplinger had to say about Taylor:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>"Taylor is fast, aggressive on defense and can get to the rim offensively. She is very athletic, jumps well and has a great attitude and work ethic. She is also an All-State soccer player.'</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>There is a lot of skill transfer from soccer to basketball, particularly with spacing and passing. A lot of great basketball players have experience on the soccer field.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1226091"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-681a63d1dd1b9"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Kambree is another 2028 with tremendous potential and someone Coach Scheeler is very excited about. Here is Kambree in his own words:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>"Kambree played on the varsity team as an eighth grader during the 2023-2024 season, and her potential was obvious to anyone who watched her. But she still played like a junior-high athlete from time to time and her assertiveness didn't match her skillset. Fast forward to this past season and we saw the opposite. Kambree missed the first half of the season while recovering from off-season knee surgery. Once she was at full strength, she became our third leading scorer and was able to be an additional ball-handler on the floor. She was critical in leading our offensive transition with a knack for pushing the ball up the floor. We're looking forward to three more solid seasons from Kambree."</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"Claire Rodakowski","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2027","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"5'11u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"12125","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Dickinson","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-681a65cf3a2a9"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Claire had a nice season and worked her way from a reserve into the starting lineup. Coach Lockett liked what he saw and sees a lot of potential with Claire. Here is what he had to say:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>"Claire had a great sophomore season. She didn't play varsity as a freshman but worked her way into our rotation this year. She is a great rebounder, hard worker, and she lives in the gym. She is a multisport athlete, playing volleyball and track alongside basketball. She was also voted as a new team captain for next season."</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Congratulations to all of these players!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->