Final Thoughts: P24/S40 Championships

<!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"small"} --> <p class="has-small-font-size"><em>The featured image is of [player_tooltip player_id='1264921' first='Kylie' last='Wyatt'] (2029) from Westfield High School.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This past weekend was the final "live" period of the 2026 grassroots season. Several Indiana teams traveled to Louisville once again, participating in one of three different events at the Kentucky Fairgrounds. Having already mentioned some daily top performers I saw from those events, I wanted to circle back one last time and mention a few more prospects. Those below were in either the P24 or S40 league championships.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><font color="FFFFFF">.</font></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["751073"],"_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-6a6c0df56fcb2"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Jailen has had a rough go of it, dealing with injuries early in her high school career, but the past four months have reminded me of the prospect I saw entering high school during the Summer of 2023. She has really nice length, a wiry-strong, athletic frame, and she's a fluid athlete with some bounce to her. She can shoot it from the perimeter, and she hunts shots a lot, but I think she's better when she utilizes her athletic talents in attack mode. Additionally, I felt like she really turned up her sense of urgency at the defensive end of the floor, where she was good on or off the ball.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["991171"],"_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-6a6c0df56fceb"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">What can you say about Kihanna? She is just a ballplayer. She came into the Hoosier state and proved to be a talented playmaker. Sure, she isn't the tallest, but she is so quick, shifty, and she has the ball on a string. She is always looking to find the open teammate, but she also has touch outside and the ability to get into the paint and score it. She's equally good at the defensive end of the floor, where she can hound opposing ball-handlers or create steals/deflections by being in good position. I'll be curious to see how Heritage Christian is in their second year with their backcourt intact.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["896531"],"_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-6a6c0df56fd0d"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Luci is another prospect who had a strong Spring and Summer throughout. She is very long, fluidly athletic, and quick enough to escape defenders and get her shot away. She is a talented shooter with range well-beyond the 3-point line. She has shown the ability to handle the ball and initiate the offense when needed, but she's such a good shooter/scorer, I wouldn't want to interfere with that. As you can see in her profile, within the last couple of weeks she has decided to transfer from Huntington North to Columbia City for her Junior year, where she should have continued success.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":1891551,"_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-6a6c0df56fd2b"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Ava is a nice little traditional point guard prospect who is probably still somewhat under the radar with colleges. This past Winter, she started for a talented Monrovia team, and she was one of their top scorers and playmakers. Throughout the Spring and Summer, she has shown her ability to push the ball in transition, initiate the offense, create for herself and teammates, plus knock down open jumpers consistently. With a mass exodus from Monrovia, she was one of three who transferred to Cascade. I would anticipate her being able to step into a starting role immediately.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1690465"],"_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-6a6c0df56fd49"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Makenzie is a very intriguing young prospect who stepped in and played quite a bit as a rookie for Penn this Winter. She is extremely long and wiry, she's fluidly athletic, and she even has a little bounce to her. What I like is, even though she needs to continue getting stronger, she plays with a motor and tries to be physical at both ends of the floor. That type of attitude will do her well once she does finish growing and gaining strength. She is also skilled at all three levels, both offensively and defensively, and she is possibly still growing...she is closer to 5-11 now.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1264921"],"_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-6a6c0df56fd65"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Kylie is a nice young wing who I've been watching since last June and July. She has length, an athletic frame, and she moves well in most directions. She has put in the time and worked on her skill, so she can make shots at all three levels, plus she can handle it from time to time and act as a point forward type. She even has a little fight in her and is willing to play inside the paint, defend, and rebound with some physicality. As she continues developing her game, look for her shot selection, and in turn her shooting percentages, to improve, making her a tough matchup to defend.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block -->