Watch Her Work: From Nike Nationals to WNBA All-Star Friday Night

This year provided a perfect opportunity for a few prospects that also are competing in the Nike Nationals to also be part of the WNBA's All-Star festivities.    After all, the Nike Nationals are staged every year in Chicago. Which city hosted the W's All-Star party this year? Chicago.    This year, the WNBA replaced its annual Skills Competition with the Kia Shooting Stars. Four names that were on Nike Nationals teams competed alongside a current WNBA player and a WNBA legend on All-Star Friday night.    These four names now have higher profiles coming out of All-Star weekend – just as Zoe Brooks (now entering her senior season at NC State) did when she won in the 2022 Skills Challenge alongside current New York Liberty star Sabrina Ionescu.     Banks put forth such a great performance at the Shooting Stars competition that even Washington Mystics star Shakira Austin remarked, “She carried.” As a combo guard, opposing defenders have to watch for if she will attack the basket or utilize her crafty handles into a step back 3-point shot. Even when putting multiple defenders on her, Banks understands how to work around those double teams and understands when the correct occasions are to score and when to distribute. Banks competed in 26 contests last season for St. James while averaging 14.3 points, 5.4 assists, 3.7 rebounds and 2.4 steals per game.     It was not long ago when Griffin made headlines across the high school hoops landscape when she announced she would transfer from Ontario Christian to Mater Dei. Griffin lifted the Knights to a state championship last season after averaging 21.3 points, 7.9 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.6 steals per contest. Her midrange jump shot is one of the hallmarks to her game in addition to her ability to split defenses and finish with emphasis at the rim. Rebounding is another one of her many positive attributes. The Sports Academy Swish rising junior competed alongside Team Seattle which finished second in the Shooting Stars competition.     Speaking of rising juniors, Reckley concluded a 2025-26 season with Sandy Creek that saw her team advance to the 3A state championship game against Heritage-Catoosa – one that was decided in overtime. Reckley, who represented Team Dallas/Detroit at the Shooting Stars, has a game that includes very impressive handles – those that will certainly have opposing defenders guessing. She also understands that she will draw plenty of attention from defenses because of her playmaking capabilities meaning she understands when to attack and when to distribute. Those playmaking abilities also extend to the defensive end of the floor. In the 27 games she played last season for 3A Sandy Creek, she averaged 23.9 points, 7.4 rebounds, 5.4 assists and 4.7 steals.     Carter and her Friends Central assembling made history this past season in the Keystone State as the Phoenix pulled off a 62-54 victory over state power Westtown to win its first ever PAISAA championship. Her journey is even more remarkable when considering she returned from injury to claim state. The Exodus NYC product is an elite attacker of the rim who understands how to make plays even against multiple defenders. She fuses together expert handles, speed and shiftiness to zoom past defenders en route to the cup. Shot blocking and ball distribution are also noteworthy elements to her skillset. Carter, who was part of Team Minnesota for the Shooting Stars competition, had 17 points and five rebounds in the state game against Westtown.

This year provided a perfect opportunity for a few prospects that also are competing in the Nike Nationals to also be part of the WNBA's All-Star festivities.