What We Know: 2024 Guards

Yesterday we posted our very first Class of 2024 "Watch List". Thanks to the help of more than 30 high school coaches, grassroots coaches, and Regional media members, etc., we were able to assemble a quality list of 60 young ladies who we felt were most deserving of appearing on our initial list for 2024. Did we miss someone here or there? I’m sure we did. But you can certainly make an argument for everyone who made the list, and given the restrictions we had throughout the Spring, plus the fact a lot of that time would have been spent familiarizing ourselves more with this class specifically, I think this is as fair of a list as we could have built considering the obstacles we faced. With that said, I wanted to take the time to look at the guard group in 2024 and pass along some thoughts of players I’ve seen, as well as add some additional notes on girls I haven’t seen, as provided by others "in the know" who offered up strong opinions on these kids as our "Watch List" was being assembled. This guard group looks to be the current strength of the 2024 class, and there is a great deal of versatility and uniqueness to the group. To start with, there are three names that continue to resurface from multiple sources: <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="176409" first="Chloe" last="Spreen"]</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="177314" first="Alexis" last="Castator"]</strong>, and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="176408" first="Lauren" last="Klem"]</strong>. I have seen Bedford North Lawrence’s <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="176409" first="Chloe" last="Spreen"]</strong>, and she might very well be the best overall prospect in this class when we begin ranking these ladies in mid-December. She has already picked up a great deal of Division-I interest before enrolling in high school, and at 5-9 she’s able to do just about anything with the ball. She’s not too much dissimilar from 2023’s <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="59773" first="Ashlynn" last="Shade"]</strong>, in all honesty. Chloe is a strong athlete with a tremendously balanced skillset. She can handle the ball and run offense, she can create off the bounce, or she can make shots consistently at all levels. Fort Wayne Carroll’s <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="177314" first="Alexis" last="Castator"]</strong> is a nice-sized guard at 6-feet, and she too is very well-balanced skillfully. She can handle and create off the bounce, but she’s an effective scorer and versatile defender as well. She has great potential to compete for the top spot in the long run. Then there is <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="176408" first="Lauren" last="Klem"]</strong> from Franklin Community High School. She isn’t very big at 5-0 to 5-1, but she’s incredibly feisty, quick/fast, highly skilled with the ball, and a tremendous perimeter shooter with good all-around court savvy. Our state embraces its little guards, and I can see her drawing her share of fans the next four years. Hamilton County rivals could expel a bunch of weary sighs, as Fishers High School will welcome another pair of nice guards this season in <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="177355" first="Joirdyn" last="Smith"]</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="176168" first="Talia" last="Harris"]</strong>. Joirdyn is a strong, physical, and aggressive scorer off the bounce. She has really worked on her ability to create space for her shot, plus she can make just about any move to get by her defender to the basket. Talia is the younger sister of former Heritage Christian and University of South Carolina star <strong>Tyasha Harris</strong>. Talia is a long, slender, but fluid and smooth guard who can make plays for others like her big sis, but she’s also great at getting to the basket and finishing with an array of floaters and pull-ups. There are a number of quick/fast little guards who can flat out make plays. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="177351" first="Jordyn" last="Poole"]</strong> of Fort Wayne Snider and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="177335" first="Avery" last="Kelley"]</strong> of Evansville Memorial come to mind. Both have shown a developed skillset and a high level of ability on the court. Gary West Side’s <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="177345" first="Nivea" last="Mosley"]</strong> and Zionsville Community’s <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="177338" first="Faith" last="Leedy"]</strong> are two more who kind of fly under the radar right now statewide, but they are two who could be really nice prospects long-term. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="177361" first="Reagan" last="Wilson"]</strong> of Noblesville and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="177356" first="Lyric" last="Steele"]</strong> of Charlestown play with outstanding motors. Reagan is a skillful combo guard who does just about everything well, while Lyric is a tremendous athlete and a budding star in track &amp; field. If you want shooters, I have been assured that <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="177324" first="Chloey" last="Graham"]</strong> of Gibson Southern, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="177336" first="Scarlett" last="Kimbrell"]</strong> of Franklin Community, and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="177313" first="Allison" last="Caldwell"]</strong> of Zionsville Community are three players you absolutely don’t want to play H-O-R-S-E against. There are younger siblings in this class as well, as <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="177310" first="Kennedy" last="Blakely"]</strong> of Hammond Bishop Noll and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="177322" first="Kenzie" last="Fulks"]</strong> of Bethesda Christian get to follow in their sisters’ footsteps. Kennedy gets to play one year alongside big sis <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="130311" first="Courtney" last="Blakely"]</strong>, while Kenzie’s older sibling, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="23094" first="Maddi" last="Fulks"]</strong>, just graduated and is headed to play at Cornerstone University. Lastly are two highly skilled, very cerebral traditional point guard prospects who I think can compete with anyone on this list. They are <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="177354" first="Kyndra" last="Sheets"]</strong> of Columbia City and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="177348" first="Maddie" last="Nipper"]</strong> of Charlestown. I guarantee their opposing coaches aren’t looking forward to dealing with the two of them these next four years. Now these are just some of the many nice guards in the Class of 2024 we’ve come across in our research. We didn’t omit anyone intentionally, and we are always on the lookout for more prospects to add to our database. In fact, we already have another 30+ guard prospects to consider for our "Watch List" expansion from 60 to 75 girls in mid-September, so please bear with us as we work through the limited visibility opportunities we all get this Spring and Summer.