Love Best of Oregon City, Oregon at the 2025 USA U16 national team trials. *Photo by Chris Hansen.

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COLORADO SPRINGS, Colorado – The spring season is coming to a close which means the USA Basketball club is gearing up for FIBA competitions for its women’s teams across multiple age groups.  Memorial Day Weekend is always reserved for the youngest group, which this year is 16-and under.

After the first day at the U.S. Olympic Training Center here’s some initial thoughts.

 

HANSEN’S TAKE

I’ve been attending trials and their predecessor, the Youth Basketball Festival, dating back to 2006, and after two decades it’s much more difficult to get a feel for the players. The days of attending all the session or even all the days are gone with USA Basketball choosing to limit media access to just one session on three of the four days of competition.

So after the first session we’re allowed to attend, here are some players we’ll be keeping a close eye on moving into the second day of trials.

 

Best does the one thing a star-studded team needs most from its point guard, she controls tempo.  She’s a calming force on the floor for her team.  The emphasis on players defending each other the length of the floor did allow Best to show that if you try to speed her up she is more than capable of getting by and then seeing the floor and making plays at a fast tempo as well.  Historically she is the style of point guard they take for the U16 team.

 

Madi Mignery of Lakewood Ranch, Florida, shoots one of her trademark midrange jumpers. *Photo by Chris Hansen.

Midrange Madi was terrific in the early action here.  She played strong with the ball and was decisive with it.  With the amount of length on the floor, getting to the rim isn’t something that happens a lot so having Mignery’s ability to beat the overplay at 20 feet and get into the belly of the defense and make a play was a boost for her team.

 

Being tall has it’s advantages but Bradley is more than just 6 feet 5 inches.  Bradley has strength in her frame and uses it well.  She gets good position on both ends of the floor.  Offensively showed back to the basket ability, even against the talented posts in the building. She also found easy baskets but moving into open space and being available.

 

Morghan Reckley (Fayetteville, Georgia), 2028

Reckley, like Best and Mignery, are players we’ve seen in individual events in the past.  Watching Reckley work through things in real time is a joy.  She didn’t play perfect by any stretch but her ability to process the game and more importantly her mistakes and adjust is impressive.  By the end of the weekend I suspect she’ll settle in and make a run for a roster spot. She has the talent and brings big energy to the floor.

 

Clay’s Take

 

Class of 2028 prospect Makynli Bacon is starting to make the strides in her game possible I saw a couple of years back. Bacon plays the game with bounce and energy. Her size and skill combination on the wing should keep her on the recruiting board for schools up and down the East Coast the next two plus years.

 

Sophia Feeney (Bayonne, New Jersey), 2029

Class of 2029 prospect Sophia Feeney has had an excellent start to her 2025 club campaign playing with Exodus NYC. There is a lot of upside for the sharpshooting guard as she prepares to enter high school. Playing in more of these elite level settings will only help her overall growth.

 

Belle Hill (Florence, Alabama), 2028

Class of 2028 prospect Belle Hill was a part of the USA Basketball Mini Camp invitee list in Tampa last month. Hill has a unique set of tools on both ends of the hardwood. She is coaches kid and a modern day perimeter threat. Hill has the overall talent needed to keep the floor spaced with her wing oriented skill set.

Emily Naraky of Chiciago, Illinois, elevates for a jumper at USA 16 trails. *Photo by Chris Hansen.

Emily Naraky (Chicago, Illinois), 2027

Class of 2027 prospect Emily Naraky is firmly on the radar after her play in Rock Hill this April. Naraky is at her best surrounded by other talented players who help keep teams from staying glued to her on the perimeter. In that regard, Naraky is one of the best next level specialists in the gym this weekend.

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