Houston Summer Slam HS Open Top Performers
Here are some of the standouts I caught in the HS Open Division at the Houston Summer Slam. Add Jaelyn Jackson (Team Spaz 16) to the list as she made the NEW FACES group on PGH Texas
Madison Mayes (Houston Lady Nets 16U) continues to elevate her game and let me start with her being “long and athletic” which is the base. Her timing on blocking shots just keeps getting better, and so does her playing the passing lane yet her relentlessly attacking the rim, as well as grabbing balls off of it, to go along with solid defense are all nice
Asia White -5’9 F (Houston United Blue) Cy Lakes is a “long and athletic” guard, which still works but her first step is explosive, both in the set as well as in transition. She showed good body control on her finishes, she also dropped the midrange but her pressure “on the ball” baseline to baseline as well as playing the passing lane was really nice
Isabelle Rodriguez (Houston United LP) is nowhere near the finished product which is scary, not for me but for defenders, and here’s why. She’s in middle school and has been going against high school players for almost 3 seasons and continuously shows she’s a factor. Her mid to long-range jumper is solid, and her attacking off the dribble creates problems yet so does her court vision and defense
Jas’lyn Ford-6’2 C (Houston United Eddie) Cy Park [2025] upside is promising because she’s already standing above “the magic number” which is 6’0 and has a college-ready frame. She rebounds, on both ends and runs the floor yet she also does a good job defensively in the paint and showed she could score around the basket after contact
Ulani Davis-5’4 G (Houston United Bobby) Dobie [2025] has a deceptive first step which allows her to get by the defender to score. Her body control is nice and contact doesn’t matter because she stays under control. She also handled the ball in the open court and saw the floor both in transition, as well as in the set yet her defense was solid and she played the passing lane
Ayanna Walpool (Houston Lady Nets 15U) showed quick hands on the defensive and that translated to steals as well as scoring opportunities but her “on the ball” defense, baseline to baseline was also nice. She attacked the basket from multiple angles, with either hand, and finished after contact, yes the body control was good, and so was her playing the passing lane
Dede Williams-Toliver (Houston Dream) Worthing [2025] is another player with plenty of upside and she falls into that “never takes a play-off” category. Her acrobatic finishes had me smiling and some included contact but her stop-and-pop jumper in transition was also nice. She handled the ball under pressure and saw the floor, plus her defense was solid and she too played the passing lane