The National Championship: 2028-30 Standouts

The National Championship brought a ton of talented teams to Kentucky to compete for the last live period of July. We walked around the 50 courts at the Kentucky Expo Center throughout the tournament taking note of players who stood out to us. Now when we say stand out, we mean a player who caught our eye for one reason or another. While that may be a team’s best player, it also could simply be a player whose effort made it impossible for us to not notice them. Below you can read about some of those players that stood out to us throughout the event.

Please note: Some of the write-ups below were already featured on X (@riseupsports1) during the event. Please let us know if any of the information below is incorrect and we will get it fixed as soon as possible.

Lillian Green

2027 Midwest Wildcats Watkins NE2K | Class of 2028

Elite court vision. Made a lot of really nice inbound passes. Good release. Has the ability to score at all three levels, but the three is somewhere she excels. Her leadership really stands out and she’s makes it her priority to outwork everyone on the court. The Wildcats run through her.

-ETHAN GRANTZ

Puneet Deol

2027 AthElite E40 | Class of 2028

Uses length to make things difficult as a defender. Good hands. Had some really nice finishes around the rim. Can also step out and knock down the 3. Great passes to cutters. Runs the floor well. Crashed the boards and looked to grab rebounds off the rim. Had some nice put backs off offensive rebounds.

Ziya Velez-Smith

Reigning Reds 2025 | Class of 2028

Quick handles and shifty moves. Crafty finisher on drives. 3 level scoring threat. Active hands and high energy defensively. Impressive player regardless of class but extremely impressive considering she’s only a 2028.

Riley Gilvin

2028 Kentuckiana Hoops | Class of 2028

Very tough defensive assignment. Can score in every way possible. Even against a great defender, she found ways to get them on her hip and put the ball in the basket. Defensively, very high motor allows her to constantly get to the ball. Plays with good energy on both ends of the court. Handled the ball well and didn’t get rattled against full court press.

Jordyn Shemwell

2027 Kentucky Premier NE2K Goodin | Class of 2028

Ran the point well. Got offense under control when needed. Showed ability to attack and knock down shots. Got her hands on the ball on the defensive end.

Victoria Spiegl

2028 Kentuckiana Hoops | Class of 2028

Love the effort and unselfishness. Constantly thinking about where the open player is and knows where to pass when she catches the ball. Nice fakes and a good passer. Even though she’s unselfish, definitely can score the ball herself as well.

Bailee Robbins

2027 Kentucky Premier NE2K Goodin | Class of 2028

Great shooter and quick release. Moves well without the ball. Had some nice drives and passed the ball well.

Lily Bittner

2029 Next Level KY | Class of 2029

The way she goes after the ball defensively makes things so hard on the offense. Just constantly working. Great passer who sees the floor and has a good awareness of where her teammates are going. Good outside shot.

Maya Green

2029 Kentuckiana Hoops West | Class of 2029

Showed star potential. Can do a little bit of everything and truly wouldn’t be surprised to see her contribute in every statistical category in each game. Great tough drives and has a knack for drawing fouls. Lefty can convert at the free throw line. Nice ball handling and passing.

Callie Jones

2029 KYD Thunder | Class of 2029

Has good height/length. Keeps the ball low and showed some good handles. Strong box outs and good rebounds. Versatile. Good pull-up jumper.

Evelyn Ehringer

2030 KYD Thunder | Class of 2030

Good form on shot. Can knock them down from 3. Made some nice passes including a no look pass.

PLEASE TAG THE FOLLOWING PLAYERS/TEAMS IF YOU KNOW THEM:

#13

2029 Kentucky Premier

Very good ball handler. Has a lot of moves she can utilize to create space or get past defense. Can score inside or out. Can get crafty on drives.

#21

2029 Kentucky Premier

Great length. Runs the floor well. Active hands defensively. Had some really nice catches (off some nice passes – credit to her teammates) and finished well around the basket.

#3

2029 WHERE2NEXT Legacy

Very talented and has some serious potential. Made great drives and showed the ability to score inside or out in a variety of ways. Stays ready to grab steals defensively. Knew when to push pace. Kept feeling her impact on the court.

#7

2030 WHERE2NEXT

Can knock down the 3-ball. Also finished some shots inside over bigger defenders. Kept head up and made some great passes down court in transition.

#10

2030 WHERE2NEXT

Good ball handler. Quick and constantly moving. Can get into the paint on drives and finished floaters. Also can knock down jumpers from further out. Aggressive defensively and came up with a lot of steals.

ByAlyx

Lillian Green

2027 Midwest Wildcats Watkins NE2K | Class of 2028

Elite court vision. Made a lot of really nice inbound passes. Good release. Has the ability to score at all three levels, but the three is somewhere she excels. Her leadership really stands out and she’s makes it her priority to outwork everyone on the court. The Wildcats run through her.

-ETHAN GRANTZ

Puneet Deol

2027 AthElite E40 | Class of 2028

Ziya Velez-Smith

Reigning Reds 2025 | Class of 2028

Quick handles and shifty moves. Crafty finisher on drives. 3 level scoring threat. Active hands and high energy defensively. Impressive player regardless of class but extremely impressive considering she’s only a 2028.

Riley Gilvin

2028 Kentuckiana Hoops | Class of 2028

Jordyn Shemwell

2027 Kentucky Premier NE2K Goodin | Class of 2028

Ran the point well. Got offense under control when needed. Showed ability to attack and knock down shots. Got her hands on the ball on the defensive end.

Victoria Spiegl

2028 Kentuckiana Hoops | Class of 2028

Love the effort and unselfishness. Constantly thinking about where the open player is and knows where to pass when she catches the ball. Nice fakes and a good passer. Even though she’s unselfish, definitely can score the ball herself as well.

Bailee Robbins

2027 Kentucky Premier NE2K Goodin | Class of 2028

Great shooter and quick release. Moves well without the ball. Had some nice drives and passed the ball well.

Lily Bittner

2029 Next Level KY | Class of 2029

The way she goes after the ball defensively makes things so hard on the offense. Just constantly working. Great passer who sees the floor and has a good awareness of where her teammates are going. Good outside shot.

Maya Green

2029 Kentuckiana Hoops West | Class of 2029

Showed star potential. Can do a little bit of everything and truly wouldn’t be surprised to see her contribute in every statistical category in each game. Great tough drives and has a knack for drawing fouls. Lefty can convert at the free throw line. Nice ball handling and passing.

Callie Jones

2029 KYD Thunder | Class of 2029

Has good height/length. Keeps the ball low and showed some good handles. Strong box outs and good rebounds. Versatile. Good pull-up jumper.

Evelyn Ehringer

2030 KYD Thunder | Class of 2030

Good form on shot. Can knock them down from 3. Made some nice passes including a no look pass.

PLEASE TAG THE FOLLOWING PLAYERS/TEAMS IF YOU KNOW THEM:

#13

2029 Kentucky Premier

Very good ball handler. Has a lot of moves she can utilize to create space or get past defense. Can score inside or out. Can get crafty on drives.

#21

2029 Kentucky Premier

Great length. Runs the floor well. Active hands defensively. Had some really nice catches (off some nice passes – credit to her teammates) and finished well around the basket.

#3

2029 WHERE2NEXT Legacy

Very talented and has some serious potential. Made great drives and showed the ability to score inside or out in a variety of ways. Stays ready to grab steals defensively. Knew when to push pace. Kept feeling her impact on the court.

#7

2030 WHERE2NEXT

Can knock down the 3-ball. Also finished some shots inside over bigger defenders. Kept head up and made some great passes down court in transition.

#10

2030 WHERE2NEXT

Good ball handler. Quick and constantly moving. Can get into the paint on drives and finished floaters. Also can knock down jumpers from further out. Aggressive defensively and came up with a lot of steals.

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By Alyx

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