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The fifth edition of the FIBA U17 Women’s Basketball World Cup will take place in Minsk this weekend and will continue from 21 until 29 July.

USA won the first 3 editions in 2010, 2012, 2014 and the current holders are Australia who win at the last event in Zaragoza, Spain. The USA have that unfamiliar feel of arriving without a crown to defend and the need to get back to the top podium step is exacerbated by having relinquished their U19 title in Udine last year.

Australian coach Shannon Seebohm has the chance to make history as the first play-caller to both win the title twice and to successfully defend it. He is one of the brightest young coaches around and highly-rated. However, this current Sapphires team is not thought to be at the level of the 2016 bunch.

Europe has never lifted this silverware, but current U16 European Champions France are hugely exciting and just stacked, so could this be the team that poses the strongest challenge to the favorites USA?

Talking of France, we will start with them in our Top 25 players to watch, where we have picked out some of the expected stars and All-Star Five favorites, plus a few players who are thought to have improved since last year’s Continental Cups:

Iliana Rupert – France

The FIBA U16 Women’s European Championship 2017 MVP , Rupert is a class act. She has been signed by Bourges Basket, meaning she will head back to Le Prado later this year to play in EuroLeague Women and defend the club’s French title. A towering presence with her scoring, and rebounding, she is also a leader on the floor – with much of her game out of inspiration for her late father who was a distinguished pro-player himself.

Zoe Wadoux – France

https://twitter.com/basketmedia365/status/945980992640217088

Just like last year in Bourges, Wadoux illuminated the recent and prestigious Reze Basketball Tournament which was the scene of Candace Parker’s first overseas outing. She is an exciting and explosive shooter who can score points in a hurry. A big weapon from downtown, she could be the leading scorer of this tournament and will be at the heart of the French challenge.

Marine Fauthoux – France

Another French star who comes from a basketball family, Fauthoux is such a great dribbler and has a super basketball brain. She is hugely trusted in those clutch moments – not to be the one to necessarily make the shot, but to make the right decisions. Super smart.

Helena Pueyo – Spain

A skilled playmaker who is rocks solid in terms of all of the fundamentals for any guard, Pueyo will be the main architect on offense for Spain and she will also put points on the board when necessary. Nicely aggressive, she gets plenty of rebounds for her team and she could end up being the heartbeat of Spain, who are looking to make up for falling short of the U16 podium in Bourges last year.

Raquel Carrera – Spain

A centrepiece for Spain whenever she is on the floor, Carrera is a future senior team [player in the making. She is on course to make it there one day and has two FIBA U16 Women’s European Championships on her resume. Last year she showed her skills and strength in Bourges when she averaged 13.3 points and 10.3 boards per outing.

Ilaria Panzera – Italy

Fun to watch and slated as ‘the next Raffaella Masciadri’ because of her wing play and skills by our own Pierre P! If that puts a burden on Panzera, then don’t worry as she has a big player and clutch mentality. She has also stepped out at two FIBA U16 Women’s European Championships and was the youngest of the Italian side in Udine during 2016. She has catapulted Italy to back to back Semi-Finals and Third Place in 2017.

Caterina Gilli – Italy

The forward who is 2002 born was one of the youngest in Bourges last year as she helped Italy take a bronze medal, but she was a huge factor. She handles the ball nicely for her position, has good awareness on the floor and whatever happens in Minsk, she is an All-Star Five favorite for U16 in Kaunas next month.

Reka Dombai – Hungary

Despite being 2002-born, she was an All-Star Five Member of the U16 European Championship last year and Dombai now also has a full season behind her in the Hungarian League with the Academy-model club Vasas. She was also Hungarian U18 MVP. They have great junior teams but have also been playing with a senior team and Dombai has really punched her weight. The forward has shown her shooting range which is quite good, has not been overawed playing against EuroCup Women and EuroLeague Women level opponents, so should be a big factor in Minsk.

Nora Wentzel – Hungary

A guard who caught the eye more for flashes of brilliance for Hungary last summer – it will be interesting to see if Wentzel has pushed on and has matured. If she can be more consistent in her shooting, she could be a big threat for Hungary. There were glimpses last year that she could be another Agnes Studer in the making. Plus, she has just been playing 20 minutes per game in the highly competitive Hungarian League with PEAC-Pecs so we expect an improvement on Bourges

Laura Meldere  – Latvia

The Latvia center was the main reason the Baltic nation secured successive places at this event, having featured for the first time in Zaragoza during 2016. A strong player who has already moved abroad to Pordenone in the Italian Second Division to hone her skills, Meldere has decent mobility, post-moves and a really nice shooting touch. She will also go to work on the boards – as an U16 tournament double-double last year in Bourges would testify.

Shyla Heal – Australia

A player who is about IQ, ball-handling and all-around influence, rather than racking up massive numbers, Heal will be central to the Sapphires – as she was last year at the Asia U16 when they pipped Japan for gold in Bengaluru.  Her dad is an Olympian and was an accomplished player and now coach, so its understandable she is smart, disciplined and one of the first players on the team-sheet.

Gemma Potter – Australia

Potter is an athletic, long 2/3 from the Centre of Excellence (formerly Australian Institute of Sport). She was with the team at U16 in Asia last year topping the podium and has really kicked on during the past 9-10 months. She has won national championships in her homeland i 2016 and recently 2018 when she had more than 14 points, 5 boards and almost 3 assists per game.

Lily Scanlon – Australia

A real ‘smokie’ that would ordinarily go under the radar, we are aware that Scanlon has improved dramatically. A combo guard who is great defensively and is as hard as nails, she also has a nice three-point range. She can also get to the basket, even if hEr ball skills aren’t quite as well developed as some of her peers. Scanlon won the National Championships with Victoria Metro 16’s in 2016) and 18’s earlier this year.

Aliyah Boston – USA

MVP last year at U16 in Argentina – most people Stateside know all about Boston and she will be a cornerstone again for USA. Her battle with Iliana Rupert of France is arguably THE match-up of the tournament – maybe even with a title on the line. That is the dream scenario for two of the most talented players in the competition. A prime candidate again for MVP.

Azzi Fudd – USA

On the Blue Star radar and top of the rankings for some time, all you have to say about Fudd is that takes some doing to become he youngest U.S. women’s player to take part in a U16 competition. When they won that FIBA Americas U16 Championship gold medal last year with a perfect, 5-0 record; the player was just 14 years, six months and 27 days old on the first day. Since then, she just keeps racking up the accolades. You know all the rest!

Samantha Brunelle – USA

If Boston had not taken MVP honors last year, then maybe it would have went to Brunelle who was also highly instrumental in USA making a return to the top podium step. Her combinations with Boston will again be vital and she is also MVP material. Brunelle will be right up there in the scoring, rebounding and assist charts – something that underlines her all-around game.

Aika Hirashita – Japan

The forward is high-octane, always finding space on the floor or hustling for boards at either end of the court. A nightmare for defenders having to chase her around, she cleans up on putback opportunities and almost catapulted Japan to the title at the FIBA U16 Asia Women’s Championship 2017 with an impressive 13.2 and 7.6 boards per game.

Yang Shuyu – China

While she didn;t play much in Bengaluru last year at the FIBA U16 tournament, this was because she was one of the youngest players on the roster. But, the 2002 born player looks to have taken some nice steps forward since last year and impressed in the Reze Tournament recently. She was the favorite player of Pierre P and she showed she had nice shooting skills by getting onto the top of the podium in the 3-point shooting contest!

Liu Yutong – China

While she didn’t play much in Nantes at the Reze tournament last month, she is likely to be the main pillar of China’s challenge in Minsk. The center is a tough defensive assignment because of her sheer size and awkwardness in the paint. Last year she was rampant at U16 in India, producing a tournament double-double of 14.3 points ad 13.5 boards per game.

Brynn Masikewich – Canada

A towering and imposing presense for her country, Masikewich led her team to the U16 Americas Final last summer in Argentina. She was topping her team’s chart in points, rebounds and blocks – also shooting over 53% from the floor which was better than anyone else in the Canadian locker room. As you would expect with her tall frame, she gets plenty of putbacks, but she can also knock down shots from a range of positions. She will be a tough defensive assignment for opponents.

Sika Kone – Mali

It was disappointing Kone and the Mali team did not make it to Reze recently, but we still know all about her from the stint she did at the FIBA U16 Women’s African Championship. As the post from our colleague on the scouting side suggests, the forward is a double-double waiting to happen. She was outstanding last year at U16 as Mali won gold. And, without the prolific Aissetou Coulibaly, she will have to be the unequivocal leader in Minsk. She has been developing her skills with the Canterbury Academy in Gran Canaria.

Charlisse Leger-Walker – New Zealand

Hailing from a basketball-family, Leger-Walker has already made some moves with the Tall Ferns and is a big part of why New Zealand are about to appear at their first ever U17 tournament. While the efficiency of the all-action player is affected by her responsibility in having to carry the burden in most areas for her team – expect her to stand out with her scoring, as well as rebounding. Importantly she is also able to create plenty of looks for her team-mates and is a massive hope for the future of women’s basketball in New Zealand.

Florencia Chagas – Argentina

The star for Argentina last year at U16 Americas when they got themselves a bronze medal, Chagas is also a Basketball Without Borders attendee and will be the main player for her country in Minsk. She has won rave reviews for her efforts, but the responsibility of having to do it all, can also knock her out of her stride too as she handles the ball perhaps too much and gets a lot of defensive attention. A leader for sure though.

Keep it locked to all of our Blue Star team who will be covering the event – with a trio of big hitters off to Minsk itself, including Mike Flynn and Pierre Ploszajski

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Paul Nilsen lives and breathes women’s hoops. He’s is a freelance writer working for the sport’s world governing body FIBA where he pens a weekly ‘Women’s Basketball Worldwide Column’ - as well as providing daily content on major club competitions, international tournaments and the women’s youth game. He has an extensive network of contacts across the globe, including an array of elite play-callers and players. Also a qualified coach and referee, he is a big supporter of Blue Star Media and joined as a blogger during the fall of 2016.

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