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Christopher Lawlor

USA Basketball names men’s and first-ever women’s rosters for Nike Hoops Summit on April 8 in Portland

PORTLAND, Ore. – History was made.

USA men’s and women’s rosters for the 24th edition of the Nike Hoop Summit was announced today by USA Basketball.

For the first time in Nike Hoop Summit history, the event features both a men’s and the inaugural women’s game with the top American high school athletes facing off against World Teams of top international players 19-and-younger.

The games are slated for April 8, at Moda Center in Portland. Tickets can be purchased here.

Overall, the men’s and women’s athletes named to the USA rosters have a combined 26 gold medals from various junior national team competitions.

The USA Men’s Nike Hoop features:

Omaha Biliew, Blake Buchanan, Isaiah Collier, Eric Dailey Jr., Justin Edwards, Ron Holland, Bronny James, Jared McCain, Jackson Shelstad, Sean Stewart, Dajuan Wagner Jr., Ja’Kobe Walter and Cody Williams.

Buchanan, James, Shelstad and Williams will make their USA Basketball debuts in Portland, while the rest of the team has a variety of previous USA Basketball (5-on-5 and 3×3) experience.

Dailey Jr. and McCain were on the 2022 U18 National Team that won gold at the FIBA Americas U18 Championships in Tijuana, Mexico. Holland, Stewart and Wagner were teammates on the 2022 gold-medal winning U17 National Team at the World Cup in Malaga, Spain. Holland also won gold with the 2021 U16 National Team at the FIBA Americas U16 Championship in Xalapa, Mexico.

Biliew (Oct. 2022), Collier (March 2022), Dailey Jr. (Oct. 2022), Edwards (Oct. 2022), Holland (March & Oct. 2022; May 2021), McCain (March & Oct.2022), Stewart (March 2022), Wagner (March 2022) and Walter (March 2022) have recently participated in a USA Men’s Junior National Team minicamp.

Additionally, Dailey Jr. is a two-time member of the USA 3×3 U18 National Team (2022, 2021), helping the U.S. to gold at the 2021 FIBA 3×3 U18 World Cup in Debrecen, Hungary.

The USA men’s team head coach is Steve Turner or Gonzaga (Washington, D.C.) and he will be assisted by Frank Bennett of Chaminade College Prep (St. Louis) and Nick LoGalbo of Lane Tech (Chicago).
Turner is set for his first head coaching assignment with USA Basketball after previously supporting as an assistant coach at the 2022 U17 World Cup and 2021 FIBA U16 Americas Championship and court coach for various junior national team events.

Held annually since 1995, except for 2001-03 and 2020-21, the Nike Hoop Summit has been in Portland since 2008. The USA men hold a 16-7 series advantage over the World Team.

Women’s roster

The USA Women’s includes Nunu Agara, Kamorea “K.K.” Arnold, Madison Booker, Zoe Brooks, Breya Cunningham, Aalyah Del Rosario, Jadyn Donovan, Hannah Hidalgo, Ashlynn Shade, Juju Watkins, Jada Williams, Mikaylah Williams and Sahara Williams.

Brooks and Shade will make their USA Basketball competitive debuts, while the remaining athletes have prior experience (5-on-5 and 3×3). Del Rosario competed for the 2022 U18 National Team that captured the USA’s 11th FIBA U18 Americas Championship in Buenos Aires.

Agara, Booker, Cunningham, Donovan, Hidalgo, Watkins, Jada Williams and Mikaylah Williams were members of the 2022 U17 National Team that won a second straight (fifth overall) FIBA World Cup gold medal in Debrecen, Hungary.

Arnold, Booker, Cunningham, Donovan, Watkins and Jada Williams were members of the 2021 U16 National Team that won gold at the FIBA Americas U16 Championship inLeon, Mexico.

Additionally, Arnold, Mikaylah Williams and Sahara Williams were members of the 2022 3×3 U18 National Team that won a fourth straight FIBA 3×3 U18 World Cup title. Mikaylah Williams, who was also on the 2021 3×3 U18 World Cup Team, was named the 2022 USA Basketball 3×3 Athlete of the Year.

Leading the USA women’s team will be head coach Sue Phillips of Archbishop Mitty (San Jose, Calif.), CA) with support from assistants Carlesa Dixon Summer Creek (Houston) and Special Jennings Montverde (Fla.) Academy.

Phillips has served USA Basketball by leading four junior national teams to gold medals (2022 U17 World Cup, 2021 FIBA U16 Americas Championship, 2014 U17 World Cup, 2013 FIBA U16 Americas Championship).

The USA Nike Hoop Summit Teams were selected by the USA Basketball Men’s and Women’s Developmental National Team Committees, respectively.

The 2023 men’s and women’s World Team rosters will be announced at a later date. The teams will draw players from FIBA Africa, FIBA Americas, FIBA Asia, FIBA Europe and FIBA Oceania, with approved sanction of FIBA, the governing body of international basketball.

— from USA Basketball Communications

Senior Writer and national analyst for Blue Media and compiles the Blue Star Elite 25 national boys and girls high school basketball and football rankings during the season. Lawlor, an award-winning writer, is a voting committee member and advisor for several national high school events, including the McDonald’s All-American Games. He previously wrote for USA TODAY and ESPN.com, where he was the national preps writer, while compiling the national rankings in four sports.

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