MaxPreps 2014-15 Preseason All-American Girls Basketball Teams

Every year, there are calls and emails. "My daughter should have been first team." "My player is so much better than that other -- she dominated her this summer."

And perhaps the complainers could be right. Picking out the best players in a big country is no simple task, and there are always surprises, both positive and negative.

But the bottom-line answer is simply this: First, everyone on this list is a very good player, and there are a bunch of very good players who, for one reason or another, didn't make it. And second, it's all going to play out on the floor. By the time they graduate from college, we won't need rankings or lists -- we'll know for sure.

And with that caveat, here are our 2014-15 preseason picks, in alphabetical order.




First team

Kristine Anigwe, 6-3 senior post, Desert Vista (Phoenix) - California
Anigwe just keeps getting better and better, first leading Desert Vista to a 30-2 record (she contributed 16 and 7) and then impressing everyone at USA Basketball. She and her teammates will get a chance to prove themselves again at the Nike TOC.

Erin Boley, 6-2 junior wing, Elizabethtown (Ky.) - Notre Dame
A versatile all-around player for one of the best young teams in the country, she averaged 20.2 points and 9.3 rebounds for a 32-5 team that lost in the state championship game. And by the way, Boley is also an excellent 3-point shooter.

Napheesa Collier, 6-1 senior wing, Incarnate Word Academy (St. Louis) - Connecticut
All Incarnate Word does is win, and all Collier does is play a big role in making that happen. Some are concerned about her handling the jump to the NCAA level, but Geno Auriemma isn't one of them.

Te'a Cooper, 5-8 senior guard, McEachern (Powder Springs, Ga.) - Tennessee
Cooper has the whole package, except height. She can shoot, penetrate, dish and defend, and she knows how to win as well. Both McEachern and USA Basketball have taken full advantage of her skills.

Crystal Dangerfield, 5-6 junior point guard, Blackman (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) - Connecticut
The best player on the best team in the nation, Dangerfield is an ultra quick guard who had a 2.3 assist to turnover ratio last year against a tough schedule to go along with a team-high 14.5 ppg.

Asia Durr, 5-10 senior guard, St. Pius X Catholic (Atlanta) - Louisville
A strong, skilled, intelligent lefthander, Durr is a prototypical WNBA guard. She not only can score, she rebounds, sees the floor and defends. She's one more brick in the Louisville wall of excellence.

Calveion Landrum, 5-10 junior guard, La Vega (Waco, Texas) - Baylor
They get started early in Texas, and Landrum has already put up some impressive numbers in 2014-15: 15.0 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 6.6 apg. Landrum has great athleticism, so she can penetrate at will, but she's also a 3-point threat.



Tori McCoy, 6-4 junior post, St. Thomas More (Champaign, Ill.) - Undecided
McCoy is a multitalented post player who led St. Thomas More to a 40-2 record last season and the Illinois 2A title. She's tall, strong, skilled and almost impossible to guard at the high school level.

Arike Ogunbowale, 5-9 senior guard, Divine Savior Holy Angels (Milwaukee) - Notre Dame
The powerful Ogunbowale plays for a small school in Wisconsin, but her reputation still extends nationwide. She'll fit right in at the collegiate level with her both-ends-of-the-floor game and raw strength.

Katie Lou Samuelson, 6-3 senior wing, Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) - Connecticut
Think Elena Delle Donne but 2 inches shorter -- that is, tremendous shooter from long distance who can score inside if defenders take away her jumper. She's also a very smart player from a top-shelf program.
{PAGEBREAK}
Second team

Jaelyn Brown, 6-1 junior wing, Vista Murrieta (Murrieta, Calif.) - Undecided
There are always a host of elite players in Southern California every year, but Brown stands out. She's long and athletic, and her 18.9 points, 9.6 rebounds and 3.7 steals a game came against a quality SoCal schedule.

Kennedy Burke, 6-1 senior wing, Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth, Calif.) - UCLA
Burke came out of nowhere to make the U-17 USA Basketball team this spring. Well, not exactly out of nowhere, as anyone who'd seen her play knew she combined athleticism and skill. And Sierra Canyon has quietly become a Southern California power.

Natalie Chou, 6-0 junior guard, Plano West (Texas) - Undecided
Chou is a shooter and a scorer, and has impressed at the national level by making a USA Basketball roster. She also has a good handle for her size and her basketball IQ makes her a prize recruit.

Lauren Cox, 6-4 junior forward, Flower Mound (Texas) - Undecided
Cox is an exceptionally athletic power forward who averaged 18.9 points, 14.1 rebounds and 4.8 blocks as a sophomore. She's a USA Basketball veteran, and perhaps the top player in the Class of 2016.

Sophie Cunningham, 6-1 senior guard, Rock Bridge (Columbia, Mo.) - Missouri
A smart, tough player with all the skills, Cunningham still has some who doubt her. But all she does is make plays and help her team win games against top competition.



Jordan Danberry, 5-7 senior guard, Conway (Ark.) - Arkansas
The Wampus Cats may have an obscure mascot, but there's nothing obscure about Danberry's talents. She runs the show for Conway, which is one of the top teams in the region.

Valerie Higgins, 6-1 junior wing, Chaminade (West Hills, Calif.) - Undecided
Higgins lacks the national profile of many elite players, but she helped Chaminade to a California Division III title last year with her combination of size and skill.

Caliya Robinson, 6-3 senior forward, McEachern (Powder Springs, Ga.) - Georgia
Smooth and athletic, Robinson is a defensive demon who averaged 6.6 blocks per game last year -- as well as 13.0 points, 10.9 rebounds and 3.8 assists for a 29-2 team.

Jessica Shepard, 6-3 senior forward, Fremont (Neb.) - Nebraska
Shepard is an outstanding all-around athlete who relies more on strength and skill than blinding speed and quickness. She's also a great get for her home state college, as she pretty much had her pick of college suitors.

Danni Williams, 5-10 senior guard, Clovis (N.M.) - Texas A&M
New Mexico isn't exactly a hotbed for high school girls' basketball, but college coaches still found their way to Clovis to watch this dynamic guard get 24 a game and lead her team to a 29-1 record.
{PAGEBREAK}
Third team

Kalani Brown, 6-5 senior post, Salmen (Slidell, La.) - Baylor
Size and strength are Brown's calling cards, and the 6-5 power post is a force on the block. In addition, Salmen went 32-1 and won the 4A Louisiana title.

Jordan Hosey, 6-2 senior wing, Manvel (Texas) - Texas
Hosey was the third wheel on last year's powerhouse state champion, but she still managed 14.2 points and 7.0 rebounds a game. Look for her numbers to go up though her team (minus Brianna Turner, now at Notre Dame) won't be as strong.

Sabrina Ionescu, 5-11 junior guard, Miramonte (Orinda, Calif.) - Undecided
Versatility earned Ionescu spots on two USA Basketball rosters, as her high basketball IQ is coupled with perimeter shooting, toughness inside, strong defense and high-level intensity. With five seniors graduated, look for her to take over more this year.



Ciera Johnson, 6-4 junior post, Duncanville (Texas) - Undecided
In an age when tall girls work on 3-pointers, Johnson is a true low post player. She has the size and soft hands to be a consistent threat on the block against any level of competition.

Kyra Lambert, 5-8 senior guard, Clemens (Schertz, Texas) - Duke
Last year Lambert had to play on the Clemens junior varsity team because she had transferred. But this year, she's led Clemens to a 9-0 start and is averaging 27 a game.

Marina Mabrey, 5-10 senior guard, Manasquan (N.J.) - Notre Dame
Mabrey will follow her big sister to Notre Dame, but she may be the one who has a bigger impact. Last year at Manasquan, she averaged 20.5 points, 8.5 rebounds and 3.8 assists a game.

Aliyah Mazyck, 5-9 senior guard, Myers Park (Charlotte, N.C.) - South Carolina
Myers Park has won 90 games and lost three since Mazyck joined the varsity team, and in this, her senior year, she's the leader of a team that can play with the nation's best.

Destiny Slocum, 5-6 junior guard, Mountain View (Meridian, Idaho) - Washington
Slocum is a high-motor small guard who overpowers and outquicks opposition. She has 3-point range to go along with the ability to get to the rim and find open teammates.

Destinee Walker, 5-9 senior guard, Lake Highland Prep (Orlando, Fla.) - North Carolina
This is the Florida Destinee Walker, not to be confused with the South Carolina Destinee Walker -- both of whom are very good players. But this North Carolina-bound one averaged 24.6 ppg last year while taking 214 3-pointers.



Megan Walker, 6-1 sophomore wing, Monacan (Richmond, Va.) - Undecided
The only sophomore in this year's group, Walker tore it up in her first year at the varsity level: 19.9 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 2.8 spg. And she also led Monacan to a 21-2 record.