Summer sleepers: 8 girls basketball players who have impressed on the AAU circuit

In the lead-up to launching New England Basketball Journal, we’ve been hitting the AAU trail to watch the pool of talent around the region.

Some of New England’s elite prospects appear on our preliminary class watch lists.

But the area has so much depth; several underrated players caught my eye at various local tournaments.

Here are some names to keep on your radar as a college or high school coach, or just as a fan of the game.

Hijjah Allen-Paisley

Class of 2025, Cathedral/Boston Showstoppers, 5-5 guard
Hometown: Boston, Mass.

Allen-Paisley has always been a great outside shooter and sound decision-maker. The biggest question is how she deals with opposing size and strength, and she’s showing several positive indicators. She helps the Showstoppers (and Cathedral) play aggressive press defense, and she’s more confident attacking space with drives. 

At the Select Events New England Spring Showcase in late May, Allen-Paisley was really smart pinning the chasing defender on ball screens against her hip, and using that contact to create space or draw fouls. Allen-Paisley also hit an impressive and-1 layup at the Hoop Group New England Showcase, again showing she’s not afraid of contact. She has Division 1 offers from UNH and Coppin State.

Devon Burke

Class of 2025, Newton North/Mass Huskies, 5-10 guard
Hometown: Newton, Mass.

Burke is simply a blur in the open court. I saw her dominating transition sequences at the Select Events New England Spring Showcase, and the analysis simply comes down to: she's so fast. Burke has long strides and an instinct to push tempo. She can ignite a fast break herself, or, if she gets behind the defense and a teammate finds her, it's over. That straight-line speed also helps when Burke finds open driving lanes in half-court offense.

Lily Cooper

Class of 2025, Southington/Conn. Spirit, 5-7 guard
Hometown: Southington. Conn

Cooper has some cerebral court vision. At the Select Events New England Spring Showcase, she was dissecting teams with her reads in the pick-and-roll, her skip passes to shooters, and her push-ahead passes to cutters on the fast break. She also knocked down a few catch-and-shoot threes and was the most vocal player on the floor. It was tough for opponents to contain Cooper's playmaking impact.

Javonah 'Juice' Coston

Class of 2027, Beaver Country Day/Dana Barros Elite/iBelieve Elite, 5-8 guard
Hometown: Boston, Mass.

I watched Coston at the Select Events New England Spring Showcase, where she displayed impressive command as the lead guard for DB Elite. 

Coston got a tough whistle and still attacked the lane hard for layups with both hands. She had some really impressive passing reads in the half-court, including a high-low feed to Jenna Mishou for an easy layup, and also kicked out to shooters when she drew multiple defenders on her drives. Her elbow pull-up game was working too. Coston’s overall poise and polish as a playmaker is a great sign considering she still has three more years of prep school.

Reagan Dowd

Class of 2025, Norwell/MT Ducks Elite, 5-8 guard
Hometown: Norwell, Mass.

The Ducks steamrolled their opponent when I watched, and though I don’t like to take too much from blowouts, Dowd played a great game. She’s a confident, elite perimeter shooter who rarely forces up a bad shot. Dowd slides well on defense — she was the point-of-attack defender in this game — and had two put-back layups thanks to effort on the offensive glass. She’s smart and patient in picking her spots to attack, but is decisive when she does.

Avery Gamble 

Class of 2026, Oliver Ames/Dana Barros Elite, 5-7 guard
Hometown: Easton, Mass.

In the game I watched at the Select Events New England Spring Showcase, Gamble had a brutal shooting day. It doesn’t concern me because I’ve seen plenty of evidence she can shoot it in the past. I was more impressed with how she didn’t let the cold streak impact her overall effort.

Gamble is super quick. She flies around without the ball and will punish teams when she drives off the catch. Gamble converted a couple of strong layups, including one that drew a foul. She drew the toughest defensive assignment and battled admirably. She also jumped a telegraphed pass and took it all the way for a layup, and forced a jump-ball turnover with her help on a trap. Overall a great two-way performance, even with the slump.

Keyona Raines

Class of 2026, Cathedral/Boston Showstoppers, 5-8 guard
Hometown: Boston, Mass.

Raines is simply one of my favorite defenders to watch. Her lateral movement is insane, and she does an impressive job sliding in front of and with opposing guards. She’s a former football player, which shows in her nose for the basketball and ability to glide to the rim. Raines is continuing to improve as a consistent scorer, but her natural athleticism opens up windows for layups and floaters that few other guards can find.

Jaylene Pires

Class of 2025, Dennis-Yarmouth/Honey Badgers, 5-7 guard+
Hometown: Yarmouth Port, Mass.

The Honey Badgers are loaded with talented guards, but Pires was a surprise as a new team member. She picked her spots well in a 69-64 win against Rhode Island Basketball Club during the Hoop Group New England Showcase. Pires knocked down a three-pointer off a ball screen, hit another nice runner, and was active as a rebounder. She’s also super quick, which helped as a point-of-attack defender and driver off the catch.