Since launching JWS Next earlier this year, we’ve had the privilege of immersing ourselves in the national high school basketball scene — the teams, players, traditions and rivalries.

As the 2021-22 campaign draws to close, we wanted to highlight some of the most impressive players we got to know. Below are our picks for the inaugural All-American teams (including their stat lines and college commitments), headlined by Player of the Year Kiki Rice.

First Team

G Kiki Rice, Sidwell Friends (D.C.), Sr.

15.8 PPG, 7 RPG, 5.1 APG, 2.6 SPG
UCLA

The best player on the nation’s best team, Rice has few holes in her game, which she’s modeled after the legendary Sue Bird. She helped turn Sidwell Friends into a national power, and for that, she’ll always be a local icon.

G Chance Gray, Winton Woods (Ohio), Sr.

26.7 PPG, 5 RPG, 3.5 APG, 3.2 SPG
Oregon

An elite combo guard, Gray helped Winton Woods capture its first conference title since 2011.

G Mikaylah Williams, Parkway (La.), Jr.

22.8 PPG, 8 RPG, 3.7 APG, 2.2 SPG
TBD

The top-ranked recruit for the Class of 2023, per ESPN, Williams will have her pick of prospective college suitors after a dominant junior campaign.

F Ayanna Patterson, Homestead (Ind.), Sr.

25.8 PPG, 11.8 RPG, 2.5 APG, 2 BPG
UConn

The winner of Indiana’s prestigious Miss Basketball award, Patterson led Homestead to a one-loss regular season. The all-around player is also known for her impressive dunks.

P Lauren Betts, Grandview (Colo.), Sr.

17.2 PPG, 11 RPG, 3.6 BPG, 3.5 APG
Stanford

The 6-foot-7 Betts is unmatched as a low-post talent. A two-time Gatorade Colorado State Player of the Year, Betts will join the reigning NCAA champions in the fall.

Second Team

G Ashlynn Shade, Noblesville (Ind.), Jr.

20.9 PPG, 8.3 RPG, 4.1 APG, 3.7 SPG
UConn

Shade capped a superlative junior campaign by scoring 31 points in the state title game, tying an all-time record.

G Aaliyah Gayles, Spring Valley (Nev.), Sr.

13.8 PPG, 4.9 RPG, 3.5 SPG, 3.3 APG
USC

A dynamic athlete with a scorer’s mentality, Gayles will be virtually impossible for Spring Valley to replace.

F Timea Gardiner, Fremont (Utah), Sr.

13.5 PPG, 7.1 RPG, 2.8 APG, 1.8 SPG
Oregon State

The-England born Gardiner led Fremont to the brink of a state championship with her dominant all-around approach.

F Janiah Barker, Montverde (Fla.), Sr.

17.6 PPG, 8.9 RPG, 1.7 APG, 1.5 SPG
Georgia

A multiple-time Team USA selection, Barker helped Montverde clinch a GEICO Nationals berth.

P Isuneh Brady, Cathedral Catholic (Cal.), Sr.

20.7 PPG, 12.8 RPG, 3.3 APG, 1.8 BPG
UConn

The big known as “Ice” was in a class of her own in the San Diego area, especially in the low post.

Josh Needelman is the High School Sports Editor at Just Women’s Sports. Follow him on Twitter @JoshNeedelman.

LOVB volleyball is coming back to cable, as the pro volleyball league announced a Wednesday night primetime partnership with USA Network for its 2026 season.

From January through April, USA Network will air a "Match of the Week" nearly every Wednesday evening, starting with a 2025 championship rematch between runners-up LOVB Nebraska and title-winners LOVB Austin on January 7th, 2026.

USA Network will also broadcast a portion of LOVB's 2026 postseason, including one semifinal and both games in the league's new two-match championship series.

Gearing up for its second season, LOVB features a talented player pool amid an increasingly crowded pro volleyball market.

One in every five LOVB athletes are Olympians, with 90% of the league's international players and 75% of its US players boasting national team experience.

Even more, growing demand for the sport has expansion on the horizon for the six-team league, with LOVB preparing to launch its seventh franchise in Los Angeles — backed by Angel City and Chelsea FC investor Alexis Ohanian — in 2027.

How to watch the 2026 LOVB season on USA Network

The second season of LOVB opens when inaugural champions Austin take on runners-up Nebraska at 6 PM ET on January 7th, 2026.

Live coverage will air on USA Network.

With the rookie card of Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark still doing numbers, trading card manufacturer Panini America is debuting Caitlin Clark Chronicled this week, dropping a limited-edition release on Monday that features a 22-page collectible book and 100-card set of the WNBA standout.

The book spans images of Clark on and off the court, and includes eight four-card packs and 32 randomly inserted trading cards, as well as autographed exclusives.

"I'm excited to launch 'Caitlin Clark Chronicled' with Panini America and share some of my favorite moments on and off the court from my first two years in the WNBA," Clark said in Monday's statement. "We wanted to create something different that combined great photography with trading cards, including some special exclusives. I am proud of this collection and hope fans enjoy it."

The WNBA superstar is an exclusive Panini partner in the trading card and autographed memorabilia space, with Clark making headlines last July when her one-of-one autographed rookie card sold for more than $600,000 — setting a new world record for a women's sports card.

How to buy Panini's 'Caitlin Clark Chronicled' card set

Panini's limited edition Clark collection is currently available for purchase at Target stores and Target.com.

Tensions remain high between the WNBA and WNBPA, after The Athletic reported on Monday that the latest CBA proposal from Players Association more than doubles the league's revenue share offer — suggesting a deepening rift in negotiations.

The union outlined a deal that would give players around 30% of total WNBA and team revenue — a significant leap from the league's proposed 15% share.

According to sources, the WNBPA also suggested linking the salary cap to the previous season's total revenue, factoring in player benefits and the number of teams in the league.

The move intends to undercut an accusation from the WNBA that the players have yet to put forward an economically viable revenue sharing model.

The union's proposal begins at 29% of the prior season's total league grosses, then grows to 34% by the final year of the CBA with a one-time adjustment for the new 11-year, $2.2 billion WNBA media rights deal.

Notably, the league recently rejected a flat 33% revenue share CBA proposal, prompting this week's 1%-per-year increase system in response.

It's clear that the WNBA office and the WNBPA are at odds, but the union is showing their work as both sides strive for a CBA that will keep players on the court in 2026.

Olympic swimming icon Katie Ledecky has done it again, becoming the first woman to break the 15-minute mile with a time of 14:59.62 at her namesake Katie Ledecky Invitational in Maryland.

Smashing her own US record of 15:01.41, Sunday's sub-15 minute mile gives Ledecky the 1,650-meter freestyle's eight fastest times, with US teammate Erica Sullivan earning the ninth-best in 2019.

"This is a special one for sure," Ledecky said afterwards. "This has been a goal of mine, to break 15 minutes in the 1,650, for probably eight or nine years. So, just putting in the hard work, believing that I could do it someday, and to do it at this meet, is really special."

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The 28-year-old Washington, DC, product is the most decorated women's swimmer in the history of the sport, prompting Nation's Capital Swimming — where Ledecky got her start at age six — to name their annual event in her honor earlier this year.

"I definitely was a little nervous before the race, just knowing there were a lot of eyes on me and all that," she continued. "But I knew I could just relax and have fun with it, and whatever happened, happened."

How to watch Katie Ledecky in action

Ledecky's next major competition will likely be the TYR Pro Swim Series, which kicks off in Austin on January 14th, 2026.

The domestic competition series will be covered across NBC Sports platforms.