Horizon High School has been up and down this high school season, but much of the team's success this season has come from the strong inside play of 6-foot-4 junior post Katie Grant. Very few post players in the state of Arizona or in the West, for that matter, have the size and potential of Grant, as she is quickly developing into one of the elite overall prospects in Arizona's 2016 class.
Often post players have the last laugh in the development process, as they develop at their own pace and take time to mature physically. For Grant, her potential is becoming realized at a nicepace, as she is becoming a formidable post presence that college coaches are now taking notice of and will continue to observe very closely.
Grant is the force in the middle for Horizon and is also the foundation that everything for this team has been and will continue to be built on this high school season. While Grant does not look to score much, she is very capable of doing so and has good low-post footwork and a skilled left handed touch inside the paint. She primarily is a rebounder and shot blocker that does both very well. She keeps the ball up high on her rebounds and post moves inside, and is a solid finisher right now that will improve a great deal more over time.
Grant has the intangibles though as a post player and understands how to block shots and keep the ball in play, allowing her to help ignite her team’s fast break. She is as strong a developing inside presence as there is in the state, and has the ability over the next year to develop into something similar to Kristine Anigwe in the paint for opposing teams.
Horizon will need to include Grant much more in their offense to have the kind of season they desire in the Division-I ranks, since Grant is capable of scoring effectively inside the paint and is tough for opposing teams to defend, as a result of her left-handed inside touch and ability to beat opposing post players down the floor.
I caught up with Grant recently and she advised me that currently she is hearing from such schools as Loyola Marymount, Gonzaga, Hawaii, Northern Arizona, Fresno State, Grand Canyon and Arizona Christian in her college recruitment. Currently, Grant did not indicate any college leaders at this point in her college recruitment, but she is looking to continue to attract more college programs to herself throughout the next year.
Grant competed last spring and summer with the Arizona Rebels girls club program, and will look to boost her college recruitment with continued strong play this high school season, and again next spring and summer - a big club season for Grant as she looks to be one of the better recruited 2016 prospects in the state.
Very few post players around have Grant's combination of size and potential for the future, and I love this young lady's promise as a post prospect over time. I will be keeping a close eye on Grant over the next year, as she continues to improve and hard work hard for the Lady Huskies.
