Jaden Newman, who is only a 9 year old in the 4th grade, is the star of their varsity basketball team in Orlando, Florida. She is only 4'5 but she is very tough. Jaden started dribbling when she was 3 and since then sometimes its been right along side Kobe Bryant and the Harlem Globetrotters. When she turned 8 she scored 63 points against 12 year olds in just one game, but this season she is averaging 15 points, 7 assists, and 3 steals for her varsity team. Jaden says she wants to go to college then play in the WNBA for the LA Sparks. She says playing for their varsity team is only going to make her better for her future.
What do you think she did to get this good?
How would you feel with a 9 year old taking the spot light on your basketball team?
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Her parents probably had her start playing basketball at a very young age so that made her become a pretty good player. I would not care that much if they were good and made the team better
I think she is so good because it came naturally mostly but also because she practiced very hard. If I was the other members of the team, I would be glad she is on my team, but maybe a little jealous if she took my spot on start. I like she shouldn't be on varsity yet because she can't really set new goals for another 9 years.
She must have practiced a lot or she just has natural talent for basketball. I wonder how the varsity coaches found her and how she is able to play for high school when she is only in elementary school. As a teammate, I would be proud of her, but also jealous because she is so good.
I want to know how this works with eligibility with the school. Cause in ours you can't start till a Freshman. So can she play for 7 or 8 years.
The school is called Downey Christian and it's a private school in Florida and they only have like 300 students total but yes you can play varsity there at any age.
And she probably has a parent or older sibling that pushes her to be better, so she doesn't want to let them down.
She probably practices constantly and loves playing the game. I probably wouldn't feel very good about a 9 year old taking my spot on the team, but since she's that good then I would end up being alright with it.
Practice had to make her what she is. Dedication also has a lot to do with it, especially because she is so young. If I was on the same team as the young girl, I would support her, but also work myself harder to not let myself be covered up by a 9 year old. What a great opportunity it would be to have a teammate so young, but yet so talented.
I think this is very cool! Although i do not think you should let her play on your varsity team. There are other older players that need a chance too. She can be the all star when she is in high school.
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