As March Madness wraps, players like ZaKiyah Johnson juggle basketball with recruiting calls and NIL

SHELBYVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Recruitment letters have overwhelmed one long shoe box, along with a backpack set aside for the frontrunners. ZaKiyah Johnson will eventually get around to reading them, her mother believes, though it could be a while before the highly prized basketball recruit responds to those piquing her interest.

The junior wing ranked as a top prospect for next season has pared her initial list down to a dozen schools, a group that includes defending national champion LSU, two-time champion South Carolina, UConn and nearby Louisville.

Recruiting phone calls come late in the afternoon, often after Johnson arrives home from practice at Sacred Heart Academy in Louisville. Johnson says she politely answers and talks for a few minutes, a routine that figures to continue well into summer. Official visits will soon follow, a process that will include discussions about endorsement possibilities. centered on how much she can earn from use of her name, image or likeness (NIL).

“That’s a question I come across when I go to colleges and seeing what they could bring, but it’s not really that big of a deal,” Johnson said. “I mean, I want it but it’s still about basketball. That’s the main focus.”

While March Madness has kept fans glued to their TVs, Johnson, Divine Bourrage and Darianna Alexander — two other top-ranked prep stars in the class of 2025 — are in the thick of recruiting decisions like thousands of other prospects. Bourrage plays at Davenport (Iowa) North High School and Alexander is at Purcell Marian High School in Cincinnati.

The Associated Press spent time with the trio over the past season to talk about the recruiting challenges, including discussions at the NCAA’s first women’s College Basketball Academy in Memphis.

All of them are never really that far from the decision they face: Where will they end up playing college ball?

Of the constant contact, Johnson says it doesn’t bother her: “I kind of I let school go, let basketball go when I come home. And then whatever’s there is there for me. I don’t really put (recruiting) in front because I’ll get there eventually. I’m kind of living in the moment right now.”

Johnson has had plenty of moments, from being admittedly starstruck seeing UConn coach Geno Auriemma or LSU’s Kim Mulkey at one of her AAU games to earning state championships and individual awards. The 6-footer surpassed 2,000 career points over the winter while helping the Valkyries win their third Girls Louisville Invitational Tournament championship in five years. Johnson was named the event’s Most Outstanding Player.

Sacred Heart then went out and won an unprecedented fourth consecutive Kentucky girls Sweet 16 championship and eighth overall. Coach Donna Moir wasn’t concerned about her senior-laden powerhouse squad being distracted. Certainly not Johnson.

“Her family is really great about the whole recruiting thing,” Moir said. “They handle a lot of that, we’ll handle a little bit with just coaches coming in. She does a great job of just balancing and keeping that all in check because when it’s basketball time, it’s basketball for ZaKiyah and she’s very focused on getting better.”

Johnson’s skills come honestly with basketball running in her family.

Johnson’s mother, Taneisha Jointer, played guard for four seasons at Morehead State in eastern Kentucky. Her father, Butch, played at Western Kentucky and coaches at Woodford County High School, where her younger brother, Omari, also plays.

The mother stressed aggressive defense to Johnson as a child — “The whole game is about toughness and guts and wanting to play defense” to create opportunities, she notes — while the father helped her create shots from all over the floor and beating defenses that frequently double team her.

A social media video shows Johnson’s handles — skills honed from attending Steph Curry’s camp — while Moir and several other coaches work with her. There’s also competition with her West Virginia Thunder Under Armour Association squad.

All that has translated into quickness and versatility on both ends of the court. Johnson led Sacred Heart in scoring (18.9 points per game) and rebounding (7.3), with her offensive damage helped from behind the arc on 80 3-pointers on 37% accuracy.

Moir notes Johnson’s ability to play anywhere, from running the point to establishing a post presence on both ends to drifting out to defend the perimeter. Teammates find her often and vice versa.

“It’s hard sometimes when you have so many players able to score, but we just kind of work off of her,” SHA senior center/forward Angelina Pelayo said. “If she’s not having a good shot game, she’ll be a passer and we’ll be the ones that score. She’s very good at sharing the ball. So, even though she wants to score as much as she does, she wants us to score as well.”

Johnson would be the latest impressive standout athlete from the all-girls Roman Catholic school located 15 minutes east of downtown Louisville. One notable recent Valkyries basketball alumna is Grace Berger, last year’s No. 7 overall WNBA draft pick by the Indiana Fever after a standout career at Indiana. Berger recently spoke with the team and Johnson has also talked with former SHA and WKU standout Crystal Kelly, a WNBA alum who recently worked as a Kentucky assistant.

While those encounters painted a picture of college life, Johnson’s decision on where she’ll live will involve lots of conversations with her parents. She’s also scouting teams, having frequently attended Louisville women’s games this season and recently traveling to Knoxville to watch Tennessee take on then-No. 8 LSU. South Carolina was visiting Kentucky that same afternoon in Lexington.

With attention soon to be focused on Johnson and her basketball future, she’s making sure to enjoy every moment as a spectator. And being a teenager.

“I go shopping. I like shoes,” Johnson said. “And I watch serious TV shows. I’ll watch anything, but other than that I’m with my friends, and if I’m with my friends, we’re probably shopping too.

“If I’m tired of basketball, I’ll go watch somebody else play.”

Gary B. Graves, The Associated Press