High School

No. 1 recruit Aaliyah Chavez, No. 2 Darryn Peterson named 2025 Naismith High School Players of the Year

Chavez becomes third Texan, Peterson third Californian to win in award's 39-year history

Levi Payton

Days after being named 2025 Naismith first team All-American for the second consecutive year, Chavez was named 2025 Naismith Girls Player of the Year on Friday, March 7.
Days after being named 2025 Naismith first team All-American for the second consecutive year, Chavez was named 2025 Naismith Girls Player of the Year on Friday, March 7. / Angela Piazza/USA Today Network via Caller-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The message from Aaliyah Chavez on X, formerly Twitter, was simple and to the point.

Reposted above a graphic announcing her as the 2025 Jersey Mike’s Naismith Girls High School Player of the Year Award winner, Chavez simply wrote, “Another 1.”

One of the most prestigious honors in high school basketball, the Atlanta Tipoff Club on Friday announced Chavez, the nation’s No. 1 2025 girls recruit from Lubbock Monterey High School in Lubbock, Texas, and Darryn Peterson, the No. 1 2025 boys recruit from Prolific Prep in Napa, California, as winners of the girls and boys 2025 Jersey Mike’s Naismith High School Player of the Year Award, respectively.

Last season’s winners were Sarah Strong (Grace Christian School Sanford, N.C.) and Cooper Flagg (Montverde Academy, Montverde, Fla.).

Chavez joins notable girls winners: Lisa Leslie (1990, Morningside High School, Inglewood, Calif.), Chamique Holdsclaw (1995, Christ the King, Middle Village, N.Y.), Candace Parker (2003, Naperville Central, Naperville, Ill.) and Maya Moore (2006 and 2007, Collins Hill High School, Suwanee, Ga.). 

Read more Aaliyah Chavez news here.

“Every moment of doubt I pushed through over the years has led to this point. Being honored as the top player in the nation isn’t just about talent — it’s about the countless hours of sacrifice when no one was watching,” Chavez said in a statement. “This Jersey Mike’s Naismith Girls High School Player of the Year Trophy represents my journey, not just the destination.”

Peterson joins former notable boys winners: Jason Kidd (1992, St. Joseph Notre Dame High School, Alameda, Calif.), Kobe Bryant (1996, Lower Merion High School, Ardmore, Pa.), LeBron James (2003, St. Vincent-St. Mary, Akron, Ohio) and Derrick Favors (2009, South Atlanta High School, Atlanta).

Darryn Peterson
Darryn Peterson dunks against St. Vincent-St. Mary in the Scholastic Play-by-Play Classic, Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025, at Canton Memorial Civic Center. / Kevin Whitlock / Massillon Independent / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Both players became only the third from their respective states to win the award in its 39-year history. Tamika Catchings (Duncanville High School, 1997) and Chiney Ogwumike (Cy-Fair High School, Cypress, 2010) are the other Texans to win the girls award, while Lonzo Ball (Chino Hills High School, 2016) and Hall of Famer Jason Kidd (St. Joseph’s Notre Dame High School, Alameda, 1992) both won the boys award prepping in California.

Peterson, a Kansas signee, will become just the third Jayhawks player to have held the award, joining Andrew Wiggins (2013) and Cliff Alexander (2014).

Chavez (5-foot-11 guard) is expected to announce her commitment at 2 p.m. on March 25, where she will make her pick between Texas, Texas Tech, Oklahoma and South Carolina.

“Aaliyah and Darryn’s exceptional performance and commitment to the game have justly earned them the Jersey Mike’s Naismith High School Player of the Year awards,” Eric Oberman, president of the Atlanta Tipoff Club, said in a statement. “We’re thrilled to recognize their outstanding accomplishments and offer our heartfelt congratulations as they prepare to take their basketball careers to new heights in college. Their impressive achievements reflect their extraordinary abilities and unwavering determination.”

After being nominated last season, Chavez seemed like a shoo-in to win the award this season. After moving into 16th all-time in single season scoring with 1,324 points as a junior last season, Chavez bumped herself down to 17th by easily surpassing that mark this year.

Aaliyah Chavez
Monterey's Aaliyah Chavez shoots a basket during the Class 5A Division II state championship girls basketball game on Saturday, March 1, 2025, at the Alamodome in San Antonio. / Angela Piazza/USA Today Network via Caller-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

She finished her senior campaign with 1,451 points, good for 10th all-time – bumping Southeast Lauderdale’s Monique Horner (Meridian, Mississippi, 2000-2001) to 11th.

She’s the only player to crack the top 20 in all-time single season scoring since Bishop’s Destiny Littleton (La Jolla, Calif.) scored 1,366 during the 2016-2017 season.

Chavez is also one of five players to appear more than once in the top 20, joining Geri Grigsby (McDowell, Kentucky, 1976-1977), Adriana McGowen (Goodrich, Texas, 2004-2005), Victoria Vivians (Scott Central, Forest, Mississippi, 2013-2014) and Mary Katheryn Govero (Mt. Salus Christian, Clinton, Mississippi, 2005-2006).

She led Lubbock Monterey to its second state championship in girls basketball program history this year, and first since 1981, scoring 19 points in the championship game and being named 5A-II finals MVP.

Those 19 points in her final game gave her 4,796 in her career, placing her 14th all-time in career scoring, surpassing Delta Academy’s Lindsay Roy (Marks, Mississippi), who set the mark from 2008-2012, per MaxPreps records.

Chavez scored at least 1,000 points in each season of her career. She had 1,001 as a freshman (despite setting Monterey’s single-season record for assists with 260 that season) and had 1,020 as a sophomore.

Across 150 games in her career Chavez averaged 31.97 points per game. She averaged 34.54 during the 2024-2025 season.

Peterson, a 6-6 point guard, signed with Kansas on Nov. 1, 2024. A five-star recruit, he’s slotted No. 2 on the 2025 ESPN 100 recruiting rankings, just behind No. 1 prospect and BYU signee D.J. Dybantsa.

A native of Canton, Ohio, Peterson averages 30.4 points, 7.4 assists, 6.8 rebounds and 2.2 steals per game.

“It is a blessing to be in this position. It is an unbelievable honor to win the Jersey Mike’s Naismith Player of the Year,” Peterson said in a statement. “To know that I have added my name to a list that includes LeBron James, Kobe Bryant and others is quite the feeling,

“My teammates and I put in an extreme amount of work throughout the year, and it would not be possible without them,” he continued. “I would like to thank the members of the committee that voted for me, as the five finalists for this award were all deserving. Lastly, big thank you to my parents for believing in me every step of the way. Even if I did not win player of the year, I would still be player of the year to them.”

Both players are McDonald’s All-Americans and Naismith first team All-Americans. The high school McDonald’s All-American games are slated for April 1 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn and will be televised nationally on ESPN networks.

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Levi Payton
LEVI PAYTON

Levi’s sports journalism career began in 2005. A Missouri native, he’s won multiple Press Association awards for feature writing and has served as a writer and editor covering high school sports as well as working beats in professional baseball, NCAA football, basketball, baseball and soccer. If you have a good story, he’d love to tell it.

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