High School

Opinion: Aaliyah Chavez is the future of women's basketball - whether the haters like it or not

Oklahoma signee Aaliyah Chavez dominated at Lubbock Monterey, racked up national awards and silenced doubters on her way to becoming one of high school basketball’s all-time greats

Levi Payton

Mar 31, 2025; Brooklyn, New York, USA; McDonald’s All-American West guard Aaliyah Chavez (2) shoots the ball during the Sprite Jam Fest at Barclay's Center.
Mar 31, 2025; Brooklyn, New York, USA; McDonald’s All-American West guard Aaliyah Chavez (2) shoots the ball during the Sprite Jam Fest at Barclay's Center. / Pamela Smith-Imagn Images

Aaliyah Chavez gets a lot of love, but she knows she has haters. Plenty of them. What’s good for Chavez, and bad for those haters, is that she doesn’t give them too much time of her day.

She’s been too busy winning things.

Now a high school graduate, the hoops star and prized Oklahoma Sooners recruit has gotten used to making space for new trophies in her lifetime. And lately, she’s had to work overtime at it.

While her career at Lubbock Monterey High School ended with a Class 5A Division II state championship and UIL finals MVP award, her wins in high school were still far from over. Walking the stage and getting her diploma was undoubtedly a huge moment that ranks up there with any of the athletic accolades.

But then there's those accolades.

After playing in 42 games as a senior at Monterey and on the heels of dropping 19 points in the state finals win, Chavez announced her commitment to Oklahoma before stepping out at the McDonald’s All-American Game festivities at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. She dressed out for Team West and won the Sprite Jam Fest 3-point shootout, casually dropping 18 points in front of a national television audience.

In the women’s All-American game that followed on April 1, she scored 12 points for Team West in a 104-82 victory over Team East in a game that featured most of the nation’s top women’s basketball recruits.

And the highlights continued. The two-time Elite Youth Basketball League national champion and 2024 Mamba Classic MVP participated in the 2025 Jordan Brand Classic on April 18, also at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, and wowed the crowd with some of the same nifty ball skills that she displayed alongside fellow Monterey guard Ambrosia “Bro Bro” Cole on their historic run with the Lady Plainsmen in 2024-2025.

Chavez scored 24 points in that game and, to the dismay of detractors and the surprise of nobody, was named 2025 Jordan Brand Classic MVP.

Of course, putting together one of the most prolific women’s high school basketball careers of all time will earn you some accolades. Chavez scored 1,451 points as a senior to finish with 4,796 in 150 games at Monterey.

Since the season ended, she’s been stacking up the hardware.

Along with her UIL MVP award and a host of Player of the Year honors from publications too numerous to list, Chavez – the 2025 Gatorade Women’s High School Basketball Player of the Year – recently picked up a shiny new accessory when she received the 2024 EYBL Nike Nationals championship ring from the title she won with CyFair Elite in Chicago last July.

CyFair Elite is a Nike basketball affiliate located near Houston, a roughly 7-hour, 50-minute drive from Lubbock.

Her team at CyFair included other top stars like LSU commit Bella Hines (Eldorado HS, Albuquerque, New Mexico), Aniya Foy (Kansas State, Cinco Ranch HS, Katy, Texas), Ayla McDowell (South Carolina, Cy Springs HS, Cypress, Texas) and Sania Richardson (SMU, Grind Prep, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma), among others. It was with CyFair where Chavez’s stardom really seemed to take off as she routinely stood out against the nation’s other top recruits.

Her response to seeing images of the ring is one many evaluators have also used to describe her game.

“Blessed,” she said in a quoted response to the images on X, formerly Twitter, and it’s hard to argue her point.

A two-time Naismith All-American, Chavez was selected to the Naismith Player of the Year watchlist prior to the 2024-2025 season, was later named as a finalist and then won the award following the season. She was recently presented with the trophy at Monterey.

Through it all, Chavez left Monterey better than she found it. Even without Chavez, the Lady Plainsmen figure to be good again in 2025-2026 under new head coach Chelsea Hunter, a Monterey alumna who recently was tabbed to guide the program after longtime coach Jill Schneider announced her retirement. And some of that success, at least initially, will have Chavez’s touch on it.

It is said that a rising tide lifts all boats, and Chavez has certainly done her share of lifting her team and community through the game of basketball. She made the players around her better, and when the spotlight was the brightest, those same players – like Cole and fellow senior-to-be Ari Johnson – stepped up when called upon.

But her touch on the game has a chance to last for decades, not only around Lubbock but on the game of basketball in general. Whether she’s training youth through The Lab with her father in Lubbock, hosting camps or just dropping in on youth games, Chavez’s life seems to revolve around the game: playing it, learning it and teaching it.

It’s been a win-win for both Chavez and the game. She’s given her time, sweat and tears, given back to her community and grown the game with her influence at a measure that can’t be quantified.

The game, in turn, has brought her accolades, awards, fame and eventual fortune.

Of course, she’s picked up a few haters – but earned a whole lot of love.

Aaliyah Chavez
Monterey's Aaliyah Chavez announces she will be playing for the University of Oklahoma in front of an auditorium filled with fans at Monterey High School on Tuesday, March 25, 2025 in Lubbock, Texas. / Jacob Lujan/For The Lubbock Avalanche-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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Levi Payton
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