2026 will mark the fourth year in a row for the Nike Hoop Summit game on the women’s side. It will be in Portland again this year with the game scheduled for April 11th. Last year’s encounter was close well into the fourth quarter before the United States maintained their perfect record with a double-digit win. USA Basketball has announced their roster so we will only create a wishlist for players who we would want to see on the World roster. With a number of top young players being unable to participate in last year’s U19 World Cup, turning what could have been a historic tournament into an anticlimactic affair, there are hopes that this game will be competitive.
2026 Draft-Eligible Players
There may be 2006-born international players invited to this event, which under WNBA rules would have them eligible for the upcoming draft. Since we will have a separate article to cover players in that situation, we will not include them on this list, although any of them would certainly be welcomed at an event like this. Saffron Shiels from last year’s event fits in this category, although she has missed the current season due to injury. Australian guard Monique Bobongie and French guards Nell Angloma and Stella Colas were players who were in last year’s article who remain eligible for the upcoming draft.
Returnees
Seven of the twelve players on the roster last year have already started their college careers, but there are other players who could return this year. Olivia Vukosa and Jovana Popovic, who are both headed to Connecticut for college next season, definitely fall in this category. Vukosa is finishing up her high school career while Popovic is starring for Mega in Serbia again this season. Two French players could also return with neither of them currently set to pursue the college route. Ainhoa Risacher has a bigger role with Lyon this season, which could complicate her availability. Sarah Cisse had been playing in France’s second division during last year’s game, but she has had a strong debut with Lattes Montpellier in the top division, which could keep her out as well given the playoff schedule.
Last Year’s Wishlist
A number of players on last year’s wishlist who did not play in the game could still very much be in the picture for this event. Towering Chinese center Zhang Ziyu made her senior national team debut and her senior club team debut, but there are still many questions about how to compare her to other players. An event like this would help some people get to those answers, especially if she ends up not playing in World Cup qualifying. Jessie-May Hall is headed to TCU for college and her continued absence from the highest club and youth national team levels in Australia means that it would be fascinating for her participate. Maja Uranker is also headed to college after another season with Celje in Slovenia, choosing to attend Miami.
New Players
Not counting anyone mentioned before, we will list out some new players who would be good additions to the event. Younger players do get invited, but we will focus on 2007 and 2008 born players as well as incoming college players. Americans are sometimes on the World roster based on their ties to other countries, but we will only include any who have represented those countries elsewhere, like during FIBA events.
2026 College Entrants:
Savvy Swords, SF, Canada, Long Island Lutheran (NY), Kentucky signee
Canadian players have been the backbone of the World team at this event since inception and Savvy Swords has the chance to follow in the footsteps of her sister Syla, who is now starring at Michigan. While she has been fast-tracked on the national team level as much, she has had an excellent youth national team and high school career on the wing. A heavy recruitment led to her choosing to attend Kentucky next season and she figures to be one of the first players on the invite list for this squad.
Annie Kibedi, PF, Belgium, Mechelen, Oklahoma State signee
Belgium has become a big players on the international stage with two straight European championships, but their local league has not quite risen in prominence to the same extent, giving the chance for young players to play big minutes, including in continental competitions. Annie Kibedi first emerged when she played 10 minutes of garbage time in EuroLeague as a 14 year old. She has since continued to play for Mechelen, earning a bigger role over time while also playing well at the youth national team level. She is headed to Oklahoma State, where part of the question about her future will be whether her terrific rebounding will keep her at power forward.
Laura Vilcinskas, C, Belgium, Mechelen, TCU signee
Mechelen has balanced bringing in veteran players to compete for championships while showcasing younger players, both locally and from other countries, and it shows with the opportunities that they have given their young frontcourt duo. Laura Vilcinskas did not quite make as much of an early impact as her teammate, but she has quickly built up her reputation in recent years. As a center offering defensive and rebounding that allows her to complement more established players, she has been fast-tracked into the full national team setup for games that had no bearing on competition. While some colleges have shied away from building taller lineups, TCU continues to stockpile centers and find ways to utilize them and she is the latest to decide to join them.
Sara Okeke, C, Spain, DME Academy (FL)
A late entrant to the high school scene this season, Sara Okeke is in the middle of a whirlwind recruitment between some of the top schools in the country. She had been playing for Estudiantes in Madrid, but getting into a situation with more guaranteed playing time against others her age made sense after another tremendous summer at the youth national team level. A focus on the U18 and not the U19 level there does lead to wondering about where she fits in against top players around the world, so this would be a good chance to show where she stands. Securing top European prospects has always been difficult for this event so inviting someone who is already in the country and not in the middle of their season would make sense.
Somto Okafor, SG, Spain, Segle XXI, UCLA signee
Segle XXI in Barcelona is an academy where a number of Spanish stars developed and Somto Okafor is their headliner this season. Like the other players, she is there to prepare for her next destination while playing in the third division and playing for a team in that position instead of one competing hard in their regular season would make it more likely that she would be available for this kind of event. She initially committed to Arizona, but reopened her recruitment with their coaching change, giving UCLA the chance to swoop in as a program with significant recent history signing international players. Spain made the interesting decision to play her up age groups at the U19 and U20 levels, but their summer of medals seemed to justify their choices, and she played well in both tournaments. In the long run, she is going to need to demonstrate a little bit more consistent playmaking alongside her scoring.
Isi Etute, PF, Luxembourg, IMG Academy (FL), Texas commit
There could very well be two players on the World roster who have had older sisters play in this event as Isi Etute would certainly be a target after Ehis, who is now playing at Oregon, had a good showing. Rather than continue with club play in Luxembourg, Isi decided to finish high school in the United States, committing to UCLA, but not signing, abruptly leaving her recruitment open again at the start of the year before choosing Texas. Luxembourg has a number of exciting young players and nearly used that generation to secure continental qualification, a quest that she has participated in heavily already for the next cycle. Like her sister, she is difficult to contain on the glass, even for taller players, but it remains to be seen whether she can play anywhere besides power forward at the next level.
Lea Vukic, PF, Croatia, Tresnjevka, Yale commit
There are a number of clubs around the world that have a strong history of youth development and Tresnjevka has become known for being the place for young Croatian players to get playing time and showcase themselves for the next level. While that step has been other countries in Europe for some players, their contributions to the college ranks in recent years has been significant. Lea Vukic returned to the team this year after starting the season with impressive numbers in Zadar and is planning to head to Yale next season as Ivy League schools have been upping their international recruiting efforts. Her jump in league production this year follows a big summer where she earned an increased role at the youth national team level.
Anna Liepina, PF, Latvia, Neptunas (Lithuania), Miami signee
Latvia has a long tradition in women’s basketball and has continued to reliably bring through a high-level prospect each year even though it has not translated as well to the full national team in recent years. Anna Liepina had extensive experience in her home country, contributing to a championship, but opted to make the move across the border to Neptunas in Lithuania for this club season, playing well for them after a tremendous summer and also getting her chance with the full national team. Her game from the post continues to expand as she has decided that college is her next destination, already signing with Miami for next season.
Callie Hinder, C, Australia, PHH Prep (AR), Arizona signee
Australia has traditionally had a strong development path that has steered the top players to a national team training program with professional destinations as the goal while other prospects have been able to stay at local clubs to get quality playing time on their way to college careers. More recently, players all along the prospect spectrum have headed to the United States for high school and club play. The daughter of a basketball player too, Callie Hinder has long been seen as a player who could develop into an impact national team center over time. With her mother being American, the family has spent time in both countries and she has been playing basketball in high school while trying to break through at the youth national team level.
Sther Ubaka, PF, Brazil, DME Academy (FL), Vanderbilt signee
Part of the mission of the World portion of this event is to bring in players from different countries and backgrounds to compete and play with one another. Sther Ubaka is an emerging prospect for Brazil, which has a tremendous history in basketball, but has had its share of recent struggles on the international scene. She came through the system at famed club Corinthians before heading the United States, which has certainly helped Brazilian development in recent years, choosing Vanderbilt as her college destination. She seems to be improving rapidly, so this could be a good place for her to showcase her growth, especially in potentially downshifting positions, and the logistics of the event will always mean that the organizers are looking for World players who are already in the United States.
Not Currently Headed to College in 2026
Justine Loubens, SF, France, Roche Vendee
France had had a long history of successfully developing players through a national program bringing in players from around the country to train together and play games in the second division. The goal is to prepare those players to contribute at the top division level when they graduate and there are always a few who have a smooth transition. Justine Loubens has been one of the success stories from the previous class and she has earned a bigger role in the rotation as the season has progressed. She also had a solid summer for the youth national team and while her ceiling is not viewed as being as high as some other players her age, she definitely looks ready to have a long career ahead of her.
Emma Giacchetti, SG, Italy, Magnolia Campobasso
Long considered a key future prospect for Italy, Emma Giacchetti is in her fourth season of getting minutes in their top division after starting her senior career in the second division. Finding scoring-minded guards is not hard in the modern game, but an event like this could always use a player on the roster who is willing to facilitate when the team has not been able to spend time together to prepare. While she has scored when needed to on the youth national team level, she has also demonstrated the playmaking that will allow her to be a contributor throughout her career.
Tjasa Turnsek, PF, Slovenia, LCC International University (Lithuania)
One of the big stories of the European youth national team scene last summer was Tjasa Turnsek’s fanatastic work at the U18 level followed by a solid effort playing up at the U20 level. That big leap in production earned her a big role with the senior national team in qualifying games in November as they start to transition from an established group of veterans to a group of emerging young stars. On the club level, there have been options in Slovenia, but she opted to head to another region that has also given prospects plenty of opportunities, joining the program at Lithuania’s LCC International University to play against the top teams from around the Baltic region. An event like this would be a good introduction for her on the global stage as she has continued to grow her game.
Daniele Paunksnyte, SG, Lithuania, Kibirkstis
Few places have as much interest in basketball as Lithuania and they have a new generation of talented young players coming through in time to be one of the hosts of the next EuroBasket tournament as the previous generation of stars hits their twilight years. Daniele Paunksnyte has been playing at Kibirkstis, a powerhouse team within the country, giving her exposure to higher level club competitions and minutes in the local league. The national team securing qualification as hosts also meant that she has already gotten the chance to play with them in games against the other hosts after she had a tremendous summer playing two years up at the U20 level.
Lisa Sirgi, C, Estonia, Fort Erie International Academy (ON)
There are a few countries where basketball is the unquestioned top sport and then another group where it has a strong argument, especially among all of the team sports. Estonia is one of the latter group, but they have never quite been able to have the same success internationally as some of their neighbors. Nevertheless, they have become a consistent sender of talent to the college route in recent years. Lisa Sirgi excelled in the league there during the season when she turned 17, averaging a double-double, but opted to head to PHH Prep in Arizona, immediately gaining recruiting attention. She decided to make the change to Canada for this school year and is planning to be in the class of 2027 for now.
Damaris Emedie, C, Cameroon, FAP
One of the names to emerge from the first version of this event was Madina Okot, who spent another year in her home country before a strong start to her college career. While she is not quite as tall, Damaris Emedie has burst onto the scene in recent months as a post player to watch from Africa in the near future. She did not put up big numbers over the summer for the national team after a great youth national team tournament the previous year, but was a double-double machine for her club as they qualified for continental competition. This would be the perfect opportunity for her to participate in an event alongside players her age who have had more global exposure.
Otoha Goto, SG, Japan, Tokyo Healthcare University
While this event brings in players who are competing at notable levels around the world, it is also an opportunity to bring in players from less-heralded competitions to see how they compete with the rest of the group. In recent years, Japan has adopted a distinctive play on the national team level that includes plenty of shooting from beyond the arc and Otoha Goto has been the player with the biggest greenlight for the youth national teams that she has played on so far, getting in plenty of scoring with the volume of attempts that has been generated. It has been common for top prospects there to play directly in the pro league after their high school careers, but she has opted for the college route, helping her school win the championship at that level. She did get to play against a pro team in the Empress’s Cup and featured in a close loss as college teams do get upsets at this level, but playing with more players her age might be a more insightful measure of her long-term progress.
Kathy-Emma Otto, PF, France, CFBB
France has historically tried to gather their top prospects at their national training program, also fielding a team in the second division to get them playing time against older players. More and more top players are opting to stay with their home academies, but Kathy-Emma Otto has been in their program for three seasons now and become one of their key players. It would be hard to find a young player consistently putting up more impressive defensive stats against older players, repeating what she has been able to do on the youth national team level. Given that their season will be over by the time that the game is played, it might be easier to bring her in for this event than to successfully invite players who are preparing for playoffs with their teams.
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