In its 35th year of honoring the nation’s most elite high school athletes, The Gatorade Company today announced Paige Bueckers of Hopkins High School in Minnetonka, Minn. is the 2019-20 Gatorade National Girls Basketball Player of the Year. Bueckers won the prestigious award for her accomplishments on and off the court, joining an impressive group of former Gatorade National Girls Basketball Player of the Year winners who have combined for nine WNBA MVP awards, 49 All-Star appearances and 14 became WNBA first round draft picks.
“Winning the Player of the Year award was a day that I will always remember. That is why I am so excited to present Paige Bueckers with her award,” said Karl-Anthony Towns. “Being recognized by Gatorade as an elite athlete both on and off the court is an honor like no other and I am thrilled to see what great things Paige will accomplish in her career.”
The award, which recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence, but also high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the court, distinguishes Bueckers as the nation’s best high school girls basketball player. A national advisory panel comprised of sport-specific experts and sports journalists helped select Bueckers from nearly a million high school girls basketball players nationwide.
Competition for the national award is fierce. Bueckers topped the list of 51 state winners in girls basketball who have an incredible list of accomplishments, including 12 McDonald’s All-American Game selections, 12 Pac-12 committees, six ACC committees, 15 with GPAs above a 4.0 and 88 percent volunteering with at least two organizations.
Bueckers is now a finalist for the most prestigious award in high school sports, the Gatorade Female High School Athlete of the Year award, which is announced at a special ceremony after the 2020 ESPY Awards in July.
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