Two of Arizona's 2023 signees, point guard Jada Williams and forward Breya Cunningham, were named to the McDonald's All-American roster Tuesday.
The Wildcats are one of five programs to have multiple players on the McDonald's All-American list. Cunningham and Williams join point guard Paris Clark and forwards Maya Nnaji and Cate Reese as McDonald's All-Americans to play for the Wildcats; Nnaji and Clark were in last year's game.
Both Williams and Cunningham are seniors at La Jolla Country Day School in San Diego, the hometown of Arizona coach Adia Barnes. Cunningham and Williams are both rated as ESPNW Top 100 players for 2023; Cunningham is No. 14, while Williams is No. 21. Arizona freshman wing Montaya Dew, who enrolled this semester, is the Wildcats' highest-rated addition for '23 and likely would've been a McDonald's All-American.
Cunningham has averaged 18 points and 11.2 rebounds per game in four seasons at La Jolla Country Day.
“Breya is one a few in the country that is a five that wants to be a five. She can step out, and she shots. But she’s not trying to go dribble through her legs and shoot 3s,” Barnes said of Cunningham in November. “I love that about her because she wants to be who she is. I think she is only going to get better. She’s a beast inside. She’s going to be a force to be reckoned with, for sure.”
Williams, a Kansas City native, has averaged 11.2 points, 4.4 assists, 4.6 rebounds and two steals per game in two seasons at La Jolla Country Day. She also won gold medals at the 2022 FIBA U17 World Cup and the 2021 FIBA Americas U16 Championship.
“Some people just have the personality (where) they attract people," Barnes said. "You can talk and feel like you’ve known (them) forever after a few minutes. … One thing that really stuck out with me about (Jada) is how this all came to fruition.
"She was with USA Basketball, and I was going back looking at videos … she’s hurt and wasn’t playing. She’s the first person off the bench. She’s giving high fives. The first person meeting (teammates) at half court, walking back. Super engaged on the bench and as a coach, you look for those things. Most people don’t have that, and she has that. She’s a natural-born leader.”
The McDonald's All-American Games are set for March 28 at Toyota Center in Houston.
