Tyja Traore '18 Recruiting Profile

I've been playing basketball for as long as I can remember. Even as a young child, I found basketball to be a fun sport. In middle school, I was struggling with coordination issues, lack of skill development, and even lack of confidence.  I knew this was the sport I really wanted to develop.  After my eighth grade year, I almost considered quitting, believing that I wasn't good enough to continue playing in high school. Luckily, I participated in my first year of AAU with a coach that completely transformed my confidence and my skill level. I went from riding the bench all through middle school to starting as a freshman on the high school varsity team. I was the MVP in my Sophomore year and again this year, Junior year. I was given Honorable Mention for my Region in 2015 and 2nd Team All Region this year, 2016-2017. I was listed as All-County (Dekalb County, GA) Top 20 for 2015-2016 and 2016-2017. This experience in playing basketball has taught me that hard work gets you the results you want, and being lazy gets you nothing.

All my coaches comment on my height and defensive skills. I get up and down the court well for my size, and stay aggressive and hard-working on defense. My teammates can always depend on me to keep my head, and help them to stay calm and collected on the court. Because of my height & size, I almost always play the five/center position.  I am continuing to develop my ball handling skills and shooting skills in hopes of playing at the three/forward position at the next level.

In addition to basketball, volleyball is my secondary focus. Before the basketball season, volleyball keeps me in shape and helps heighten my vertical jump. My athletic abilities have allowed me to be the #1 blocker in my region for two consecutive years. Academically, I enjoy Art and Latin. In college my interest will be either Art or Language Studies. I have a 3.8 GPA, and take multiple honors, gifted, and AP classes at Lakeside High School in Atlanta Georgia.