by By Dan Ninham
The Native With Talent, also known as NWT, is an Arizona club girls’ basketball team that has provided national level opportunities for native girls’ to be seen by colleges.
During the school year, Nikkianna Kinsel, 17, competes for the Westwood HS Lady Warriors in Mesa, AZ.
“During the off season I compete for NWT, Native With Talent,” said Nikkianna. “NWT is an all Native American club ball team, and we are always traveling out of state to play against the top and elite teams from all over. I’m now an incoming senior, I will be graduating in the summer of 2022. “
“I’m Navajo and my clans are Tsi’naajinii, Kinyaa’áanii, Tł’ááshchí’í and Bit’ahnii,” said Nikkianna.
Nikkianna’s accomplishments include:
- 2018/2019 6a All East Valley Second Team
- 2019/2020 6a All East Valley Second Team, East Valley Region Champions, Sports360AZ All Academics First Team (4.5 GPA)
- 2020/2021 6a East Valley First Team, East Valley Region Champions, Sports360AZ All Academics 1st Team (4.33 GPA)
“My cultural teachings that were taught by my mom and elders at a young age has guided me to keep myself grounded and focused on my personal ambitions,” said Nikkianna. “Not only to keep myself focused but also helping me become a strong independent women they all wish for me to become.”
“The teachings have also given me a steady state of mind, a mind to stay happy and never to give up so easily especially in tough times. Through personal experience of being a young Native American athlete, I am often overlooked by many. However, it only makes me want to work harder than anyone else. Through every step I take to get to my ultimate goal I will continue to stay humble and always work to be a better version of myself each day,” added Nikkianna.
“As an athlete my goal is to leave high school breaking school records and making a name for myself here at Westwood HS,” said Nikkianna. “After high school I plan to play at the next level, whether it’s at a junior college or at a four year university. I plan to get there by going through each workout at a full speed pace and working on my own outside of practices. As I was always told, to go through each workout, practice and game as if it were to be your last, nothing is a promise. At each and every event I separate myself from everyone else. I try to stand out from the crowd so that colleges can see what I am capable of doing,” added Nikkianna.
“Jerry Jones is one great mentor of mine, and I’ve known him for a quite a while now,” said Nikkianna. “Coach Jerry has always has been a great supporter of mine on and off the court. He always reminds me and my team to stay humble and keep a strong mind.” “Like what he always says ‘we don’t lose, we learn and grow’ and it’s a saying that I use after each game. There’s always room to make improvement,” added Nikkianna.
“Nikki is one of the elite scorers I’ve coached known and see in a long time,” said Jerry Jones, NWT club basketball coach.
“Always being the underdog because of her height, Nikki never seems to disappoint. “Whether it’s hitting a deep 3-pointer or driving into two defenders, selling a pass bringing it back only to kiss it off the glass for the ‘and-1’ shot to chasing down a break-away and blocking a shot from behind. I’ve seen it all coaching Nikki,” added Jerry.
“She is one of those players people hate to guard only because you can’t stop her, you can only hope to contain her,” said Jerry. “She’s going to do whatever she can to create space and after she scores she runs back on defense.”
“She’s not just offensively sound,” said Jerry. “She will lock up a player on defense as well, with her and Nyese Jones guarding someone it’s going to be a battle. One of the best 1-2 punches to play with!”
“I have known Ephraim Sloan, coach for Run n’ Gun, an all Native American basketball team, since grade six,” said Nikkianna. “He was one of the first coaches that allowed me to play up at the varsity level with his original team. At first I was afraid when he asked me to play at that high competitive level, however after the first game I was comfortable playing with his girls because they didn’t make me feel like I was the ‘young one’. He always pushed me by having me play against the elite teams starting at a very young age, so that I wouldn’t be no stranger to that type of competition. Ever since, Ephraim have helped me perfecting my skills in every little detail.”
“The first time I heard of Sixx (Nikkianna) was a few years back,” recalled Ephraim Sloan, coach for Run n’ Gun club basketball. “I remember her mom did a Facebook post about her playing up in the girls’ varsity division as a sixth grader. At the time, her and her older sister Kenzie played with a team from Salt River called the Renegades. In the post it read how she had a handful of points in each game, few steals and held her own against older seasoned players.”
“It wasn’t until sometime later her older sister Kenzie when she became a part of my varsity girls’ team with Run n’ Gun. There was a tournament that I only had a handful of players, so I figured to have Sixx play. By this time, she was a seventh grader still playing up in the varsity division like it was nothing. At that point watching her play along some great older players, she didn’t miss a beat. Mentally, she was locked in and ready to go. Didn’t matter who was in front of her.”
“I had the honor to coach Sixx and her older sister for about a year and a half together before Kenzie graduated from high school,” said Ephraim. “During that time, she grew a lot as a player and as an individual. By the time she got into high school as a freshman, playing varsity in 6A was a no brainer.”
“Under the guidance of Westwood HS head coach Ron Campton, she was going to be a vital piece in turning around the basketball culture,” said Ephraim. “Fast forward to now, she’ll be entering her senior year in the fall as one of the vocal points in this coming years’ team. Remarkable student-athlete to set the standard for younger players to come through the program for years to come”
“Ron Campton, varsity girls’ head basketball coach at Westwood HS, is hands down, all around a great person and mentor,” said Nikkianna. “I have to give Ron so much credit to my craft. From the first practice eight years ago that I attended, Ron has influenced me to come out of my shell and helped me explore beyond my comfort zone.”
“Before meeting Ron I was very new to the game of basketball, and with his help I was no longer afraid to do things that I wouldn’t have done on my own. Ron changed my perspective on basketball. Basketball isn’t just a physical sport, it is an environment to grow off of not only as a player but as well as a person,” added Nikkianna.
“Nikkianna has been the most relentless players’ I have ever coached,” said Ron Campton, head girls’ basketball coach at Westwood HS. “Early morning workouts, evening practices, making every open gym in our off seasons, hours spent in the weight room to get stronger than girls 10 inches taller, and playing in tournaments and leagues every weekend. She has stopped at absolutely nothing to be a great basketball player on the court.”
“Off the court she has been just as relentless in the pursuit of being a great human being. Looking after her sisters, being an amazing daughter, sustaining a 4.3 GPA in the classroom, being a teammate her fellow players can turn to and talk to and she has excelled in every area these last three years,” added Ron.
“I’ve been lucky enough to coach Nikkianna since she was in middle school,” said Ron. “There has not been a single player who’s worked harder than she has. She’s been viewed as too short, not strong enough, not being good enough and every turn she has worked hard to silence any doubts by being relentless in her pursuit of her goals.”
“That relentless attitude has carried her to this point, and will push her to some great accomplishments in her lifetime,” said Ron.
“Being a student-athlete takes a tremendous amount of time and energy,” said Nikkianna. “We also take sacrifices every once in a while. For the past three years, I have attended Westwood HS, and one thing people don’t always see is the effort that I put into the basketball program. I travel almost an hour each day to get to school, with traffic. Before online learning I would wake up at 5 in the morning so that I could get a workout in before school. Then in the classroom each day I always stay in tune with the teachers and continuing to gain new knowledge. After school I study, do homework and then attended after school practice with Ron Campton.”
“Now you would think that I would go home from there. No, I would then attend another practice for club ball. Never once I saw that as an excuse to slack off in practice and in school. This experience has taught me so much. Not everything is going to be given to me so easily, it’s going to take time and a lot of effort to get to where I wish to be,” added Nikkianna.
“It will all help me in the long run,” said Nikkianna.
Photo Credit: Antonio Ibarra
