Fan Vote: Which rising star will make the biggest impact in Sydney?

SYDNEY (Australia) - A new generation of stars are ready to light it up at the FIBA Women's Asia Cup 2023 as a glut of young guns all get set to impress at the flagship event in Sydney.

There are plenty of stars to follow from right across the competition and focusing on players born on or after the year 2001, here are just some of those that you should have on your watch list.

But who will make the biggest impact? Make sure to take part in the fan vote below!

Shyla Heal - Australia

Making her senior tournament debut in February 2022 at the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup Qualifying Tournament in Belgrade, Heal didn't squeeze onto the bench for the main event. But this time she should be wearing the Opals vest in Sydney and enjoying a FIBA Women's Asia Cup debut. A number 8 WNBA draft pick two years ago, Heal cut her teeth coming up through FIBA youth events and was particularly impressive at the U17 Worlds in 2018. Now she is ready for the big stage. 

Aika Hirashita - Japan

Like so many of her Akatsuki Five colleagues, Hirashita has such a good three-point shooting range, although the forward can also mix it up inside too. She has already lit it up in Sydney when she not only stepped out for the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup, but was  the MVP of the game against Mali. In fact, in what was a very disappointing campaign for Japan, she was the one big positive to come out of it. You can expect her to try and replicate that form when she plays for the first time in this competition.

Vanessa De Jesus - Philippines

 The smiles on the faces of Philippines fans must have been large and wide when the news came out that De Jesus would be committing to playing for her country at the event.  From high school basketball powerhouse Sierra Canyon to Kobe Bryant’s Mamba Academy to Duke University and now the FIBA Women's Asia Cup 2023! The shifty guard's ability to get to the hoop and finish could prove to be gold dust and fans will be hoping she can stuff the highlights reel.

Haeran Lee - Korea

The forward is one of only a handful of players who have played twice at the FIBA U19 Women's Basketball World Cup after appearing in both 2019 and 2021 and she was particularly impressive in the latter with over 13 points and 8 rebounds per game. She also debuted for the senior team at the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup 2022 Qualifying Tournament in Belgrade and while she didn't get to go to Sydney, she will do this time. Watch out for the potential to form an exciting frontcourt partnership with Ji Su Park.

Xinyu Luo - China

The young forward looks like being brought into the mix to help plug the huge gap that has been left by the absent Yueru Li who has been ruled out with an injury. Having impressed at the FIBA U19 Women's Basketball World Cup and in preparation for Sydney, Luo will probably now get a chance to impress off the bench. While big numbers are unlikely, watch out for her hard work, energy, and hustle. Sometimes the biggest impact is made not by what a player puts on the statsheet - but by the things the statsheet doesn't see.

FIBA