Kaleena ‘Special K’ Smith is the AAU Player of Summer
Anwar Stetson
Summer is ending with a bang worthy of a Mike Breen call. In perhaps the most exciting era of girls’ basketball the sport has seen, the best hoopers continue to shine as the AAU season comes to an end and school gets back in session.
If you haven’t heard of Kaleena “Special K” Smith, check out our profile of the Class of 2027 phenom from Ontario Christian High School in Southern California.
Smith and a handful of the best girls’ hoopers in the nation are prepping for the final weekend of OT Select in Atlanta, Georgia. After an exhilarating first two weeks, the annual event culminates in a championship weekend starting Friday. The tournament has helped bring attention to stars like GG Banks, Aaliah Spaight, Saniyah Hall, Oliviyah Edwards, Kate Harping, and many other players running the game right now.
However, Special K took the reins of the tournament just weeks after winning tournament MVP at the 17U 3Stripes Select Basketball Girls Circuit (3SSB) championship in South Carolina.
Often the smallest player on the court, Smith has solidified her role as the Goliath of AAU girls basketball.
Smith, the first athlete to sign an NIL deal with Adidas Girls Basketball, averaged 23 points and 5.9 assists per game at 3SSB in July.
She not only led the tournament in assists, but also nearly averaged 50-40-90 at the event. The 16-year-old shot 48% from the field, 40% from beyond the arc, and 93% from the free-throw line.
It takes tremendous confidence to be a triple threat with your jumper, but Smith looks even more at home getting her teammates involved with spectacular passing.
Fast forward to OT Select in Atlanta, the 5’6” Smith rubbed shoulders with giants. In order to shoot over her competitors, the number one-ranked player has perfected her Derrick Rose-esque floater. As the captain of ISO World, Smith and her squad defeated Oliviyah Edwards and Venom Tears 82-74. However, a 25-point performance against Saniyah Hall’s All Knighters had ISO World on the verge of elimination.
Facing Tatianna Griffin’s Drifty Dreamerz in the second-chance “Bubble Breaker” game, Smith fought like a hardened warrior in the tightly contested matchup. Embodying her team’s identity, Smith brought the ball up the court with a chance to win.
In an isolated 1-on-1 matchup, Special K called off the rest of her squad to battle alone. The defense collapsed on the former Gatorade Player of the Year, but her smooth floater banked off the high glass for a suave and decisive game-winner. The win secures ISO World in the semifinal matchup this weekend and a chance to win the tournament.
A deferential Smith downplayed her game-winner in a postgame interview.
“That doesn’t matter,” Smith said. “I think we did really good on the defensive end, getting two stops in a row. I think that was really great. So that’s what really sealed the game for sure.”
With that level of talent, Smith’s greatest skill is the ability to remain humble. With one tournament MVP under her belt this summer, Special K has the chance to stamp summer 2025 as one of the best AAU seasons in recent memory. It won’t be very long before her college recruitment process kicks into high gear. We can’t wait to see her continue to showcase her ability at Ontario Christian this coming prep hoops season.