“Coach Ray will use you as a speech in practice one day” Candi Johnson, mother of FinestFam, Kayla King(UH). Yep‼️ Ne’talya Hurst is one of the best cases for “running your own race”. Nat came to finest as a talented frosh, but still raw( a former cheerleader). We immediately put her on our shoe-circuit team because of her upside. After a couple of events, we saw she needed more seasoning. We moved her to a less-competitive team. When informing her parents… “We trust you, coach, what does she need to work on?” She hit Greg Bowie’s lab. Next year, she played on our 16u shoe-circuit team, earning spot minutes, flashes of promise. Her last season with Finest, her 3rd, she was initially placed on a 17u non-shoe circuit team. Her parents said… We trust you, coach! What does she need to keep working on?” Ramping up her lab work, she got with a S&C coach as well. After a couple of events, she was moved to our 17u shoe-circut team due to her elite play. That team featured an All-American and a player who scored over 3000 points at her position. Her minutes were limited, initially. Again, her parents said…. “We trust you, coach. She LIVED in the lab. By July, she was a key rotational player, bringing toughness, energy and a reliable shooter to the squad. She earned two D1 offers‼️ But both schools moved onto different players before she could commit. She hit the….. LAB‼️ Playing on a HS team that wasn’t supposed to win a tough district, she led them to a district title. Her patience, persistence and belief in herself was rewarded today‼️ Nat signed with @LionUpWBB and @jeffdow Thank you Nat….Congratulations ‼️ And today her parents said….. “Thank you Finest”😉 The Hurst Family is truly a Finest Family 🫡