The Bay Area Phoenix Announce WBLA Roster

Posted On September 12, 2024September 12, 2024

The WPBA has been announcing players who will represent them under the Bay Area Phoenix banner in the upcoming tournament to determine the club champions of the Americas and, on Tuesday, fully announced the squad that they plan to field in the group stage in Medellin, Colombia from September 27th-29th. The team will be coached by Bryan Gardere and a first or second place finish would advance them to the final stage in November. All games will be on FIBA’s YouTube channel and those streams will be embedded at the end of this article.

With the freedom to assemble the team as they saw fit instead of just sending one team from the league, some of the leading players from this past season are included. Given the different setting of playing international teams in an unfamiliar environment, the team features plenty of veteran experience as well as younger players and those who will be playing overseas for the first time. Each of the announced players is introduced in more detail below in the order that they were announced.

Ameela Li

It is no surprise that the first player announced was the MVP of the champion Bay City Blaze. Li has deep ties to the area, having also been coached by Gardere in high school at local powerhouse Piedmont. She then headed to Pacific for her college career, starting for her final two seasons and then spending her first professional season in Hungary. She has since returned to the Bay Area and has been a WPBA fixture.

Kamilah Jackson

The next player announced has extensive experience overseas, as Kamilah Jackson from the league runners-up, the Alameda Wolves, was revealed as a signing. A Bay Area native, she played at Sacred Heart Cathedral in San Francisco for high school before making her way to Hawaii for college. After an excellent career there, she has played internationally almost every year of her professional journey and that experience should provide valuable to a group trying to accomplish something new at this tournament.

Rebecca Harris

Another experienced member of the Wolves was the next player announced as Harris, who played a number of years at a high level in Europe, joined the team. Her professional career came after finishing her college career at Illinois and besides actively playing, she is also involved in the basketball world in other capacities. In addition to playing in the WPBA, she plays Athletes Unlimited Basketball, confirming her participation again for next year’s event after playing in all three previous seasons and serving on the league’s Player Executive Committee.

Aquira DeCosta

Once a top high school recruit from a school with plenty of history at St. Mary’s in Stockton, DeCosta’s journey from her time at Baylor to the present has been covered heavily in the media. The WPBA played a role in getting her professional career started and then she headed overseas for a season, putting up incredible numbers in Sweden. After also playing on a short-term contract in Mexico, she returned to the WPBA last season and then played for the Phoenix in this season. She will provide a valuable post presence to the team in this tournament.

Danielle Robinson

The first player announced who has not spent any time in the WPBA, Robinson was certainly a dream signing that the league managed to complete. A Bay Area native who went to San Jose’s Archbishop Mitty, a longtime high school power, she has played in 12 WNBA seasons after her college career at Oklahoma. While she has not played there this season, she did play in Turkey in the last European season and showed that she can still play at a high level. A veteran with extensive overseas experience alongside her time at the highest level, she will be looking to add club champion of the Americas to a resume that already includes helping her team win the club championship of Europe.

Jazmine Jackson

After her younger sister was announced, Jazmine Jackson eventually got her reveal as a member of the squad too. Another Bay Area native who also played for Sacred Heart Cathedral she headed to Pepperdine for her college career. She returned to the region instead of heading overseas to continue her basketball career, spending significant time working in high school athletics in addition to playing locally, joining her sister on the Wolves in their run this past season.

Mo Bennett

Another player whose professional experience has come locally, Bennett is not a Bay Area native and played at Georgia Tech for her college career. She ended up serving in the US Coast Guard for a number of years and is now a police officer in Hayward. Her time in the WPBA has shown that she can play at a high level as she played for the Hayward Reign. She did get additional experience overseas last month by playing in a tournament in the Dominican Republic for domestic and American teams.

Aliyah Collier

The other player on the roster who has not played in the WPBA and also not a local, Collier has had an excellent start to her professional career after playing at Clemson in college. She was incredible in her last season in Europe, playing in Turkey’s second division and being relied on in a competition that only allows one foreign player per team, helping Bodrum win the playoffs to secure their spot in the top division for this upcoming season.

Faatimah A

Last but not least, the league’s founder will get to participate in this historic event after being its driving force as she also plays for the Phoenix while being involved in league operations. She played high school basketball at Encinal in Alameda before staying in the Bay Area for junior college and then playing a year at the DII level before returning to Canada to finish out her college eligibility. One of the players on the team with extensive international experience, including representing Jamaica on the national team level, her experience playing in Latin America could be helpful in an unfamiliar environment for even some of the other veterans.

Game Streams (times PDT)

vs Pioneras de Delicia (Mexico), Friday, September 27th, 3:30pm:

vs Salvadorenas (El Salvador), Saturday, September 28th, 3:30pm:

vs Indeportes Antioquia (Colombia), Sunday, September 29th, 6:00pm: