LG landed a top player from SoCal who is just a freshman at Oaks Christian in Westlake Village. As the article mentions, the family are lifelong Trojan fans, but a solid get for Lindsay...
Eighth grade basketball phenom commits to USC
Many young athletes dream big, but local hooper Brooklyn Shamblin is one of a few teenagers that has the dedication and drive to reach their goals before they even reach high school.
Brooklyn is a rare breed. She has yet to play a high school basketball game, but after receiving hype online, nationwide scholarship offers and even recognition from late Lakers legend Kobe Bryant who asked her to come play at Sage Hill High with his daughter, Gigi, before their untimely death in 2020 Brooklyn has already declared to play college basketball at the University of Southern California.
"It feels great to show other girls that your dreams, the things you've been dreaming about doing it's possible," Brooklyn said.
Kobe Bryant called her "Lucky Lefty," and while the southpaw slasher is in fact left-handed, her success is better attributed to her intense work ethic and ability to motivate herself to make her dreams a reality. It's also in her blood.
Her father BJ was a college football player, who played on the last UC Santa Barbara football team before the school discontinued the program in the '90s. Her brother Ty was an all-around athlete at Oaks Cristian who now plays wide receiver for USC. The Shamblin family are all lifelong Trojan fans, and now Brooklyn will follow her brother to the school, joining new coach Lindsay Gottlieb to try and revive the legacy of women's basketball at USC, which won back-to-back national championships in the '80s.
Brooklyn's mother, Julie Shamblin, is a teacher and cheerleading coach at Carpinteria High School and hopes her children can show that even in small-town Carpinteria, huge talent can grow and make it to the top level.
"Carpinteria has a lot of great athletes," Julie said. She said her daughter caught the basketball bug watching her big brother play in high school, and since then Brooklyn has excelled in club circuits and caught the attention of college scouts. Her first offer, from UCSB, came in seventh grade after coach Bonnie Hendrickson saw Brooklyn Play a middle school game at Oaks Christian.
After that first offer and after Brooklyn turned more heads on the Under Armour circuit more scholarship offers flooded in. She received offers from all Pac 12 conference schools, as well as women's college basketball powerhouse the University of Connecticut by the time she finished eighth grade. The hype never distracted Brooklyn, Julie said, and it only cemented her confidence in her ability to succeed on a collegiate level.
"She had the attitude of, 'Why not? Why can't I make it?'" Julie said. "As parents we kind of understand, if you're willing to do what others aren't."
This willingness to practice every day, and to stay in the gym for that extra practice, is what gives Brooklyn her edge. Brooklyn says she is inspired by other female athletes like Simone Biles, who she said is "willing to go outside the limits," and be a role model for other younger athletes. Brooklyn hopes that her success can help other girls pursue their goals with the same energy.
Her game is aggressive. Brooklyn is described as a combo guard, a slasher and a scorer who looks up to women's basketball stars Sabrina Ionescu and Sue Bird, who have changed the game and opened doors for others behind them. Women's basketball has boomed in popularity in recent years, and Brooklyn sees herself as part of this new culture.
Choosing where to go to college four years before the fact can be daunting, but after meeting coach Gottlieb at USC, Brooklyn decided that is the place where she wanted to be. Gottlieb has been a mentor for her, and she often calls her future coach for advice.
"I love her energy, the way she sees the game," Brooklyn said.
Brooklyn will begin her high school career next year at Oaks Christian, and she is looking forward to growing and improving her game before she heads to USC. She said she loves playing against higher level competition, something that helps push her to be better.
"I'm definitely ready for the challenge, and to go out and win some championships." she said.