Basha junior basketball player Lleyton Leonard has been chosen for the USA High School Select Team that will compete at the Shanghai Future Star Basketball Championship in China.
The team will compete against teams from China, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, Italy and Spain.
Leonard will be gone from Aug. 6-17, but was able to work out a schedule with teachers to keep up with his coursework online. Chandler Unified School District began classes for the 2026-27 school year in mid-July.
"It's really a blessing to be given the opportunity to play basketball in China," Leonard said. "It's truly amazing the way a basketball can take you all over this world and I'm very grateful for it."
Leonard stood out in the June high school basketball Section
7 and Nevada Live events.
In July, he stood out for the Oakland Soldiers elite club program. He starred on the EYBL circuit, including the Peach Jam in Georgia. He also was invited to the Nike Top 100 camp.
Leonard, a 6-foot-4 wing who has started on Basha's varsity since he was a freshman, has moved into the ESPN SCNEXT 60 player rankings at No. 56. He is the highest-ranked Arizona Interscholastic Association public-school player for the 2028 class.
"What a really cool opportunity for him," Basha coach Mike Grothaus said of Leonard going to China to represent the USA. "Lleyton has had a great spring and summer. His recruitment is really starting to take off.
"He is a tireless worker and has such an amazing, supportive family behind him. I hope he has a great trip and brings me back a souvenir."
Lacey Leonard, Lleyton's mom, said that they received a call about the China trip on the way home this summer from Georgia, where he was playing in the Peach Jam.
"It was kind of like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, where you have this opportunity to go across the world, represent the U.S., they're paying for him to go and the family and all that," Lacey said. "Do you tell them no, you can't go, because you have school? Or do you talk to your teachers and principal and everyone? Thankfully, Lleyton has had a good relationship there at Basha High School. He's one of the leaders on camps. They were all very supportive of him going. Lleyton represents Arizona so well on a national level."
Lleyton Leonard, whose father Louis played in the NFL, said the success he's had in the spring and summer has been crucial to his development, playing against top national competition.
Receiving his first national ranking, Leonard said it is a testament to all of his hard work.
"I'm nowhere near satisfied, as I'm still trying to get better at my craft," he said. "I'm coming for a top spot and gaining my fifth star."
Richard Obert has been covering high school sports since the 1980s for The Arizona Republic. Catch the best high school sports coverage in the state. Sign up for Azcentral Preps Now. And be sure to subscribe to our daily sports newsletters so you don't miss a thing. To suggest human-interest story ideas and other news, reach Obert at richard.obert@arizonarepublic.com or 602-316-8827. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter:@azc_obert
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Basha basketball star Lleyton Leonard to represent USA in China
