Get To Know : McKenna Warnock

GET TO KNOW
 
McKenna Warnock        6’2      Wing/Forward
Cottage Grove, WI
 
 
Graduating Class: 2019
 
Monona Grove High School – Coach Tyler Kuehl
 
Wisconsin Flight Elite – Coach Nic Levy
 
 

   
 
On the surface these write-ups feature talented basketball players with collegiate level aspirations who have started to garner some recruiting attention. The unique part to each story is visiting with the players, their coaches, and their families in regards to their basketball experiences and influences. Hearing about how the game was introduced to their lives and sharing some basketball stories helps to establish some commonalities and get the conversation going.
 
The insightful and rewarding part is learning about these players as people and being introduced to what motivates them and discussing their goals and aspirations beyond the basketball court and into the classroom and then even further - into their communities.
 
In breaking the ice and initially just talking hoops, it became evident pretty quickly that this visit was going to go deeper than just summer basketball tournaments, accolades, and accomplishments. It was clear early on that McKenna Warnock has loved this game for a long time. I asked her when she first started playing ball and she shared with me that it was as early as four years old, “Ever since I can remember..” She had an older sister who played, so it was just natural for her to begin playing at an early age. She quickly was playing with older players, and as a second grader was competing with sixth graders – on the ten foot basket. “It was big girl buckets right away!” she joyfully said.
 
It was then that she fell in love with the game. “It was outside all the time with my dad rebounding, even then, shot after shot. I was drawn to the three-point line early. And determined to be able to make threes.”
 
Warnock played volleyball and basketball in junior high and continued to do so into high school, even playing club volleyball as well during her eighth grade and freshman summers. She is the only varsity volleyball/basketball athlete at her school.
 
She was very complimentary of the upperclassmen on her high school and club teams when she showed up on the scene to play at the highest level her freshman year. Monona Grove had a few players that went on to play collegiately and she is thankful to them for being so welcoming and inclusive.
 
McKenna described her sophomore year as a “building year and one where we had to deal with every starter at some point or another having injuries and missing games.” They are looking for a solid season this year, and hoping for better overall health obviously.
 
It was noteworthy to me that when I asked her to talk about her game, every answer had to do with team first experiences and leadership intangibles in which she holds herself accountable. When asked to describe the more outstanding parts of her basketball career thus far: “Travelling with teammates is the best. Also the opportunities with adidas have been amazing. Meeting new people and being challenged by new things. The P3 experience in Santa Barbara and the WNBA All-Star Weekend in Seattle were both unbelievable.”
   
McKenna Warnock is a versatile, all-around basketball player. She is positionless in the sense that she can be effective from both the perimeter on the wing and in a post up or high post situation. That being said, she is a natural wing/small forward at the next level that will be able to score the ball in a variety of ways – she just has a knack for putting the ball in the hole; you must be there on the close out, and she can drive the ball well out of the shot fake. Opponents cannot foul her – very valuable at the next level – she is almost automatic from the FT line. She fills up the stat sheet, not only in points, but on the glass as well.
 
Things we will be looking for this year:
 

• Defensively - Paying close attention to her activity on the perimeter and using her IQ and length to guard a player of her similar versatility and scoring ability; Also, watching how she guards a forward that is physical and plays more around the rim and in the paint.

 

• Offensively – Look for her to learn to create space off the dribble more effectively especially in the mid-range; adding subtle hesitations and footwork to free up a jumper. Utilization of her left hand will be key as well.

McKenna’s Take:
 
What do you bring to the floor?
   
What areas of your game are you looking to improve?
 
I would like to add more elevation to my shot. I want to become a more creative finisher in the paint and at the rim – add some floater/runner to my game. I think ballhandling can always improve, and I want to add explosiveness out of my moves and be able to create space vs pressure to get by the defense.
 
Spoken like someone who is already thinking about the next level, which is of no surprise.


   
McKenna shared with me that she has known she wants to play D1 basketball for a quite a while now, along with her lofty academic endeavors, which includes going to medical school and eventually becoming a surgeon. Her older sister went to Marquette for her undergraduate degree and is now in medical school herself. With both parents being chemists, this is a dream both sisters have shared for a long time. McKenna mentioned even being fascinated at a young age by helping people who may have been injured and taking care of her friends. Even if it was something simple like a paper cut, she was the first to get the first aide necessities. Delivering her expertise with a warming bedside manner and helping people is something that she seems passionate about already.
 
With that in mind, Warnock mentions that academics will play a large role in deciding where she will go to college. Although she is not ready to narrow to a “list” yet as she experiences more of the recruiting process, she knows one thing for sure, “I want a school and program that genuinely cares about the student-athlete and understands that balance.” She wants a coaching staff that she is comfortable with and that can provide a vision not only for their program, but also for where she can fit into a system with her versatility. Wisconsin Flight Coach Nic Levy says her offers are too numerous to name all of them, but that she has offers from multiple schools in every Power 5 Conference, among others.
 
   
McKenna Warnock is a well-rounded student-athlete with very valuable intangibles. This is what her coaches had to say about her:
 
Wisconsin Flight Elite Coach Nic Levy:
 
McKenna is first and foremost so coachable; she wants to learn and expand her game to get to her highest level. She has played up her whole life and is extremely competitive and motivated. She has a mature approach to playing, to improving, and to her recruitment. She is fully invested in everything that we do and she is a leader - One who leads by example in practices and in games.
 
Monona Grove Coach Tyler Kuehl:
 
Academically, McKenna is probably more skilled than she is as a basketball player, which you and I both know is saying a lot.  She has challenged herself with rigorous courses and maintained a perfect GPA, which is impressive when you further consider all of her commitments outside of school as well.  I have her in the class that I teach right now, and she has the ability to affect the classroom in a similar way to how she affects a basketball game.  She both works incredibly hard and raises the level of her classmates.  She is a very mature person and student.
 
Basketball wise, she is obviously a special player as well.  She has scored over 1000 career points at this point in her career, even while missing a few games to injury last year as a sophomore.  Last year as a sophomore she was 3rd in the State in scoring, while also averaging double figure rebounds. She led our team in every statistical category as a sophomore - All while she was the single focus of every defense we played all season.  In terms of individual statistics she will likely finish her career at Monona Grove as the most accomplished basketball player in our school's history.  Her ability to score in a variety of ways is probably her greatest attribute.  She can take you inside either off the dribble or through a post-up, she can pull up and knock down contested mid-range shots, and she can shoot with great range.  Defensively her length and quickness gives her the ability to guard all five positions.  The one attribute we see everyday that most people won't get to see is her basketball IQ.  Because she has played so much basketball, she understands the game at a very high level.
 
   
This paints a picture of the consummate teammate and leader. If there was a theme to our phone call, it was that it was abundantly clear to me that McKenna is focused and has a vision for what she wants to accomplish on and off the basketball court. She understands the demands and the sacrifices it takes to excel in both areas. And not only does she know it now, she’s known it since she was about seven years old. She’s taken her passion and her interests and found the path that she wants to take. McKenna is using her mature approach and some innate leadership quality to challenge and improve those around her and in her community. Whether through setting the tone in practice or in a science lab setting to working youth sports camps to visiting with young fans after a game, she is making positive impressions and leaving her mark.
 
And as far as impressions go, McKenna Warnock gave me a superb impression and that speaks to her projection to the next level. There is a maturity that is necessary to successfully make that jump (and succeed early) because it is challenging on a number of fronts – being away from home, time management and new responsibilities, the physical demands, etc. As someone who spent a lot of time on recruiting calls at the Division 1 level, sometimes you get off the phone and you just know that is a player that you have to get not only because of their basketball talent, but because of the entire package of personality and the standard to which they hold themselves. Those are the players you want to not only represent your program, but to have in your locker room to take ownership and guide your journey together.
 
College Coaches know this is who McKenna Warnock is. She has too much humility to tell you that herself, but the best part is – I know she knows it and probably has since grade school.