5 young hoopers to watch

One of the benefits of the NWSL is that—whether signed out of college, through the U18 Entry Mechanism, free agency or transfer—a plethora of young players enter the league on a regular basis. However, the high expected chaos (xC) quotient of most games makes it difficult for young players to stand out on a consistent basis.

When they do they’re Trinity Rodman or Claire Hutton, while others tend to grow into their stardom. But a handful of young players have put up intriguing numbers throughout the first half of the season, and could be on the cusp of taking the next step. So let’s look at five young players to keep an eye on the rest of the season.

In the 2025 season Kimmi Ascanio played mostly as a forward or attacking midfielder, so it’s been a bit of a shock to see her deployed in deeper midfield positions so much this season. However, it’s very much working.

I have no proof of how this version of Ascanio came to be, but the reality I’ve crafted in my head is that head coach Jonas Eidevall was walking around training one day and thinking ‘Wow, if I had a Kim Little my life would be so much easier’, and just then Kimmi Ascanio crossed his field of vision juggling a soccer ball and evading imaginary defenders with mini-elasticos.

Anyway. Eidevall likes shifty midfielders who cover lots of ground, are good at ball manipulation in tight spaces, are confident short-to-medium passers in every third, and who don’t mind getting into scraps. That’s pretty everything Ascanio has been this season.

Obvs I’m digging deep in the way back machine for the Kim Little comparison, but I don’t think you have to squint too hard to see it. While the NWSL was much different in 2016 than it is today, the comparison of Little’s player radar from that season to what Ascanio has done in 2026 is strikingly similar. The biggest variances (progressive carries and progressive passes) can be explained by the difference in eras, and even more sharply, the difference in coaching styles between 2016 Laura Harvey and present day Jonas Eidevall.

Ascanio has taken to the new position as if she’s been an undercover central midfielder all along. She’s still managing to create problems through progressive passes and carries while also being everywhere defensively. This gives the Wavé the ability to tweak their approach without making subs, as Ascanio can play deeper, get stuck in defensively and complete short passes to kickstart buildup sequences, or drift higher to be more directly involved in creating attacking sequences around the box.

The clip below shows Ascanio using her defensive instincts to intercept an attempted back pass then immediately use her technique and attacking awareness to keep the ball until Gia Corley started making her run.

Ascanio is still just 18, so there’s plenty of room for refinement. Playing alongside a veteran like Kenza Dali in training and games is like being enrolled in doctorate level midfielding courses, and so far she’s earning straight As.

Ainsley McCammon was among the first batch of under 18 players to land at an NWSL club after the league announced its Under-18 Entry Mechanism. McCammon signed with Seattle on July 19, 2024, at just 16-years-old. She earned one start and two appearances that season, and in 2025 grew that to a modest 16 appearances and 7 starts.

Fifteen games into this season, however, she’s made 13 appearances and 11 starts. And here’s why…

She’s second among deeper midfielders (central and defensive) in dribbling g+ per 96 (.03), only behind Gia Corley [min. 500 minutes]. However, McCammon isn’t going on prolonged adventures out of midfield or carrying the ball across the thirds, instead she’s using quick feet and short bursts to escape pressure then send teammates on their way.

That last part still needs a bit of time and development, as she has fairly low passing quality numbers (-11 below expected passes). But even with that, McCammon has four assists from finding ways to eliminate defenders and deliver passes into space.

I ranted about this assist earlier in the week but I’m going to do so again. It’s truly nonsensical behavior from a teenage midfielder. It’d be an outrageous assist for anyone to pull off and instantly slot into the highlight reel of any top footballer in the world, and yet it was also done so casually by an 18-year-old central/defensive midfielder.

One of the reasons McCammon’s overall passing numbers might be low is that she knows she can do stuff like this, and probably goes for the homerun play a bit too often. As she learns to be a bit more discerning, those numbers should improve. Anyone who can execute the assist above already has the vision and technique they need, taking the next step will be all about refining her decision making.

I’ve loved Ayo Oke’s career path so far. She took a page out of Mia Fishel’s book and went to Liga MX Femenil to start her professional career, signing with Pachuca immediately after leaving UCLA. Oke hooped in Mexico, and was then lured to the NWSL by Denver Summit.

I’m on record as saying that anyone who wants a shot at the right back position for the USWNT should try and grab it now, because I expect Oke to lock down the position over the next World Cup cycle.

Inn possession, she’s a nightmare. She can already tuck inside and execute a variety of passes to work the ball around or break through the backline, but she can also do the more traditional overlapping stuff to whip in dangerous crosses. She’s also smart about choosing good moments to get forward or stay back, and has a ridiculous burst of speed.

Recently, she had the unenviable assignment of matching up with Trinity Rodman. This season the Spirit have been trying to get more from Rodman off the ball rather than rolling it to her feet and hoping for magic, but Denver forced them into their retro gameplan. This often left Oke isolated on Rodman, and while the USWNT star had her moments, so did Oke.

Rather than focus on going direct to goal, Rodman had to shit her focus to Oke, and loosen the defensive grips by executing a slick turn and dribble across with the sole intention of getting her marker a yellow card. It worked, but Rodman needing the assist of a card speaks to the difficulty Oke was able to cause.

The thing to keep an eye on the rest of the season is how Oke improves defensively. Rodman will draw a yellow on the best fullbacks in the world, but Oke can be susceptible to yellows to players who are decidedly not Trinity Rodman. Much of this can be chalked up to adjusting to a league that asks a lot of wide defenders week after week, plus the combination of Denver’s style of play and lack of speed on the backline, which frequently leaves Oke as the only defender capable of attempting a recovery tackle.

Oke is already an incredible player, and is in the correct league to develop her defensive instincts. If she can limit her fouls and improve the timing and cleanliness of her defensive interventions, she’ll

Ever since some key departures, Orlando’s attack has devolved into Barbra Banda and prayer. Luckily for the Pride, Banda is often in the business of answering those prayers. But injuries keep her from suiting up every game, and Orlando struggle massively without her. Lately, as teams have taken more risks to contain Banda, Orlando is struggling even more without someone who can consistently make opponent’s pay for devoting resources to stop one player.

When Banda has been out the Pride have turned to several players to try and provide ‘squint-really-hard-and-maybe?’ Banda impressions (vertical outlet who can open lanes to receive and make the ball stick in the attacking third). The closest they’ve come is in 20-year-old Solai Washington.

In recent weeks Washington has been able to provide a vertical outlet for Orlando. Her dribbling g+ (.08 per 96) is on par with Yazmeen Ryan and Emma Sears (both .09), and ahead of Trinity Rodman (.06) and fellow rookie Jordynn Dudley (.07).

Where Washington is being let down so far is her actual goal production. I know it’s weird to be like ‘check out how awesome this forward is’ when they haven’t scored a goal yet, but you’ll just have to come on this journey with me.

Washington has put a third of her 21 total shots on target, and is averaging 2.54 shots per 96. It would be great to see the number of shots increase, but there are a some reasonable explanations for it being somewhat low. One, at time she plays with Barbra Banda, so enough said. Also, she tends to share the pitch with Jacquie Ovalle, who is a dope player but has yet to fully settle in the NWSL, and has been rather Sentnorian in her willingness to end possessions with rips from distance.

So far, only one of Washington’s 21 shots was taken from outside the box. Instead, she consistently takes shots with the twelve yards between the top of the penalty area and the six-yard box. While those shots have yielded 1.9 xG and zero goals so far, she’s finding shots around or below the penalty spot—which is not an easy thing to consistently do. She’s also averaging .23 expected assists (xA) per 96, which equals Leicy Santos’ output so far this year. According to Fotmob, she’s also in the 92nd percentile when it comes to touches in the box (6.65 per 90).

Washington’s data is from 796 minutes of match time, which is not insignificant, but well shy of the ~1,000+ of everyone else on this list. However, I think Washington’s data is more indicative of her trends as a player rather than the false spikes of a Sample Size All-Star.

There’s plenty of room to improve, and of course that starts with putting the ball int he back of the dang net, but the consistent touches in the box generating 36 shots so far (21 of her own, 15 for teammates) is just over four shots created per 90. If she continues getting into the box and creating shots, the goal contributions will come.

Emerson Elgin has had an interesting path to the NWSL. She was on the Courage’s U23 team two years ago, signed with Gotham in 2025 but never played for them and was sent on loan to Tampa Bay Sun in the USL-SL, making two appearances there before joining the Legacy. That’s quite a rapid journey, and not one filled with a ton of minutes or opportunities.

All that makes all this even more impressive.

Elgin has been a ball progression monster for Boston. Her passing g+ is .03 per 96, which among center backs is only behind Kristen McNabb (.04) and Esme Morgan (.05). Elgin also leads her position group in dribbling g+, with .02.

Some of this is the way head coach Filipa Patão wants the team to play, but it’s also credit to Elgin for being capable of pulling it off given how inexperienced she’s been as a professional coming into this season.

If any traditionalists have read this far they are surely upset that the first thing I brought up about a defensive player is the stuff they do in possession. Firstly, get over it gramps. It’s been this way for a while and so many systems simply do not work without defensive players being competent with the ball at their feet. Effective pressing structures have made it a requirement, so go yell at Jũrgen Klopp or something.

Anyway, that was all a bit of distraction from the fact that Elgin’s defensive numbers are, well, ungreat. There are some bright spots though, and signs that improvement is more than possible. The entire Boston team has a bit of a fouling problem, but Elgin should be excluded from that narrative (only .32 per 90). However, there is also some work needed to make her a more stout defensive presence.

Some of this can be done through more minutes, and continuing to perform in a league that I think is the most taxing for defenders young and not-so-young. There’s also the likelihood that increasing her strength and physicality will help her stand up to and win more duels. To fast track that aspect of her development I highly suggest following Lilly Reale around in the weight room. ■