S’Mya Nichols of SM West signs letter of intent with Kansas Jayhawks women’s basketball

Highly rated Shawnee Mission West High senior S’Mya Nichols has signed a national letter of intent to play college basketball at Kansas, Jayhawks coach Brandon Schneider said Wednesday.

Nichols plays guard for the SM West girls basketball team and also has experience with Team USA at the youth international level.

The Overland Park, Kan. native is part of a two-player recruiting class for KU. Schneider has also signed Laia Conesa, a 5-10 freshman-to-be guard from Barcelona, Spain.

“It’s hard to describe the impact that S’Mya is going to have on our program in every facet,” Schneider said.

Nichols is ranked No. 34 in ESPN’s latest high school rankings and No. 22 by Collegiate Girls Basketball report.

“We identified her as one of the premier up-and-coming players in the nation at an early age,” the KU coach explained, “and we’ve been recruiting her since she was in seventh grade, offering when she was in eighth grade.

“S’Mya is a player who can play four positions offensively and we’ve seen her guard all five positions at a high level. Paired with her elite skill set, her versatility, size, strength and athleticism really stand out when you watch her play.”

She is the highest-rated player to sign with KU during Schneider’s eight-year tenure in Lawrence.

Nichols as a member of the 2022 Team USA Under 18 National Team, which a gold medal at the FIBA Under 18 Americas Championship.

She’s a two-time all-Class 6A first-team selection by the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association. She has averaged 13.8 points per game during her SM West career and enters her senior season fewer than 100 points away from 1,000.

“I chose Kansas because every time I was on campus it felt like home,” said Nichols, who selected the Jayhawks over Tennessee, Arizona, Oklahoma, Missouri and many other schools.

“I immediately fell in love with the family atmosphere and how serious the coaches and players are about winning,” she said. “I wanted to join a team that wants to do anything to win while sticking together. Kansas let me take my time and be on my own pace to figure things out, and I appreciated that the most.”

Nichols scored a career-high 31 points in SM West’s sub-state championship victory over Olathe South last spring. SM West, coached by Mark Rabbitt, reached the Class 6A state tournament for the first time since 2016. Nichols played AAU basketball for the Missouri Phenom program started by KU associate head coach Terry Nooner.

Conesa competed for the Spanish National Team during the FIBA U16 Women’s European Challengers (2021), FIBA U17 Women’s Basketball World Cup (2022) and FIBA 3×3 U17 Europe Cup (2022. She helped Spain to a silver medal finish in the U17 World Cup.

She plays at one of Spain’s top basketball academies, Segle XXI, which competes in Liga Femenina 2, Spain’s second-tier women’s league.

“Laia is a fierce competitor, and you can tell that she loves the game of basketball,” Schneider said.

Conesa chose KU over Ohio State, Georgia Tech, Washington State and others.

“The first thing that stands out about her is her versatility and being able to play numerous positions on the perimeter,” Schneider said. “She’s an extremely active defender and has a knack for getting her hands on the ball with a lot of deflections.

“She has a high basketball IQ and is an exceptional passer with great court vision. Off the court, her personality is very quiet and reserved, but when she steps on the court, she’s a fiery competitor.”

Conesa said: “”I chose Kansas because I think it’s a good school to continue my education at while enjoying and playing basketball at the same time. Being able to spend time with coach Brandon when he visited my family in Spain was meaningful in my recruiting process and made me feel connected to Kansas and the program.”

Schneider is thrilled with his recruiting class.

“We signed a small class this year, but I think it’s probably the highest-rated class that our program has signed in a long time,” he said. “We were able to bring in one of the best guards, not only in Spain, but in all of Europe in Laia Conesa.

“And getting S’Mya Nichols, one of the best players in the country, to stay home and be a Jayhawk, the trajectory of Kansas women’s basketball continues to head in a positive direction, and we look forward to adding Laia and S’Mya to our family.”