"Wearing those letters means something more": Jerzy Robinson reflects on representing Team USA

Jerzy Robinson, the five-star prospect from Chatsworth, CA, recently stepped into the spotlight with her nomination for the prestigious 5-on-5 Female Athlete of the Year by USA Basketball.

The 6-foot-0 forward is already scaling the heights of high school basketball with her impeccable performances. However, the real highlights of her career are the two gold medals that she won for Team USA.

Back in September, the Sierra Canyon's standout shooting guard appeared on "Best of Both Worlds" with Flau’Jae Johnson on YouTube. There, she opened up about her experience playing for Team USA. The 16-year-old shared the challenges and rewards of representing her country on the international stage.

“It’s obviously a dream come true,” Robinson said. “As a little kid, you dream of the Olympics, or whatever it is, and then you go to training camp. It’s brutal for a couple of days — about a week — and it’s all up and down, no weightlifting, because you know how that weightlifting gets you.”(22:00)

Robinson reflected on her international experience, having competed in Mexico in back-to-back years. She described the intensity of practicing alongside the best young players in the country.

“Everybody you going out between these two line are now teammates, so you get in practice and it's just intensity on 10. Then, you get in the games, and we’re blowing teams out, having fun.”

However, for Robinson, the most meaningful part of the experience was the honor of wearing the USA jersey.

“Wearing those letters across your chest means something more than what’s on the back of you,” she said. “Having a gold medal, especially in the Olympic year, like we got the gold medal, it's like a different connection, but then also you sit back and like he proud of yourself.”

Robinson stood out at both events, where she represented Team USA. At the 2023 FIBA Under-16 Women's Americas Championship, Robinson averaged 17.3 points, 10.2 rebounds and two assists per game. She helped her team win the gold medal. She was also named the MVP of the tournament.

The following year, at the 2024 FIBA Under-17 Women's Basketball World Cup, Jerzy Robinson averaged 20.9 points and 6.9 rebounds per game. She again earned the tournament MVP title and secured gold for the USA.

Who Jerzy Robinson is competing with for the 5-on-5 Female Athlete of the Year Award

On Dec. 21, USA Basketball revealed the names of the five nominees for its annual 5-on-5 Female Athlete of the Year award. Jerzy Robinson, the 16-year-old basketball phenom, made it to the list. But she will be competing with heavyweights of women's basketball to win the award.

Featured in the list are the 2x WNBA champion A'ja Wilson, the 6x WNBA All-Star Breanna Stewart, FIBA Under-19 World Cup gold medalist Joyce Edwards and 10x All-WNBA first team Diana Taurasi.

Can she win the award? While her opponents are formidable, Jerzy's stellar career projects a strong case for her as well. In any case, voting is open till Jan. 5 for basketball fans to vote for their favorite player. Jerzy Robinson's fans will certainly root for her and hope she wins.