Published Sep 6, 2024
Amari Byles loved her visit to Stanford
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Ben Parker  •  CardinalSportsReport
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One of the top recruiting targets for Stanford women’s basketball is 2026 5-star forward Amari Byles out of DeSoto High School in DeSoto, Texas. Byles visited Stanford this summer and had a really positive experience, sharing her experience with CardinalSportsReport.com.

Just from a community/campus standpoint, Stanford thoroughly impressed Byles. She loved how beautiful and convenient the campus is along with the community that surrounds it. It was everything she could have hoped it would be.

“The biggest thing that stood out to me about the campus was that everything you’d ever need was right there,” Byles explained. “The campus was absolutely breathtaking. The community on the campus was amazing as well. I felt like everyone was very kind and helpful.”

As for the basketball side, head coach Kate Paye has made a great impression on Byles. They are forming a strong relationship and Byles can’t wait for their bond to grow. She likes how approachable Paye is and the overall feeling that surrounds the program.

“I love coach Kate Paye so much! We have the easiest conversations and I can’t wait to continue to grow our relationship,” Byles said with enthusiasm. “The entire rest of the coaching staff are amazing as well. Everyone is so humble and just great people to be around.”

What Stanford likes about Byles is her versatility as a forward. They see her as somebody who can help them out in a variety of ways and be a key part in helping them get back to championship form.

“They really like that I am such a versatile player and that I can do a little bit of everything,” Byles said. “They feel like I can help this program win national championships again.”

On the academic front, Byles is very much interested in what Stanford has to offer on that front. She wants to go to a school that has a long history of academic excellence. Stanford certainly checks off that box.

“On a scale of 1-10, a 10! I’m looking for a school with a history of academics,” Byles said of how much she values the academic side. “I love math and science!! Definitely something I would want to carry on into college.”

Looking ahead to her junior season of high school, Byles has a lot of goals both for herself and for her team. She loves to push herself and shoot for the stars in terms of what she feels she can accomplish:

“I want to win a state championship, become top 10 in my class, lead my team into becoming the #1 team in the nation, narrow my schools down to at least 10, and be able to dunk.”

At this point, Byles doesn’t have a firm decision timeline in place. More than anything, she wants to make sure she gets all the visits in that she can so that she can start to figure out which place is best for her.

“No, not at the moment,” Byles said of a decision timeline. “Going to start taking a lot of visits, so I can be able to really narrow down my list.”

While she is still early in the recruiting process, it does sound like Stanford is making a strong impression on Amari Byles. She loved her visit and is developing a strong relationship with head coach Kate Paye and the rest of her staff. It’ll be fun to see how things progress with her and Stanford over the course of her junior year.

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