TALIA ZURINSKAS of Parkland High School of PA….IS THE REAL DEAL

There is nothing like a player who shows up at a gym with no protection. You know when there is nobody in the gym to get your back. Nobody knows your name or game. A place surrounded by ALPHA FEMALES. A place where not a lot of explaining goes on and learn everything on the fly. A place where every player is trying to make their mark at your expense. A place where you totally out of your comfort zone. That’s exactly what 2024 TALIA ZURINSKAS of Parkland High School of PA walked into at NBS and she let it be know….SHE IS THE REAL DEAL.

I received a email about a young lady from PA. Her father wanted to know if there was a spot available at NBS. I explained that there was a spot available. I also explained NBS was two hours away and asked him to call me. When we talked I realized I had seen his daughter play. TALIA ZURINSKAS I knew had game; I just didn’t know how much game. Her father said to me, “Tiny we want the level of competition for our daughter” and with that she off and running or shall I say driving. TALIA would be driving 2 hours twice a week, one way to get a taste of the competition. All in a effort to find in truth in her game. To challenge herself to play against some of the best. To be in an environment where forgiveness is not alway at the doorstep. Where everyone is on front street and your only weapon is your game. Talia wanted to let us everyone know, she got game and that is exactly what she did….BRING GAME..real game!

When Talia showed up at 8am for early bird shooting. I knew she had to wake up at 5 in the morning to get ready. I also knew that any kid doing this was serious about there game. Talia was long and thin, when she stepped into the gym. Her personality threw me off because when you look her, she appears so young and fragile. But that may be just part of her trick or trap she lays out there for the unexpected. That’s because she is none of those things. She is deadly confident and it’s clear loves competition. When she lost her one on one matchup the first day. I made her run, you could tell it was not the running that was bothering her but rather the losing. Some kids value winning more than others, that was so clear when it came to TALIA ZURINSKAS. Her competitive nature is as real as it gets. Little did she know that first day at NBS, I set her up with a matchup that I did not expect her to win. I wanted to put her on heels to see how she would react. Well she did not disappoint me, more importantly you could tell she was looking forward to her next opportunity to get a little payback.

TALIA ZURINSKAS is a deadly shooter. Not only does she have range. But she has the shot fakes and the handle to free herself up. Her jumper looks like something out of a instructional manual on how to shoot a basketball. Just watching her shoot the rock is a thing of beauty. The high release and perfect rotation. The follow through and finish is proof of her commitment. It’s like watching the same movie over and over with the same result….SPLASH. But what I like most about all shooters are can they shoot on the run and can they run all day. TALIA can shoot off the move or catch and can run for days. She fills lanes as well as any kid I know. Now throw in the handle and the Parkland guard can turn a gym in to her playground. She doe all this so naturally with ease. Again proof that she works on her craft…when it come to shooting the ball…Talia or “LADY Z ” as I call her is the REAL DEAL!

I tweeted about Talia and a D1 head coach texted me and said “no surprise Tiny, she(Talia) get it and why she is going to be good”. Well she does get it and you can tell by her passion and pure joy when she is on the floor. TALIA ZURINSKAS Is certainly one day going to play D1 basketball. That’s not much of a mystery to me. Her talents and work ethic dictate that. But what is also a fact is TALIA ZURINSKAS is going to get better and better over the coming years, not just in high school but college as well. She has not come into her body yet. In fact I do not believe she has hit her growth spell yet. These are frightening thoughts for opponents and will be pure joy to college coached once they fully discover the talented guard. In a lot of ways Talia doesn’t look the part..but good lord can she play it. In fact he plays it in Academy Award winning fashion

Some kids fold under pressure. Some kids run and hide when things get to intense. The one think I already know about TALIA ZURINSKAS is that she is the one who applies the pressure and brings the intensity. It’s why she just didn’t “WIN” her matchup at NBS…she dominated her matchup. Taila is focused and locked in because she has work to do. What makes her different from most is that she enjoys the work and the challenges that goes with it. It’s for this reason alone….