Paige Bueckers: ‘I don’t want to just be a high school legend’

In the first 24 hours after it went up on YouTube, the Slam Magazine video on Hopkins basketball star Paige Bueckers amassed more than 41,000 views.

The video was dropped Wednesday at the same time that the monthly basketball magazine released its latest print edition, which was the first one in its 226-issue history that featured a female high school basketball player on the cover.

A video crew from Slam has been following Bueckers and the Hopkins girls’ basketball team through the season, in which the Royals are trying to repeat as Minnesota’s 4A basketball champions. The latest video focuses on Bueckers and the team’s recent game against rival Wayzata, in which Hopkins trailed at halftime before rallying to win.

“Bottom line is they shot the crap out of the ball and we’re down by three,” Hopkins coach Brian Cosgriff tells his team, hoping to reassure his players.

But most of the video focuses on Bueckers, the No. 1-rated senior in the nation who has commited to play for the University of Connecticut..

“Nobody talks about high school accomplishments or accolades. I don’t want to just be a high school legend,” she says during an interview session and photo shoot at the school’s Lindbergh Center. “I want to be someone who does it at the college and then the pro level. ... I want to keep going.”

In addition to the Wayzata highlights, the video features scenes where Bueckers sees the magazine cover for the first time, as well as a sweet tribute from Sunaja (NuNu) Agara, a ninth-grader on the Hopkins team who is considered one of the state’s top players in the Class of 2023.

And here’s a link to the magazine story