Indigenous basketball senior prepares to play college ball overseas

PHOENIX (AZFamily) — The Native American Basketball Invitation is this weekend, bringing talented high school players from tribes across the state to Phoenix.

Jaci Gonnie is one of those players, and basketball has always been a part of her life—regardless of the challenges she faced playing on the reservation.

Now, her skills are taking her internationally.

Gonnie grew up 30 miles east of Winslow with a family full of basketball players.

“So I was always around basketball, and it was never really new to me and I started playing when I was around 3 years old,” Gonnie said

But she said living in such a remote part of the reservation came with challenges.

“It was a lot harder on me,” Gonnie said. “I had to shoot around with flat basketballs and a bunch of bullheads so it took a toll on me but I had to push through it and it made me more stronger than ever.”

Once she entered high school - she started playing with the Rez Bombers. In her sophomore year, her team won NABI. Her performance garnered international attention, including from a coach in Italy who recruited her.

But her senior year wasn’t without its challenges. Gonnie tore her meniscus.

“Like, how and I going to do this,” she said. “How am I going to play college ball now that no colleges really want me.”

However, with determination and financial help from an NABI scholarship, she will play overseas for college at the Rome City Institute.

“I just had to take it,” Gonnie said. “I had to take the opportunity to play overseas.”

Now she’s preparing for her last NABI and then going to play in Europe, but she’s also looking back at how far she’s come.

“If freshman year me would like think about that there be in awe but I am,” Gonnie said.

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