Tuba City phenom Layla Curtis hits 500 points

By Quentin Jodie
Navajo Times

FORT DEFIANCE – By all accounts, Tuba City freshman Layla Curtis has become a household name within the prep basketball community.

On Jan. 27, the Tuba City phenom hit her 500th point against the Monument Valley Mustangs, scoring a game-high 36 points.

“Not at all,” Curtis said when asked if she thought that she would hit that milestone early in her high school career. “Honestly, I’m just here to play my hardest and be a contributor to my team. I never looked at this as something that I would check off my list; it’s more about giving my all to this team.”

With her trajectory, Curtis is likely be part of the 2,000-point club by the time she graduates in 2029. The archives by the Arizona Interscholastic Association only lists the top 20 players that reached that pinnacle but there is bound to more since Willcox player Shawn Coder, the 20th rated scorer, amassed 2,162 points from 1986 to 1990. The all-time list is headed by Catalina Foothills player Julie Brase, who accumulated 2,913 points from 1994 to 1998.

“Seeing myself get past 500, I think it’s possible,” Curtis said of reaching the 2,000-point plateau. “But, you know, I just got to stay determined and stay humble.”

Her offensive prowess goes beyond what she can do on the offensive end. In fact, Curtis leads her team in rebounds, steals, assists and blocked shots. Through 25 games, she has 125 rebounds, 90 steals, 62 assists and 12 blocks.

“She’s the kind of player that every coach dreams of having,” Tuba City coach Pete Butler said. “She does everything. She plays hard on defense, and she’s always looking to deflect passes and she’s looking to steal the ball.

“She’s well-rounded and I tell people that have asked me that she’s probably the total package you want as a player,” he added. “Not only is she strong offensively, but she’s also pretty strong defensively as well.”

Butler said it’s fun to coach and watch her play.

“I’m just awestruck to have a player like her,” the longtime coach said. “I’ve never seen a freshman this good. I didn’t know that she was closing in on 500 points, but what she’s done is rare and unheard of sometimes. I’m just amazed with what she’s accomplished because you have players who played varsity for four years and it takes them four years to get 1000 points.

“She’s way ahead of that curve,” he added.

With her basketball aptitude, Curtis is drawing interest from a few college programs. She has multiple offers including one from a Division I program.

“Right now, I’m under a management team,” Curtis said of OG6 Sports Management, a managing firm that was founded by Earl “OG” Flaggs.

“He keeps a lot of stuff off my shoulders,” Curtis said of her agent. “He makes everything a lot easier for me. I mean, I don’t have to worry about all the recruiting stuff.”

Curtis is expecting more offers to come during the summer club scene. She plays for the Run N Gun club team that is coached by former Window Rock standout Ephraim Sloan.

“I’ve been playing club ever since third grade, but I’ve been playing varsity high school girls basketball since the end of my fifth grade year,” Curtis said. “I was mainly on the bench, but I had a lot of girls to look up to. And when I did go in, I tried to play at their level.

“And when I didn’t, I would get disappointed in myself,” she added. “But everyone reminded me that I was young, and now that I’m older it just seems normal to be out there playing.”

With the state playoffs starting next week, Tuba is projected to get the No. 2 seed behind top-ranked Snowflake in the Copper Bracket. Coupled with Curtis’ ability and tenacity, the Lady Warriors have other playmakers to make a deep run in the elite small schools’ tournament.

“Overall, the talent is there,” Butler said. “We have some veteran players, who have been playing together for almost four years now. They’re a good group and we can probably go four, five deep into our bench.”

Seniors Aubrey Begaye, Thalia Clitso and Raquel Lee have the most experience while sophomore Nakota Tallman is a rising star for the 22-3 Tuba City team. With a 9-1 mark in 3A North Region play, the Warriors earned the No. 1 seed for this week’s regional tournament that opened on Tuesday night.

The Butler-coached team will host No. 6 Chinle tonight in a semifinal game while second-seeded Window Rock entertains No. 6 Ganado. The championship game is slated for Saturday at the Wildcat Den with the tipoff at 6 p.m.

“We have a really good freshman in Layla Curtis,” said Begay, who second in scoring, assists, blocks, rebound and steals behind Curtis. “Not only that, but we also have a lot of girls who have experience. The girls that returned are advanced and we’re playing at a high level.”

Last season, the Warriors made the final four round in the Copper Bracket before they were ousted by league rival Page in the semifinal by a 46-41 count.

“Going into that locker room after the game, everybody had red, puffy eyes,” Begaye said. “It’s kind of embarrassing that we lost that game because we were ahead by so much.

“You know, nobody wants to end their season like the way we did last year,” she added. “I think losing that game has really helped us a lot this year because it’s keeping us on our toes, knowing that anything can happen at any moment.”

In its most recent game, Begaye led Tuba City with 17 points as the Warriors posted a 61-40 win over Window Rock on Thursday, Jan. 29. Tuba also received 13 points each from Tallman and Curtis.

“I feel like I got my points because my teammates were giving me the ball, and they were setting screens for me,” she said.

Begaye said their 21-point triumph was a team win while adding that they have great chemistry.

“We’re one of the most tightknit teams out there,” she said. “We’ve built a strong bond with one another and it’s good to have that chemistry.”

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