Girls Basketball star junior Payton King has proven to be one of Evanston’s premier African American athletes. After a solid freshman and sophomore season, King broke out in the 2025-26 campaign, averaging almost fifteen points and nine rebounds a game. The 5’9” combo guard, a truly two-year player, was named a CSL first-team all-pro for the first time in her career.
“I put in so much work in the offseason to play at a high level consistently, so to be named first team conference feels really rewarding,” remarked King.
That consistency was something that was missing from King’s sophomore campaign, as, through no fault of her own, she missed over half the season with a concussion. Her absence massively affected her team as they went a woeful 7-17 without her.
King suffered that concussion midway through a home game against bitter rivals New Trier. The Kits ended up losing that game 49-41 despite being up at the start of the fourth quarter. King had to watch from when the Kits traced to New Trier, and lost 63-57, which condemned them to 5th place in the conference, their lowest finish since 2011.
This year, the Kits traveled to the Trevians in their first conference match with a 1-2 record. What happened that night would be a massive turning point for both King and the entire program. The Kits dominated the entire game, running out 67- 35 winners with King scoring nineteen points(almost all in the second half), and securing eleven rebounds.
“That win against New Trier would have to be my favorite moment of my career. The injury that I suffered against them was absolutely devastating to both my team and me, so to be able to come back and win like that against them was just such a special moment,” reflected King.
King combined with her teammate Charity Bryant for 48 of the Kits’ points that night. The two have been one of the state’s most formidable duos this season, seeming to almost always guarantee at least 35 points between them. Bryant was also named the CSL player of the year.
“I absolutely playing with Charity. She works so hard and has grown so much this year as a hooper. She really makes everybody better on the team so much better,” commented King.
The team as a whole grown immensely finishing with a 16-10 record and tying for first place in their conference. A remarkable achievement that was secured by a 54-48 win, at Maine South, a top ten team in State. King contributed a double-double in that game with 19 points and eleven rebounds. King has been a massive leader both on and off the court.
“I have tried to build as many meaningful relationships with my teammates as possible. And I that those relationships have definitely made us more connected on the court, and the team flow better on games,” explained King.
While King does not yet know where she wants to go, she believes college basketball is in her future.
“I need to continue to improve and play hard, so when I begin playing at the next level, I will be prepared for the physicality of it,” said King.
