Whether she's facing a trap by the defense or a tap at the door, Chasity Patterson always knows how to escape.
Case in point: When Patterson was 8, she attended a parade in her hometown of Houston. But when she heard an extremely loud and unexpected noise -- as it turns out, it was just a fire engine's horn -- Patterson bolted. Her mother, Sonya, later found her on the front porch of one of the houses on the parade route.
Even today, if the family is home -- perhaps lounging on the couch watching TV -- and there's an unexpected knock on the door or some other commotion, Patterson doesn't stick around to find out what's what.
"I'll be gone in a second," Patterson said. "I'll be upstairs.
"I've always had those reflexes. I'm very aware of my surroundings."
Perhaps that helps explain why Patterson, a 5-foot-5 junior point guard for Houston's North Shore High School, is the No. 4 prospect in the espnW HoopGurlz Super 60 for the class of 2017.
With those ultra-quick reflexes, Patterson is averaging 24.5 points, 5.6 assists, 5.4 steals and 4.4 rebounds for North Shore (29-1), which is ranked No. 2 in Texas' Class 6A. Her shooting percentages are also impressive: 49 percent from the floor, 39 percent on 3-pointers and 84 percent from the foul line.
North Shore has won 19 games in a row since its only loss of the season -- a 75-49 defeat to Duncanville (Texas), the No. 2 team in the espnW 25 Power Rankings.
Patterson has had some big games since then, most notably a triple-double -- 24 points, 12 assists, 11 steals -- against West Brook (Beaumont, Texas) on Jan. 26.
"She's the best player in North Shore history," said Allison Campbell, who is in her 16th season as the program's coach. "She almost had a quadruple-double that game -- eight rebounds."
Campbell said Patterson's talent even exceeds that of former North Shore McDonald's All-American Courtney Williams, a 6-foot-1 wing who is now a senior at Texas A&M and the team's second-leading scorer.
"I've known Chasity since she came to my camp as a second-grader," Campbell said. "And from the second I met her, I couldn't wait for her to be in high school so she could play for me."
Patterson figures to be the second member of her family to play college sports. Her sister, Destiny, finished her athletic eligibility in volleyball earlier this school year, starting about half her team's games the past two seasons as a 5-foot-6 setter/defensive specialist at the University of Houston.
Chasity, who is 17, has yet to choose a college, although she rattled off six favorites: UCLA, Tennessee, Texas A&M, Texas, Oklahoma and Kentucky.
She said she wants to make a decision by the end of this summer and made clear the No. 1 quality she's looking for in a school.
"I want to win," she said.
Patterson, who has a 3.0 GPA, is interested in studying communications and sees herself, potentially, as a sportscaster.
Her mom thinks it's a good fit.
"She's an observer," Sonya said. "She likes to watch and take it in before she acts."
That's what happened when Patterson was 2 and she was visiting her grandparents, who had a pool. Patterson watched as Destiny and two of their cousins played in the water. After a while, everyone had gotten out and gone indoors.
"Chasity decided she wanted to go in," Sonya said. "She jumped in fully dressed. My dad jumped in, fully dressed, and got her.
"But Chasity is looking around like, 'What?' She is not choking. She is not scared. She had watched long enough and felt she was ready to go in."
Patterson got swimming lessons soon after that, and basketball was much the same. She just dove in, shooting on a 10-foot goal by age 3.
Basketball has been her sport ever since, even though she was versatile in middle school, playing volleyball and winning in the 100 and 200 meters at track meets.
By the time she got to high school, though, she decided she wanted to focus exclusively on basketball.
"She practices basketball 24/7," said North Shore teammate Mikayla Robinson, a 5-foot-3 senior guard. "That's all she knows."
Patterson's highlight video on YouTube shows that practice is paying off, especially on 3-point shots but also on drives to the basket, where she can finish with either hand. There was one crossover move that Patterson made that left her defender on the ground.
As for what she needs to improve, Patterson said she wants to attack the basket more.
"Sometimes I settle for my outside shot because I believe in my shot so much," Patterson said. "But I'm trying to mix it up more."
Patterson has been called "Baby Kyrie" after her favorite player, Kyrie Irving. Her second favorite player, by the way, is LeBron James, and she was overjoyed when the duo joined forces last season with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Defensively, Patterson picks the pocket of opposing point guards "on the regular," according to Campbell.
Patterson's arms are unusually long -- standing up straight they reach to within one inch of her knees, she said. Patterson uses those long arms to get steals.
"Her steals are noted statistically," Campbell said, "but I've noticed how many other balls she gets touches on defensively."
Teammates say Patterson is constantly talking on the court, encouraging them, directing them, supporting them.
Off the court, she is funny and doesn't take herself too seriously. Campbell said college coaches have found Patterson extremely "personable" and charming.
"Wherever she chooses to go to college," Campbell said, "there's no reason why she can't become an NCAA All-American pretty quickly."
