JJ Mandaquit left Iolani School and his home in the islands for a chance at increasing his basketball profile substantially.

After a year of prep play in Utah, he has done just that.

Mandaquit was named to USA Basketball’s 2023 U16 National Team 12-player roster on Thursday following a seven-day training camp in Colorado Springs, Colo. He will compete at the 2023 FIBA Men’s U16 Americas Championship in Merida, Mexico, starting Monday.

Mandaquit, 16, of Hilo, had a standout freshman season at Iolani in 2021-22, then left the ensuing summer to increase his basketball profile. The guard played his sophomore year of 2022-23 at Salt Lake Academy in Herriman, Utah.

According to MaxPreps, Mandaquit averaged 15.5 points, 4.5 assists, 3.0 rebounds and 2.9 steals per game for RSL in 22 games of the 2022-23 season.

He’s listed at 5 feet 11 on the Team USA roster that includes the twin sons of former NBA forward Carlos Boozer, Cameron and Cayden. However, he was listed at 6-1 at Iolani. He made the U16 cut from a group of 18 finalists, an unprecedented honor in the modern hoops era for a player from Hawaii amid a group of future NBA hopefuls.

His former coach at Iolani, Ryan Hirata, told Spectrum News he has seen considerable growth in the guard since he left. Mandaquit led the Raiders to the 2022 state semifinals and was No. 3 on the Honolulu Star-Advertiser’s Fab 15 after averaging 16 points a game in the ILH, Hawaii's toughest boys basketball league.

“After watching him last year, JJ has really tightened up his game and worked on his physicality since his freshman season,” Hirata said in a message. “His shooting stroke, mid-range, around the basket finishes are becoming elite. But he has really matured as a floor general who communicates and puts his teammates in the best positions to succeed. That’s where he’s grown the most. And defensively, he’s an on-ball hawk. Very deceptive. Overall, he will continue to get better and sky’s the limit.”

Mandaquit already has multiple Division I offers, including Stanford, Washington State and Hawaii.

The U16 team is coached by Sharman White, with Scott Fitch and Chet Mason assisting. The top four of eight teams in the FIBA Americas advance to the 2024 FIBA U17 Men’s World Cup in Turkey. The U.S. drew Group A with Puerto Rico, Argentina and Mexico. Team USA opens against Puerto Rico at 1:30 p.m. Hawaii time on Monday. It will be live streamed on FIBA’s website.

Brian McInnis covers the state's sports scene for Spectrum News Hawaii. He can be reached at brian.mcinnis@charter.com.