Iowa State Star Jada Williams enjoys poolside fun time with furry friend in heartwarming snapshot

Iowa State guard Jada Williams is enjoying her offseason in Lincoln, Nebraska, by the poolside with her furry friend. Williams shared adorable videos of her rejuvenating with her pet.

The Kansas City native has made a big move to Iowa State and will be a big piece for the Cyclones in the 2025-26 campaign. Williams comes with great pedigree as a 2023 McDonald's All-American and a member of Team USA at youth levels. In fact, she won gold medals at the 2022 FIBA U17 World Cup and the 2021 FIBA Americas U16 Championship.

Jada Williams is enjoying the offseason with her furry friend (Image via Instagram/@cbg.jada24

Williams was with Arizona in the last two seasons. She started 30 games last year and led the Wildcats in scoring with 12.7 points per game while shooting 29.2% from beyond the 3-point line. She was extremely consistent in her sophomore year with 23 double-digit points and three 20-plus points outings.

Iowa State head coach Bill Fennelly was happy with Williams' commitment to the Cyclones for the upcoming season.

"We are so excited to add Jada to the Cyclone women's basketball family," said Fennelly. "Jada's passion for the game, combined with an outstanding skill set fits our team perfectly. Our goal in the portal was to add a special player and person at the guard spot, and we feel we did exactly that in Jada."

---

Jada Williams and Evangelia Paulk have been the two key portal signings for Iowa State

While Williams joined the Cyclones after two seasons at Arizona, Evangelia Paulk is another centrepiece for coach Fennelly who joined Iowa State following a couple of years at Wofford.

NCAA Basketball: Big 12 Basketball Media Day - Source: Imagn

Fennelly believes they have utilised the portal effectively by bringing in two players who are entering their prime in college basketball to address the two weaknesses they had last season.

“I don’t think it could have gone better. I really don’t. And where that leads down the road, I don’t know," Fennelly said during Iowa State's annual Tailgate Tour stop in Ankeny on Monday. "But I think with the two portal kids we got and the two freshmen that we knew, I really think our roster is in a better position.”

The Asheville, North Carolina, native has had pretty similar numbers to Williams' last season, when Paulk was named Southern League Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year. She averaged 12.8 points, 8.4 rebounds, 3.3 steals and 1.9 assists while shooting 31.3% from beyond the 3-point line.

Overall, it will be exciting to see the new-look Cyclones next season. Fennelly will have hopes of contending for the Big 12 title and going deep in the NCAA Tournament.