Even better teammates: All-State MVPs

Great players do more than just score points, dominate the boards or handle the basketball like it's an extension of their bodies. They also help elevate the players around them, both emotionally and physically.

That's something this year's Deseret Morning News MVPs have in common. They don't just make their teammates look better, they help them play better and feel more confident as they become better athletes and better human beings.

They realize, almost innately, that as good as they are, they can't achieve real success on the basketball court without the help and support of their teammates.

5A MVP: Katie King, Layton

This senior forward played on a team where there might be a different high scorer each game. The Lancers were loaded with talent, but as a team leader, King helped cultivate the chemistry vital to overcoming obstacles.

"She's been a starter for three years and she's been a team leader for three years," Layton head coach Van Price said. "She communicates very well with everybody — on the court and off."

King's strengths are passing and rebounding, but she averaged 11 points per game and can handle the ball as well as most guards.

"It's kind of my fault she doesn't score 20 points per game," Price said. "It's our system . . . I'd rather have five or six players as close to double figures as possible. I think you do better as a team, if you do that, and you're a lot harder to stop."

The team won a 5A state title after a perfect 24-0 season, and key in every win was King.

"She is really personable and easy to talk to," Price said. "And she can be pretty feisty when she needs to be."

King maintains a 3.9 GPA and is still deciding where she'll play basketball. She has offers from schools like the University of Alaska-Anchorage and the College of Southern Idaho, among others.

"She has some really big decisions to make," Price said.

4A MVP: Sandy Marvin, Payson

Every year, this senior point guard picks a skill and makes it her summer project. First it was shooting, and then ball-handling. Last summer it was passing she chose to perfect, and her coach said it made the difference between a winning season and a championship finish.

"She realized she had to be able to get the ball to her teammates when she was being double-teamed," said Payson coach Dave Hiatt. "She works on something every summer, and she does it all on her own."