Bradwell Institute senior basketball player Ja’Nya Bush has been dedicated to improving both the physical and mental aspects of her game, and it’s working out quite well.
The Tigers are 23-0, 7-0 in Region 1-5A and ranked No. 4 in the state in Class 5A, according to sandysspiel.com.
“We’re very unselfish,” said Bush, a former point guard who plays on the wing at 5-foot-8. “As soon as we see someone open, we’re going to pass the ball. We pass up open shots to get a better shot.”
Bush is a team leader as one of three seniors. She ranks first on the squad in assists per game (3.4) and minutes (24.9), second in points (10.4), third in rebounds (5.6), and tied for second in steals (3.4) through 21 games.
“One thing about her is she’s a very good defensive player. I don’t know if anybody realizes that,” said Faye Baker, who has coached Bradwell Institute for 31 years.
“She’s long, she’s strong and she knows how to stay in front of people. That’s one of her better aspects is defensively she plays well,” added Baker, describing Bush as a playmaker on offense who sees the floor very well. “Offensively, she can get downhill. She sees a hole, she can attack it very well. That’s something she has always been able to do, even coming up.”
Baker has followed Bush’s progress since middle school and knew the Hinesville native was going to be a special player.
“(Baker) used to come to my middle school games and talk to me and say to not let everything get in my head, because if everything gets in my head, then it takes me out of my game,” Bush recalled. “She just coached me all the way up until now.”
After earning valuable minutes as a freshman in the 2022-23 season (5.2 ppg, 6.8 rpg, 2.8 apg, 2.4 spg, 22.1 mpg in 28 games), Bush was looking forward to playing more under control as a sophomore and being more comfortable with teammates. The Tigers had gone 23-5, won the region title, and lost in the GHSA Class 5A quarterfinals to eventual state champion Kell, so expectations were high.
One play changed everything.
Her second season, however, came to a sudden halt in the sixth game on Dec. 8, 2023, at home against Hilton Head Island (S.C.) High School. As Bush recalled, she had grabbed her own rebound and made a shot from the corner, then transitioned to defense as the Tigers pressed.
She jumped to try to steal a pass.
“I came down on one leg and then my (left) leg just collapsed and I couldn’t get up to walk,” Bush recalled. “When I couldn’t get up and walk by myself, I knew it was bad.”
Her adrenaline was pumping, masking her pain. But after falling back onto the court, she had to be carried to the sideline.
“I was scared. I was crying,” she said. “I was hoping it wasn’t a season-ending injury.”
Her mother, Jaianna Bush, was called, and she rushed to the school to take her daughter to Liberty Regional Medical Center. Ja’Nya recalled that the next week, she went to Optim Orthopedics in Savannah and learned after an MRI and X-rays that she had torn the anterior cruciate ligament, medial collateral ligament, and meniscus cartilage in her left knee.
She required surgery, abbreviating a season that started with so much promise in six games: 15.9 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 3.0 apg, 5.5 spg, and 19.2 mpg. Bush started the long road to recovery and watched the Tigers go 23-6 and advance to the second round of the playoffs.
“She was our primary point guard that year,” Baker said. “She pretty much ran the show for us. It was definitely a big loss losing her.”
Baker looked for a silver lining, pointing out to Bush that the timing for the injury was better now than later, giving the aspiring college player the opportunity to play again for the Tigers. The coach recalled telling her, “You can come back from this, and you will come back from this.”
“I had rather it happen my sophomore year, too, because if it was my senior year, then it’s like I can’t showcase my talent my last year at the high school because I’m hurt, I’m on the bench and I can’t get as much exposure as I need,” Bush said. “Colleges will be like, ‘Oh, she’s hurt. There’s no use.’ I’m glad it happened my sophomore year than senior year.”
But first, months of physical rehabilitation were ahead, which she described as “very hard, very, very hard.” It required patience and a resiliency through adversity – her first serious basketball injury – that Bush, then a month shy of her 16th birthday, didn’t know she had.
“Not at all,” said Bush, now 18.
She credits support from her family, coaches and teammates, athletic trainers, and medical staff. But she also had to rely on herself.
“I learned that nobody’s going to do anything for you,” Bush said. “Nobody’s going to force you to go to physical therapy and do physical therapy. So if you want to get it done, you have to do it yourself if you want to get back to playing.”
The waiting game
Bush sat out the Bradwell’s 2024 summer league games, watching and wishing she could play for her team. That would come with preseason practice that October, then the moment of truth with her first regular-season game.
“I was scared more so because it’s fresh and my first game back and I don’t want to get injured,” Bush recalled. “Then I was in the same spot (on the court) and the same thing (happened). I jumped up and I was scared to come down. So it was more like a fear that I had to overcome in a game.”
Coaches and teammates told her “to get out of my head,” that she’s OK and they’ve “got me” in support if she needs them, she recalled.
Bush played 30 games as a junior, regaining her starting role and averaging 7.6 points, 3.3 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 3.0 steals, and 17.9 minutes as the Tigers (26-4) advanced to the state semifinals.
Baker said that as Bush gradually worked her way back, she understandably was favoring the left leg, which the player acknowledged. That mental roadblock appeared to be cleared when Bush showed more trust in herself, such as driving to the basket, and was an impact player in the 2025 summer games, Baker said.
This season, Bush had concerns after feeling “a little pop,” and the knee was hurting during a Jan. 16 game against South Effingham.
“One thing about her, when she gets into game mode, you don’t see it,” Baker said. “She does not favor it. She just goes hard and gets into her game mode. It’s usually after the fact when she starts feeling it.”
Bush had an MRI done and sat out practice while awaiting the results.
“My results came back and everything was clear, so that was a relief,” Bush said. “Now, I’m like OK, I know nothing’s hurt, now I can play.”
She didn’t miss a game.
“It’s more mental than physical,” she said. “Now I feel like the mental is going, that now I’m OK. I feel like I can be 100% now.”
Photo credit: Courtesy Liberty County Sports Photo page, via Facebook
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Optim Orthopedics powers basketball coverage, supporting local athletes’ health with expert physicians and a focus on safe return to play.
Optim Orthopedics is committed to keeping Savannah’s basketball athletes healthy and ready to compete all season.
Optim Orthopedics team physicians: Dr. Don Aaron (Bryan County), Dr. David Sedory (Benedictine, Bradwell Institute, Liberty County), Dr. David Palmer (Calvary Day, Richmond Hill, South Effingham), Dr. Thomas Alexander(Savannah Country Day, St. Vincent’s Academy).
Optim Orthopedics is dedicated to supporting safe recovery and peak performance for local athletes.
