UK Commit Savvy Swords has a Basketball Family

Savvy Swords, left, with her parents and sister. (Vintage Vizuals Photo)

Five-star wing Savvy Swords’ basketball skills and pedigree are equally impressive.

The 6-foot-1 Canadian recently gave her verbal commitment to Kentucky. She is the No. 9 player in the 2026 recruiting class in the On3’s Women’s Basketball Recruiting Rankings. She picked UK over UCLA, South Carolina, Notre Dame and Michigan.

Her sister, Syla Swords, averaged 16 points and 6.2 rebounds per game as a freshman last season at Michigan after playing for Canada in the 2024 Olympics — and is on the national team again this summer. Savvy’s grandparents were basketball players and so were her aunts. Her mother Shelley, played basketball at Laurentian University in Ontario, and met Savvy’s father, Shawn there. He also played basketball at Laurentian.

Shawn played professionally in England, France and Italy from 1997-2007 and was the head coach at Laurentian University from 2007 to 2022 before leaving to work with the Long Island (N.Y.) Nets of the NBA G League.

However, Shawn also played for Team Canada in the 2000 Olympics — one of his teammates was future NBA star Steve Nash. In one of the greatest games in Canadian basketball history, the team upset world champion Yugoslavia 83-75 to finish atop Pool B. Swords had two points, two rebounds and two assists in 15 minutes in the win. However, Canada fell 68-63 to France in quarterfinal play.

“I guess you would just say we are a basketball family but it is pretty cool that my dad and sister both played in the Olympics,” the UK commit said. “My sister and I were definitely competitive growing up. We would always probably have rather been on the same team than going against each other just because we go at it so hard.

“But off the court, we’re good at leaving it behind. We’re good just being sisters afterwards.”