The boys are led by head coach Clayton Happy, a fourth grade teacher at the elementary school, and assistant coach Jeremy Hansford, a teacher at the high school. This will be the coaches second year of coaching, and from last year they have gained a lot of experience and know what to improve.
“The biggest change I am making with my coaching is focusing more on the fundamentals. Last year we jumped straight into team activities, and had to revisit many fundamental skills throughout the season. I want to make sure that athletes have a strong foundation as well as creating a love and passion for the game of basketball and sports in general,” Happy said.
This season 12 sixth grade boys will be playing along with the seventh and eighth graders.
“This year is completely different from last year. The biggest change has been the addition of the sixth graders. They are a great group of guys and are working hard, but now both the sixth and seventh graders are having to learn all of our offensive and defensive schemes,” Happy said.
“I think that if we focus on the fundamentals, it will be a foundation that will improve all of the players,” Hansford said.
A lack of height could present a problem for the team this season.
“Losing their height certainly plays a role in the team's approach to the season, however it is far from the end of the world. We have some extremely quick athletes and are looking to play fast and score in transition this year. We will be playing an aggressive defense to fly around the court and cause some controlled chaos,” Happy said. “On the offensive side of the ball we are going to spread things out and look for drive and kick opportunities. We also have some great post players who are working to refine their skills. Rex Griffin, Noah Green, and Drewe Morgan are three notable names that will help us on the paint.”
Over the summer there was a basketball camp, led by Happy and Hansford, was held for the junior high boys. The camp taught them many different skills for the upcoming season.
“I did go to summer camp this year and I learned how to pass effectively and I learned some offensive plays and how to play man defense. It taught me how to run an offense effectively and just how to always have a positive mindset. I also have learned how to have better dribbling skills and to always play on my toes so I can move faster,” Barrett said.
“Hopefully, we will do good this season. We have good players and, hopefully, we will lead our team to victory,” seventh grader Austin Andersen said.
