By: Megan Watson and Soul Koen
With a new season underway, a change in Varsity Boys Basketball’s coaching staff holds promise for fresh beginnings and an optimistic future.
Making the switch from the Varsity Girls Basketball team, head coach, Jason Black returns as the new Boys’ head coach. His hopes of “building a winning team” start with a fresh group of assisting coaches.
Redwood’s Boys’ Basketball team ended their 2018-2019 season with a record of 13-15 coached under Ken Ruby. This same year, the girls’ team under Black went 22-8.
Many of the returners of the boys’s varsity team were left discouraged by their lack of improvement. Coming into the new season, the Varsity team had lost many of its mature players based on the fact that the past seasons made them “lose interest for the game,” says one ex-player who no longer plays on the team.
The team was left in a difficult position; with new players on the court and a fresh coach, they had to build a new foundation. Being a few weeks into the new season, the team is able to reflect on their progression as a unit so far.
Coach Black is more than ready to put his life on hold to build his new team into bonafide winners. Even though he had so much experience on the girls side of things, he says he looks at the boys team with a “new and fresh” outlook. He knows they are different and reteaching an already developed team will be a challenge.
Still adjusting at the beginning of the season, the boys are starting to work more and more as a unit than any past seasons. His goal to form a “united team” is becoming more and more prevalent; no longer are they working as individuals on the court, but are managing to shift to a more team-oriented program.
As they work out all the minor kinks of old habits, the Varsity Boys Basketball team’s future looks bright. They will participate in next week’s Tulare Holiday Classic and are looking forward to showing off their teamwork and potential.
