When any basketball coach is raving about an opposing participant, that units off an alarm bell for sportswriters to concentrate and examine.
It seems all the great issues coaches are starting to say about 6-foot-4 junior guard Donovan Webb of Golden Valley Excessive are true. Canyon Nation Canyon coach Ali Monfared mentioned Webb may be the very best participant within the Foothill League, which held its media day at Canyon on Saturday.
Webb is a kind of gamers who labored laborious when no one was watching. His focus was on enhancing his three-point taking pictures, and all these hours within the health club may repay.
“I’m a gym rat,” he mentioned.
Final season, he was moved to level guard and stored deferring to different gamers. This season, he obtained the message to take cost. “We put the keys to the car in his hands,” first-year coach Scott Barkman mentioned.
With a 4.3 grade-point common, Webb mentioned he understands what his function must be.
“I needed to take my game to the next level,” he mentioned.
Golden Valley and Valencia would be the co-favorites due to the expertise every staff has with returning gamers.
Valencia has its personal much-improved participant in junior Steven Irons. Final season he was 6-5, 170 kilos. Now he’s 6-7, 210 kilos after consuming a lot of rooster and rice whereas engaged on power.
“The day we lost the playoff game, I started lifting,” he mentioned.
Mentioned coach Greg Fontenette: “His development has been like night and day.”
Double-doubles are in his future, and it’s not about In-N-Out. He’ll be scoring and offering rebounds to help Valencia’s gifted class of 2027 gamers.
Saugus returns Braydon Harmon, who had a 43-point efficiency towards West Ranch final season.
Hart coach Tom Kelly is in his twenty sixth season for the Newhall college and thirty sixth total (he was head coach at Burbank Burroughs for 10 years).
Canyon gained a 2A championship final season and misplaced most of its gamers, however returning is standout level guard Isaac Yuhico, who delivered clutch baskets within the Cowboys’ triple-overtime championship sport win over St. Bonaventure.
Former Golden Valley coach Chris Printz has turn out to be an assistant principal, however his son, Wyatt, stays on the staff. Requested if his father obtained a pay elevate, Wyatt mentioned, “I hope so.”
Conner Peterson of West Ranch was requested about enjoying towards associates within the league. “It’s the same thing playing against your brother,” he mentioned. “You want to beat them.”
Castaic coach Louis Fernando provided optimism about his staff, saying, “I don’t have to coach ego and I don’t have to coach effort this year.”
