CHICAGO (March 21, 2013) — In its 28th year of honoring the nation’s best high school athletes, The Gatorade Company, in collaboration with USA TODAY High School Sports, today announced Isaiah Hicks of J.F. Webb High School as its 2012-13 Gatorade North Carolina Boys Basketball Player of the Year. Hicks is the first Gatorade North Carolina Boys Basketball Player of the Year to be chosen from J.F. Webb High School.
Hicks had 34 points and 30 rebounds in the N.C. 3A state championship Saturday, sparking debate over whether he had turned in the best-ever state championship performance in any sport. (click here for a list of the top state finals performances by Mecklenburg Co. athletes)
Hicks had 34 points and 30 rebounds in the N.C. 3A state championship Saturday, sparking debate over whether he had turned in the best-ever state championship performance in any sport. (click here for a list of the top state finals performances by Mecklenburg Co. athletes)
The Gatorade award, which recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence, but also high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the court, distinguishes Hicks as North Carolina’s best high school boys basketball player. Now a finalist for the prestigious Gatorade National Boys Basketball Player of the Year award to be announced in March, Hicks joins an elite alumni association of past state boys basketball award winners, including Dwight Howard (2003-04, SW Atlanta Christian Academy, Ga.), Chauncey Billups (1993-94 & 1994-95, George Washington HS, Colo.), Jason Kidd (1991-92, St. Joseph Notre Dame HS, Calif.), Paul Pierce (1994-95, Inglewood HS, Calif.) and Chris Bosh (2001-02, Lincoln HS, Texas).
The 6-foot-8, 210-pound senior power forward led the Warriors to a 27-5 record and the Class 3A state championship this past season. Hicks averaged 22.9 points, 12.9 rebounds, 5.6 blocks, 1.8 steals and 1.3 assists per game. A McDonald’s High School All-American Game selection, he shot 58 percent from the field, 41 percent from 3-point range and 66 percent from the free throw line. Hicks amassed 34 points, a tournament-record 30 rebounds and seven blocks in a 73-70, title-clinching overtime victory against Statesville, capturing Class 3A championship game Most Valuable Player honors. He also participated in the adidas Nations Global Championships and NBPA Top 100 Camp this past summer.
Hicks has maintained a B average in the classroom. In addition to volunteering on behalf of community service initiatives in association with his church, he has donated his time to “Team Meghan,” a fundraising effort to benefit 11-year-old Oxford native Meghan Bunn’s battle against brain cancer.
“Coaching against him is a nightmare,” said Wilton Baskett, head coach of rival Northern Vance High. “He’s 6-foot-9, but moves as gracefully as a point guard. A lot of times bigs are more stationary, but he’s shooting 3’s, getting assists, making mid-range jumpers and dunking off the rim without bringing it down. He’s phenomenal. I was just telling people, ‘Graduation isJune 8, and June 9 will be one of the happiest days of my career, because Isaiah will be gone, and now we’ll have a chance.’”
Hicks has signed a National Letter of Intent to play basketball on scholarship at the University of North Carolina this fall.
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9 comments:
he better be real good...cause Roy won't make him any better....
poor kid.
You just sound ignorant.
that is funny, players rarely progress under Coach W. Harrison Barnes possibly got worse under his instruction.
Why is that?
So what your saying is that Barnes was better in his first games at UNC than he was in his last games? Prove it. Almost all of his stats improved drastically as his time progressed at UNC. And what does that mean - he "possibly got worse"? I guess he also "possibly" got better, or "possibly" stayed the same. I "possibly" could play in the NBA one day. Players "rarely progress" also would seem to mean that they are the exact same player when they leave as they were when they entered. Did Kendall Marshall progress at UNC? Would he have been a first rounder out of high school? How about Henson - did he progress? Danny Green? Reggie Bullock? Tyler Zeller? Desmond Hubert and Jackson Simmons even? Let me know if you need more. Just because you recruit good talent doesn't mean they don't improve. I find it hilarious that this is the complaint. People freak out when guys right out of high school don't perform like superstars, or guys right out of college aren't nba all-stars, but then complain that the coach doesn't make them better. Immediately. Yep, a guy like Joel James must be a bust, since he didn't step on campus and become an instant star. And Roy sucks because he has had 8 months to make him one, and didn't.
those guys all progressed primarily due to growing older...Ol' Roy added little.
barnes was better the year before his final year.
a lot of coaches recruit and watch...and it really shows in some games.
Don't all college kids get better with age? What an amazing observation! Haha.
good luck against 'Nova.
This kid almost backed out once the afrikan studies program was axed, but they are gonna let him take some independent studies....so he is still coming.
thank goodness for those.
go holes!
Haters haters everywhere!
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