In 2009, Jordan Nicholes led the Sultan boys basketball team to a place it hadn’t been in 48 years — the state tournament.
But the Turks’ season didn’t start out so promising. A 2-7 record after nine games made advancing to state seem unlikely.
Nicholes, who averaged over 23 points per game that season, brought out the best in his teammates down the stretch and the Turks were able to go on a late-season surge that resulted in a trip to the 2A state tournament in Yakima.
Seven years later Nicholes is helping mentor Sultan’s current star, senior Tyler Morris, hoping Morris can lead the Turks back to state.
Nicholes worked with Morris, who averages 27.3 points per game, in the summer, helping him improve his skills.
“We basically just worked on moves and skills that are going to prepare him for the next level,” Nicholes said.
“Tyler is a really coachable kid, so he kind of just was a sponge when I would work with him and he would soak up everything I had to tell him.”
When the season began in November, it was clear the instruction from Nicholes had helped. Morris had several 30-plus point games, but like the early part of Nicholes’ senior season, the points didn’t result in victories.
Frustrated, Morris turned to Nicholes again, who he often exchanges text messages with.
“He would ask a lot of questions about how to stay positive during hard times,” Nicholes said. “As you can see right now, it’s not just about the numbers. He’s been putting up great numbers, but it’s about being able to win. That’s basically what we’ve been focusing on lately is how he’s going to keep his guys motivated during hard times.”
The Turks have a long way to go to turn things around, but they did pick up their second victory of the season this past Friday, a 20-point win over Lakewood.
“A lot of it is on me,” Morris said. “A lot of it is me giving them that attitude and me leading them to playing how we should play.”
A strong statement from a kid who used to be scared to shoot.
Sultan head coach Nate Trichler recalled having to stop a practice last year because Morris passed up multiple looks at open shots.
“We would run a set and he would pass up an open look and I finally just stopped practice and made him shoot,” Trichler said. “I just couldn’t handle watching him not with all the time he’s put in and his effort.”
Morris’ intentions were good, but the Turks needed him to shoot in order to be successful.
“I just didn’t think that was my shot,” Morris said. “I always thought I could create for others. I just didn’t realize that me shooting is good for the team.”
Morris became a shooter by spending countless hours working on his shot, which he had to re-invent early in his high-school career. Morris had a low release, which Trichler told him wouldn’t work if he wanted to play in college.
Morris raised his release and became more of a scorer.
His breakout senior season has earned him looks from a few smaller colleges, but he is yet to make any decisions on where he will play. For now, all he knows is he wants to play somewhere.
Nicholes said whatever college Morris picks will be getting a steal.
“I think someone is going to find a diamond in the rough, for lack of (better) words,” Nicholes said. “I definitely think he’s a special kid with a special skill set, so I think wherever he lands in college they’re going to get a diamond.”
Trichler and Nicholes both raved about Morris’ work ethic, which the senior hopes to have a chance to display in Yakima for the state tournament in March just as Nicholes did seven years ago.
“(Going to state) would be really special to me,” Morris said. “All the work that people see you do, a lot of people don’t see all of the cold nights that I went to elementary school to get shots up and all the runs on the hill before school. It would be really cool and it would mean the world to me.”
Despite the Turks’ current 2-7 record, Morris remains confident state is a reasonable expectation.
“It’s all about when you climb, and right now we’re on the rise,” he said.
Aaron Lommers covers prep sports for The Herald. Follow him on Twitter at @aaronlommers and contact him at alommers@heraldnet.com.
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