After the Sonics crashed out earlier this week to the lowly Cleveland Cavaliers, Sonics guard Brent Barry said of his teammates, “I sure hope these guys are playing for the right reasons. Not to drive out of here in a $100,000 car or to have nice jewelry, but for the passion they had in high school and in college.”
Well, I agree. Rather than shell out big money for a nosebleed-level seat, four-star restaurant prices for a hot dog and beer and outrageous rent for a parking space for the evening, I seek a place where I know that passion exists.
Years of covering prep hoops have shown me where to find it. For the price of a single ticket to KeyArena, you could bundle up the family into the mini-van and go to see a great game from courtside seats, have a hot dog and Coke and still have pocket change left over. And the parking is always free.
Best of all, the players and coaches are often quite accessible after a game. Your local 6-foot-2 forward can be as big a hero to your kids as Gary Payton. These are real people. No LeBron James going to the NBA here. For most of these guys, the glory is the game.
Games take place most weeknight evenings through February. Check this paper for times and matchups.
Best place to take the family: King’s High School, Shoreline. The gym is an intimate place. Both the boys and girls teams are competitive in the tough Chinook League. No worries about your young ones hearing a four-letter word. The kids at King’s are what you hope yours will be. The tight Christian community greets everyone with open arms. And the chili served at the concession stands is A-1.
Best big-time basketball feeling: Mountlake Terrace High. Head coach Nalin Sood, himself a Mountlake Terrace alum, runs a tight ship. He also cuts a Pat Riley style on the sideline.
His teams play fast-paced, physical ball. The Hawks are usually competitive and always exciting. This program has produced a few college players in recent years.
The larger gym is still intimate. You can sit directly behind Sood and the Hawks and hear every syllable of his coaching.
Best place to lose your hearing in the heat of the game: Stanwood High School. Particularly when the Spartans are facing a geographical rival such as Arlington or Mount Vernon or another Wesco North team challenging them in the standings. The gym and parking lot fill early and this place literally is filled to the rafters.
Hoosiers West: Two postseason district tournaments provide all day, small town rivalries with the winners off to the state tournaments.
The Northwest District 2A tournament in Mount Vernon and the 1A Tri-district tournament (often held at Mountlake Terrace), have a special feeling. Especially at the early century-style facility in Mount Vernon. The teams are often league rivals from the basketball hotbed of the Nooksack Valley and the quality of play is enhanced by the strong emotions in the gym.
The Tri-district format at MTHS often includes King’s as well as other members of the Chinook League, particularly Seattle Christian. These may be small schools, but they play a high quality game.
Both of these tournaments are less than a month away.
Morris Malakoff covers Mill Creek for The Enterprise Newspapers. Questions and comments may be sent via e-mail to entsports@heraldnet.com, by fax to 425-774-8622 or by mail to: Sports editor, The Enterprise, 4303 198th St. SW., Lynnwood, Wash. 98036.
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