March 30, 2009
Grant has options
Interviewing St. Francis senior Shawn Grant is similar to conversing with Yoda -- the “Star Wars” film series character -- as Grant’s responses are clear, direct and often wise beyond his years. Here’s hoping his high school counselor has brought this to his attention because, if Grant wishes, he certainly has a future in coaching professional and college athletes in media relations, having mastered this art at such a young age. Soon, this will be discovered by the college basketball beat reporters for the newspaper in the town of his college choice.
Grant and St. Francis had a teriffic season
Let’s re-visit Grant’s and St. Francis’ senior season first and then relate a recent recruiting trip he took.
Steve Filios, a coaching fixture at St. Francis for 16 years, retired at the end of last season. Among the accomplishments of his teams: four West Catholic Athletic League (WCAL) titles, three CCS titles, four NorCal titles and a state championship.
Mike Motil, a St. Francis teacher, assistant dean and coach for various Lancer boys basketball squads for six years, took over the varsity position.
"We were surprised when [Filios’ retirement] happened," Grant said. "But Coach [Motil] told us his philosophy, of pushing the ball at a high tempo offensively and applying pressure and denying on defense, actually having our defense create offense. The way he coached us was perfect."
St. Francis was a team with talent but little height in 2008-2009 and Motil’s style dovetailed with the skills sets of his players.
"Our goal was winning the WCAL after finishing second the last two seasons," said Grant, adding "we put aside any individual honors and worked together to provide payback to a lot of teams. People doubted me and also our team so we played with kind of a chip on our shoulders to prove them wrong."
Wrong as in a 30-3 overall St. Francis record, 12-2 in league (as opposed to 2-12 the last couple of seasons), plus a 10-game winning streak that included a 70-66 championship win over Sacred Heart. The Lancers fell a game short of playing for the overall state championship, falling 70-65 to Rocklin. Grant’s line in that Rocklin contest: 24 points, nine boards, two assists and a steal. In the previous 63-52 semifinal playoff victory against Fairfield, Grant posted a double-double of 19 points and 11 rebounds. Possessing a 35-inch vertical aids his court achievements.
What was the best basketball moment for the Mercury News Player of the Year, WCAL co-player of the year, Palo Alto Daily News Player of the Year, and CCS Player of the Year? "Most definitely winning the WCAL championship at Foothill College against Sacred Heart. Doing so was our goal as a team."
Asked what changes he has seen within himself going from a frosh to a senior, Granted answered, "My maturity level has gone way up, my basketball IQ has increased and my body is stronger. I’m better at keeping my composure and have learned to play through adversity. My advice to youngsters is keep working and your time will come."
What has he learned about recruiting? "Well, it definitely goes up and down and coaches have different approaches. I say just go out and work hard. Become the best you can be and you will have options."
Speaking of such, Grant recently visited a college in the Midwest on a weekend recruiting trip.
His remembrances of the sojourn:
"There is a plane ticket paid for by the school waiting for you at the airport. My parents came with me but paid their own way. The school took care of a hotel room for me and all my meal costs. We went to some really nice places to eat, I had steak and pasta but my favorite was the calzone at The Oasis, a place next to the campus. On campus, my itinerary consisted of meeting with academic advisers and also the academic person who comes on road trips with the basketball team, plus the top administrator of the business school there.
We toured the facilities -- they have a brand new arena -- and I played a bit in open gym one day and also spent some time hanging out with the other players.
I told them beforehand that I didn’t want to commit while on my trip and the coaching staff respected that and didn’t bring that up."
Grant closed with this: "I am looking for a school with a really good college feel to it. I want coaches that will have the best interest in me and are driven to win. Probably the most important thing about the program is that I want it to be successful and help make me a better player every year."