Kurtz is taking visits

Kevin McCarthy
 

We all stereotype, especially so as sports fans. Think tall and a basketball center comes to mind. However, such boilerplate thinking is obviously not particularly accurate. Mike Kurtz stands 6-feet-11 and plays basketball for Woodcreek High but don’t pigeonhole him as a back-to-the-basket five man.

Kurtz = versatility
Photo courtesy of Paul Geyer

We all stereotype, especially so as sports fans. See someone wide or even hearing about such dimensions and we think football. With short, it’s wide receiver, guard or maybe even track star entering our frontal lobes. Think tall and a basketball center is the only possibility. However, such boilerplate thinking is obviously not particularly accurate. A prime example: Mike Kurtz stands 6-feet-11 and plays basketball for both Woodcreek High and the E-Time Hoops Academy. Just don’t pigeonhole him as a back-to-the-basket five man.

Yes, Kurtz is just shy of seven feet and he’ll bang inside even at 190 pounds. But his shooting range extends to 15-feet or more, his 80% at the foul line is impressive for an NBA-er a foot smaller, plus his vision and passing skills are at times remindful of Vlade Divac. So the options available to whoever is coaching him are tantalizing and it’s clear that positioning him strictly 180 degrees from facing the basket is underutilizing his assets.

Kurtz concurs. He notes "my ability to move, my passing and shooting ability" as his best skills. Conversely, what he is working on are the obvious -- greater weight and muscle.

Here’s Ernest Taubado, coach of the E-Time Hoops Academy with his Kurtz assessment: "Michael’s best attribute is he wants to be coached. In order to meet and exceed your basketball goals, you have to be a student in the arena of basketball. Mike may have a 3.7 GPA but he has a 4.0 in basketball preparation."

Kurtz loved basketball almost from the get-go. "I think the third word I said was “ball,’" Kurtz said. His father played NAIA college hoops so maybe there’s some genetic influence also at work.

He remembers he was taller than his kindergarten teacher "but I still played at the point when I was younger and we were living in the Bay Area." Hence the development of his court vision and passing ability.

It wasn’t until the family moved to the Sacramento area that Kurtz was exposed to club basketball.

Despite measuring 83 inches, thoughts about a college basketball scholarship are something relatively new for Kurtz. "It really hit me last year when I started talking to some colleges," he said. His solid play during this July and August provoked many more conversations and crystalized the fact that getting ‘shipped’ was in the offing.

Kurtz has already taken unofficial visits to Pacific and Sacramento State, with another unofficial to UC Davis happening soon. He also has official visits upcoming for UC Irvine and Pennsylvania. He wants to land at "a school hosting a good business program" and, although he isn’t necessarily tied to it, "my parents would love that it not be too far from home." Kurtz is looking to major in business along the lines of management and/or marketing. He carries that aforementioned 3.7 grade point average so his college eligibility is a done deal.

His other preference? "I don’t want to be a five so a team using a motion offense, one that would allow me to step out, move around and shoot is what I’m looking for."

There’s a line of coaches forming in the Sacramento area, proverbial pen and paper in hand.